Sombre! Opaque! Épais! Quelle texture, il en impose déjà visuellement. Premier nez de Syrah rhodanienne solaire, bourré d’énergie, entre lard violette goudron, tapenade et mûre, qui fait beaucoup penser aux nez de Dard et Ribo. La bouche, compacte, regorge d’acidité minérale, c’est serré (mais approchable, on est sur une 37,5), structuré, sec, mais très salivant. J’avoue que je ne retrouve pas le style Gonon en finesse, ce 2015 me paraît plus extrême, presque plus cornassien…. Au demeurant, il reste assez impressionnant.
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This producer always delivers! This wine seems to balance concentration and finesse. Lots of spice, olives, and black berries. Super aromatic as well. Glad to have another 5 bottles.
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Pearl of Burgundy gala dinner: From double magnum. Some semblance of approachability compared to the 2017/20 tried at the EP tasting. More classical smoked meat and olive northern Rhone notes compared to the younger vintages that showed more natural tendencies.
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Blue and black fruit, olives, grapefruit, stone. Rich and intense, maybe a little funk on the nose. Still quite a lot of tannins left but starting to soften. Great wine! Drink or hold.
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Marked by black olive, lavender and black peppercorn. It has everything one wants in an authentic northern Rhone syrah. But I dare say 09,10, and even 13 are ahead of this wine. Not as polished as I might have expected and a little less interesting. Just in need of a few more years I think. Would not pull another anytime soon. The rule of 15 abides.
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Incredible, concentrated nose with a core of beautiful black fruit together with touches of black pepper, spices and meat. Precise and intense on the full bodied palate. Great persistence on the finish. Delicious now but worth waiting if you can!
WSET Notes:
Deep ruby.
Pronounced on the nose with blackberry, black plum, black cherry, meat, leather, earth, black pepper and cinammon. Developing.
Pronouned and dry on the palate. Full body, high acidity, high tannins, medium alcohol, long finish.
Can drink now but has potential for ageing.
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This is one powerful wine. Very intense but still restrained, some reduction at first, lots of tannins. I wouldn't start drinking the coming five years.
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Decanted 45 mins or so before drinking. Real brine and olive nose to start. Later overripe strawberries. Some tannins still. WIth more time this becomes more integrated and together. Doesn't quite hit the heights of the 2010 Chave StJo drunk alongside but a proper and grown up St Joseph that would be super over an evening. Needs a more time though: 3-5 years?
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Bromley Wine Circle does Northern Rhone - 2nd November 2023 (Beckenham): Decanted for an hour. Youthful on the nose with iodine notes, some transitory grated dark-milk chocolate and some over-ripe strawberry. With air this recedes a little and as one of my table mates nails a touch of curry leaf. Palate has mulberry fruit and a hung meat character. Red fruited, rich and long. A hint of black cumin after a couple of hours. Excellent stuff.
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Off the list at La Saveurs du Marche in Vienne. Provenance doesn't get much better. Haven't had a Gonon St. Joseph rouge in a while. A lovely St. Joseph, but I don't get the hype. Very pure red fruiy, olive, soft game. Clearly very elegant, but still very primary. At this pricepoint, there are plenty of other St. Joseph I would prefer to drink.
The wine has a beguiling intense aromatic fragrant nose with game notes, black pepper, noticeable olive tapenade and some smoky notes. After about 2 hours in the glass, dark forest fruits and subtle earthy hints emerge. Wow!
The palate is medium-bodied. There are dark fruits again here, blackberries and violet tones, savory notes of black olives and peppery hints. The tannins are present but not dominant. In contrast, the acidity is extremely present. It currently gives the wine a good structure because the fruit notes are still holding up against it. I hope the balance will remain and the acidity will not take over at some point. The finish is medium long.
This is a really nice, impressively structured and incredibly lively Syrah. It is particularly interesting that despite the very ripe vintage, this wine has such remarkable freshness and elegance.
On the third day in the glass, I notice lovely graphite/pencil notes. Now the wine is clearly on the dark and peppery spicy side. One would prefer to smell into the wine all the time!
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Decanted and enjoyed over the next 2 hours with bread and cheese.
Started with funky notes that blew away very soon, got fresher with more air and showed olives, dark berries and meaty notes, on the palate good freshness, medium bodied with depth and long finish.
Old school northern Rhone, gently extracted, youthful and elegant with a perfect dose of dirtiness that gives the complexity to the wine, already superb but has still additional upside potential, 93+.
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After two not so good experiences with Gonon's 2016 and 2018 vintages, both consumed at a very young age, this 2015 with more bottle age finally convinced me of this producer's quality. Apparently all these wines need is more age.
This is the essence of northern rhone syrah, all the typical aromas just bursting out of the glass. I assume that this has just begun its journey and it will continue to develop for many more years.
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After a corked 2012, what a pleasure to drink a fresh and healthy 2015. Abolsute hedonistic pleasure for me, But hedonism that is all about savoury freshness. There’s no no oak or warm vintage sweetness or heat here - just black currant, salty fruit, violet, licorice, bay leaf, black tapenade and pepper. Love Gonon.
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Apres le test au Coravin, on a fini la bouteille et c'est nettement mieux : je retrouve plein de parfums, des notes fumées, un bel équilibre, c'est très bien avec une belle longueur. Je ne sens pas d'acidité. Bizarre, peut-être que ce vin n'aime pas être brusqué ! A boire, a garder ? Je pense qu'il est très bien et qu'il va durer.
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Un sample au Coravin sur ce millésime pas encore goûté. Au depart le vin est un peu frais, le nez est expressif eten bouche des gros parfums de syrah, un peu d’acidité mais c'est très bien, très typique de Gonon. Je laisse un peu reposer et réchauffer et c'est un peu surprenant car le vin a beaucoup changé et perdu de sa fraîcheur et des parfums : on est sur un vin plus austère et avec moins de pep's, on sent plus les tanins, c'est encore bien mais ca me plaît moins. Au final c'est un peu bizarre... et ca confirme que dans 90% des cas je n'aime pas l’aération des vins ! 15/20.
Very youthful but still exciting to drink with an electricity and freshness running through it like only few producers can muster in the wine world. I get deep dark raspberry and boysenberry fruit with an amazing floral lift on the nose and palate. Full-bodied and tannic yet light on its feet with superb intensity that builds to an already complex finish sporting notes of lavender spice and other heavenly flowers. This should blossom into a fabulous vintage of this wine in time. The price of this wine tripled overnight a few years ago and frankly I can see why. 94+
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Made from grapes that have been grown organically on predominantly granite soil. Fermented spontaneously in open-top oak fermenters with 2-week maceration, stems and all. Aged for 24 months in old foudres and 600-liter demi-muids. Bottled with ~50 mg/l SO2. 13,5% alcohol. Tasted half-blind in a tasting of ten 2015 Saint-Joseph wines.
Luminous, somewhat translucent black cherry color with a youthful, faint purplish hue. The nose is instantly recognizable for a Gonon with the first sniff: it is so wonderfully fragrant and expressive with intense aromas of bilberries and floral notes of violets, some juicy blackberry tones, a little bit of boysenberry, light gamey tones, a hint of olive, a touch of crushed peppercorns and a whiff of lifted sauvage character. This is really Saint-Joe at its best. The wine is firm yet silky on the palate with a medium body and intense flavors of boysenberries and fresh, juicy red plums, some briny olive tones, a little bit of meaty umami, light gravelly mineral notes, sweeter hints of bilberries and ripe blackberries and a fragrant touch of fennel. Although the wine shows quite a bit of ripeness, the overall feel is still remarkably fresh and sinewy, thanks to the high acidity and firm yet not aggressive tannins that slowly pile up on the gums. The finish is long, harmonious and juicy with some tannic grip and a vibrant, layered aftertaste of boysenberries and blueberries, some olive, a little bit of darker plummy tones, light floral notes of violets and chopped fennel, a hint of gamey meat and a touch of crushed peppercorns.
In a half-blind tasting of 10 Saint-Joseph wines, it was obvious from the get-go in which glass we had Gonon. As all the other wines we tasted were made in a noticeably more modern, extractive and oak-driven style, the vibrancy, purity and finesse Gonon exhibited was unmistakable. But not only was the style simply different; the intensity, depth of flavor and sense of harmony were all on a completely different level. Although one or two people seemed to favor more extractive winemaking, this was still a unanimous winner of the evening. This was my favorite wine in our tasting and the wine received ten points from the ten participants - twice as much as the wine on second place - making it finish easily on first place. Although I'm not sure if the solar 2015 vintage was that successful in all Northern Rhône, this 2015 Gonon St. Joe seems to be consistently an outstanding wine and probably the best 2015 Northern Rhône Syrah I know. It is still young and shows tons of aging potential, but it has also been drinking exceptionally well right from the release (which is not that typical of many Gonon vintages). Excellent value at 53€.
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All of the bacon fat, animal musk and scorched earth goodness that you could ever possibly desire is embodied in the bouquet of the 2015 Pierre Gonon St. Joseph. It's wiry and intense with brisk acidity, minerals and citrus-tinged blackberries that create a wildly energetic yet impactful impression on the palate. Silty tannins saturate, as the 2015 tapers off remarkably long and potent, leaving hints of salted licorice and spiced citrus rinds to linger. It's a Northern Rhone thang! This is magic tonight. Gonon always over-delivers, even at this young stage. The 2015 would be verging on "desert island wine" if not for the recent explosion in price.
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Served blind, dark purple, exotic nose, aromatic, minty, slight green nose, lush big yet balanced, guessing Spanish but it’s a Syrah! First time drinking a Gonon, 4 hour decant, cerebral, wonderful experience
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2022 Excellent Burgundy Adventure; 10/31/2022-11/6/2022 (Burgundy): Intense nose displaying opulent concentrated black fruit, blackberry concentrate, black cherry, a hint of licorice, ink, lavender, strong pepper, incense and crushed rocks. Excellent concentration, layers upon layers of intense black fruit, rich and oily but also showing excellent details and balance, bright acidity, strong mineral, and a long opulent black fruit driven finish with ink and lavender at the end. This is very expressive and hedonistic.
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(CDV) Trop jeune! Si le nez pur était un enchantement, digne des plus grandes syrah rhodaniennes, la bouche serrée et stricte a tout gâché... A ouvrir dans qq années, il est dans sa phase de fermeture. Mais malgré cette dureté, le potentiel est là. Mais quand ?! Ah ces gros millésimes... (2001, 2005...)
My first Gonon and I can see why people rave about this producer. Superb complexity and precision, no excess ripeness or extraction (even in the hot 2015 vintage), a touch of funk and all embedded in the most elegant, weightless frame. Easily 95+ pts, this eclipsed the Jamet 2015 in the next glass, which in comparison appeared more monolithic, locked, dense and heavy (all things Jamet isn‘t really). 95+ pts.
TN: Expressive, intense nose full of black olives, some meaty notes, a touch of funk and underneath dark ripe fruit. Very precise and intriguing. Same on the palate, very precise dark fruit core and circling around it olives, bacon, some smoky notes, crushed rocks, some spices. A highlight is the very elegant, round, almost weightless structure and feel. Long and intense.
Decanting: Good from the go, improved a bit with air. A short decant is sufficient.
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Immensely precise and detailed. Black and green olives, dark cherry fruit, cold bacon fat. Palate has juicy features the underscore the freshness. Soft and delicate texture with perfectly integrated tannin. This is maybe not as layered or elegant as the best from Hermitage, but an amazing Rhone Syrah nonetheless and definitely changed my view on what’s possible in Saint Joseph. Also worth mentioning no extensive decant needed, was ready to rumble from the get-go.
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Opened and followed over 5 hours. A nice, strong olive note dominated at first, but with air that gives way to pepper, berry and iron notes. This is drinking very well at the moment, but has years to go.
This wine is so lifted and fragrant in the classic Northern Rhone style. There is plenty of rich blackberry fruit with a really sappy mouthfeel but it remains supremely pure and elegant. The finish is juicy and succulent with a refined cut of mineral intensity and that great violet-floral lift. Young but thoroughly enjoyable now and everything I could want from a top Northern Rhone. 94+
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¡Le das un poquito de botella y cómo gana en complejidad! Mantiene un color granate de buena capa. La nariz es expresiva, con presencia, hay muchas violetas, notas de frutilla negra del bosque, algo de mina de lápiz, aceitunas negras y un fondo de regaliz negra. En boca tiene buen ataque, cuerpo medio, textura sedosa, tanino vivo, estructura media, atractiva definición y notable longitud.
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12/13/14/15 vertical. The most concentrated and big boned of the vertical. Lots of flashy, rich, solar fruit and already showing plenty of pepper and olive nuance. Fun and enjoyable already but I think this will be truly great in 10-20 years.
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January Rhônes (Chicago, IL): It's been a while since I tasted this last; this wasn't my bottle as I personally wouldn't have chosen to pull this from my cellar now, but hey, who am I to turn down a glass of this? In this mini vertical, this wine still remains at the top of the heap as far as Gonon vintages are concerned. it's a big, juicy wine; more black than red, with full, sweet fruit, but also some of the classic Gonon lightness and elegance.
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First from a case, with pan-roasted venison and Port sauce. Incredible precision and purity from the first sip to the last. Stemmy blackcurrant fruit, blueberries, violets, black olive, cassis and liquorice, plus finely woven tannins and extreme length. Perhaps a touch of Bovril showing on the finish (yum). Loads of juicy acidity and extremely light on its feet despite the intensity of flavour. Smelled so good I kept the final sip in my glass for ages, and very much looking forward to working my way through the other bottles over the next 15 years or so.
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A complex well-balanced St Joseph, possibly the best we've had. First bottle out of 6. From Coravin at first. Opened the bottle a few days later and tasted over 3 days - held nicely. Could probably be kept another 12-15 year.
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From 375ml. This started a little stewed and not completely fresh on the nose so may have been a slightly faulty bottle. Certainly not as vibrant as last 3 half bottles. Did eventually open into a lovely nose of rocks and olives. Dark black currant. On palate fresh, minerals and nicely balanced acidity.
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Dark crushed berries, rocks, and hints of dried herbal spice on the nose, this is the biggest, baddest, deepest, Gonon I can remember, intense dark berry fruit, more blackberry than boysenberry, lip smacking acidity, some spice notes, fairly strong medium tannins. So young, and the tannic structure is a little imposing, but if you can get past that, it’s a delicious wine right now. I’m sure it will be even better as the tannins mellow a bit, and I expect that deep fruit to be there for a long time, though I wouldn’t want to predict how it will develop over more than a decade. Despite it’s intensity and depth, there isn’t any overt overripeness of fruit.
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Zoom tasting with the wine group; 10/22/2020-10/23/2020 (Zoom): Medium-deep ruby with purple edges; intensely aromatic nose with gamey notes, black pepper, noticeable olive tapenade, some smokey notes; palate is medium bodied, elegant medium-plus acidity, medium alcohol, plenty of primary black and purple fruit but really interesting and complex savory notes with olives; finish is medium-plus to long. This is a really lovely northern rhone syrah. The aromatics on this really improved with 1-2 hours in the glass. Ready to try now but will age further and I think the mouthfeel will improve over time as the wine becomes even more integrated. 93+
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Savory, olive inflected nose, loaded with red fruit. Bacon fatty, became more savory and floral with time. Good balance and tart, lots of depth of red fruit and quite spicy. Some tannin here as well. Very good now, will get better for a long time.
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Purple in color. Dark berries, herbs, violets, mixed with spices and olives. The nose is intoxicating. Palate had sweet earthy fruit with bright acidity. Really tasty stuff already, and should really only go up with some bottle age.
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Opaque core, mauve tinged rim; lots of primary black fruit on bouquet, glossy; dark fruit, black pepper, good density, touch of black olive, well structured; depth to an extended finish. Needs plenty of time.
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Tasted blind. Dark berries, violets, herbs, and a hint of plum on the somewhat backwards and slightly muted nose. Medium tannins and good acidity on the palate, along with flavors of red fruit and more dark berries. Good finish, although obviously very young. Quite promising wine, but this needs time. 93+
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My first Gonon. Opened at 4pm and slow ox. Consumed the other half on night 2 after vacuum seal.
A dark wine, I'd say medium to dark purple. Lovely and distinctive nose of purple flowers, violets, lavender, traces of pepper. Floral overall. Medium+ palate explodes with tart purple fruit. It is very nicely concentrated but balanced. Pure blueberry, young blackberry, lavender. Pleasing acidity. Finely integrated tannins but quite present, so helpful to have with food if near-term drinking. After 90 minutes in the glass, the initial 2 ounces I poured showed off some smoky earth, mineral and pepper on the nose, and some bacon came out on the palate. Nice length.
Very primary and quite god right now, but needs time. On night 2 it was just showing off its acidity and tannin. Will be interesting to check back on this in the years to come.
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From half bottle. Popped and poured. Very dark fruited, highly perfumed and peppery. Seems to be more open on the nose than two previous half bottles in last 18 months. Lovely tangy dark fruits. Great acid to balance such dark fruit, very long too. The finish has a touch of dry tannin. Definitely still very young but seems more open and drinking deliciously, the balance of freshness and dark aromatic fruits is a great combination.
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Lovely perfume showing vibrant floral, dark fruit, and that darkly savory meaty, almost tarry aroma that permeates all the rest. I wasn’t getting the olives that are usually so much a part of the Gonon nose. Delicious and true on the palate, well balanced, maybe a bit less complex and focused than other vintages? This wine strikes me as being more generous than it does serious and age worthy. That said, I had it at a Korean bbq place and probably shouldn’t make generalizations based on that experience, as I was not able to give it my fullest attention.
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Weekly tasting group RWP #358: Burgundy and Northern Rhone (@ VD): Flowers and cherry candy stick in the bouquet. On the palate a firm amount of red fruit acidity, some minerals and a bit lactic. Cherries and raspberries. Very fresh and a good length. Needs some more years in the bottle. 92++
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Couldn’t find the last bottle of ‘11 vintage, so this will do. Dark ruby in color, hardly showing any age. Incense, flowers, stems, and herbs on the nose. Quite forward and clean. Mouth watering acidity and fine tannins abound. Dark olives, pepper, blackberries, and finished with a touch vanilla oaks. A touch warmth at backend too being a ripe vintage. Approachable now but still a few years away from maturity. Delicious as usual.
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Decanted and drank over 2 hours or so. Not as ripe as I expected for a 2015. Nose is very savory and has lots of olive. On the palate, dark fruit and also good freshness. Worth trying now if you have a few.
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Encore une autre belle bouteille bue au resto L'impérial de Granby, il en restait encore "des cachées". De plus, les mardi, les vins en bas de 100$ la bouteille sont 50% de rabais! OUF, Quel accord avec l'onglet de boeuf sauce Diane et les frites aux truffes!!! Nez qui embaume, viandes, fumée, épices, herbes et fruits noirs. En bouche, sublime, le bacon, le lard, les mures, le poivre et la pointe de salinité...on en redemande. Belle faicheur, digeste et bien gouleyant, les tanins sont fins et la finale hyper longue sans accroc. Dommage qu'il soit si difficile à trouver!
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This really wasn't in a great place. I decanted it early thinking it might need time to unwind, but tried some early on and found that wasn't really the case. But it was surprisingly lighter than expected. Not muted, like mild TCA, just less texture than expected. I've had 11 bottles (IIRC) of the 2015 IdF and that wine has been awesome every time. Now, drinking this, it's like they mixed the wines up in bottling. The IdF has been fresher, more vibrant, deeper and more complex. Puzzling really.
Anyway, having said that it really is still a lovely wine and it probably just needs a lot more time. Olive, blackberry, and herb are all present. Good stuff, but not coming together well at the moment.
Un vin spectaculaire! Le nez est très classique, charmeur avec des notes de violettes et de viande fumée, avec des mûres et framboises entremêlées. Le fruit est pur et éclatant, c’est frais et gourmand, avec une finesse et un raffinement rares sur l’appellation, qui évoque davantage une belle Côte Rôtie. Superbe! 93 pts
Intensive nose with tons of black olives, brine and slightly smoked sausage. Dark fruit with sloan, blackberry and cranberry. On the palate a bit lighter, one could wish for a little more omph to the fruit. Very elegant. Not too mcuh tannin. Good lenght. Yum!
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Deep core, rubied, mauve tinge to rim; black olives & hint of herbs de Provence back up plenty of polished dark fruit; plenty of tannin which smoothed our post 4 hour decant; loads of supple fruit, touch of black pepper, clean cut, neat profile; has a forthright feel to an extended, grippy finish. Stood up well to buffalo fillet steak.
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I'm scoring this wine below most of the crowd here. Very ripe, lush fruit and soft silky tannins. But that's the issue. The wine is so ripe it lacks a bit of structure in terms of tannin and lacks enough acidity to keep it fresh and balance the weight of the fruit. It's good and the ripe fruit is beguiling on the nose, but it's just sufficiently fat enough to leave me tired of it after a few glasses.
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Tras haber catado no hace mucho un 2010 este 2015 se muestra todavía algo impetuoso aunque ya muestra algunas de las grandes cualidades que esta excelente syrah atesora. La nariz es atractiva, las notas de violetas frescas, los recuerdos a fruta roja fresca, los toques de hierbas aromáticas, algo de regaliz negra y algunos matices tostados acompañan un paso por boca placentero, con un tanino firme pero bien perfilado, buena acidez, estructura media y notable persistencia.
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Decanted for an hour, out of 375. Just spectacular. Inky color, super-aromatic blend of herbs driven by violet-lavender and a touch of fennel. Blue-fruit driven. Medium body, not nearly the thickness one might be tempted to expect given the color. Beautiful, beautiful
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2015 Northern Rhones Blind: Single blind. Lives up to the hype, again, and has a distinctive olive brine note that is pure Gonon. From the get go, the nose is lifted, intense and bright with savory black fruit and olives for days. Great fruit concentration that is so smooth without any trace of heat or warmth. Olive, olive and more olive. Damn good.
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Most of the 2015 Northern Rhones worth a damn, blind (Chicago, IL): Served single blind. I was fairly convinced that the Faury VV was the Gonon, until I tasted this wine. Instantly recognizable for its incredibly aromaticity and intensity. This edition of the Gonon St. Joseph has always towered over all the other vintages I've had (note: I missed the 2010 on release, and it's pointless to broach that wine right now). It's briny with an insane amount of fruit, but there's nothing here that is hot -- there's something about the character of this wine that cools off the heat. An absolute stunner and upon tasting this, I was fairly quickly convinced of the error of my initial guess.
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From a half bottle: dark, meaty crushed fruit nose, then deep, brooding dark red fruit, fairly strong fine tannins, a beam of mouthwatering acidity cuts through the dried herbs and mild spice. so lively and delicious at this young stage, will be interesting to follow over the years - though it's hard resist drinking now.
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Decanted the wine. On the nose, very pure dark fruits and modest cigar, on the palate, the tannin was solid and not overpowering, with elegant deep dark berries, smoke, and bacon fat. The wine has been gaining weight over the next 4 fours, and it seems close down later, showing that the wine was still very young. I would wait a few years to open the next bottle.
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Un magnifique vin qui m'a impressionné par sa finesse et sa pureté. Il évoque davantage une très belle Côte Rôtie qu'un St-Joseph. C'est un vin plein, frais, parfumé, doté d'une élégance remarquable et d'un fruité séduisant. Excellent. 93 pts
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This wine turned out to be my favourite Gonon of the night (among 05, 09, 10, 14, 15 vintages). On the nose, floral with various spices, somewhat more elegant than 05, 09, 10, which was quite a surprise to me considering the vintage, also presented smoked bacon and herbs on the nose, on the palate, the fruit was dense yet with good structure, firm tannin, and balance, black olives, Asian spices, and mix of red and black berries. Finish was long. Still a young baby that can age another 10+ years to enjoy.
In our vertical dinner, this vintage stood out with its perfect balance between ripeness and acidity. Rich and intense. Very good density with pepper, purple fruit, crunchy berries and spice. This will be so good when it reaches its early maturity in 8-10 years.
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Quite rich with superb intensity and freshness. Great flavors of perfectly ripe blackberries with really good mineral cut. Finishes grippy and taut with notes of graphite and violets. Has a great floral lift on the nose and palate. A brilliant vintage for this great wine that should age extremely well off its perfect balance. 93+
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Soaring nose filled with violets, lavender, grilled meat and herbs practically jumps from the glass. Medium bodied and graceful in the mouth, with black olives, tobacco, earth and iron on the palate, followed by gentle grip and moderate length on the crisp finish. This distinctly Burgundian wine is very impressive for the appellation. Drink now - 2030. 93.
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Bu au restaurant L’Impérial de Granby pour accompagner l’onglet de bœuf sauce Diane et les côtes levées fumées sur place…SUPERBE ACCORDS! De plus les mardis, le vin est 50%...on est donc presqu’au prix de la SAQ, WOW! Quel beau vin, une Syrah craquante, bien nourri et savouresue…SUPERBE! Nez fabuleux sur les violettes, les herbes, la viande et la fumée. En bouche, belle densité et concentration. Du bacon et de la tapenade avec un peu de framboises et de poivre. Les tannins sont charnus et il y a une belle acidité qui rend l’ensemble bien équilibré. La finale super longue est bien digeste et veloutée. Excellent sur toute la ligne. J’aime bien les vins de producteur, seulement dispo en IP (Maitre de Chai) et que dire de la carte des vins du resto, un très beau choix qui sort des sentiers battus et qui nous donne aussi des classiques incontournables. Chapeau à François Côté, le chef proprio et son équipe!
Aroma: blueberries, potatoes, black pepper, iron Medium-bodied with excellent acidity and firm tannins. Nice balance and structure. Very good length (91).
Very young…
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Made from grapes that have been grown organically on predominantly granite soil. Fermented spontaneously in open-top oak fermenters with 2-week maceration, stems and all. Aged for 24 months in old foudres and 600-liter demi-muids. Bottled with ~50 mg/l SO2. 13,5% alcohol.
Somewhat translucent and very luminous reddish black cherry color. Incredibly fragrant and perfumed nose with intense, expressive aromas of freshly picked forest fruits, crunchy tones of blackcurrants and boysenberries, a vibrant floral streak of violets, a little bit of olive and a hint of something wild. Very pure and incredibly captivating nose here. The wine is dry, intense and rather tough on the palate with a medium body and very ripe and noticeably primary flavors showing a lot of everything: ripe blackberries and boysenberries, perfumed violet tones, a little bit of chopped fennel, light raspberry tones, hints of black pepper-driven spice and a wild Campari-like touch of chinotto zest. Overall the wine is pretty structured and tightly-knit with high acidity and firm, grippy tannins. The finish is lively, pure and grippy with long and intense flavors of fresh blackberry-driven fruit, crushed peppercorns, some ripe boysenberries, a hint of stony minerality and an olive touch of tapenade.
A beautifully pure, impressively structured and incredibly vibrant Syrah that shows incredible depth and breadth of flavor. Many Northern Rhône 2015 reds have been impressive, but also very obviously ripe and somewhat monolithic in style, whereas this wine is anything but: Gonon's St. Jo 2015 is bright, crunchy and well-proportioned Syrah that shows good ripeness but also remarkable freshness, grace and elegance. Overall the wine is pretty tightly-knit and although not aggressive, still really structure-driven and quite angular in its expression. Incredibly beautiful wine now, but also one that speaks volumes on its future potential. Just outrageous stuff. Hands down the best young St. Joseph I've had, great value at 34,55€.
Ouvert vers 17h30 et dégusté à 19h00 Il se boit étrangement très bien en jeunesse. Minéral et accessible,il est tout en finesse.Une attaque très épices douces avec de la violette avec une finale tout en fruit.Vraiment beau maintenant. 92 pts.
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I've tasted the 2015 Gonon a couple of times and this is potentially the best Gonon ever made. Evolves around black olives and dark fruit notes in combination with marks of pepper, violets, tea and broth. Is both very wide and deep, carries tremendous potential. I'm pretty sure this will be closing down, there's some tannic bite, but this is a treat to try now. Wow.
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Served blind at Moor Hall, Aughton. Very young, dark, inky purple. Elegant restrained black fruit Smooth, fresh, black fruit on the palate. But it feels very young and a bit tight. V grippy tannins. I'm not finding this particularly impressive, but it's struggling to impress next to the Ribolla, and certainly feels much less approachable than that. Really much too young.
I'd guess at a Bordeaux blend? Or maybe something like an Oz GSM?
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Needed some air time to really open, this note is after a couple of hours of air. The nose, OMG the nose. Incredible floral perfume, like walking through a field of mixed spring flowers and lavender. Then beautiful dark violet blackberry/boysenberry fruit, tremendous lip-smacking acidity, and a healthy dose of structure in the form of moderately chalky, mouth-gripping tannins. Complexity abounds, with savory herbs, floral and lavender notes. Tasted along side its 2014 brother, the vintage contrast is obvious, with the 14 showing the cooler, wetter character, and this 15 showing its warmth. Both wines are excellent, but the 15 is special.
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Une petite bombe dans ce millésime, des airs de Côte Rôtie avec ses arômes sauvages et de viande fraîche. Pas tout à fait en place et davantage sur la gourmandise que la finesse, mais je suis confiant pour l’avenir.
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An alluring nose of red and blue berries, violets, spices, and definitely the Indian spices that Josh Reynolds picks up. Dense core of flavours red and blue berries again, mid to full bodied, vitello tonato, kirsch cherry and graphite with a touch of black pepper at the end; firm and quite full tannins, good length, and with acidity that is nicely folded in. More savoury than fruit driven. Sprightly, and carries good density without excessive weight.
Can drink comfortably at the moment, but has the stuff for another 5-10 years ageing (if not more)
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Probably the most exciting young Gonon I've had since the 07 or 10. This is going to be something really special with time, though it's already making some progress there. It's bursting with ripe red and dark berried fruit and black olive tapenade - intense and ripe, but also really compelling right now with a lot of depth and complexity. The aromatics show plenty of pepper, violets, and stemmy notes, and these only pick up in intensity with more air while the palate starts to show a more savoury component on the back end. The overall balance is stunning, with plenty of bright acidity that keeps this feeling incredibly fresh and vibrant on the palate, and a lot of grainy tannin beneath that comes through on the finish.
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A brilliant Gonon. The nose at first showed a lot more brine and olive, but that seemed to taper off with time. You know right off the bat that this is insanely rich and powerful wine, and the palate doesn't disappoint at all. It's exactly what you expect -- an incredibly concentrated and fruity wine, but with tons of acidity and freshness as well. The white pepper that I've picked up in other bottles of Gonon seems to be a tad muted, in favour of that luscious fruit. Power and elegance in one package, and easily the best young vintage of Gonon's (apart from the VV) that I can remember.
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Same bottle as Ellen below. A delicious combination of red wine and black olives. I find it generally difficult to pick up specific flavors, but if you can't smell olives here, you need a new nose. And it was blind (in a tasting if rhones) so I wasn't specifically expecting it (as I think it's a bit of gonon signature).
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Tried this last night as part of a blind 2015 Rhône tasting. This was a standout. I feel fortunate to have a next day half glass left so I can write a real note (albeit second days
Last night all I jotted down was that it presented with a heavy olive smell on nose. Almost too much, but it blew off and became wonderful.
Second day note:
Appearance - opaque dark purple. Ruby rim
Nose - black fruits. Heavy ripe blackberry and strong smell of olives. Smells like a dirty martini (with perhaps blackberry vodka?) Tar. Alcohol burn on nose. Lead pencil.
Palate - fresh, youthful, balanced. Medium plus acidity. After swallow your mouth starts to water. Alcohol tastes integrated. Getting some stems on finish. Medium tannins. Finish is medium plus bordering on long. The fruit is alive
This was the first wine we poured last night and perhaps it set a high bar. As I refer to my minimal notes, I really enjoyed this one. Glad to have an opportunity to try to again today. I’m excited about the possibilities this one has to age.
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Wonderful. Great potential. Has definitely started to shutdown in bottle from when I had this last in June 2017. Would imagine most bottles should be left alone for a long snooze.
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Ugh, so so good. Has that olive pepper note you get from Gonon St Joe but backed up by a concentrated blast of black berry fruit. Deeply structured and filled with acid to make it easy drinking. Gonna be a long ager but still damn good with plenty of air.
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Similar to prior vintages in nose and flavor profile - olives, pepper, etc. Has good structure (more so than the 2014) and should age well over the next 10+ years. Really nice, I'm happy to have several bottles of this.
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Tasted this only at Decouvertes, it was great to see this again at birthday-dinner; it was, as the sommelier rightly said, quite open for business, immensely concentrated, bursted with black fruit, olives, tar, yet still in the true easy-drinking style of a real St. Joseph. Tannins galore, I will keep my own few bottles for some time before popping one. #La Racine#NYC#52Birthday
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ABV 13.5%. Faint flowers on the nose, not very expressive but very clean. Surprisingly approachable with its fine tannins and excellent balance. Light touch handling without any excessive components. With a hotter vintage, was expecting to be much bigger than '11 vintage, but the wine was not made that way. Paired really well with spaghetti bolognese. Delicious bottle with upside. First bottle from a case. As of late, my favorite interpretation of Syrah grapes. Wish he would make some Cote Rotie and Hermitage.
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Trop jeune forcément, un passage en carafe énergique 2 heures avant de servir à aidé. Jolie syrah sur la finesse qui manque peut-être un peu de matière ou de gras, finale relativement courte pour l'instant. Attendre 2-3 ans avant de la déguster.
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Oeil : opacité 7/10, forte viscosité en parois, larmes épaisses et colorées Nez : projection d'intensité moyenne, poivre blanc (surtout) et noir frais moulus, minéral, fruits noirs sur la mûre et le cassis, noyaux de fruits, fumée, venaison, boisé noble, touche florale au second plan avec une petite pointe de résine/balsamique peut-être, intense tout en demeurant frais et élégant, textbook de haut niveau... Bouche : sec, ample+, acidité rafraîchissante, forte prise minérale, tanins charnus+ et de grain très fin, amertume moyenne, persistance longue, rétro épicée, amère, boisée, minérale... Conclusion : Très grand Saint-Joseph ici et une superbe réussite dans ce millésime trop confit à d'autres adresses. Un superbe mariage d'élégance et de générosité, étonnamment approchable malgré sa jeunesse, la structure en bouche le porte loin dans le temps par ailleurs. Abonné à cette cuvée depuis longtemps, toujours excellent, ce 2015 de Gonon flirte avec le superbe... Approchable maintenant et pour longtemps (@ 2030?). 93-95+
Carafé deux heures, il se boit étrangement très bien en jeunesse. Minéral et accessible,il m'a surpris.Je m'attendais à plus robuste mais ce fût tout en finesse.Une attaque très épices douces avec une finale tout en fruit.Vraiment beau maintenant.Merci Alex T pour la découverte et une caisse arrivera la semaine prochaine chez moi (Maitre de Chai) Pas certain qu'il en reste (68$/bouteille). Je vais en boire une dans 1-3-5 ans je crois.Pas certain de pouvoir tougher. 92 pts.
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Delicious. Quite young and tight on the attack (got tighter after 20 min in the glass), wonderful dark ruby color, classic nose and palate (peppery, smokey, minerality). A bit dilute and short on the finish at the moment (there was some rain when they were picking). The best glass of syrah in the world for the money.
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Very deep, dark, rich and concentrated. Good clean dark fruit with tannins and structure underneath. No intrusive new oak; no excessive alcohol. Leans slightly towards a Cornas style as opposed to subtle and floral. A very nice wine that will benefit from time (but very nice now).
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Probably the best young Gonon so far (yes, Pierre agreed to that). Everything you'd wish for is there. Lovely balance, concentration, and almost surprising accessibility now, but certainly huge potential for the future. Padlock on the remaining bottles!
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Smells like a footy change room at half time, all Dencorub, meat and sweat. With air there's ripe blood plum fruit. It has plenty of floral nuance and a saline mineral quality. There are punchy florals and the wine is full and relatively low acid but lacks no freshness.
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2/24/2024 - chbeaumont wrote: 93 Points
Crimson rim; pulsates with dark fruit, whiff of tapenade & woodsmoke; rounded tannins & supple fruit; concentrated & real dept; extended. Yet to peak.
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1/22/2024 - Raage Likes this wine: 93 Points
Sombre! Opaque! Épais! Quelle texture, il en impose déjà visuellement.
Premier nez de Syrah rhodanienne solaire, bourré d’énergie, entre lard violette goudron, tapenade et mûre, qui fait beaucoup penser aux nez de Dard et Ribo.
La bouche, compacte, regorge d’acidité minérale, c’est serré (mais approchable, on est sur une 37,5), structuré, sec, mais très salivant. J’avoue que je ne retrouve pas le style Gonon en finesse, ce 2015 me paraît plus extrême, presque plus cornassien….
Au demeurant, il reste assez impressionnant.
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1/21/2024 - kosdogger Likes this wine: 94 Points
This producer always delivers! This wine seems to balance concentration and finesse. Lots of spice, olives, and black berries. Super aromatic as well. Glad to have another 5 bottles.
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1/20/2024 - melvinyeowq wrote: 93 Points
Pearl of Burgundy gala dinner: From double magnum. Some semblance of approachability compared to the 2017/20 tried at the EP tasting. More classical smoked meat and olive northern Rhone notes compared to the younger vintages that showed more natural tendencies.
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12/9/2023 - KimHartman wrote: 94 Points
Blue and black fruit, olives, grapefruit, stone. Rich and intense, maybe a little funk on the nose. Still quite a lot of tannins left but starting to soften. Great wine! Drink or hold.
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12/3/2023 - jviz wrote: 93 Points
Marked by black olive, lavender and black peppercorn. It has everything one wants in an authentic northern Rhone syrah. But I dare say 09,10, and even 13 are ahead of this wine. Not as polished as I might have expected and a little less interesting. Just in need of a few more years I think. Would not pull another anytime soon. The rule of 15 abides.
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11/15/2023 - Irish_Wine Likes this wine: 94 Points
Incredible, concentrated nose with a core of beautiful black fruit together with touches of black pepper, spices and meat. Precise and intense on the full bodied palate. Great persistence on the finish. Delicious now but worth waiting if you can!
WSET Notes:
Deep ruby.
Pronounced on the nose with blackberry, black plum, black cherry, meat, leather, earth, black pepper and cinammon. Developing.
Pronouned and dry on the palate. Full body, high acidity, high tannins, medium alcohol, long finish.
Can drink now but has potential for ageing.
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11/11/2023 - Peter Spijker Likes this wine: 93 Points
This is one powerful wine. Very intense but still restrained, some reduction at first, lots of tannins. I wouldn't start drinking the coming five years.
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11/10/2023 - ThijsV Likes this wine: 92 Points
Gonon tasting; 11/10/2023-12/10/2023 (Utregs Wijnhuis, Utrecht, NL): Feels as a combination of the ‘20 and ‘17. Black fruit, olives, coffee, pepper. Medium+ acidity, high tannins, long finish. Brilliant on the palate, still needs more time. 92-93
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11/2/2023 - king-bing wrote:
Decanted 45 mins or so before drinking. Real brine and olive nose to start. Later overripe strawberries. Some tannins still. WIth more time this becomes more integrated and together. Doesn't quite hit the heights of the 2010 Chave StJo drunk alongside but a proper and grown up St Joseph that would be super over an evening. Needs a more time though: 3-5 years?
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11/2/2023 - Vinumming & Ahhing Likes this wine: 91 Points
Bromley Wine Circle does Northern Rhone - 2nd November 2023 (Beckenham): Decanted for an hour. Youthful on the nose with iodine notes, some transitory grated dark-milk chocolate and some over-ripe strawberry. With air this recedes a little and as one of my table mates nails a touch of curry leaf. Palate has mulberry fruit and a hung meat character. Red fruited, rich and long. A hint of black cumin after a couple of hours. Excellent stuff.
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10/21/2023 - KimHartman wrote: 93 Points
Not the best bottle/occasion of the 2015 for me, but still very good.
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9/28/2023 - Aravind Asok wrote:
Off the list at La Saveurs du Marche in Vienne. Provenance doesn't get much better. Haven't had a Gonon St. Joseph rouge in a while. A lovely St. Joseph, but I don't get the hype. Very pure red fruiy, olive, soft game. Clearly very elegant, but still very primary. At this pricepoint, there are plenty of other St. Joseph I would prefer to drink.
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9/21/2023 - B Paul wrote:
Similar to my note from 6/4/22. I’ll wait 2-3 years before opening another as I think there’s more to come.
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9/6/2023 - LB88 wrote: 93 Points
Still quite young and primary but already very good. Will give it a few years before the next bottle
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7/20/2023 - Greg07 Likes this wine: 92 Points
needs 3-4h of carafe or even better next day ... intoxicating !
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7/5/2023 - Cikgoo wrote: 88 Points
Off, slightly oxidize
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7/2/2023 - chbeaumont wrote: 93 Points
Deep ruby; black olive, plenty of dark fruits; gutsy tannins, tapenade, spicy fruit, refreshing acidity; power-packed finish. Yet to peak.
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6/1/2023 - Nora123 Likes this wine: 93 Points
The color is a dark ruby red with purple edges.
The wine has a beguiling intense aromatic fragrant nose with game notes, black pepper, noticeable olive tapenade and some smoky notes. After about 2 hours in the glass, dark forest fruits and subtle earthy hints emerge. Wow!
The palate is medium-bodied. There are dark fruits again here, blackberries and violet tones, savory notes of black olives and peppery hints. The tannins are present but not dominant. In contrast, the acidity is extremely present. It currently gives the wine a good structure because the fruit notes are still holding up against it. I hope the balance will remain and the acidity will not take over at some point. The finish is medium long.
This is a really nice, impressively structured and incredibly lively Syrah. It is particularly interesting that despite the very ripe vintage, this wine has such remarkable freshness and elegance.
On the third day in the glass, I notice lovely graphite/pencil notes. Now the wine is clearly on the dark and peppery spicy side. One would prefer to smell into the wine all the time!
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5/23/2023 - amateur62 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Decanted and enjoyed over the next 2 hours with bread and cheese.
Started with funky notes that blew away very soon, got fresher with more air and showed olives, dark berries and meaty notes, on the palate good freshness, medium bodied with depth and long finish.
Old school northern Rhone, gently extracted, youthful and elegant with a perfect dose of dirtiness that gives the complexity to the wine, already superb but has still additional upside potential, 93+.
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5/21/2023 - chbeaumont wrote: 94 Points
Brilliant ruby; sleek, polished red fruits, breezy; silky tannins, refreshing acidity, precise & focused palate, crackles with energy; splendid finish.
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5/8/2023 - Sebran wrote: 94 Points
After two not so good experiences with Gonon's 2016 and 2018 vintages, both consumed at a very young age, this 2015 with more bottle age finally convinced me of this producer's quality. Apparently all these wines need is more age.
This is the essence of northern rhone syrah, all the typical aromas just bursting out of the glass. I assume that this has just begun its journey and it will continue to develop for many more years.
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5/5/2023 - thunberg wrote: 92 Points
BYOB - "Orginal vs Copy" with Finewines.se (Sollentuna, Sweden): So much has happened since my previous bottle in 2017. A bit of funk, burnt rubber, black pepper, syrah perfume. Will only get better.
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5/5/2023 - jrick Likes this wine: 94 Points
After a corked 2012, what a pleasure to drink a fresh and healthy 2015. Abolsute hedonistic pleasure for me,
But hedonism that is all about savoury freshness. There’s no no oak or warm vintage sweetness or heat here - just black currant, salty fruit, violet, licorice, bay leaf, black tapenade and pepper. Love Gonon.
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3/18/2023 - wwolf1 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Apres le test au Coravin, on a fini la bouteille et c'est nettement mieux : je retrouve plein de parfums, des notes fumées, un bel équilibre, c'est très bien avec une belle longueur. Je ne sens pas d'acidité. Bizarre, peut-être que ce vin n'aime pas être brusqué ! A boire, a garder ? Je pense qu'il est très bien et qu'il va durer.
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3/14/2023 - wwolf1 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Un sample au Coravin sur ce millésime pas encore goûté.
Au depart le vin est un peu frais, le nez est expressif eten bouche des gros parfums de syrah, un peu d’acidité mais c'est très bien, très typique de Gonon.
Je laisse un peu reposer et réchauffer et c'est un peu surprenant car le vin a beaucoup changé et perdu de sa fraîcheur et des parfums : on est sur un vin plus austère et avec moins de pep's, on sent plus les tanins, c'est encore bien mais ca me plaît moins.
Au final c'est un peu bizarre... et ca confirme que dans 90% des cas je n'aime pas l’aération des vins !
15/20.
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2/19/2023 - dream Likes this wine: 94 Points
Very youthful but still exciting to drink with an electricity and freshness running through it like only few producers can muster in the wine world. I get deep dark raspberry and boysenberry fruit with an amazing floral lift on the nose and palate. Full-bodied and tannic yet light on its feet with superb intensity that builds to an already complex finish sporting notes of lavender spice and other heavenly flowers. This should blossom into a fabulous vintage of this wine in time. The price of this wine tripled overnight a few years ago and frankly I can see why. 94+
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1/19/2023 - forceberry wrote: 95 Points
Made from grapes that have been grown organically on predominantly granite soil. Fermented spontaneously in open-top oak fermenters with 2-week maceration, stems and all. Aged for 24 months in old foudres and 600-liter demi-muids. Bottled with ~50 mg/l SO2. 13,5% alcohol. Tasted half-blind in a tasting of ten 2015 Saint-Joseph wines.
Luminous, somewhat translucent black cherry color with a youthful, faint purplish hue. The nose is instantly recognizable for a Gonon with the first sniff: it is so wonderfully fragrant and expressive with intense aromas of bilberries and floral notes of violets, some juicy blackberry tones, a little bit of boysenberry, light gamey tones, a hint of olive, a touch of crushed peppercorns and a whiff of lifted sauvage character. This is really Saint-Joe at its best. The wine is firm yet silky on the palate with a medium body and intense flavors of boysenberries and fresh, juicy red plums, some briny olive tones, a little bit of meaty umami, light gravelly mineral notes, sweeter hints of bilberries and ripe blackberries and a fragrant touch of fennel. Although the wine shows quite a bit of ripeness, the overall feel is still remarkably fresh and sinewy, thanks to the high acidity and firm yet not aggressive tannins that slowly pile up on the gums. The finish is long, harmonious and juicy with some tannic grip and a vibrant, layered aftertaste of boysenberries and blueberries, some olive, a little bit of darker plummy tones, light floral notes of violets and chopped fennel, a hint of gamey meat and a touch of crushed peppercorns.
In a half-blind tasting of 10 Saint-Joseph wines, it was obvious from the get-go in which glass we had Gonon. As all the other wines we tasted were made in a noticeably more modern, extractive and oak-driven style, the vibrancy, purity and finesse Gonon exhibited was unmistakable. But not only was the style simply different; the intensity, depth of flavor and sense of harmony were all on a completely different level. Although one or two people seemed to favor more extractive winemaking, this was still a unanimous winner of the evening. This was my favorite wine in our tasting and the wine received ten points from the ten participants - twice as much as the wine on second place - making it finish easily on first place. Although I'm not sure if the solar 2015 vintage was that successful in all Northern Rhône, this 2015 Gonon St. Joe seems to be consistently an outstanding wine and probably the best 2015 Northern Rhône Syrah I know. It is still young and shows tons of aging potential, but it has also been drinking exceptionally well right from the release (which is not that typical of many Gonon vintages). Excellent value at 53€.
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12/16/2022 - Ben Christiansen wrote:
Powerful on the nose of black spice and then vibrant on the palate.
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12/3/2022 - Eric Guido Likes this wine:
All of the bacon fat, animal musk and scorched earth goodness that you could ever possibly desire is embodied in the bouquet of the 2015 Pierre Gonon St. Joseph. It's wiry and intense with brisk acidity, minerals and citrus-tinged blackberries that create a wildly energetic yet impactful impression on the palate. Silty tannins saturate, as the 2015 tapers off remarkably long and potent, leaving hints of salted licorice and spiced citrus rinds to linger. It's a Northern Rhone thang! This is magic tonight. Gonon always over-delivers, even at this young stage. The 2015 would be verging on "desert island wine" if not for the recent explosion in price.
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11/10/2022 - Claret & CdP Gang Likes this wine:
Served blind, dark purple, exotic nose, aromatic, minty, slight green nose, lush big yet balanced, guessing Spanish but it’s a Syrah! First time drinking a Gonon, 4 hour decant, cerebral, wonderful experience
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11/3/2022 - dcwino wrote: 95 Points
2022 Excellent Burgundy Adventure; 10/31/2022-11/6/2022 (Burgundy): Intense nose displaying opulent concentrated black fruit, blackberry concentrate, black cherry, a hint of licorice, ink, lavender, strong pepper, incense and crushed rocks. Excellent concentration, layers upon layers of intense black fruit, rich and oily but also showing excellent details and balance, bright acidity, strong mineral, and a long opulent black fruit driven finish with ink and lavender at the end. This is very expressive and hedonistic.
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10/28/2022 - dream wrote:
corked
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9/29/2022 - Raage wrote:
(CDV)
Trop jeune!
Si le nez pur était un enchantement, digne des plus grandes syrah rhodaniennes, la bouche serrée et stricte a tout gâché...
A ouvrir dans qq années, il est dans sa phase de fermeture.
Mais malgré cette dureté, le potentiel est là.
Mais quand ?! Ah ces gros millésimes... (2001, 2005...)
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9/29/2022 - Ms. Bubblehead Likes this wine: 93 Points
See my previous notes - excellent wine and showing beautifully at this still youthful age.
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9/3/2022 - Cailles wrote: 95 Points
My first Gonon and I can see why people rave about this producer. Superb complexity and precision, no excess ripeness or extraction (even in the hot 2015 vintage), a touch of funk and all embedded in the most elegant, weightless frame. Easily 95+ pts, this eclipsed the Jamet 2015 in the next glass, which in comparison appeared more monolithic, locked, dense and heavy (all things Jamet isn‘t really). 95+ pts.
TN: Expressive, intense nose full of black olives, some meaty notes, a touch of funk and underneath dark ripe fruit. Very precise and intriguing. Same on the palate, very precise dark fruit core and circling around it olives, bacon, some smoky notes, crushed rocks, some spices. A highlight is the very elegant, round, almost weightless structure and feel. Long and intense.
Decanting: Good from the go, improved a bit with air. A short decant is sufficient.
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9/2/2022 - cfk49 wrote: 92 Points
Similar to the note posted last year, but not nearly as good as the 2014 drunk a few days ago. Cellared since original release.
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9/1/2022 - sirpat00 wrote: 96 Points
Immensely precise and detailed. Black and green olives, dark cherry fruit, cold bacon fat. Palate has juicy features the underscore the freshness. Soft and delicate texture with perfectly integrated tannin. This is maybe not as layered or elegant as the best from Hermitage, but an amazing Rhone Syrah nonetheless and definitely changed my view on what’s possible in Saint Joseph. Also worth mentioning no extensive decant needed, was ready to rumble from the get-go.
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7/16/2022 - chbeaumont wrote: 93 Points
Opaque; bags of fulsome dark fruit, tapenade; forward, well knit, medium/full; finishes with a flourish. Approaching peak.
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6/4/2022 - B Paul wrote:
Opened and followed over 5 hours. A nice, strong olive note dominated at first, but with air that gives way to pepper, berry and iron notes. This is drinking very well at the moment, but has years to go.
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4/6/2022 - merlotsmile Likes this wine:
Le Petit Sommelier, Paris
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2/21/2022 - dream Likes this wine: 94 Points
This wine is so lifted and fragrant in the classic Northern Rhone style. There is plenty of rich blackberry fruit with a really sappy mouthfeel but it remains supremely pure and elegant. The finish is juicy and succulent with a refined cut of mineral intensity and that great violet-floral lift. Young but thoroughly enjoyable now and everything I could want from a top Northern Rhone. 94+
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2/16/2022 - Tubulus wrote:
Third Tuesday Group - My 3 / group 2. Olive gonon nose, floral, structured, awesome.
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2/6/2022 - PacoHigon Likes this wine:
¡Le das un poquito de botella y cómo gana en complejidad! Mantiene un color granate de buena capa. La nariz es expresiva, con presencia, hay muchas violetas, notas de frutilla negra del bosque, algo de mina de lápiz, aceitunas negras y un fondo de regaliz negra. En boca tiene buen ataque, cuerpo medio, textura sedosa, tanino vivo, estructura media, atractiva definición y notable longitud.
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1/31/2022 - Nanda wrote: 93 Points
12/13/14/15 vertical. The most concentrated and big boned of the vertical. Lots of flashy, rich, solar fruit and already showing plenty of pepper and olive nuance. Fun and enjoyable already but I think this will be truly great in 10-20 years.
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1/31/2022 - acyso wrote: 95 Points
January Rhônes (Chicago, IL): It's been a while since I tasted this last; this wasn't my bottle as I personally wouldn't have chosen to pull this from my cellar now, but hey, who am I to turn down a glass of this? In this mini vertical, this wine still remains at the top of the heap as far as Gonon vintages are concerned. it's a big, juicy wine; more black than red, with full, sweet fruit, but also some of the classic Gonon lightness and elegance.
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10/17/2021 - NickA Likes this wine: 95 Points
First from a case, with pan-roasted venison and Port sauce. Incredible precision and purity from the first sip to the last. Stemmy blackcurrant fruit, blueberries, violets, black olive, cassis and liquorice, plus finely woven tannins and extreme length. Perhaps a touch of Bovril showing on the finish (yum). Loads of juicy acidity and extremely light on its feet despite the intensity of flavour. Smelled so good I kept the final sip in my glass for ages, and very much looking forward to working my way through the other bottles over the next 15 years or so.
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9/30/2021 - joshabramson Likes this wine: 93 Points
Dark, rich and concentrated but not at all heavy. Drinking quite well in its youth! Very nice.
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7/24/2021 - Olivia_ct Likes this wine: 95 Points
Amazing wine and vintage. Best St Joseph I tasted so far. Red fruits, nicely pepperry, long finish.
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7/20/2021 - cfk49 wrote: 92 Points
Dense with dark fruit, concentrated, depth. Still has a long life ahead, but very impressive now. Cellared since original release.
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6/22/2021 - phil the agony wrote: 93 Points
Aucune note prise
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6/18/2021 - overkloud wrote: 93 Points
The wine bursted with cherry, rapserberry and blueberry notes and violets. The wine is full body, concentrated and distinctively savory on the palate.
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5/29/2021 - Herschel Krustofski Likes this wine: 94 Points
A complex well-balanced St Joseph, possibly the best we've had.
First bottle out of 6.
From Coravin at first. Opened the bottle a few days later and tasted over 3 days - held nicely. Could probably be kept another 12-15 year.
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3/1/2021 - Jahull03 wrote:
So good right now. More fruit forwardness/ generosity than I recall to go with the telltale olive/earth notes. So balanced, perfect acidity
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2/14/2021 - MattGeneve wrote: 91 Points
From 375ml. This started a little stewed and not completely fresh on the nose so may have been a slightly faulty bottle. Certainly not as vibrant as last 3 half bottles. Did eventually open into a lovely nose of rocks and olives. Dark black currant. On palate fresh, minerals and nicely balanced acidity.
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1/1/2021 - VidarS wrote: 92 Points
Pierre Gonon luftet i 4t. Typeriktig duft av modnet viltkjøtt. På smak urtete, mørke skogsbær, bra power og lenge, men ikke noen stor vin. 91-92p.
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12/24/2020 - B Paul wrote:
Drinking really well, but likely upside to holding for further complexity.
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10/23/2020 - alanr wrote: 93 Points
Dark crushed berries, rocks, and hints of dried herbal spice on the nose, this is the biggest, baddest, deepest, Gonon I can remember, intense dark berry fruit, more blackberry than boysenberry, lip smacking acidity, some spice notes, fairly strong medium tannins. So young, and the tannic structure is a little imposing, but if you can get past that, it’s a delicious wine right now. I’m sure it will be even better as the tannins mellow a bit, and I expect that deep fruit to be there for a long time, though I wouldn’t want to predict how it will develop over more than a decade. Despite it’s intensity and depth, there isn’t any overt overripeness of fruit.
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10/23/2020 - aagrawal wrote: 93 Points
Zoom tasting with the wine group; 10/22/2020-10/23/2020 (Zoom): Medium-deep ruby with purple edges; intensely aromatic nose with gamey notes, black pepper, noticeable olive tapenade, some smokey notes; palate is medium bodied, elegant medium-plus acidity, medium alcohol, plenty of primary black and purple fruit but really interesting and complex savory notes with olives; finish is medium-plus to long. This is a really lovely northern rhone syrah. The aromatics on this really improved with 1-2 hours in the glass. Ready to try now but will age further and I think the mouthfeel will improve over time as the wine becomes even more integrated. 93+
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10/22/2020 - Richard P Howden Likes this wine: 93 Points
Savory, olive inflected nose, loaded with red fruit. Bacon fatty, became more savory and floral with time. Good balance and tart, lots of depth of red fruit and quite spicy. Some tannin here as well. Very good now, will get better for a long time.
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10/11/2020 - phil the agony wrote: 92 Points
Aucune note prise
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10/3/2020 - KimHartman wrote: flawed
Corked
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10/2/2020 - mye wrote:
Purple in color. Dark berries, herbs, violets, mixed with spices and olives. The nose is intoxicating. Palate had sweet earthy fruit with bright acidity. Really tasty stuff already, and should really only go up with some bottle age.
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9/19/2020 - Gott vin Likes this wine:
Inte drickfärdig...
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4/24/2020 - chbeaumont wrote: 93 Points
Opaque core, mauve tinged rim; lots of primary black fruit on bouquet, glossy; dark fruit, black pepper, good density, touch of black olive, well structured; depth to an extended finish. Needs plenty of time.
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4/13/2020 - glou.sf Likes this wine: 93 Points
Tasted blind. Dark berries, violets, herbs, and a hint of plum on the somewhat backwards and slightly muted nose. Medium tannins and good acidity on the palate, along with flavors of red fruit and more dark berries. Good finish, although obviously very young. Quite promising wine, but this needs time. 93+
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4/5/2020 - 87tellub Likes this wine: 92 Points
My first Gonon. Opened at 4pm and slow ox. Consumed the other half on night 2 after vacuum seal.
A dark wine, I'd say medium to dark purple. Lovely and distinctive nose of purple flowers, violets, lavender, traces of pepper. Floral overall. Medium+ palate explodes with tart purple fruit. It is very nicely concentrated but balanced. Pure blueberry, young blackberry, lavender. Pleasing acidity. Finely integrated tannins but quite present, so helpful to have with food if near-term drinking. After 90 minutes in the glass, the initial 2 ounces I poured showed off some smoky earth, mineral and pepper on the nose, and some bacon came out on the palate. Nice length.
Very primary and quite god right now, but needs time. On night 2 it was just showing off its acidity and tannin. Will be interesting to check back on this in the years to come.
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2/17/2020 - MattGeneve Likes this wine: 93 Points
From half bottle. Popped and poured. Very dark fruited, highly perfumed and peppery. Seems to be more open on the nose than two previous half bottles in last 18 months. Lovely tangy dark fruits. Great acid to balance such dark fruit, very long too. The finish has a touch of dry tannin. Definitely still very young but seems more open and drinking deliciously, the balance of freshness and dark aromatic fruits is a great combination.
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2/7/2020 - brooklynguy Likes this wine:
Lovely perfume showing vibrant floral, dark fruit, and that darkly savory meaty, almost tarry aroma that permeates all the rest. I wasn’t getting the olives that are usually so much a part of the Gonon nose. Delicious and true on the palate, well balanced, maybe a bit less complex and focused than other vintages? This wine strikes me as being more generous than it does serious and age worthy. That said, I had it at a Korean bbq place and probably shouldn’t make generalizations based on that experience, as I was not able to give it my fullest attention.
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1/27/2020 - Zweder wrote: 92 Points
Weekly tasting group RWP #358: Burgundy and Northern Rhone (@ VD): Flowers and cherry candy stick in the bouquet. On the palate a firm amount of red fruit acidity, some minerals and a bit lactic. Cherries and raspberries. Very fresh and a good length. Needs some more years in the bottle. 92++
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1/5/2020 - pclin wrote: 93 Points
Couldn’t find the last bottle of ‘11 vintage, so this will do. Dark ruby in color, hardly showing any age. Incense, flowers, stems, and herbs on the nose. Quite forward and clean. Mouth watering acidity and fine tannins abound. Dark olives, pepper, blackberries, and finished with a touch vanilla oaks. A touch warmth at backend too being a ripe vintage. Approachable now but still a few years away from maturity. Delicious as usual.
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12/22/2019 - B Paul wrote:
Decanted and drank over 2 hours or so. Not as ripe as I expected for a 2015. Nose is very savory and has lots of olive. On the palate, dark fruit and also good freshness. Worth trying now if you have a few.
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9/9/2019 - maxima wrote: 92 Points
Encore une autre belle bouteille bue au resto L'impérial de Granby,
il en restait encore "des cachées". De plus, les mardi, les vins
en bas de 100$ la bouteille sont 50% de rabais!
OUF, Quel accord avec l'onglet de boeuf sauce Diane et
les frites aux truffes!!!
Nez qui embaume, viandes, fumée, épices,
herbes et fruits noirs.
En bouche, sublime, le bacon, le lard, les mures, le poivre
et la pointe de salinité...on en redemande.
Belle faicheur, digeste et bien gouleyant, les
tanins sont fins et la finale
hyper longue sans accroc.
Dommage qu'il soit si difficile à trouver!
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6/19/2019 - retired_and_roving Likes this wine:
2 weeks in Australia with a stopover in Singapore; 6/14/2019-7/1/2019 (Singapore, Sydney, Adelaide, McLaren Vale, Barossa Valley, Adelaide Hills): From the wine list at RockPool (Sydney). Alright saw this on the list and couldn't resist despite being in Australia to taste Australian wines. Decanted and poured to glass. Tastes of black/red crunchy, sappy fruit with lots of savory olive notes that deliver that Northern Rhone character I love. Went very nicely with the Waygu steak. Delicious!
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6/17/2019 - sleepyhaus wrote:
This really wasn't in a great place. I decanted it early thinking it might need time to unwind, but tried some early on and found that wasn't really the case. But it was surprisingly lighter than expected. Not muted, like mild TCA, just less texture than expected. I've had 11 bottles (IIRC) of the 2015 IdF and that wine has been awesome every time. Now, drinking this, it's like they mixed the wines up in bottling. The IdF has been fresher, more vibrant, deeper and more complex. Puzzling really.
Anyway, having said that it really is still a lovely wine and it probably just needs a lot more time. Olive, blackberry, and herb are all present. Good stuff, but not coming together well at the moment.
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5/15/2019 - d'Artagnan wrote: 93 Points
au Café Boulud à Palm Beach
Un vin spectaculaire! Le nez est très classique, charmeur avec des notes de violettes et de viande fumée, avec des mûres et framboises entremêlées. Le fruit est pur et éclatant, c’est frais et gourmand, avec une finesse et un raffinement rares sur l’appellation, qui évoque davantage une belle Côte Rôtie. Superbe! 93 pts
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5/13/2019 - maxima wrote: 92 Points
Similaire à la précédente...de la haute-voltige et
tout un RQP...si on peut en trouver!
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5/12/2019 - Puteljen! Likes this wine: 92 Points
Intensive nose with tons of black olives, brine and slightly smoked sausage. Dark fruit with sloan, blackberry and cranberry. On the palate a bit lighter, one could wish for a little more omph to the fruit. Very elegant. Not too mcuh tannin. Good lenght. Yum!
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1/27/2019 - chbeaumont wrote: 93 Points
Deep core, rubied, mauve tinge to rim; black olives & hint of herbs de Provence back up plenty of polished dark fruit; plenty of tannin which smoothed our post 4 hour decant; loads of supple fruit, touch of black pepper, clean cut, neat profile; has a forthright feel to an extended, grippy finish. Stood up well to buffalo fillet steak.
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1/16/2019 - wineordeath wrote: 90 Points
I'm scoring this wine below most of the crowd here. Very ripe, lush fruit and soft silky tannins. But that's the issue. The wine is so ripe it lacks a bit of structure in terms of tannin and lacks enough acidity to keep it fresh and balance the weight of the fruit. It's good and the ripe fruit is beguiling on the nose, but it's just sufficiently fat enough to leave me tired of it after a few glasses.
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11/22/2018 - PacoHigon Likes this wine:
Tras haber catado no hace mucho un 2010 este 2015 se muestra todavía algo impetuoso aunque ya muestra algunas de las grandes cualidades que esta excelente syrah atesora. La nariz es atractiva, las notas de violetas frescas, los recuerdos a fruta roja fresca, los toques de hierbas aromáticas, algo de regaliz negra y algunos matices tostados acompañan un paso por boca placentero, con un tanino firme pero bien perfilado, buena acidez, estructura media y notable persistencia.
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11/17/2018 - Jahull03 wrote:
Decanted for an hour, out of 375. Just spectacular. Inky color, super-aromatic blend of herbs driven by violet-lavender and a touch of fennel. Blue-fruit driven. Medium body, not nearly the thickness one might be tempted to expect given the color. Beautiful, beautiful
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10/27/2018 - Nanda wrote: 94 Points
2015 Northern Rhones Blind: Single blind. Lives up to the hype, again, and has a distinctive olive brine note that is pure Gonon. From the get go, the nose is lifted, intense and bright with savory black fruit and olives for days. Great fruit concentration that is so smooth without any trace of heat or warmth. Olive, olive and more olive. Damn good.
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10/27/2018 - acyso wrote: 95 Points
Most of the 2015 Northern Rhones worth a damn, blind (Chicago, IL): Served single blind. I was fairly convinced that the Faury VV was the Gonon, until I tasted this wine. Instantly recognizable for its incredibly aromaticity and intensity. This edition of the Gonon St. Joseph has always towered over all the other vintages I've had (note: I missed the 2010 on release, and it's pointless to broach that wine right now). It's briny with an insane amount of fruit, but there's nothing here that is hot -- there's something about the character of this wine that cools off the heat. An absolute stunner and upon tasting this, I was fairly quickly convinced of the error of my initial guess.
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9/25/2018 - alanr wrote: 93 Points
From a half bottle: dark, meaty crushed fruit nose, then deep, brooding dark red fruit, fairly strong fine tannins, a beam of mouthwatering acidity cuts through the dried herbs and mild spice. so lively and delicious at this young stage, will be interesting to follow over the years - though it's hard resist drinking now.
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9/8/2018 - Ms. Bubblehead Likes this wine:
Decanted the wine. On the nose, very pure dark fruits and modest cigar, on the palate, the tannin was solid and not overpowering, with elegant deep dark berries, smoke, and bacon fat. The wine has been gaining weight over the next 4 fours, and it seems close down later, showing that the wine was still very young. I would wait a few years to open the next bottle.
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8/31/2018 - d'Artagnan wrote: 93 Points
Un magnifique vin qui m'a impressionné par sa finesse et sa pureté. Il évoque davantage une très belle Côte Rôtie qu'un St-Joseph. C'est un vin plein, frais, parfumé, doté d'une élégance remarquable et d'un fruité séduisant. Excellent. 93 pts
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8/25/2018 - cdp1276 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Too young, baby fat will be gone in a year. Sit on it but fabulous structure.
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8/8/2018 - aekenback wrote: 93 Points
The essence and definition of Saint Joseph.
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7/26/2018 - Ms. Bubblehead Likes this wine:
This wine turned out to be my favourite Gonon of the night (among 05, 09, 10, 14, 15 vintages). On the nose, floral with various spices, somewhat more elegant than 05, 09, 10, which was quite a surprise to me considering the vintage, also presented smoked bacon and herbs on the nose, on the palate, the fruit was dense yet with good structure, firm tannin, and balance, black olives, Asian spices, and mix of red and black berries. Finish was long. Still a young baby that can age another 10+ years to enjoy.
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7/25/2018 - Burgnick Likes this wine: 93 Points
In our vertical dinner, this vintage stood out with its perfect balance between ripeness and acidity. Rich and intense. Very good density with pepper, purple fruit, crunchy berries and spice. This will be so good when it reaches its early maturity in 8-10 years.
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7/7/2018 - dream Likes this wine: 93 Points
Quite rich with superb intensity and freshness. Great flavors of perfectly ripe blackberries with really good mineral cut. Finishes grippy and taut with notes of graphite and violets. Has a great floral lift on the nose and palate. A brilliant vintage for this great wine that should age extremely well off its perfect balance. 93+
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6/27/2018 - J o e wrote: 93 Points
Soaring nose filled with violets, lavender, grilled meat and herbs practically jumps from the glass. Medium bodied and graceful in the mouth, with black olives, tobacco, earth and iron on the palate, followed by gentle grip and moderate length on the crisp finish. This distinctly Burgundian wine is very impressive for the appellation. Drink now - 2030. 93.
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6/25/2018 - _water.into.wine_ Likes this wine: 92 Points
Fresh and feisty. Lots of oak and pepper. Would give this 5 years but a strong future ahead. Drank with SW and DM in SG.
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6/21/2018 - maxima wrote: 93 Points
Bu au restaurant L’Impérial de Granby pour accompagner l’onglet de bœuf sauce Diane
et les côtes levées fumées sur place…SUPERBE ACCORDS!
De plus les mardis, le vin est 50%...on est donc presqu’au prix de la SAQ, WOW!
Quel beau vin, une Syrah craquante, bien nourri et savouresue…SUPERBE!
Nez fabuleux sur les violettes, les herbes, la viande et la fumée.
En bouche, belle densité et concentration. Du bacon et de la tapenade avec un peu de framboises et de poivre.
Les tannins sont charnus et il y a une belle acidité qui rend l’ensemble bien équilibré.
La finale super longue est bien digeste et veloutée. Excellent sur toute la ligne.
J’aime bien les vins de producteur, seulement dispo en IP (Maitre de Chai) et que dire de la carte des vins du resto,
un très beau choix qui sort des sentiers battus et qui nous donne aussi des classiques incontournables.
Chapeau à François Côté, le chef proprio et son équipe!
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5/5/2018 - guitarkim Likes this wine: 91 Points
Aroma: blueberries, potatoes, black pepper, iron
Medium-bodied with excellent acidity and firm tannins. Nice balance and structure.
Very good length (91).
Very young…
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4/28/2018 - forceberry wrote: 95 Points
Made from grapes that have been grown organically on predominantly granite soil. Fermented spontaneously in open-top oak fermenters with 2-week maceration, stems and all. Aged for 24 months in old foudres and 600-liter demi-muids. Bottled with ~50 mg/l SO2. 13,5% alcohol.
Somewhat translucent and very luminous reddish black cherry color. Incredibly fragrant and perfumed nose with intense, expressive aromas of freshly picked forest fruits, crunchy tones of blackcurrants and boysenberries, a vibrant floral streak of violets, a little bit of olive and a hint of something wild. Very pure and incredibly captivating nose here. The wine is dry, intense and rather tough on the palate with a medium body and very ripe and noticeably primary flavors showing a lot of everything: ripe blackberries and boysenberries, perfumed violet tones, a little bit of chopped fennel, light raspberry tones, hints of black pepper-driven spice and a wild Campari-like touch of chinotto zest. Overall the wine is pretty structured and tightly-knit with high acidity and firm, grippy tannins. The finish is lively, pure and grippy with long and intense flavors of fresh blackberry-driven fruit, crushed peppercorns, some ripe boysenberries, a hint of stony minerality and an olive touch of tapenade.
A beautifully pure, impressively structured and incredibly vibrant Syrah that shows incredible depth and breadth of flavor. Many Northern Rhône 2015 reds have been impressive, but also very obviously ripe and somewhat monolithic in style, whereas this wine is anything but: Gonon's St. Jo 2015 is bright, crunchy and well-proportioned Syrah that shows good ripeness but also remarkable freshness, grace and elegance. Overall the wine is pretty tightly-knit and although not aggressive, still really structure-driven and quite angular in its expression. Incredibly beautiful wine now, but also one that speaks volumes on its future potential. Just outrageous stuff. Hands down the best young St. Joseph I've had, great value at 34,55€.
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4/27/2018 - phil the agony wrote: 92 Points
Ouvert vers 17h30 et dégusté à 19h00 Il se boit étrangement très bien en jeunesse.
Minéral et accessible,il est tout en finesse.Une attaque très épices douces avec de la violette avec une finale tout en fruit.Vraiment beau maintenant.
92 pts.
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3/29/2018 - pbaek wrote:
I've tasted the 2015 Gonon a couple of times and this is potentially the best Gonon ever made. Evolves around black olives and dark fruit notes in combination with marks of pepper, violets, tea and broth. Is both very wide and deep, carries tremendous potential. I'm pretty sure this will be closing down, there's some tannic bite, but this is a treat to try now. Wow.
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3/23/2018 - andrewstevenson.com wrote: 88 Points
Served blind at Moor Hall, Aughton.
Very young, dark, inky purple.
Elegant restrained black fruit
Smooth, fresh, black fruit on the palate. But it feels very young and a bit tight. V grippy tannins. I'm not finding this particularly impressive, but it's struggling to impress next to the Ribolla, and certainly feels much less approachable than that. Really much too young.
I'd guess at a Bordeaux blend? Or maybe something like an Oz GSM?
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2/6/2018 - alanr wrote: 95 Points
Needed some air time to really open, this note is after a couple of hours of air. The nose, OMG the nose. Incredible floral perfume, like walking through a field of mixed spring flowers and lavender. Then beautiful dark violet blackberry/boysenberry fruit, tremendous lip-smacking acidity, and a healthy dose of structure in the form of moderately chalky, mouth-gripping tannins. Complexity abounds, with savory herbs, floral and lavender notes. Tasted along side its 2014 brother, the vintage contrast is obvious, with the 14 showing the cooler, wetter character, and this 15 showing its warmth. Both wines are excellent, but the 15 is special.
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2/4/2018 - ludwigbpm wrote: 92 Points
Une petite bombe dans ce millésime, des airs de Côte Rôtie avec ses arômes sauvages et de viande fraîche. Pas tout à fait en place et davantage sur la gourmandise que la finesse, mais je suis confiant pour l’avenir.
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1/28/2018 - lightning wrote: 92 Points
My first dance with the famous Gonon. 13.5% ABV.
An alluring nose of red and blue berries, violets, spices, and definitely the Indian spices that Josh Reynolds picks up. Dense core of flavours red and blue berries again, mid to full bodied, vitello tonato, kirsch cherry and graphite with a touch of black pepper at the end; firm and quite full tannins, good length, and with acidity that is nicely folded in. More savoury than fruit driven. Sprightly, and carries good density without excessive weight.
Can drink comfortably at the moment, but has the stuff for another 5-10 years ageing (if not more)
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1/21/2018 - salil wrote: 94 Points
Probably the most exciting young Gonon I've had since the 07 or 10. This is going to be something really special with time, though it's already making some progress there. It's bursting with ripe red and dark berried fruit and black olive tapenade - intense and ripe, but also really compelling right now with a lot of depth and complexity. The aromatics show plenty of pepper, violets, and stemmy notes, and these only pick up in intensity with more air while the palate starts to show a more savoury component on the back end. The overall balance is stunning, with plenty of bright acidity that keeps this feeling incredibly fresh and vibrant on the palate, and a lot of grainy tannin beneath that comes through on the finish.
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1/21/2018 - acyso wrote: 95 Points
A brilliant Gonon. The nose at first showed a lot more brine and olive, but that seemed to taper off with time. You know right off the bat that this is insanely rich and powerful wine, and the palate doesn't disappoint at all. It's exactly what you expect -- an incredibly concentrated and fruity wine, but with tons of acidity and freshness as well. The white pepper that I've picked up in other bottles of Gonon seems to be a tad muted, in favour of that luscious fruit. Power and elegance in one package, and easily the best young vintage of Gonon's (apart from the VV) that I can remember.
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12/7/2017 - Tubulus wrote: 92 Points
Same bottle as Ellen below. A delicious combination of red wine and black olives. I find it generally difficult to pick up specific flavors, but if you can't smell olives here, you need a new nose. And it was blind (in a tasting if rhones) so I wasn't specifically expecting it (as I think it's a bit of gonon signature).
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12/2/2017 - Finare Vinare wrote: 93 Points
Last station before change to night train. Still very much open on the nose, but notably tighter on the palate than half a year ago.
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11/28/2017 - Ellen5181 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Tried this last night as part of a blind 2015 Rhône tasting. This was a standout. I feel fortunate to have a next day half glass left so I can write a real note (albeit second days
Last night all I jotted down was that it presented with a heavy olive smell on nose. Almost too much, but it blew off and became wonderful.
Second day note:
Appearance - opaque dark purple. Ruby rim
Nose - black fruits. Heavy ripe blackberry and strong smell of olives. Smells like a dirty martini (with perhaps blackberry vodka?) Tar. Alcohol burn on nose. Lead pencil.
Palate - fresh, youthful, balanced. Medium plus acidity. After swallow your mouth starts to water. Alcohol tastes integrated. Getting some stems on finish. Medium tannins. Finish is medium plus bordering on long. The fruit is alive
This was the first wine we poured last night and perhaps it set a high bar. As I refer to my minimal notes, I really enjoyed this one. Glad to have an opportunity to try to again today. I’m excited about the possibilities this one has to age.
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11/23/2017 - LW31 Likes this wine:
Wonderful. Great potential. Has definitely started to shutdown in bottle from when I had this last in June 2017. Would imagine most bottles should be left alone for a long snooze.
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11/3/2017 - clayfu wrote:
Ugh, so so good. Has that olive pepper note you get from Gonon St Joe but backed up by a concentrated blast of black berry fruit. Deeply structured and filled with acid to make it easy drinking. Gonna be a long ager but still damn good with plenty of air.
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10/30/2017 - DLopez430 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Love this wine, but I'm not liking the price any longer
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10/28/2017 - B Paul wrote:
Similar to prior vintages in nose and flavor profile - olives, pepper, etc. Has good structure (more so than the 2014) and should age well over the next 10+ years. Really nice, I'm happy to have several bottles of this.
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10/5/2017 - beatles wrote: 92 Points
Tasted this only at Decouvertes, it was great to see this again at birthday-dinner; it was, as the sommelier rightly said, quite open for business, immensely concentrated, bursted with black fruit, olives, tar, yet still in the true easy-drinking style of a real St. Joseph. Tannins galore, I will keep my own few bottles for some time before popping one.
#La Racine#NYC#52Birthday
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9/20/2017 - jwsmith wrote: 93 Points
This wine ha so much going on white pepper an floral nose elegant wafting dark lines gorgeous. Run don't walk these wines just got released.
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9/8/2017 - pclin wrote: 94 Points
ABV 13.5%. Faint flowers on the nose, not very expressive but very clean. Surprisingly approachable with its fine tannins and excellent balance. Light touch handling without any excessive components. With a hotter vintage, was expecting to be much bigger than '11 vintage, but the wine was not made that way. Paired really well with spaghetti bolognese. Delicious bottle with upside. First bottle from a case. As of late, my favorite interpretation of Syrah grapes. Wish he would make some Cote Rotie and Hermitage.
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8/13/2017 - Ericsson wrote: 91 Points
Trop jeune forcément, un passage en carafe énergique 2 heures avant de servir à aidé.
Jolie syrah sur la finesse qui manque peut-être un peu de matière ou de gras, finale relativement courte pour l'instant.
Attendre 2-3 ans avant de la déguster.
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7/16/2017 - kosmik Likes this wine: 93 Points
Oeil : opacité 7/10, forte viscosité en parois, larmes épaisses et colorées
Nez : projection d'intensité moyenne, poivre blanc (surtout) et noir frais moulus, minéral, fruits noirs sur la mûre et le cassis, noyaux de fruits, fumée, venaison, boisé noble, touche florale au second plan avec une petite pointe de résine/balsamique peut-être, intense tout en demeurant frais et élégant, textbook de haut niveau...
Bouche : sec, ample+, acidité rafraîchissante, forte prise minérale, tanins charnus+ et de grain très fin, amertume moyenne, persistance longue, rétro épicée, amère, boisée, minérale...
Conclusion : Très grand Saint-Joseph ici et une superbe réussite dans ce millésime trop confit à d'autres adresses. Un superbe mariage d'élégance et de générosité, étonnamment approchable malgré sa jeunesse, la structure en bouche le porte loin dans le temps par ailleurs. Abonné à cette cuvée depuis longtemps, toujours excellent, ce 2015 de Gonon flirte avec le superbe...
Approchable maintenant et pour longtemps (@ 2030?).
93-95+
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7/8/2017 - phil the agony wrote: 92 Points
Première fois avec un Gonon :)
Carafé deux heures, il se boit étrangement très bien en jeunesse.
Minéral et accessible,il m'a surpris.Je m'attendais à plus robuste mais ce fût tout en finesse.Une attaque très épices douces avec une finale tout en fruit.Vraiment beau maintenant.Merci Alex T pour la découverte et une caisse arrivera la semaine prochaine chez moi (Maitre de Chai) Pas certain qu'il en reste (68$/bouteille).
Je vais en boire une dans 1-3-5 ans je crois.Pas certain de pouvoir tougher.
92 pts.
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6/14/2017 - LW31 Likes this wine:
Delicious. Quite young and tight on the attack (got tighter after 20 min in the glass), wonderful dark ruby color, classic nose and palate (peppery, smokey, minerality). A bit dilute and short on the finish at the moment (there was some rain when they were picking). The best glass of syrah in the world for the money.
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5/20/2017 - saturnaisland wrote: 93 Points
Very deep, dark, rich and concentrated. Good clean dark fruit with tannins and structure underneath. No intrusive new oak; no excessive alcohol. Leans slightly towards a Cornas style as opposed to subtle and floral. A very nice wine that will benefit from time (but very nice now).
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5/10/2017 - Gott vin Likes this wine: 87 Points
Typiskt doft, med sten, krut, peppar. Smaken dock lite sluten. Tror vinet mår bra av att vila något år. Minst
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4/28/2017 - Finare Vinare wrote: 93 Points
Probably the best young Gonon so far (yes, Pierre agreed to that). Everything you'd wish for is there. Lovely balance, concentration, and almost surprising accessibility now, but certainly huge potential for the future. Padlock on the remaining bottles!
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4/21/2017 - Ydaucourt wrote: 92 Points
Decanted for 3 hours. Great concentration and length. Mineeality and fruit. But way too young ...
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4/12/2017 - Jeremy Holmes wrote:
Smells like a footy change room at half time, all Dencorub, meat and sweat. With air there's ripe blood plum fruit. It has plenty of floral nuance and a saline mineral quality. There are punchy florals and the wine is full and relatively low acid but lacks no freshness.
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