Full bodied wine with dark fruit, licorice, pencil lead in the long finish. Tannins have softened over the years. Yet still a bit wild considering slightly harsch alcohol and actually a tiny, tiny bubbly mouthfeel.
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Mörkt röd med begynnande tegeltoner i kanten. Fruktig och något utvecklad doft. Luktar sydfranskt. Mörka blå och röda bär, peppar, örter från franska köket, kanel, lagerblad. Balanserad syra, skapligt balanserade tanniner, medelfylligt. Finishen är medellång och väl bitter, svart te-liknande, i övrigt lik smakmässigt doften om än doften utlovar mer än vad smaken levererar. Något stickig alkohol. Inte riktigt min stil, i vart fall inte utan tyngre mat.
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Made from biodynamically farmed grapes; mainly Mourvèdre along with a little bit of Grenache and a dash of Cinsaut. Fermented with natural yeasts over three weeks with skin maceration. Aged in 600-liter oak barrels and larger oak foudres for 18-24 months. 14,5% alcohol.
Slightly translucent black cherry color. The nose feels ripe but surprisingly closed with reticent aromas of dusty earth, some sweet dark berries, a little bit of brambly black raspberry, light sweet notes of blueberries and a hint of licorice. The wine is juicy, full-bodied and quite sinewy on the palate with rather concentrated and chewy overall feel and ripe yet not sweet flavors of blackberries, some fresh dark plums, a little bit of extracted, spicy and somewhat peppery bitterness, light stony mineral tones, a hint of gamey meat and a touch of licorice. The wine is high in acidity with firm, moderately grippy medium tannins. The finish is dry, moderately grippy and quite tough with long flavors of fresh blackberries, some stony minerality, a little bit of savory game, light peppery tones, a hint of chokeberry bitterness and a sweeter touch of blueberry.
A nice, serious and somewhat understated Bandol that feels quite tough, yet retains nice silky quality due to its juicy, ripe fruit. Pure and fresh in style, but aromatically rather subdued, especially when compared to my previous taste 3½ years ago. Perhaps in a slump right now? At least the wine really doesn't show much developed characteristics at the moment, which gives promise for future development. Although lacking the charm of the previous taste, the wine is still very good and I have no doubts this will improve from here if given enough age. It's not unlikely I just caught the wine in a less optimal spot. Priced according to its quality at 17,64€.
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Mourvedre & More: So smoky and beefy on the nose (definitely some brett, but it’s not overwhelming), with black cherries, roasted red peppers. Super grippy on the palate, this was by far the heaviest wine of the night (as expected), and really needs more time. Medium acidity keeps it lively. Lots of smoky, roasted herbs, earth, violets, charcoal. Massive, young but yummy.
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Mature now. Wouldn’t save it. But kept in room temperature. Rich, dried cherries and vanilla with a slight hint of rubber. Almost South African taste to it.
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Tasted over two days. Savory and meaty on the first day, with precious stone definition and tension. Slightly angular alcohol. Overall, the wine imparted the impression of needing time. It had closed down by the second day, another indication of its youthfulness. Three to five years should allow it to integrate and improve. Very good QPR. 90-91.
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Bra Bandolvin som dock fortfarande är för ungt. Körsbär viol svartvinbär och en del fat. Bra syra och tydliga tanniner. Blir idag inte märkbart bättre med ett par timmars luftning, utan fatkaraktären blir för tydlig.
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N: Ripe, blk frts, spice, with undertones of pyrazines? Intensity lurking?
P: Med, poss LM, body; Decent frt met by an astringent pucker which slowly morphs into a lingering finish. P is *very* tight, so tough for me to evaluate. However, potentially special given the $23.95 tasted price? 88 pts Decanter (Panel), + 2 scores & 1 medal on wine-searcher's Tasting Notes pg. [As of early Apr '20, wine-searcher still shows 1 source @ $35].
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Deep purple. Developing, attractive, slightly feral nose with just a hint of reduction and brett. Black-fruited aromas with notes of cassis, raspberries, bark, brown spice, earth, and garrique. Dry-tasting (no perceived alcohol sweetness here) with pretty much medium+ everything, but the grippy tannins are fine rather than demanding. The overall impression is about freshness, transparency and drinkability - not too extracted, nor the least heavy at 14,5% abv. La Bastide Blanche usually cellars really well, and this version shouldn't be an exception to the rule. Good idea to stash away a few bottles.
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Made from biodynamically farmed grapes; mainly Mourvèdre along with a little bit of Grenache and a dash of Cinsaut. Fermented with natural yeasts over three weeks with skin maceration. Aged in 600-liter oak barrels and larger oak casks for 18-24 months. 14,5% alcohol.
Almost fully opaque, blackish red color with a little bit of youthful purple. Quite big, juicy and fruit-driven nose with aromas of succulent plums, ripe blackberries, sweet boysenberries, some beef jerky tones, a little bit of fresh red cherry, light licorice root tones and a hint of sun-baked garrigue. The wine is pure, dark-toned and juicy on the palate with flavors of fresh, acid-driven dark berries, ripe plums, sweet black cherries, some meaty umami, a little bit of bitter exotic spices, light earthy tones and a hint of licorice root. The overall feel is bright and balanced, thanks to the enjoyably high acidity. The tannins feel very ripe, gentle and powdery at first, but they slowly pile up on the gums, making the wine feel relatively grippy after a while. The finish is fresh, gently grippy and somewhat warm with nuanced flavors of fresh blackberries, juicy plummy tones, some sweet black cherries, a little bit of leather, light notes of licorice and earth and a hint of wild strawberry.
A very nice, balanced and beautifully pure Bandol that is certainly ripe (and high in alcohol) like so many Bandols are, but the wine is also wonderfully fresh and more about bright berry-driven fruit than about rich, ripe and dark-toned fruits more typical of these Southerners. Although very young for a Bandol, this certainly isn't particularly muscular or tightly-knit in style. The tannins certainly are there, but this wine is obviously made to be accessible in its youth, not like an old-school Bandol that requires tons of age to soften the tough nature. A lovely Provençal effort that went great with lasagne. Priced according to its quality at 17,64€.
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1/6/2024 - Karl Rossmann Likes this wine: 86 Points
Full bodied wine with dark fruit, licorice, pencil lead in the long finish. Tannins have softened over the years. Yet still a bit wild considering slightly harsch alcohol and actually a tiny, tiny bubbly mouthfeel.
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10/7/2022 - Hampe wrote: 89 Points
Mörkt röd med begynnande tegeltoner i kanten. Fruktig och något utvecklad doft. Luktar sydfranskt. Mörka blå och röda bär, peppar, örter från franska köket, kanel, lagerblad. Balanserad syra, skapligt balanserade tanniner, medelfylligt. Finishen är medellång och väl bitter, svart te-liknande, i övrigt lik smakmässigt doften om än doften utlovar mer än vad smaken levererar. Något stickig alkohol. Inte riktigt min stil, i vart fall inte utan tyngre mat.
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1/18/2020 - forceberry wrote: 89 Points
Made from biodynamically farmed grapes; mainly Mourvèdre along with a little bit of Grenache and a dash of Cinsaut. Fermented with natural yeasts over three weeks with skin maceration. Aged in 600-liter oak barrels and larger oak foudres for 18-24 months. 14,5% alcohol.
Slightly translucent black cherry color. The nose feels ripe but surprisingly closed with reticent aromas of dusty earth, some sweet dark berries, a little bit of brambly black raspberry, light sweet notes of blueberries and a hint of licorice. The wine is juicy, full-bodied and quite sinewy on the palate with rather concentrated and chewy overall feel and ripe yet not sweet flavors of blackberries, some fresh dark plums, a little bit of extracted, spicy and somewhat peppery bitterness, light stony mineral tones, a hint of gamey meat and a touch of licorice. The wine is high in acidity with firm, moderately grippy medium tannins. The finish is dry, moderately grippy and quite tough with long flavors of fresh blackberries, some stony minerality, a little bit of savory game, light peppery tones, a hint of chokeberry bitterness and a sweeter touch of blueberry.
A nice, serious and somewhat understated Bandol that feels quite tough, yet retains nice silky quality due to its juicy, ripe fruit. Pure and fresh in style, but aromatically rather subdued, especially when compared to my previous taste 3½ years ago. Perhaps in a slump right now? At least the wine really doesn't show much developed characteristics at the moment, which gives promise for future development. Although lacking the charm of the previous taste, the wine is still very good and I have no doubts this will improve from here if given enough age. It's not unlikely I just caught the wine in a less optimal spot. Priced according to its quality at 17,64€.
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8/19/2018 - isaacjamesbaker wrote: 90 Points
Mourvedre & More: So smoky and beefy on the nose (definitely some brett, but it’s not overwhelming), with black cherries, roasted red peppers. Super grippy on the palate, this was by far the heaviest wine of the night (as expected), and really needs more time. Medium acidity keeps it lively. Lots of smoky, roasted herbs, earth, violets, charcoal. Massive, young but yummy.
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2/10/2018 - Hoogey wrote: 87 Points
Mature now. Wouldn’t save it. But kept in room temperature. Rich, dried cherries and vanilla with a slight hint of rubber. Almost South African taste to it.
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1/20/2018 - Motz wrote: 90 Points
Tasted over two days. Savory and meaty on the first day, with precious stone definition and tension. Slightly angular alcohol. Overall, the wine imparted the impression of needing time. It had closed down by the second day, another indication of its youthfulness. Three to five years should allow it to integrate and improve. Very good QPR. 90-91.
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12/16/2017 - TobiasKarlsson wrote: 88 Points
Bra Bandolvin som dock fortfarande är för ungt. Körsbär viol svartvinbär och en del fat. Bra syra och tydliga tanniner. Blir idag inte märkbart bättre med ett par timmars luftning, utan fatkaraktären blir för tydlig.
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8/13/2017 - Bossed wrote: flawed
Flawed. Tasted too old.
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7/15/2017 - diggydan wrote: 88 Points
Seemed fairly generic warmish wine. $50ish at Petit Louis.
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5/20/2017 - srh Likes this wine:
Winebar [4 Whites & 8 Reds] from 5/19/17 (Vintage Wines Ltd., San Diego, CA): Cf. the CellarTracker Article link [lower lft] to get specific info for this bottling.
N: Ripe, blk frts, spice, with undertones of pyrazines? Intensity lurking?
P: Med, poss LM, body; Decent frt met by an astringent pucker which slowly morphs into a lingering finish. P is *very* tight, so tough for me to evaluate. However, potentially special given the $23.95 tasted price? 88 pts Decanter (Panel), + 2 scores & 1 medal on wine-searcher's Tasting Notes pg. [As of early Apr '20, wine-searcher still shows 1 source @ $35].
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4/16/2017 - czar33 wrote: 88 Points
Superbe.
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2/7/2017 - Finare Vinare wrote: 89 Points
Deep purple. Developing, attractive, slightly feral nose with just a hint of reduction and brett. Black-fruited aromas with notes of cassis, raspberries, bark, brown spice, earth, and garrique. Dry-tasting (no perceived alcohol sweetness here) with pretty much medium+ everything, but the grippy tannins are fine rather than demanding. The overall impression is about freshness, transparency and drinkability - not too extracted, nor the least heavy at 14,5% abv. La Bastide Blanche usually cellars really well, and this version shouldn't be an exception to the rule. Good idea to stash away a few bottles.
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9/10/2016 - FrankBlack Likes this wine: 89 Points
This one needs aging. It quite closed at the moment. Intering things can happen in a few years.
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8/29/2016 - LWI wrote: 89 Points
Blind. Very dark, some bitterness, not much tannin, some bonfire smoke, seems like quite a bit alcohol -- warmish finish.
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8/13/2016 - forceberry wrote: 91 Points
Made from biodynamically farmed grapes; mainly Mourvèdre along with a little bit of Grenache and a dash of Cinsaut. Fermented with natural yeasts over three weeks with skin maceration. Aged in 600-liter oak barrels and larger oak casks for 18-24 months. 14,5% alcohol.
Almost fully opaque, blackish red color with a little bit of youthful purple. Quite big, juicy and fruit-driven nose with aromas of succulent plums, ripe blackberries, sweet boysenberries, some beef jerky tones, a little bit of fresh red cherry, light licorice root tones and a hint of sun-baked garrigue. The wine is pure, dark-toned and juicy on the palate with flavors of fresh, acid-driven dark berries, ripe plums, sweet black cherries, some meaty umami, a little bit of bitter exotic spices, light earthy tones and a hint of licorice root. The overall feel is bright and balanced, thanks to the enjoyably high acidity. The tannins feel very ripe, gentle and powdery at first, but they slowly pile up on the gums, making the wine feel relatively grippy after a while. The finish is fresh, gently grippy and somewhat warm with nuanced flavors of fresh blackberries, juicy plummy tones, some sweet black cherries, a little bit of leather, light notes of licorice and earth and a hint of wild strawberry.
A very nice, balanced and beautifully pure Bandol that is certainly ripe (and high in alcohol) like so many Bandols are, but the wine is also wonderfully fresh and more about bright berry-driven fruit than about rich, ripe and dark-toned fruits more typical of these Southerners. Although very young for a Bandol, this certainly isn't particularly muscular or tightly-knit in style. The tannins certainly are there, but this wine is obviously made to be accessible in its youth, not like an old-school Bandol that requires tons of age to soften the tough nature. A lovely Provençal effort that went great with lasagne. Priced according to its quality at 17,64€.
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10/12/2015 - khunchris wrote: 87 Points
Good with spicy food - refreshing - quaffer
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