I've had two of our three bottles over the past year, and a similar, disappointing experience with both. Poured through an aerator into a decanter, but tannin and acid overpowered the dark fruits and spices. No major improvement even after an hour or two. 89 points.
Quite surprised that folks say the drinking window of this opened in 2020. I'd give this at least another year or two before opening a bottle. But better yet, another five. That's when I hope to open our final one. Assuming this truly does come toigether, it should have a pretty long life ahead.
Served at 19 degrees, 1.5 h in decanter. Quite funky and flabby right out of bottle, balances out nicely after an hour or so. Garrique, warm strawberries, a bit of Port. Still quite tannic. Balanced but constantly bordering on over the top. Lenght and nose is massive. Slight sweetness that I hope will integrate even further. Needs rich food, dark meat was a nice pairing. Two bottles left. Will hold these for 3+ years. Quite a bit sediment. Let the bottle stand for a few hours before decanting.
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Pop and poured; consumed over five days. Best on day three and four. The 2016 pours a deep garnet, bearing purple with a near opaque core. Medium+ viscosity with some fine sediment. On the nose, brambles, garrigue, lavender and borsellino. It sort of reminds me of a damp earthen basement in the most endearing of ways. On the palate, the wine the dry; medium+ tannins that build through day four before softening. Acid is medium. The fruit set from the nose is confirmed…it’s a lot of delicious fruit with some leather, black pepper and earth. Long finish. These needed some time and the rewards are beginning to show. I have another bottle left and I’ll save that for a few years down the road.
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Decanted for a two hours before we got into this bottle and then consumed over the following three hours. This is one of the more unique producers from Chateauneuf du Pape as they are known to have the most prized and oldest Mourvèdre in the region. Initially, this had the funkiest aroma, almost that of a high school locker room. Thankfully, that blew off after about five minutes. What remained was a powerful, concentrated wine with a bouquet of red and blue fruits with garrigue and exotic spices. On the palate, red cherries and baked blueberries and an unmistakable kiss of black pepper. Very good acid and sneaky tannins; characteristic of the vintage. And while the 15% abv is kept fairly well in check, it does have a touch of heat on the finish. Fun to try one now but I expect this to show better after 2025.
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I never really did get -15 of this wine. It had a bitterness that did not agree with me, have one left. This is instantly better. Better balanced, liqourice. Saving half. BRB.
Day 4 and still going strong. 90.
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Easily 4 of 5 stars. Solid Rhone red from the Chateauneuf du Pape region. Medium to full bodied with beautiful deep crimson color. Aromas of dark fruits pairing well with steak. Recommended
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Love it when I find a value like this one. Classic Chateauneuf-du-Pape with the brightness and acidity of the Grenache front and center. Not overly complex, but lots of dried berries, herbs, and dark chocolate. I decanted first 4 hours and it continued to open and evolve over 2 days of drinking. Served at 65 and at 50 and it was excellent at both. Great QPR. 92
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Dark dried fruits, melted dark chocolate, and baking spices come through nicely from this grenache / mouvedre blend.
This wine is rustic and meaty. F#$king fantastic value if you can find it for $30 like I did.
Had it decanting for 1.5 hours and then drank over another 3 hours. Currently, the glass in my hand smells like dried cherries, and the heat of the high abv is immediately contributing to my alcohol-induced headache (2008 Kongsgaard, this CDP, a Botanist Negroni, and some Angel's Envy have all conspired to haunt my early morning meetings).
This wine complemented a rack of lamb perfectly -- I wouldn't hesitate to purchase this again.
Despite my prior ravings, the 91-92 rating (Tiffany_Kerry and I are torn: she has the 91, I have the 92) is restrained due to a lack of complexity. Each sip shows more of the same -- great wine, but no teasings of more.
Southern Rhône trip with Rainer. Tasted at the Domaine. 70% Grenache and 30% Mourvèdre. 15% ABV. €35. From a bottle opened two days ago. Fruity nose. Mixed berries, herbal notes and spice on the palate, with lively acidity, good tannin structure and good length. Good.
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Flowers, spice and incredibly sweet, fresh ripe red berries are all over the place here. There is texture, freshness, length and character that leaves with a spicy kirsch and pepper note in the juicy finish. The wine was made from blending 70% Grenache with 30% Mourvedre. This remains one of the best bargains in Chateauneuf du Pape for character and quality today.
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3/31/2024 - kassim10 wrote: flawed
Seemed to have become corked.
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1/17/2024 - newsguy1 wrote: 89 Points
I've had two of our three bottles over the past year, and a similar, disappointing experience with both. Poured through an aerator into a decanter, but tannin and acid overpowered the dark fruits and spices. No major improvement even after an hour or two. 89 points.
Quite surprised that folks say the drinking window of this opened in 2020. I'd give this at least another year or two before opening a bottle. But better yet, another five. That's when I hope to open our final one. Assuming this truly does come toigether, it should have a pretty long life ahead.
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6/24/2023 - KidC wrote: 92 Points
Served at 19 degrees, 1.5 h in decanter. Quite funky and flabby right out of bottle, balances out nicely after an hour or so. Garrique, warm strawberries, a bit of Port. Still quite tannic. Balanced but constantly bordering on over the top. Lenght and nose is massive. Slight sweetness that I hope will integrate even further. Needs rich food, dark meat was a nice pairing. Two bottles left. Will hold these for 3+ years. Quite a bit sediment. Let the bottle stand for a few hours before decanting.
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4/7/2022 - thesternowl wrote: 92 Points
Pop and poured; consumed over five days. Best on day three and four. The 2016 pours a deep garnet, bearing purple with a near opaque core. Medium+ viscosity with some fine sediment. On the nose, brambles, garrigue, lavender and borsellino. It sort of reminds me of a damp earthen basement in the most endearing of ways. On the palate, the wine the dry; medium+ tannins that build through day four before softening. Acid is medium. The fruit set from the nose is confirmed…it’s a lot of delicious fruit with some leather, black pepper and earth. Long finish. These needed some time and the rewards are beginning to show. I have another bottle left and I’ll save that for a few years down the road.
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12/10/2020 - thesternowl wrote: 91 Points
Decanted for a two hours before we got into this bottle and then consumed over the following three hours. This is one of the more unique producers from Chateauneuf du Pape as they are known to have the most prized and oldest Mourvèdre in the region. Initially, this had the funkiest aroma, almost that of a high school locker room. Thankfully, that blew off after about five minutes. What remained was a powerful, concentrated wine with a bouquet of red and blue fruits with garrigue and exotic spices. On the palate, red cherries and baked blueberries and an unmistakable kiss of black pepper. Very good acid and sneaky tannins; characteristic of the vintage. And while the 15% abv is kept fairly well in check, it does have a touch of heat on the finish. Fun to try one now but I expect this to show better after 2025.
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9/19/2020 - adamanko wrote: 90 Points
I never really did get -15 of this wine. It had a bitterness that did not agree with me, have one left. This is instantly better. Better balanced, liqourice. Saving half. BRB.
Day 4 and still going strong. 90.
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9/1/2020 - kassim10 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Easily 4 of 5 stars. Solid Rhone red from the Chateauneuf du Pape region. Medium to full bodied with beautiful deep crimson color. Aromas of dark fruits pairing well with steak. Recommended
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8/15/2020 - TheScottieV Likes this wine: 92 Points
Love it when I find a value like this one. Classic Chateauneuf-du-Pape with the brightness and acidity of the Grenache front and center. Not overly complex, but lots of dried berries, herbs, and dark chocolate. I decanted first 4 hours and it continued to open and evolve over 2 days of drinking. Served at 65 and at 50 and it was excellent at both. Great QPR. 92
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8/13/2020 - AaronMaxwell Likes this wine: 91 Points
Dark dried fruits, melted dark chocolate, and baking spices come through nicely from this grenache / mouvedre blend.
This wine is rustic and meaty. F#$king fantastic value if you can find it for $30 like I did.
Had it decanting for 1.5 hours and then drank over another 3 hours. Currently, the glass in my hand smells like dried cherries, and the heat of the high abv is immediately contributing to my alcohol-induced headache (2008 Kongsgaard, this CDP, a Botanist Negroni, and some Angel's Envy have all conspired to haunt my early morning meetings).
This wine complemented a rack of lamb perfectly -- I wouldn't hesitate to purchase this again.
Despite my prior ravings, the 91-92 rating (Tiffany_Kerry and I are torn: she has the 91, I have the 92) is restrained due to a lack of complexity. Each sip shows more of the same -- great wine, but no teasings of more.
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8/2/2019 - PSPatrick wrote: 90 Points
Southern Rhône trip with Rainer. Tasted at the Domaine. 70% Grenache and 30% Mourvèdre. 15% ABV. €35. From a bottle opened two days ago. Fruity nose. Mixed berries, herbal notes and spice on the palate, with lively acidity, good tannin structure and good length. Good.
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9/10/2018 - Jeff Leve wrote: 93 Points
Flowers, spice and incredibly sweet, fresh ripe red berries are all over the place here. There is texture, freshness, length and character that leaves with a spicy kirsch and pepper note in the juicy finish. The wine was made from blending 70% Grenache with 30% Mourvedre. This remains one of the best bargains in Chateauneuf du Pape for character and quality today.
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