2012 Chateauneuf du Pape

Last night my tasting group met to sample thru the 2012 vintage of Chateauneuf du Pape. We stayed away from the really high priced cuvees. The idea was to be able to find some wines that we liked that are still available in the market place. I have had a few 12's, but this was by far the most concentrated tasting I have been to. In general, I thought the wines good and even very good, but not great. Certainly not up to 09 or 10. I have a fair amount of older CdP in the cellar. I was hoping to find some to buy as the early returns on 13 and 14 are not favorable.

There were 11 of us tasting 12 wine. 8/12 of the wine received a first place vote. None of the wines were shut out completely from a 1, 2, or 3 place finish. I think that speaks to the many different styles of CdP. There is something for everyone. In fact, the group's WOTN got only one first place vote, but nothing lower than a middle score while the second place wine got 3 first place votes but also a few near the bottom marks. In my tasting notes, i have listed the number of 1, 2, and 3rd place votes.

The wines were all pop and pour and served over three hours. Breads and cheeses were served.

• 2012 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc Cuvée Roussanne Vieilles Vignes 93 Points

  France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

  This is already damn good albeit a bit heavy on the oak. Give it a couple of years and it should be even more awesome. The nose is creamy with lemon oil, toast and slight orange notes. Chris said butterscotch and I agreed. Intriguing. On the palate, this is waxy with lemons and a slightly bitter (in a good way) note. Great texture. The oak is more vanilla and fresh cut on the palate. Some heat on the finish. For me, the oak was just slightly over the top at this point, but still an amazing wine. I am not sure where this goes from here. Will this age? I have no idea. My best guess would be cellaring for a few years and drinking soon after.

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• 2012 Roger Sabon Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Prestige 88 Points

  France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

  Purple/ruby in color. Tight nose. Spice, cedar. With air, some raspberries and a bit of beef jerky. Medium bodied. Nice black cherry fruit. Heat on the finish. Got 1 first and 2 seconds.

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• 2012 Domaine Giraud Châteauneuf-du-Pape Premices 89 Points

  France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

  Ruby/purple in color. The nose has red fruits. Some spice. Sweet raspberry fruit on the palate. very nice texture. Some tannins. Some complexity. Seems to be on the fast track. More red fruit than dark. One first, one second, one third.

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• 2012 Domaine des Sénéchaux Châteauneuf-du-Pape 90 Points

  France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

  I don't recall having this winery before. The nose has black cherries with slight roasted meats. On the palate. This is smooth and has some depth to it. Full tannins. Softer texture. Cherries on the finish. Zero first, one second, one third.

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• 2012 Domaine Giraud Châteauneuf-du-Pape 90 Points

  France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

  Ruby, slight purple. The nose has a dry powdered raspberry drink mix quality to it. Also some leather and spice. On the palate, very tannic. Black raspberry fruit. Some depth. No firsts or seconds, but one third.

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• 2012 Domaine de la Janasse Châteauneuf-du-Pape 91 Points

  France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

  Ruby/purple in color. The nose is tight with raspberries, dust and slight charred quality. On the palate, black raspberries. Juicy acidity. Medium tannins. Drinking better than most tonight. I liked this more than the group. One first, no seconds, one third (my vote).

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• 2012 La Bastide Saint-Dominique Châteauneuf-du-Pape 89 Points

  France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

  Purple/ruby in color. The nose has black cherries, slight black pepper and a bit of roasted meat. On the palate, this is soft with tart acidity. More cherries and red fruit than the nose would lead me to believe. Light tannins. This seemed to be a wine that AFWE would love and others maybe not. The scores agreed as this got 3 firsts, and 2 seconds, by far the best showing, but also some last and second last place scores. It finished second in our voting.

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• 2012 Domaine Olivier Hillaire Châteauneuf-du-Pape Les Petits Pieds d'Armand 91 Points

  France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

  Purple/ruby in color. The nose is spicy with black cherries and black raspberries. This is a big bold wine. Interesting contrast to the prior wine. Lots of black raspberry and black cherry fruit. Big tannins. Depth. Should improve a whole lot in a few years as it sorts out. The groups WOTN, mostly because no one hated it. One first, 2 seconds, one third.

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• 2012 Domaine de la Janasse Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Chaupin 91 Points

  France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

  Always a favorite, this epitomizes the vintage for me. Very good, but a few steps off the great years. Ruby/purple in color. Raspberries, spice and slight floral notes on the nose. The palate has black cherries, medium tannins with a slight bitter note. A hint of mint on the finish. Two first, one second, two thirds. The groups #3.

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• 2012 Domaine de la Mordorée Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée de la Reine des Bois 91 Points

  France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

  Purple/ruby in color. The nose has spice and black raspberries. This is big with black raspberries and cedar on the palate. Medium tannins. Seemed to lack some depth of prior years but has a juicy deliciousness that is good now. One first, zero seconds, 2 thirds.

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• 2012 Domaine Olivier Hillaire Châteauneuf-du-Pape 92 Points

  France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

  I thought this was the best drinking wine on the table and voted it my WOTN. I don't see it making old bones, but for the next 5 to 10, should provide good drinking. Ruby in color. The nose has cedar, black raspberries, spice and slight floral notes. On the palate, this has big, juicy black cherry fruit. Firm tannins. It has a supple deliciousness that separated it for me on this night. The group like it far less although it got one first (mine), one second and one third.

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• 2012 Clos du Mont-Olivet Châteauneuf-du-Pape La Cuvée du Papet 92 Points

  France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

  The group had this in last which I just don't get. I had it in second. Ruby/purple in color. The nose is tight, but opens to show black raspberries, black cherries, licorice and spice. On the palate, medium bodied. Black cherries and raspberries. Slick texture. Lots of juicy acidity. I didn't really hear what people didn't like about this, so I am confused. Zero first, one second, zero thirds.

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• 2012 Clos Saint Jean Châteauneuf-du-Pape Vieilles Vignes 86 Points

  France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape

  I don't know if this was a flawed bottle or not. As Jeff said, its not worth $60 to risk finding out. The nose is really odd. Like cotton candy. sugary with a vague redness to it. On the palate, its a bit better. Generic red wine. Light bodied. I will say that after about two hours, it did start to improve, especially on the palate. The nose cleaned up a little, the palate put on some weight. Maybe in another few hours it would have shown well. No flaw that I could identify but odd. Zero first, zero seconds, but it did get one third.

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A very interesting tasting.