Cornas tasting

Shane's house
Tasted Saturday, January 19, 2013 by David Paris with 893 views

Flight 1 - Arrival and pre-Cornas wines (4 Notes)

  • NV Pierre Péters Champagne Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs Cuvée de Réserve 90 Points

    France, Champagne, Champagne Grand Cru

    From magnum. Quite pretty aromas, but very light, showing some minerals and lemon. The palate is lush in texture and offers a nice apple creaminess. Some butter cutting minerals on the finish and puckering acids that coat the mouth.

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  • 1998 Vilmart & Cie Champagne Cuvée Creation 91 Points

    France, Champagne

    Really fantastic, lush, decedent aromas that are coming across so juicy and creamy that it's like I'm smelling a desert. Lush texture on the palate, but acting quite vibrant and young. Nice soft bubbles and some dandelion pollen notes. Creamy texture on the finish, leaving the mouth sensually, but then after 10 seconds slow acid begins to creep up and overpowers that creamy fruitiness. Nice stuff. 91+

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  • 1971 Château-Grillet (Neyret-Gachet) Château-Grillet 94 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Château-Grillet

    The cork refused to come out, but slid into the bottle nicely. As the top was quite cruddy (I did wipe it down) we quickly threw the wine into a decanter and had no issues with particulates. It was poured immediately and was showing absolutely wonderfully on the first pour. This offered beautiful and decedent aromas that were lush and smelled intensely of creme caramel, minus the sweetness. Really delicious aromas that are also rich and intense in other ways, showing pine tree and light minerals. There are some very slight oxidative aromas but they're in check. The palate is texturally thick and creamy, showing that same delicious creme caramel flavor (with egg component). Absolutely stunning in its richness and palate presence with vibrant acidity present through and through. Truly deep and decedent in texture. The finish offers similarly deep, refined acidity and creme caramel that's absolutely delicious. It's an odd character as the flavor is spot on for me, but without any sweetness. Every step along the way I was fearful it wouldn't follow through (nose to palate, palate to finish), but every time it did. Really impressive stuff, but I may have been one of the few who thought so, as there was plenty left in the decanter at the end of the night. I went back to it and it was absolutely wretchedly oxidized and destroyed by this point. So this definitely needs to be a pop and pour. Wish I knew in advance it wouldn't be consumed and I'd have drank two full glasses myself to start! My WOTN, but it was off topic...

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  • 2008 Pierre Gonon Saint-Joseph 90 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Saint-Joseph

    Wow... this wine is just all about black pepper for days, as I get nothing but that on the nose and palate. Perhaps some dark fruits on the palate as well. The finish shows more of the pepper, deep dark fruit, and pleasing tannic structure and nice texture throughout. It's a bit of a one trick pony in most places, but the creamy interesting finish keeps it overall interesting.

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Flight 2 - Sit down dinner + Cornas (16 Notes)

  • 1995 Cave de Tain Cornas Les Nobles Rives 90 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas

    It's been 4 years since I had this last, and while my enjoyment is similar this bottle was showing a different character. The aromas are fairly rich, creamy and fat, with nice sweet fruit and beautiful floral scents. The palate is softer and the fruit is toned down and subdued, showing only mild tannins and a pleasing soft texture. The finish on the other hand feels tight, with big tannins, but pleasing fruit coming through at the end as well. Nice evolution with balanced acidity.

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  • 1995 Domaine Durand Cornas Flawed

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas

    Corked, but not horribly so.

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  • 2003 Jean-Luc Colombo Cornas La Louvée 88 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas

    Really cloudy color. The aromas are creamy and lush, showing some oak and quite forwardness. I could say it even smells a bit like a nice Australian Shiraz. The palate is very creamy and soft. Modern in complexion here, with tannins building rapidly. Bitter tart tannins on the finish, but better balance with fruit at the end. The finish is the best part of this wine, but I would not be surprised at all if you poured this for me blind and told me it was Australia. I'd likely say, "That's one of the better Shiraz's I've had!" So it definitely has a bit of old world touch...

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  • 1998 Alain Voge Cornas Vieilles Vignes 92 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas

    Smells of earthy, some brett, and mushrooms. Overall a dusty sense on the aromas, but really nice and deep with those initially noted dominant aromas. Rich and delicious palate, showing sweet earth, wet old forest wood, and really grippy tannins. It feels young but balanced well. Wow, a huge wallop of spice, acidity, and earth on the finish. Really goes a long way on the finish. A beautiful, balanced effort.

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  • 2000 Cave de Tain Cornas Les Nobles Rives 91 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas

    Slow-o'ed for 4 hours before pouring. This was drinking nicely and integrated today, with sweet earthy mushrooms dominant on the nice and soft nose. The palate is showing rich, tart, vibrant fruit today, with good depth though still fairly tight structurally. Tighter tannins on the finish. Nice, and drinking fairly well today. Still no rush on these.

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  • 2000 Domaine du Tunnel (Stéphane Robert) Cornas Cuvée Prestige 91 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas

    Vibrant blend of dancing aromas: tart fruit, mushrooms, black olives and earth. Smells fantastic. The palate entry is light and soft, with some mushrooms to start. Quite mild acidity with mild tartness and light funk. In a way it's almost new worldy with its creamy round texture that seems out of place with the flavors at hand. The finish is ripe, and tart, with a slight bitterness. Nice smoothness and integrated acidity that really blows up a few seconds after swallowing. Overall really nice stuff here, even if at times it confused me.

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  • 2001 Domaine du Tunnel (Stéphane Robert) Cornas Cuvée Prestige 89 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas

    Soft and mellow aromas on this one, much tighter than the 2000. More fruit on the palate than the nose suggests, and flavors are light and a bit thin despite large building tannins. Overall it feels fairly tight. Soft and light on this tight finish, just not giving up as much as the 2000.

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  • 2004 Domaine Vincent Paris Cornas Granit 60 92 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas

    Soft fruit on the aromas, with an interesting raw shell fish component that was unexpected. The palate is juicy and delicious, on a voluptuous frame. Really nice and pretty and despite the large tannins it's balanced and elegant. The finish is more tight still, but at the same time has a beautiful presence. Even 20 seconds after I swallow the wine seems to be caressing my palate in a very pleasing way. Impressive. This was much more enjoyable than expected.

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  • 2008 Domaine Vincent Paris Cornas Granit 60 89 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas

    Like the 2008 St. Joseph we had to start, this too is showing intense black pepper on the nose with dominates anything else. The palate on the other hand is very tight and lean. The finish is bitter and tastes like mosquito repellent DET (someone else said ethyl acetate). Reading my note now I wouldn't think so, but I did write "may become like the 2004," which I liked quite a lot.

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  • 2004 Thierry Allemand Cornas Chaillot 87 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas

    Light aromas.... really feels tight as a rock. Incredibly tight, lean, and tart on the palate. I asked this wine, "Hello, are you awake?" It answered back, "No, I'm asleep! Leave me alone!" Too tight to open today, and not enough present to really offer enjoyment. Score is for consumption on this night with this bottle. I expect this to be going much better places and that score to rise.

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  • 2000 Noël Verset Cornas 91 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas

    Tart aromas, but things get also a bit stewed with the fruit. Still creamy and delicious smelling. Tighter palate than expected based on that juicy nose, here expressing tarter fruit, though still smooth and mellow. I get a creamy marshmallow component on the finish, deep tart fruit, and overall this is quite mellow but nice.

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  • 1999 Noël Verset Cornas 93 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas

    Very soft and beautiful nose offering pleasing mushrooms and earth on a frame that feels lush and voluptuous though wonderfully structured. Very balanced and beautiful aromas, the best of the line up yet. The palate is tart, lean, and little tight on the palate compared to the 2000, even expressing some green tinged fruit. The finish is absolutely beautiful though, expressing a wonderful evolution of wild mushrooms that's so deep and long, but this is coupled with a high volume of tart red fruit. Kick ass finish, if a little tight today. I was waffling on 92-93, but as I think this still has room to grow it goes up.

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  • 1999 Domaine Auguste Clape Cornas 91 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas

    Wow, this really smells like cream cheese frosting; absolutely decedent and delicious. There's some sweet dark red fruit that's bordering on too pumped up for me, too. The palate is tight and quiet, on a creamy texture and lots of tart bitter tannins. A little brett is noticed on the finish, but it's also more open and expressive, having some nice structure and length. As I take more sips it gets grittier and grittier, though. Overall quite good.

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  • 1999 Thierry Allemand Cornas Reynard 88 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas

    A little sweet on the nose, coupled with soy sauce, but this too was quite tight. Tighter still on the palate, showing gritty young tannins that really build. I found the texture a little thin. The finish was gritty and grippy as hell. The structure is all there, but it was just entirely too tight that hardly anything was going on. Could turn into something interesting, but it's not there today.

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  • 2007 Guillaume Gilles Cornas 87 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas

    This thing smells a bit like DET as well. It's tart smelling, with plenty of acidity as well. The palate is tart and light, gritty, and showing that DET thing again. Creamy in flavor but at the same time textually thin and lean. Funky and really tart on the finish... not too enjoyable.

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  • 2009 Domaine du Coulet (Matthieu Barret) Cornas Billes Noires 88 Points

    France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Cornas

    Last wine of the night always suffers from my own ADD and I only wrote a few words about this one. The aromas were pretty though at the same time showed some brett. Very tart and lean on the palate. Nothing wrong or out of place here, it's just too tight for drinking today and isn't revealing much of what it'll become in the future.

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