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Occasional tasting group: Extensive Southern Rhône tasting with some extra's.
@ PVa
Tasted August 17, 2009 by Zweder with 578 views
Introduction
We all brought some bottles blind. We had to put them in the "low end" or "top end" box. One person randomly emptied the low end box first and after that the top end box. We tasted all wines blind.
Some people put their high end wine in the low end box.
And (for the first time) we had two exactly the same wines with enormous bottle variance.
This afternoon our host prepared a fully blind test of 10 white wines for us. After that we started with the Rhône wines.
Because there were more flights than Cellartracker can handle, I only split up between whites and reds.
Flight 1 (10 notes)
White
2007 Weingut Johann Peter Reinert Kanzemer Sonnenberg Riesling Kabinett trocken
86 points
Very pure Riesling bouquet. Straight forward. Pleasant citrus. Soft, friendly and clean with just a very little impression of sweetness in the finish.
White
2007 Saint Clair Family Estate Sauvignon Blanc Pioneer Block 8 Friar's
83 points
Cat pee, stable smells in the bouquet. First quite strong, later fading away. A lot of crispy citrus acidity. Asparagus. Slightly bitter in the finish.
White
2007 Alois Lageder Pinot Grigio Alto Adige - Südtirol
82 points
Butter, banana, some honey. Firm acidity.
White
2008 Deakin Estates Viognier
84 points
Candy sweetness in the bouquet as well as the taste. Full bodied and a bit fat. Banana and other tropical fruits. Ok wine.
White
2007 Bodegas Antaño Verdejo Rueda Viña Mocén
84 points
A lot of bitterness from the oak. Toasted, resin. Fat, butter banana and ok acidity. Maybe the wine needs more time. The oak is not integrated (yet)
White
2003 F.X. Pichler Grüner Veltliner Smaragd 'M'
92 points
Complex, very pure/clean. Elegant. Pleasant citrus and some soft tropical fruits. Great wine.
White
2005 Boekenhoutskloof Sémillon
86 points
Fresh supple and round. Soft acidity and some liquorice(?). Pleasant wine.
White
2004 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc
Somewhat oxidised bouquet. Old butter. A lot of banana. Oak. Soft bitterness. I remember I heard/read somewhere you should drink this wine either very young or very old (10+years). Anyway, at this moment it is not very pleasant and I will not score it.
White
2006 Château Bouscassé Pacherenc du Vic-Bilh Sec Les Jardins de Bouscassé
87 points
Expressive and aromatic wine with tropical and floral flavors.
White
2004 Ridge Chardonnay Monte Bello
94 points
Full bodied and lush. A lot of oak and the wine can handle it. Citrus and peach. Soft and round bitterness. Great wine if you like the style (which I do).
Flight 2 (42 notes)
Red
2005 Domaine de la Mordorée Lirac Cuvée de la Reine des Bois
90 points
A lot of white pepper and spices. Also some liquorice. Full bodied, very juicy and firm tannin. Needs some more time; 2+ years.
Red
1995 Bodegas Alejandro Fernández Ribera del Duero Janus Gran Reserva Pesquera
91 points
Beautiful barnyard bouquet, good oak and some medicine. Rustic. Leather. Soft bitterness. A bit short in the finish.
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Red
2003 Clos Saint Jean Châteauneuf-du-Pape
92 points
In the start almost like a port wine. Full bodied and round. Soft spices and bitterness. Ripe and soft tannin. Although the wine shows some signs of maturity it is still very youthful.
Red
2001 Faustino Rioja Faustino de Autor Reserva Especial
88 points
Beautiful spicy bouquet with just a little note of oxidisation. The tannin is still firm and sticky, but the wine is quite developed in the taste. Don't know what to think about the future.
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Red
2007 Domaine les Grands Bois Côtes du Rhône Villages Cuvée Philippine
Full bodied, soft bitterness, as first note, but the wine did not seem to be a 100% fresh, so I did not score it.
Red
2004 Domaine Santa Duc Gigondas Prestige des Hautes Garrigues
91 points
Good herbs like rosemary and thyme. Firm tannin and acidity. A very nice and complex wine which will improve with 3+ years of ageing.
Red
2007 Domaine La Garrigue Vacqueyras Cuvée de l'Hostellerie
92 points
Beautiful barnyard bouquet. Very juicy with pleasant sweetness and soft tannin. The herbs/spices are hidden behind the fruit.
Red
2005 Domini de la Cartoixa Priorat Clos Galena
90 points
Good juice, with cassis, coffe and cocoa. Firm but soft bitterness. The tannin is still too young. Give it 3+ years of rest.
Red
2007 Domaine La Garrigue Côtes du Rhône Cuvée Romaine
90 points
Very expressive bouquet with a lot of barnyard, white pepper and spices. Very juicy wine and beautiful now. No need to wait, but who knows, maybe it will become even more complex.
Red
2004 Château Saint-Roch (Rhone) Lirac
flawed
Very juicy wine which was unfortunately corked. Pity, underneath the cork it seemed to be a good wine.
Red
2003 Domaine Saint Préfert Châteauneuf-du-Pape Réserve Auguste Favier
92 points
A pleasant little bit of barnyard. Smoky and spicy. A very elegant wine. Very pleasant drinking now, but no hurry.
Red
2007 Château de Saint Cosme Gigondas
92 points
Sweet and lush bouquet. The tannin is soft and ripe, but also firm. Good spices/herbs. While 2007 is great to drink young, this wine certainly has ageing potential.
Red
2007 Domaine les Grands Bois Rasteau Cuvée Marc
93 points
Lush and sweet juice. Soft white pepper and other spices/herbs. The tannin is soft and supple. Decanted half a day before drinking this is a beauty, especially considering the price.
Red
2007 Domaine La Garrigue Vacqueyras
93 points
The wine is a little bretty in the bouquet as well as on the palate, but I like it because it adds to the complexity. Good herbs/spices, pleasant oak. Very juicy and good length. Good and soft tannin. Great drinking now, but also a good future.
Red
2004 Domaine de la Mordorée Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée de la Reine des Bois
94 points
The bouquet is a bit locked at the moment even though the wine was decanted well before drinking. In the mouth there is pleasant sweetness, some chocolate and good bitterness. The tannin is soft but firm. Good concentration and very elegant. Needs some more years of ageing (2+)
Red
2005 Ferrer Bobet Priorat
93 points
A lot of sweetness and soft white pepper. Chocolate. Soft tannin. Complex wine. Will improve the next 2+ years.
Red
2005 Clos Saint Jean Châteauneuf-du-Pape
94 points
Friendly bouquet with ripe fruits and pleasant spices. Juicy. Soft tannin which makes the wine already a pleasure, but waiting some years is no problem. Clos St. Jean always ages beautifully.
Red
2005 Domaine de Ferrand Châteauneuf-du-Pape
89 points
Soft and not so expressive wine. There is pleasant soft bitterness and good tannin. Maybe this is not the right drinking moment, but the wine did not really impress.
Red
2005 Domaine Pierre Usseglio & Fils Châteauneuf-du-Pape
93 points
Very friendly sweet juice. At first the wine was open, friendly and easy with good fruit and spices. Little later it was less open. The tannin and bitterness showed there is plenty of room for more ageing. Great wine.
Red
2003 Domaine de Beaurenard (Paul Coulon et Fils) Châteauneuf-du-Pape Boisrenard
94 points
Beautiful bouquet with good black forest fruits. Very juicy and complex. The tannin and bitterness is still firm, but the wine gained since the bottle I had about 20 months ago. Keep it a few more years will do no harm.
Red
2005 Domaine Pierre Usseglio & Fils Châteauneuf-du-Pape
91 points
Friendly and supple and open. Good sweetness of ripe fruits. Pleasant herbs and spices. Compared to the bottle earlier in this tasting there was less structure and complexity. (In tastings like this we bring wines blind and no one knows what everybody brings, so now we had two of the same bottles, with only one bottle in between. And everybody agreed this was a different wine. Bottle variance? Or different shipping/storage conditions?)
Red
1997 M. Chapoutier Hermitage La Sizeranne
88 points
Tea in the bouquet. Very mature wine. A lot of secondary and tertiary tastes. It has quite much bitterness, but drink it asap. It is still nice.
Red
2003 Domaine du Vieux Lazaret Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Exceptionnelle
91 points
Pleasant bit of barnyard in the bouquet. Juicy. Soft tannin and bitterness and good complexity. Ready now, but no hurry.
Red
2004 Domaine du Pégau Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Réservée
90 points
Little barnyard and very round and pleasurable. Seems like the wine does not show its merits at the moment.
Red
2004 Domaine du Pégau Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Réservée
94 points
Expressive and complex bouquet with smells like pepper, spices, pleasant barnyard. Very juicy and expressive on the palate as well. The tannin shows some development, but is still youthful. Tasting this wine beside exactly the same wine brought by another friend. The difference is bizarre. So much bottle variance….
Red
2003 Clos Saint Jean Châteauneuf-du-Pape La Combe des Fous
95 points
Full bodied, black forest fruits, pleasant spices. Soft tannin. Beautiful complex wine which is a treat now and the soft tannin promises several years more.
Red
2005 Domaine du Pégau Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Réservée
94 points
Soft but firm tannin. Good spices and little pleasant barnyard. The wine is presenting itself quite nice already, but there is plenty future.
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Red
2005 Le Clos du Caillou Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve le Clos du Caillou
94 points
Very juicy wine with chocolate/cocoa, white pepper, red and black fruits etc. Lovely and complex wine. Still youthful, but showing its merits.
Red
2006 Domaine de la Solitude (Lançon Père et Fils) Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Cornelia Constanza
flawed
enormously corked
Red
2007 Domaine Grand Veneur Châteauneuf-du-Pape Vieilles Vignes
95 points
Not so many notes because I was just enjoying. Concentrated juice. A lot of sweetness, but also good herbs/spices and pleasant oak in the background. Complex and harmonious wine.
Red
2007 Domaine Paul Autard Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Juline
96 points
This is extremely beautiful. Sweet and lush and a lot of extraction. Black forest fruits, soft bitterness and tannin. Meaty, spicy etc. Great now!
Red
1998 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve
94 points
Mature. A lot of garrigue. Little barnyard as well. Complex. Quite ready, but no real hurry.
Red
2007 Clos des Papes Châteauneuf-du-Pape
99 points
Young and great juice. Very full bodied and lush, but not overdone. Elegant complexity, soft tannin. So extremely good now, but I don't give the perfect score, because otherwise I must drink all my bottles today or tomorrow.
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Red
2007 Domaine de Ferrand Châteauneuf-du-Pape
96 points
WOW! Unexpected from this domain, but what a juice! This must be their best wine they ever made. Complex, beautiful oak, a lot of garrigue, soft tannin. Super! So young, but so beautiful. I wonder if it will be better in the future, but this sure has a future.
Red
2003 Domaine Pierre Usseglio & Fils Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée de mon Aïeul
95 points
Beautiful herbs/spices in the bouquet. Complex. Juicy and a beautiful balance. Good acidity and bitterness. Now, decanted well before drinking already a beauty and extremely enjoyable, but 5+ more years will be no problem.
Red
2005 Domaine Pierre Usseglio & Fils Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée de mon Aïeul
95 points
Extracted. Full bodied. Supple. Beautiful balance. Young but very tempting. Of course a lot of future, but this is already so great!
Red
2005 Domaine de la Vieille Julienne Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve
96 points
Extremely intense and complex. A lot of pleasant sweetness. Good and firm tannin which is also soft and approachable. Black and red fruits. The high score is because of the overall complexity. This is so complete. There is enough future, but will it ever be better?
Red
2005 Roger Sabon Châteauneuf-du-Pape Le Secret des Sabon
96 points
Primary red fruits. Soft bitterness and spices. Soft and friendly tannin, but it certainly is there. Elegant power. Great wine.
Red
2003 Kalleske Grenache Old Vines
94 points
Not so many notes. I was impressed by the elegance and complexity of this wine especially in the bouquet. Even though I score it very high I wonder if there was some VA in the taste in the beginning. Anyway, it disappeared and there was so much to taste… So the score is without considering the VA. I hope I will ever taste this at another occasion.
Red
2006 Clos Saint Jean Châteauneuf-du-Pape Deus-Ex Machina
96 points
Very fruit forward and juicy. Also complex, sweet and a beautiful balance. Although it even scores one point higher than my previous note, I think it has reached its limit now. There is more than enough future, but I have the feeling ageing will not add to the complexity and will result in a higher score. But don't be mistaken; this is wonderful juice.
Red
2007 Domaine de la Janasse Châteauneuf-du-Pape Vieilles Vignes
99 points
Only excitement! What a concentration and silky complexity. Hard not to give this the perfect score. I can hardly imagine this will ever become more enjoyable. But no doubt about it; this has potential to age. Is it worth waiting for instead of drinking it now? I wonder! One point left for ultimate perfection.