2013 Rene Rostaing Côte-Rôtie Côte Blonde

Community Tasting Notes (5) Avg Score: 93.8 points

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  10/1/2023 - Rote Kappelle wrote:

  I confess that I am at a loss when it comes to assessing this wine. I am a chap who likes Shiraz/Syrah to taste like wine made from that grape. There are lots of ways to express the character of Shiraz, of course.
  
  In this case we have a wine that would happily pass as Burgundy by mouthfeel, tannin character and weight. However, you would be a bit puzzled because, whilst it would be a Burgundy with some heft, it would be a Burgundy devoid of easily identifiable fruit characters.
  
  What dominates is menthol/Juniper berry, green bean, wet earth, perhaps something slightly prickly that you could call pepper and a distant echo of some kind of darker berry fruit and some florals - but like a distant echo you never quite hear it well enough to work out what it is saying.
  
  It is interesting, it kind of works with food and if you can put aside that this is a Northern Rhone made from Shiraz, then I guess it is kind of ok. The tannins are present, but the overall impression is very easy to drink. Acid is fresh but not sour, which I find interesting given the overall dominance of under-ripe elements.
  
  The jury is out on Rosty for me. I like them young, but I think there is some over-use of whole bunches and the stems are not always ripe enough, so that longer term you get some rather green, slightly mean characters. There are moments when I like the ethereal aspects but then other moments when it pisses me off mightily. Sorry about not being able to give a definitive call on this. I can't score it because I can't quite come to grips with it.
  
  By the way, I think you would expect a little more obvious varietal fruit in a Burgundy that cost what Rosty costs.
  
  Finally, an interesting side note is that for a while I have been interested in similarities that I see in Rosty and Clonakilla. The similarities lie in mouth-feel and body, more than in flavours. However, I do see intriguing points of comparison. Rosty is rather more costly, even allowing for currency, tax and porno levies. I hear that Clonakilla love the wines of Jamet and in terms of flavours I can see that, but not in terms of structure. It would be really intriguing to do a tasting of similar years, say 2019 or 2015 or even 2018 with Rosty, Clonal Killer and Jammers in a menage a trois.

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  8/4/2021 - MAXIMUM SATISFACTION wrote: 92 Points

  From a magnum. Decanted several hours. Nothing spectacular but delivers. Dark fruit, smoke, mineral and black pepper. Medium bodied and as mentioned below a very cool climate feel to it. Needs several hours decanting and likely peaks in 5 years or so.

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  8/27/2020 - rlove wrote: 93 Points

  Rostaing's 2013 Côte Blonde offers a pretty, perfumed nose of boysenberry, violet, gamebird, and black pepper. Taut and nervy, the cool vintage is readily apparent, almost alpine Syrah in style with spicy florals and bright acidity. Very good.

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  4/7/2017 - Derek Nadon Likes this wine:

  Comparé à La Landonne plus sur la retenu plus minéral et poivré moins viandé
  
  D'une précision chirurgical les vins de Rostaing sont des vins sérieux , mais de plaisir immédiat d'une délicatesse qui me rapelle certains bourgognes

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  4/5/2017 - d'Artagnan wrote: 96 Points

  Souper avec René Rostaing (Restaurant Toqué!): Un nez discret jambon fumé, cerises, poivre.
  La bouche est profonde, concentrée mais veloutée, avec beaucoup de chair, d'une rondeur voluptueuse impressionnante, c'est cochon! Un vin dense, très jeune mais déjà si grand. Un élevage discret enrobe le tout, sans jamais masquer le fruit, juste pour l'accompagner vers les sommets qu'il atteindra dans 5 ans ou plus. 96+ pts

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