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Masters of Syrah
Chicago, IL
Tasted April 28, 2017 by acyso with 558 views
Flight 1 - Jamet (4 notes)
Perhaps the most rustic of the set, and simply because of the 1998, my top flight for the night. The wines seem to be characterized by a bit more briny olive quality than most.
Red
1998 Domaine Jamet Côte-Rôtie
98 points
Well, as they say, it's all downhill from here (actually it was -- this was my wine of the night). The nose on this is everything I love about syrah: the intense charcuterie plate, with its smoked meat and olives, counterbalanced with very ripe and sweet fruit. The palate is very light, but all those flavours remain in spades, and they're mixed together with some smoke and black fruit. The acidity here is in perfect balance and gives this wine serious lift. Elegant and powerful.
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Red
2001 Domaine Jamet Côte-Rôtie
93 points
This wasn't as good as I remembered it being. The nose shows lots of green olives and less of the fruit character. The palate is much more acidity driven than the 98, and the tannins on this are also a bit more coarse. I'm thinking that this needed a little bit more air to integrate, as it did seem a little angular on the back end.
Red
2003 Domaine Jamet Côte-Rôtie
90 points
The nose on this definitely doesn't show much overripeness, and in fact there are some really nice notes of dried herbs. This is definitely the weakest of the four Jamet bottles, and while the palate has a surprisingly high amount of acidity, there really isn't too much interesting here: it has some fruit, but the saline/briny quality is missing. Much later in the night when I revisited this, it had fallen apart by showing nothing but acid.
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Red
2005 Domaine Jamet Côte-Rôtie
93 points
From magnum. And given that this was the youngest wine, definitely the tightest and most reticent. This seemed to have a lot of the character of the 1998, but mostly in a coiled state, waiting to unfurl. To me, this was the darkest of the Jamet wines, and the fruit seemed to be a little bit muted. What I found most convincing about this wine was the extract and concentration that seemed to lurk beneath the surface. I'm confident this will be amazing with more time.
Flight 2 - Guigal (3 notes)
Perhaps the most nondescript syrahs out of the producers tonight, there's some nice red fruit and oak on these wines, but where is the extra oomph?
Red
1995 E. Guigal Côte-Rôtie La Turque
90 points
My second favourite of the flight. This seemed to show a little more red fruit on the nose, and the aromas in general seemed to be more flowery and delicate. The palate had quite a bit of acidity, but this didn't scream syrah as loudly as the Jamet did -- there was a little bit of pepper and some red fruit, but the classic meat and brine was missing. A good wine, but not convincing.
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Red
1996 E. Guigal Côte-Rôtie La Landonne
90 points
This was my favourite of the Guigal flight. It seemed to hold the most power and gravitas of the three wines, and on top of that, it seemed to have a little more of the briny character I love in northern Rhone. The nose showed a bit of strawberry that I found out of place. The palate was moderately concentrated, and showed a little bit of earthiness that coupled nicely with some dusty tannins.
Red
2001 E. Guigal Côte-Rôtie La Mouline
88 points
My least favourite of the three Guigals tonight -- this was jutting and angular, and showing its oak the most of all (granted, it was also the youngest, and I do understand that this needs more time for the oak to "integrate"). A bit prickly on the nose and palate, this was also a bit more red than black-fruited, with fairly lively acidity.
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Flight 3 - Chave (3 notes)
One flawed and one disappointing bottle sunk this producer tonight. The classic "Chave tastes like Chave" popped up on the 2000, which was redeeming for the other, more disappointing bottles.
Red
1996 Domaine Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage
flawed
Something was not quite right with the bottle, though everyone agreed it wasn't corked. Seemed a little tired, very green, and thin, and lacking the characteristic Chave polish.
Red
2000 Domaine Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage
93 points
My favourite in the Chave flight. The nose on this had a very floral and perfumed quality that I just loved. This isn't a very heavy wine at all, but it is fairly concentrated, and wears it well. The palate is mostly dominated by red fruit, with a nice bit of acidity, and there are smidgens of syrah salinity and meatiness if you look for them. Very elegant, with well-integrated tannins. This seems to be in a very nice spot.
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Red
2007 Domaine Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage
90 points
A somewhat disappointing showing for this wine. The nose was a bit reductive at first, though the stink blew away after a little bit. What's left is a muted nose, though you can pick out very sweet black fruit and pepper on this. The palate feels thickly textured, with lots of opulent black fruit, but after that sweetness, the tannins seem to clamp down hard. Admittedly, this is a little early to be opening this wine, and the best advice would be to leave this be for some more time.
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Flight 4 - Allemand (3 notes)
Were it not for the 1998 Jamet, this would have been my top flight, with its brilliant black fruit and meat perfume.
Red
2006 Thierry Allemand Cornas Chaillot
95 points
The nose on this is, as Phil said, why you buy Allemand. That polished black fruit and meatiness is exactly what it should be. The palate is a bit denser and slightly more ornery than the 2008s. It shows some sweet black cherry and coarser tannin as well in a very suave package. In fact, the nose alone made this one of my favourite wines of the night.
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Red
2008 Thierry Allemand Cornas Chaillot
93 points
This was much more open and giving than the Reynard (which was the same verdict I had when we did the 2008 horizontal fourteen months ago). Nothing has changed. The signature polish is there, with the sweet fruit and meat, but this time, the fruit has veered a little more towards the red side. This is a much lighter wine than the 2006 as well, showing some sweet red berries. While I think in the end, the stuffing in the Reynard will cause it to eclipse this wine, this is the 2008 Allemand to drink now.
Red
2008 Thierry Allemand Cornas Reynard
93 points
I loved the thickness and density of this wine, and it is definitely the more closed of the 2008 pair. The nose on this is darker-toned and more demure, at least right now. The palate, though, is where the interest lies. There's a silky and thick ribbon of tannin that pervades this wine, but around it are some black fruit notes and just a bit of meat. Right now, this seems a little more rustic than refined, but when this starts unfurling, there is some seriously good stuff in store.
Flight 5 - Grange (3 notes)
This is one of my first experiences with Grange, and I was thoroughly impressed by the density and power of these wines.
Red
1990 Penfolds Grange
95 points
This edged out the 1996 Grange by a hair for the best wine of the flight. The nose on this is absolutely stunning. It's incredibly ripe and full-bodied, and the American oak shows in spades. Sweet and ripe on the nose, this is simply explosive. The palate is a little angular (the 1996 had a much better integrated palate, though the nose wasn't as incredible), this is a very ripe wine. Of course, this is still too young, as I didn't really pick up too many secondary flavours (besides a little bit of leather).
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Red
1996 Penfolds Grange
93 points
I liked this a lot, but besides the silkier palate, this wine paled in comparison to the massive and monumental 1990. This is a less ripe rendition of the wine, with the fruit not quite showing as potently or sweetly, and veering off a little bit more towards the tarter, red-fruited side of the spectrum. There's still an insane amount of American oak on this (somehow, American oak doesn't bother me, unlike French oak) which has yet to integrate.
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Red
1999 Penfolds Grange
90 points
The obvious runt of the litter. To be sure, this was very young, but I thought it showed too much greenness for the ripeness levels here. Especially compared to the 1990 and 1996, this is a very racy Grange, but it also doesn't seem to be as well integrated, and is definitely missing that explosive perfume. The oak here isn't as prominent either -- all in all, this clearly felt like a lesser, thinner wine and was very much outmatched by its older peers.
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Flight 6 - Sine Qua Non (3 notes)
I tried to approach this flight with as much of an open mind as I could. These are dark and peppery syrahs, and extremely distinctive in their extraction, sometimes too much so...
Red
2001 Sine Qua Non Midnight Oil
85 points
This was nowhere as dried out and oaky as I remember it being. In fact, there was some nice black pepper on the nose, as well as a very polished and slick black fruit and vanilla set of aromas. There's a fair bit of acidity here, and unlike the last time I tried this, the oak isn't too obnoxious, though it is still there and rears its head once in a while. It's hard for me to account for the difference in showings, but I'll chalk it up to storage (this bottle was bought from Sam's on release).
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Red
2006 Sine Qua Non Syrah A Shot in the Dark
90 points
Somehow, the least oaky SQN is the one that has been sitting in oak the longest. Who would have thunk it? The nose of this is a pepper-bomb. An insane amount of black fruit, as well as some emergent blueberry milkshake flavours. Fortunately, they're not so prominent that this turns into so many other SQN wines, perhaps the oak holds this together. To be sure, I would like much more acid here, but I wouldn't turn down a small glass of this now and again.
Red
2009 Sine Qua Non Syrah The Thrill of...
70 points
I would much rather engage in philately than this wine. This is much too sweet and goopy, and there's a sickly sweet Ribena-like quality here. This could seriously use a bit of acid as well. Will this get better with time? Who knows, there isn't much more downside from here...
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Flight 7 - Miscellany (6 notes)
White - Sparkling
N.V. Jacques Selosse Substance
95 points
I missed noting down the disgorgement date, but I believe this was a 2015 disgorgement. This is an incredibly dense champagne, with heaps of oxidation and bruised apples. Very concentrated and dense on the palate, with a lot of the same rich oxidative flavours. This tastes like a concentrated version of Krug Grande Cuvee: this is not a fresh champagne, and it's one more for a main course than an apertif, not that I'll complain.
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Rosé
2013 Domaine des Lambrays La Rose Du Clos Rosé
90 points
This seems to have gotten much better than I remember it being. There is a lot of cohesion here, with the sweet fruit and some really incredibly fresh green acids. There's a bit of cranberry and tart red cherries here, and the palate isn't one that just peters out, it's got some serious heft to it.
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Red
2012 Pierre Gonon St. Joseph
93 points
So much white pepper! The meaty elements aren't here, while the olive ones are hidden behind all that white pepper. It's insane how peppery this wine is on the nose. The palate is a different game though, it's all flowery and light and elegant, with beautiful tart red fruits. Never heavy, this is a very light syrah.
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White - Sweet/Dessert
1986 Château Climens
93 points
A lovely bottle of Barsac, this shows a very light and deft touch. It's not blowsy or heavy, and the acidity really comes through here. To be sure, this has all of those classic Sauternes notes, with some sweet apricots being the most dominant note. There doesn't seem to be too much botrytis here, and the palate is only moderately sweet. This seemed to be driven more by nuance and elegance than the outright raw power I'm used to from Yquem.
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White - Sparkling
2004 Ruinart Champagne Dom Ruinart Blanc de Blancs
90 points
I'm surprised at how strong the red delicious apple tone is on this. It's the dominant aroma on the nose, while on the palate, it is counterbalanced by a bit of marzipan. A little sweet on the palate, this is mostly balanced out by the acidity and chalk.
White - Sparkling
1995 Charles Heidsieck Champagne Blanc des Millénaires
93 points
This was also a bottle of the library release. Exactly consistent with my last note from yesterday, I am now thinking whether I rated last night's bottle too lowly.
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