When I first tasted this wine years ago, I was impressed by the color and concentration at its modest price level. And now, the color is very dark and the wine hits the mouth with refreshing acidity and strong black fruits, especially blackberry, and then fans out in the mouth with a blanket of drying tannins. Went beautifully with a soup of lentils and potatoes, plus whole grain bread. Wonderfully balanced and enjoyable.
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"So we go down close to the Spanish frontier, mostly on schistz soils -- black slates. Which gives them thier character.
"This gives the wine an incredible aroma and brings the texture of the wine allot of softness and roundess. But I feel we are on a dessert wine terrior, which is why we don't take it above 70 percent in the blend. From the Maury area.
And this very different from the Faugeres and the Minervois. Far less Syrah here and it is noticeable. It looses its distinction and density.
Quotations from Gregory Hecht.
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Aerate to decanter, serve. Color dark red with lots of black tones, opaque almost to the rim, medium-full body. Deep bouquet was almost more vegetables than fruit; an interesting blend of roasted sweet beet, black olive, smoke,black cherries, a little red currant, and minerals. Many of the same flavors on the palate, plus herbs, saline and licorice. Medium acid, medium level chewy dry tannins. Lengthy finish of black olive, cherry, bitter herb, anise, chocolate, and minerals. Overall big, dense with texture, and excellent complexity on the nose and taste. Tasty dark flavors and drinking very well right now, I was surprised at how much I liked it given I was not a big fan of the '05. This steps up to the plate for the listed retail of 22. However the market where I bought it must have mis-marked the price at 14, so I'm definitely back for more.
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Terrific Roussillon, unexpected finesse from a primarily Grenache wine at a low price point. It's 60% Grenache, with Mourvedre, Carignan, and Syrah filling out the rest. I found it to have a spicy nose, with some woody components. It had some herbs and spices (pepper, others) on the nose, along with red fruits. The taste was consistent with the nose, red fruits, cherries, but also old world smoke, stone, and minerality. It was nicely balanced, with acidity making my mouth water, and tannins balancing the fruit, though perhaps a bit of bitterness in the tannic qualities. It was thinner than some Grenache I drink from Spain (and Roussillon has closer ties to Spanish areas than to French I think). Nice, long finish, and it went well with some chocolate chip cookies actually. (Hey, it's Christmas, people were baking!) I'd buy it again at a bit over $20. Hecht & Bannier have a website with additional information on their wine, including how it was matured, and where the grapes were sourced. I always enjoy reading winery information (though I often skip their tasting notes) to learn more. http://www.hbselection.com/en/vin.php?vid=60&cat=3
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11/13/2014 - Mossrose wrote: 91 Points
When I first tasted this wine years ago, I was impressed by the color and concentration at its modest price level. And now, the color is very dark and the wine hits the mouth with refreshing acidity and strong black fruits, especially blackberry, and then fans out in the mouth with a blanket of drying tannins. Went beautifully with a soup of lentils and potatoes, plus whole grain bread. Wonderfully balanced and enjoyable.
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9/14/2010 - Ben Christiansen wrote:
"So we go down close to the Spanish frontier, mostly on schistz soils -- black slates. Which gives them thier character.
"This gives the wine an incredible aroma and brings the texture of the wine allot of softness and roundess. But I feel we are on a dessert wine terrior, which is why we don't take it above 70 percent in the blend. From the Maury area.
And this very different from the Faugeres and the Minervois. Far less Syrah here and it is noticeable. It looses its distinction and density.
Quotations from Gregory Hecht.
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7/4/2010 - fCOT wrote: 88 Points
velvety with some good red fruits flavors and spices but lacks this 'dirt' action.
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4/11/2010 - Vinacull wrote: 90 Points
Aerate to decanter, serve. Color dark red with lots of black tones, opaque almost to the rim, medium-full body. Deep bouquet was almost more vegetables than fruit; an interesting blend of roasted sweet beet, black olive, smoke,black cherries, a little red currant, and minerals. Many of the same flavors on the palate, plus herbs, saline and licorice. Medium acid, medium level chewy dry tannins. Lengthy finish of black olive, cherry, bitter herb, anise, chocolate, and minerals. Overall big, dense with texture, and excellent complexity on the nose and taste. Tasty dark flavors and drinking very well right now, I was surprised at how much I liked it given I was not a big fan of the '05. This steps up to the plate for the listed retail of 22. However the market where I bought it must have mis-marked the price at 14, so I'm definitely back for more.
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4/7/2010 - Ben Christiansen wrote:
Cherry fruit with so minerality on the back, reminds me of Aupilhac. Shisty, less gamey. More herbal, medicinal, in the best possible way.
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12/29/2009 - jschmeling wrote: 91 Points
Terrific Roussillon, unexpected finesse from a primarily Grenache wine at a low price point. It's 60% Grenache, with Mourvedre, Carignan, and Syrah filling out the rest. I found it to have a spicy nose, with some woody components. It had some herbs and spices (pepper, others) on the nose, along with red fruits. The taste was consistent with the nose, red fruits, cherries, but also old world smoke, stone, and minerality. It was nicely balanced, with acidity making my mouth water, and tannins balancing the fruit, though perhaps a bit of bitterness in the tannic qualities. It was thinner than some Grenache I drink from Spain (and Roussillon has closer ties to Spanish areas than to French I think). Nice, long finish, and it went well with some chocolate chip cookies actually. (Hey, it's Christmas, people were baking!) I'd buy it again at a bit over $20. Hecht & Bannier have a website with additional information on their wine, including how it was matured, and where the grapes were sourced. I always enjoy reading winery information (though I often skip their tasting notes) to learn more. http://www.hbselection.com/en/vin.php?vid=60&cat=3
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12/20/2009 - Greg_O wrote: 90 Points
Amazing wine. Loads of dark red fruit, spice, and structure. Great producer.
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