Second Sunday Group: 2016 Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Our house
Tasted Sunday, November 18, 2018 by AllRed with 456 views
Introduction
The 2nd Sunday group gathered for our regular double blind tasting. For this group, we are presented a couple of double blind warm ups before the main flight. The warm ups are discussed & unveiled before moving on to the themed main flight. We spent forty five minutes or so tasting and evaluation the eight wines for the main flight before ranking the wines and then making guesses as to what we were tasting. Wines are ranked 1-8, one point for each place, and then unveiled from last place to first place. After the tasting, dinner is served with the additional wines brought by the group, nonblind. As Domino and I hosted this event, we tasted single blind, i.e., we knew the wines but we did not know the order (I bag them and she arranges them). For this tasting we had twelve tasters and the cost was $45.
Flight 1 - Warm ups (3 Notes)
The Champagne was served nonblind to the group, the whites double. Most correctly identified the viognier right away, whereas the Guillemot, being a blend of 70% pinot blanc and 30% chardonnay, was a bit more difficult.
Flight 2 - Main flight (8 Notes)
These were double decanted about three hours before the tasting. I decanted into different bottles since the glass crest on many of these would be felt through the bags and thus be a giveaway to the identity of the wines. As a group these were of identical dark garnet color and most were very similar in profile. A few tasters joked that perhaps I poured from a double magnum because so many seemed like the same wine. There were a couple of guesses of southern Rhone, but most were stumped. These showed much cleaner fruit than one might expect from Châteauneuf, along with firm tannin and nice acidity. The fruit is ripe but not overly so- I did not find any raisin or prune as I've found in other recent vintages. So on the whole I was very pleased with the wines and I will certainly look to add more '16s to the cellar as they become available. They will need some time in the cellar to integrate the tannins, but there is plenty of fruit and acid too, so it would seem reasonable to think that these will certainly age well. So, on to my notes and the wines tasted in today's line up...
Flight 3 - Dinner/dessert wines (12 Notes)
Courtesy of the group, enjoyed with boeuf bourguignon, blueberry cheesecake and chocolate brownies.
NV Etienne Doué Champagne Cuvée Rosé 89 Points
France, Champagne
Nonblind starter before the warm ups. Nice berry fruit and floral elements. A nice rose for the money.
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2016 Stefania Viognier 88 Points
USA, California, Central Coast, San Benito County
Single blind. The floral notes make this easy to pick out as the viognier. Apple and hand soap notes underneath the florals. Tropical fruit on the palate with a nice bit of acid too. 88-89 pts.
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2014 Domaine Pierre Guillemot Savigny-lès-Beaune Dessus Les Gollardes Blanc 88 Points
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Savigny-lès-Beaune
Single blind. Apple and floral notes with an underlying stony minerality. Light a crisp. Apple and dried honey flavors with a mineral-driven finish. Nice. 70% pinot blanc and 30% chardonnay.
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