March 24, 2024 - Acquired new. 2 hour decant but frankly not really necessary. Fully mature and perfect CDP. Cannot afford Chateau Rayas and this is a nice substitute. Always been a fan of this producer as they are consistently well made.
February 19, 2024 - This beautiful CNP was alive and well. No decanting, served right after opening. Lots of nice dark red fruit and mild tannin, soft and yummy but with plenty of structure holding it all together. Alcohol was 14%. A wonderful experience and if any reader has any I would encourage you to enjoy it now, and don't save any for the second night.
February 2, 2024 - Outstanding, still fresh, fruit forward and delicious.
January 5, 2024 - So delicious
December 13, 2023 - I gave it 45 minutes of air prior to tasting.
Medium garnet color, with just a touch of bricking at the edges; savory notes of roast meat, and earth
are present on initial tasting. Out of the gate, the fruit has faded a bit relative to the last couple of bottles I’ve tasted. Tannins have receded almost completely, leaving a mouthwatering acidity fighting for balance against savory notes of leather and tar.
90 minutes after opening, a better balance has emerged: a rich mid-palate-coating of black, blue fruit peeks its head out. Quite delicious. Patience is rewarded.
During my initial taste, I would’ve rated this bottle a 92 or 93. After close to two hours of air, it has blossomed and matured into something more profound.
That said, I suggest drinking them up if you’ve got ‘em. I can’t see it getting any better,
At the 2 hour mark, I rated iit at 95. I’ll place a 94 into the score box on this CellarTracker note to balance out the score representing my own overall impression of this outstanding cuvée.
November 10, 2023 - Last bottle of the 12 I bought in 2008, and that is probably a good thing as this bottle came across a bit tired. Very healthy cork and good colour with slight teal hue along the rim. Very rustic on the nose at first, but with a bit of air the wine came very nicely together. It drinks well and offers traditional notes of garrigue and thyme but also more meaty notes, which breaks the balance a bit. I normally adore the style of Vieux Donjon and still have 1998s in the cellar. But if this bottle is representative of the 2005s,I would say drink up now.
September 17, 2023 - Clear medium garnet with a presence of legs/tears on the glass.
A clean wine with medium+ intensity with aromas of preserved fruits, jamminess, strawberry, blackcurrant, bramble, kirsch, dried blackberry, forest floor, fig, leather, a touch of black pepper and farmyard. This wine is fully developed.
The wine is dry with medium acidity, tannins are medium- with medium+ flavour intensity, with flavours matching the aromas. The finish is long.
Drink now not suitable for further aging.
September 1, 2023 - Tasty btl w/ Nita's flank steak tonight. Not showing any oxidation but not sure this btl is any better than one from 3-1/2yrs ago. I had hoped another 3-1/2 years would make this final btl memorable. 91-92
August 6, 2023 - Significant solids. Decanted. Smelled a bit rubbery at first, cleaned up fairly soon. This was stored well until 2 years ago, when it went through twosummers in a warm place, so maybe that affected it. Well balanced and enjoyable, seemed a bit more rustic than last time. Will try another well stored soon.
July 10, 2023 - Drinkable. Getting bricky around the edges. Still has some fruit, smooth tannins , but starting to turn.
Drink up within the next 6 months.