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Bandols
Trent's
Tasted January 28, 2015 by Loren Sonkin with 550 views
Introduction
Last night my tasting group me to drink some Bandol wines. This is not something any of us drink often, so it was a very good educational experience. The wines were drunk, non-blind (is there a word for that?) so we could pay attention to what we were drinking. There were 11 of us, so pours were a bit limited, but there was certainly enough to taste well. Breads and cheese were served along side.
Some conclusions. First, my favorites and the groups were Tempier. While I am sure there are other very good producers, those wines are what I think of as "Bandol". Also, 2008 seemed to be the weaker vintage and for me, at least, 2010 is very strong. While the 2010's certainly need some time and may improve, they have all the stuffing and balance for 5 to ten more years until sliding downhill. At least.
And of course, Tempier makes a damn fine Rose.
Flight 1 (2 notes)
White
2012 Domaine Tempier Bandol Blanc
89 points
Light golden in color. Out of the bottle, it was tight and bitter. With some air, it improved greatly. Grapefruit and lemons on the nose. Tart acidity which gets smoother with air. Slightly bitter grapefruit pith on the palate with some citrus. This is nice, but its $42.
Rosé
2012 Domaine Tempier Bandol Rosé
92 points
Beautiful rose. Expensive but this is one of the best rose's I have had. Salmon pink in color. The nose has strawberries and a saline quality. On the palate, strawberries and saline carry through but also a peach note. Very nice texture. Long finish.
Flight 2 (11 notes)
Red
2001 Domaines Ott Bandol Château Romassan - Longue Garde
flawed
I brought this back from a visit to the winery back in 2007. Sadly, it was ever so slightly corked. It took some time to show, and this was still a very good wine and drinkable, but who knows how good it might have been. While the TCA came out with air, so did the wine build. Spice and black cherries. Nice texture. Certainly different from the other wines.
Red
2005 Domaine Tempier Bandol La Tourtine
89 points
Spice and dark cherries on the nose. Dark cherries on the palate with some heat. Firm tannins. Seemed to be a lot there but hiding. It did start to open up later in the night. Others liked it more a this got three first place votes although it finished middle of the pack in group voting.
Red
2008 Château Pradeaux Bandol
88 points
One conclusion from this tasting was 2008 is a weaker vintage in Bandol. The nose is dusty with dark cherries. Very soft texture. Mild tannins. Cherries on the palate. Not much complexity.
Red
2008 Château de Pibarnon Bandol
90 points
Slight cherries on the nose. Got slightly deeper with air. Juicy texture. Slight tannins. Upfront bright cherry fruit. Nice finish. Doesn't seem like much of an upside from here though.
Red
2009 Domaine Tempier Bandol La Migoua
92 points
Deeper ruby in color. The nose has dark chocolate shavings and dark cherries. Lush texture. Dark cherries on the palate. Firm tannins. Complex. Best days are ahead as it improved all night.
Red
2009 Château de Pibarnon Bandol
90 points
Cinnamon and light cherries on the nose. Juicy acidity. Sinewy texture. Cherries and medium tannins on the palate. Nice finish.
Red
2010 Domaine Tempier Bandol La Migoua
94 points
The groups WOTN and my #2. Dark ruby in color. The nose has sour cherries and dark cherries. Nice lush texture. This is delicious. Sour cherries and some earthiness. Deep but tight complexity that unwinds in the glass. Needs time but really good right now. Worth the money IMO.
Red
2010 La Bastide Blanche Bandol Cuvée Fontanéou
90 points
This is still quite tight, especially on the nose. Some cherries but never really gave much up. cherries on the palate. A bit thinner in texture but still nice. Good acidity. Shows potential to improve but nice today.
Red
2010 Domaine Tempier Bandol La Tourtine
94 points
I liked this wine more than the group. I think they did not like the nose, the tannins and the intensity of the wine. This was the only wine on the table that really had that stink that Mourvedre can provide. Not a lot, but I love that as others find it akin to Brett. Also some dark cherries on the nose. Great texture. Juicy acidy. It is big and there are a ton of tannins. This needs to be laid down for a while IMO. It has a tight complexity right now. Revisit in five year. My WOTN.
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Comment
Red
2011 Domaine du Gros 'Noré Bandol
89 points
Some liked this more than I, this also got 3 first place votes but finished middle of the pack. For some it stood out from the rest for its fruit, ripeness and ease of drinking which they liked. The nose has cherries. On the palate, sweet cherries. Reminds me of a Cal Pinot of the full throttle style. There are some light tannins. Its easy to drink, but I get nothing that says Bandol here.
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Comment
Red
2011 Domaine Tempier Bandol
91 points
This also had a slight Mourvedre stink on the nose especially with air. Dried cherries on the nose. The palate seems surprisingly accessible to me. Juicy acidity. Cherry fruit. Nice finish. This is drinking well right now. I liked it far more than the group though.
Closing
Really interesting tasting. I am glad we did this non-blind as we could really pay attention to the differences in wineries and I don't think there was any label bias issues going in.