2005 Domaine du Pavillon de Chavannes Côte de Brouilly Cuvée des Ambassades

• By Josh Raynolds
  July 2008, (See more on Vinous...)

  (Domaine du Pavillon de Chavannes Cote de Brouilly Cuvee des Ambassades) Login and sign up and see review text.

RJonWine.com

• By Richard Jennings
  10/16/2011, (See more on RJonWine.com...) 89 points

  (Domaine du Pavillon de Chavannes Côte de Brouilly Cuvée des Ambassades) Dark red violet color; tart cherry, tart raspberry nose; juicy, tart red fruit, tart cherry, mineral palate; medium-plus finish

• By Richard Jennings
  8/16/2009, (See more on RJonWine.com...) 91 points

  (Domaine du Pavillon de Chavannes Côte de Brouilly Cuvée des Ambassades) Dark red violet color with pale meniscus; charcoal, tart black cherry, tart cherry, cranberry and mineral palate with depth; medium finish

• By Richard Jennings
  11/27/2008, (See more on RJonWine.com...) 93 points

  (Domaine du Pavillon de Chavannes Côte de Brouilly Cuvée des Ambassades) Medium magenta color; nice tart and focused minerally red fruit nose; silky tart red fruit with a core of tart, minerally, cranberry, good acidity; medium finish 93+ pts.

Garagiste

• By Jon Rimmerman
  8/1/2008, (See more on Garagiste...)

  (Pavillon Chavannes AMBASSADES) History Take #2 Dear Friends, The original offer for the 2005 Ambassades (see below) was passed around last winter and forwarded so many times, I lost count of how many letters and notes I received from veterans and those that experienced a similar occurrence that was described - and survived. While the WWII story was only a small part of the offer, it seemed to ignite memories from both sides of the fence (I heard from Allied and Axis veterans alike) and it was one of the widest read emails I've sent out in the last few years. There was much more to that story than the small paragraph regarding the German retreat but the wine itself was worth the literary effort to describe - even if it was only a snippet. ...fast forward to today and Tanzer's IWC has just recognized this wine as one of the highest rated of the Beaujolais review (out a few days ago - I think only one wine scored higher). There's not much to be said - this is a singular wine that drips of a place and of a piece of history: The Cuvee Ambassades was already one of the toughest wines to obtain in Burgundy and this is not going to make it easier. It is a classic "Garagiste" wine and one that personifies why we do this everyday. There were only a few cases left at the source so we grabbed all of them (our support of the wine before the review gave us first dibs on the remaining stock) - take advantage but please be patient with Niki here - this item is EXTREMELY LIMITED at this point and just about non-existent in the US. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED as one of the top examples of elegance and terroir in it's price range: This parcel will be here in a few weeks (before the Labor Day weekend): 2005 Pavillon de Chavannes "Cuvee des Ambassades" Cote de Brouilly Thank you - - Jon Rimmerman ************************** (original offer from last winter) History Dear Friends, History is responsible for so many successes (and failures) of the human psyche and wine certainly has played a part along the way. As the story of mankind continues to unfold, I have made it my life's work to uncover the anecdotes associated with historic events and personalities that are intertwined with our beloved beverage - today we reveal one of the more noteworthy (though mostly unknown) vinous associations with world affairs our hobby has to offer... Domaine du Pavillon de Chavannes has some of the oldest vines in all of Burgundy and Beaujolais, noted to date back to pre-phylloxera times (1860s). No one knows for sure which of the vines are 100 or more years old (or 80 or 70) as they are all jumbled together but it hardly seems to matter. When the matriarch of Cote de Brouilly died, much of the finest vineyard stock in the Cote reverted back to Chavannes, not to Thivin as many believe. Thivin may get the notoriety due to Kermit Lynch but it is Chavannes that produces the best and longest lived wine - top vintages can last 15-25 years (or more) and they are often referred to as the "poor man's Corton" with age. In 2005, Beaujolais enjoyed one of the great growing seasons in the last 30 and the Cote de Brouilly (similar to the top of the Corton hill in Burgundy) was the center of attention. The Cote is one of the smallest zones in Beaujolais and the solid blue granite of this hilltop is ideal for Gamay (not for Pinot Noir) - it is the soil that produced the finest overall wines in 2005. If George Descombe's Brouilly (not a Cote, but a regular Brouilly) was my wine of the vintage, then Pavillon's Ambassades gets an honorable mention as one on the top wines in all of France for what it is - a wine so special the Quai d'Orsay reserves it for the most important embassy's of France and for dignitaries (thus the name - Ambassades). Of course, there is a story. In 1944, when the German army was ensconced in France it was here that the battle of Brouilly ensued (sort of a French layman's version of the battle of Bunker Hill). The farmers and winemakers held their ground and bunkered their belongings and pieces of French and family lineage inside the top of Mont Brouilly (where the Ambassades vineyard lies). Shots and shells were fired at the farmers by the German military machine and the shrapnel remnants remain today as holes in century old trees - with distinct entrance and exit wounds pointed directly at the Domaine du Pavillon de Chavannes. It is here that the German army continued a retreat that started in the Rhone Valley and helped (in some small way) batter their resolve enough to help end the war. It appears the title of this wine, the Cuvee des Ambassades, may have more to do with history and its ushering in of a new European era than with the obvious nod to present day dignitaries. The Cuvee des Ambassades is produced from a reserve of the most admired acreage at the top of the Mont Brouilly (as noted above), and it is not only their best effort but it is always one of the finest wines of the region. The label is circa 1930 and it is a completely different style than the above mentioned Descombes (which is rugged, masculine and tannic). The Ambassades, on the other hand, opens like a purple dream of Gamay that floats through a feminine wall of rock, like a psychedelic trip through a time warp and into a present day haze of velvet and mineral ringed lace full of kaleidoscopic images of the past. With exposure to air, it changes over and over like a great Burgundy and the sultry spice, silk and weightless grace belie the 12.0-12.5% alcohol. This is one of the scared micro-sites in Europe for growing grapes and a bottle of Chavannes should grace everyone's dinner table at least once. This is not an easy to understand wine due to its light to medium weight composition and it would be classified as cerebral by most but it's importance is worth more than just an aside to dinner. Consumption of the Ambassades gives you the right to say "I drank part of history". VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED for all the right reasons (give this wine plenty of air - it opens after 1-2 hours and then keeps going) 2005 Pavillon de Chavannes "Cuvee des Ambassades" Cote de Brouilly - SOLD OUT Thank you, Jon Rimmerman Garagiste Seattle, WA Burg9650