Dark red color with clear ripeness. Dull sweet big aroma of dark ripe berries. Ripe strawberries, warm typical sun-ripened berries, barrel and leather. Delicious.
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Clear garnet, browning at the edge, moderate sediment requiring a decant or first pour. Heady kirsch aromas and flavors; a fairly big ripe example, moderate structure which is smoothing out. Really in a nice place tonight. YFS
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Seems to have lost a little life. Good bottle but fruit, nose, finish were all a little less pronounced than I would have liked. Probably time to drink the last bottle
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A New Year's Eve Gathering at our place: From magnum: Decanted the first half of this bottle for 30 minutes while the second half slo-oxed in the bottle for over an hour. This allowed the wine to darken in color and add some weight. This wine appeared younger and fresher than the single bottle opened two years ago. The color was a medium garnet to a faded rim. Lots of red fruits and some earth on the nose. On the medium bodied palate these red fruits and earth (garrigue) were joined by some darker fruits and touches of spice and minerality. The acidity was nicely balancing, and all tannins were completely integrated. Drinking very well (from Magnum) where it should continue to hold for several more years. Overall, this wine was quite enjoyable and paired very nicely with both the stuffed mushroom appetizer and the Turducken main course.
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Really enjoyable wine. Drank right after opening and it got better with more air time. Medium color, nice nose. Soft fruit and tannins. Probably peaking now so wouldn't cellar for too many more years.
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Popped and poured. This is a medium-red wine with some notable sediment toward the end of the bottle. On the nose, I get ripe cherries, kirsch, scrub, and a warm cedar plank. In the mouth, this displays a chewy character with raisins, herbs, and crushed red fruits. The finish is juicy, wild, and characterized by smooth tannins. Overall, I thought this was a perfect wine to drink outside on a fall day. This is distinctive CdP with a nice showing today. The stated downsides of the 2007 vintage were not present with this wine. 92 points.
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Unfortunately oxidized. Cork was perfect so bottle variation. I was hoping for the experience that the last reviewer had but it was not to be. Still have some bottles so hope this was a one off.
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Excellent. Gorgeous wine drinking so much better than the bottle we had last November. Colour: deep blackberry Bouquet: spicey dark berries and cherries, with cherry oak Palate: just as bouquet, inky chocolate characters, chalky, cherries, dried twigs, herbs and smoke. Leather. Full bodied, full soft tannins and long ultra dry finish. March 2021
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Still got plenty of life, but pretty heady. The fruit is less vibrant than I remember, slightly cooked feeling to it. Decent balance though, but more mature now. Needs hearty food.
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Decanted for 30 minutes - with a fair amount of sediment - but could benefit from an additional 15 - 30 minutes. The color was a mahogany red that faded to a colorless rim. The nose was all red fruits. The medium bodied palate showed lots of red fruits, some garrigue, a touch of minerality, nicely balancing acidity, and well integrated tannins. This wine is definitely ready to please, if given a chance to breathe up front, and can probably hold for several years more.
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Very good. 14.5% alc. Colour: mid red berries, some browning Bouquet: leather, pepper, some hot alcohol, dried herbs. Palate: as bouquet, huge body, little fruit character left, leathery, dried herbs and spice, long finish. November 2020
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My last bottle of this outstanding effort. With all components integrated and in balance, dense, seamless and elegant fruit, this beauty is drinking perfectly now. Elegant and lingering finish. Enjoy this beauty over the next 5 years!
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Clearly showing the ripe vintage character but there is enough material and complexity to make the wine interesting and enjoyable. A lot of tobacco, lavender and tapenade. Excellent concentration, nicely layered slightly dry black fruit, good acidity and earthy mineral, and a long ripe black fruit driven finish with tobacco at the end. My favorite wine of the flight.
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Hoping for more but still a great wine. You pull a "12" yr old upper crusty wine and you want to be thrilled. Well, we're still enjoying the heck out of this. Decanted an hour into the "Duck"! and followed another 2 hrs. This is a medium bodied wine with more savory notes than fruity ones AND THAT'S OK WITH ME! Just not deep or profoundly complex enough to go higher, score wise tonight. Kirsch and plum, garrigue, kelp, sangre de toro, ferrous and anise notes. TINY bitter note on the finish that brought it down a point or two for me. Decent tannins an acidity. Still has 8+ years.
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At West London Wine School's 2007 Rhone Superstar Tasting. Clear garnet. Strawberry kirsch, earthy finish that was shorter than expected and not impressive that night. I was going to score 86-88 but as it seemed to be more of a problem with bottle variation or that this wine is entering a closed phase score withheld.
Disagree with some of the previous tasting notes. Out of a 750ml, this wine sang right out of bottle. peppery, spicy, bacon/meaty...closed down after an hour or so but it was tremendous prior to that.
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This wine seems to still be improving as it ages in this large format bottle(1.5L). Dark and brooding, it produces layers of fruit with little tannin to speak of. The granache seems to protrude in the finish and dominate the flavor.
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Decanted 2 hours and overall still tannic but nice balance. I liked the wine as it has nice extraction for a CNDP. A little must on the nose but not overbearing. Paired with Char Siu marinated cross ribs & it was perfect. Nice fruit, nose quite muted & it would have been hard to guess the wine from the nose. Overall not disappointed with what I paid ($65).
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2007 CdP retro (with sushi food pairing) (Streeterville, Chicago): Nose: The nose shows a riper, yet somewhat savory side with licorice, raspberries, leather tones, spice notes, dark red cherries, liqueur tones, and some plums. There is some balance here, but it is lacking some depth.
Taste: Medium bodied with medium tannins. The tannins are silky and ripe with a plush quality to the feel along with raspberries, spice tones, dark red cherries, licorice, and liqueur tones.
Overall: This was a very good Chateauneuf du Pape. It was showing on the riper side, but it lacked some depth and expression that would've really driven it.
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#alternativepairings (Chicago, IL): Boring wine, tastes like plum. MSM keeps trying to make people like these things, but they are WRONG! Wine should not taste rusty and bitter.
Upon opening and decanting, the wine seemed lighter than expected. However, over the next half hour the wine opened up and put on weight. The nose remained somewhat reticent, but the wine displayed a lovely combination of complex fruit flavors, earthiness and beautiful balance. It was a fine accompaniment to roast chicken. Improved overnight on the vacuvin - indicating a better future ahead in a few more years.
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Very nice C9P indeed. Dark fruit, black olives and french herbs on the nose. Layers of cassis, fig and licorice on the palate...Even though it appears to be somewhat closed at the moment..it is a really great wine. Long and refreshing finish. This will keep for another 5-15 years for sure!
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Decanted for 1-2 hours. Pretty good but not great. I don't get the ratings in the 90's...that said I've been drinking mostly pinot noir lately. It is a pretty brut wine. Nose gives me, meat, blood, iron, floral, almonds and some ripe read fruits. Drinking - what fruit is there gives away fairly fast to oak, alcohol and little tannic. Finish is not that pleasant but as I'm sitting here writing this a bit of cherries and other fruits comes around after a fairly long time. I can not see this getting better by aging further - drink up and move on. Looking at my cellar - I'm not certain if I have 2 left or if this was the last. Honestly if it was the last...I'm fine.
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should have decanted, this is still tight upon opening (and this was a .375 bottle!). After an hour or so, the whole beast mellowed out, fruit came out and it was super silky. I would imagine a full bottle could easily do with a few more years of cellaring ..
Last bottle, but surely a nice one! A totally brilliant effort. The Chante Le Merle continues to sing beautifully with plenty of integrated and balanced dark mature fruit, wet saddle leather, classy garrigue, abundant liquorice and fresh herbs. With an impressive texture and complexity, the integration is just superb. This is "total" experience - without doubt... The palate is full-throttle and has an impressive length and vibrant exuberant texture. Acidity is there, but still not overly expressed, just balanced. There is no sign of heat at all. The integration has just continued to improve and is no very impressive. Altogether a super effort! (score is 95+)
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I was reluctant to rate this one because Rhone wines are apparently not really my thing. As they go, though this one was extremely pleasant. Very rich, strong floral bouquet; nicely integrated tannins, not overpowering the delicious ripe fruit; surprisingly long finish. A little heavy duty for my tastes, but an excellent and well balanced wine.
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Gorgeous sophisticated port-like bouquet leads to a sharply bifurcated wine of over-ripe fruit and lingering, bitter tannins with traditional Rhone accents. I hope this will come together with time.
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Nose is mostly raspberry and kirsch for me. The palate, though, is really interesting; a combination of cherry liqueur, blood, and tart acids. It's the sanguine flavor that really get me -- I'm a fan. But I could use a little more of a counterpoint to the fruit and tart. Still -- a wine worth watching, and I am glad that Bosquet is on my radar.
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Extremely ripe fruit on the nose, with some raisins and tons of dark fruit. Blackberries, plums and morello cherries. Perfumed spiciness, something slightly green and lots of oak.
Medium(-) acidity, sweetish fruit, full bodied, high intensity, long finish. Distinct alcoholic warmth. This is bombastic to the max. Not a big fan though, and I'm really missing all the CdP funkyness! This is way to clean! :)
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Had a vertical tasting with Chante le Merle from four vintages: 07, 09, 11 and 12.
This bottle came out to be the best of the four vintages.
A fine, fine nose with roses, vanilla ice cream, candied cherries, juniper tree and goose berry jam.
Balanced on the palate with bacon, kirsch and zingy acid. Great balance between fruit and acid. Tannins still a bit tough. Can rest for a few more years.
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Deep, deep purple, and if you were to stick your nose in the dictionary under "Chateauneuf" it would smell like this and you'd be happy. Opened up after 4-5 hours, and after the opening you'd hope for (cherries, cough syrup, fig) it goes to licorice and menthol, long finish. Good stuff, glad I have another couple bottles. Not sure if it's distinguished or just a very good in-the-mold-of CnP. On Day #2, it's not as thick as Robitussin anymore, but it still has that gripping taste. Smooth, though.
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Medicinal, and candied red fruits. Concentrated candied red fruit with herbal and spicy top notes. Quite thick on the palate. Couldn't come to quite finishing this.
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A superb wine! Tonight the Chante Le Merle sings beautifully with an array of dark mature fruits, roasted almonds, leather, garrigue, sweet licorice and provencal herbs. The texture and complexity is impressive as is the integration of the different components. The palate is full-bodied with exceptional length and vivid, vibrant texture. The acidity is very nice, but not overly expressed. There is no sign of heat very much improving the overall impression. Integration between the different components seems to be emerging as time passes by. Altogether a lovely effort! (Without the slightest doubt, the score is 95 tonight.)
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Had to try one of these since -07 is supposed to be an early drinking vintage. Was not dissappointed even though there is no rush for this wine.
Typical CdP nose, but had more elegance and perfyme than any other CdP I've had before. Open and generous nose, dominanted by eucalyptos along with some new leather, banana, vanilla and viols
On the palate the spiciness is quite forward, but is washed away nicely by the absolutely lovely soda pop acid. Black pepper, eucalyptos, blackberry, liquorice, candied cherries, viols and some strawberry jam made this wine the best CdP I ever had. The high acidity here really speaks to me since other CdP seems to be too heady and too jammy for my taste. 42 euros were well spended . High QPR.
Wow - this is really a great C9P!! Layers of dark complex fruit intermixed with herbs, smoke, dark olives and sweet liquorice. Amazing backbone and tannins and well integrated oak. This wine will of course benefit from further cellaring, but it is hard to resist its charming appearance at this stage. Glad to have more bottles of this one! 96+
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Full blown aromas of kirsch, spice box, jammy black raspberry and garrigue are all over the place. Powerful, concentrated and lush, this stylish Chateauneuf du Pape ends with a long, fresh, pure array of ripe, sweet, spicy cherries. 84% Grenache from 100 year old vines is the key to this wine. The remainder of the blend is 8% Syrah and 8% Mourvedre. This is drinking well now and will only get better.
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A lovely wine, tonight expressing tons of the typical rustic, garrigue, herbs, stable, dark mature fruit, morellos and kirsch liquour. The texture of the wine is impressive as is the integration of the different components. It is certainly a very appealing and nice effort. Tonight the sense of heat experienced from earlier tastings was much less present, probably due to serving at lower temperature. (score is 93-94)
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Lovely! Tonight the Chante Le Merle sings beautifully with a cascade of dark mature fruits, roasted almonds, leather, garrigue and provencal herbs. The palate is full-bodied with exceptional length and vivid texture. The acidity is very nice, but not overly expressed. There is a touch of heat slightly reducing the overall impression. Day 2: The wine is a bit more integrated but the touch of heat is more expressed.
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Everything is there, and even better after 24h. Just needs time to integrate its sweetness and alcohol. Will be stellar from 2014 and onwards, so be patient.
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A lovely 2007 Châteauneuf. The nose explodes of dark berries, mature fruit, tons of garrigue, leather and tones of dried flowers. Palate reveals exactly what could be expected but I found tones of red currant and sweet licorice. So far, the wine really delivered... But there is also a very present heat in the wine which does not correspond to the otherwise somewhat elegant approach. I know it is difficult to make wines with the type of concentration required by modern taste without increasing alcohol, but what I look for is -integration- between the different components... Altogether a lovely effort worthwhile trying. Recommended.
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Wow - really good wine. Shy on the nose but with class. Tasted intensly from the first second, rich and big taste with loooong aftertaste. Dark berries and a sense of some licorice tasting root that we tested as kids in school, forgotten the name. Real mineral feeling in the end which makes the mouth watery. This is a fantastic wine but fantastic in the sense of root vegetables rather than fruit.
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Chris BDAY – A HUGE unctuous red, oozing with candied chocolate cherries, roast meats and scorched earth. But not out of balance, a nice elegance to the waves of fruit and spice.
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dark red in color..Nose: Black pepper, herbs, red fruit..Palate: medium weight..Dark and red fruit, Black pepper, a hint of spice..A bit tight at this early stage but still approachable..Very nice cdp...Cheers!!!
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Overall I found this wine to be an outstanding Rhone and should improve with age. It has the qualities of a very nice CDP, and ends with a hint of spice and buttery sensation. I found this CDP Chante Le Merle at $46. Another wine I tasted the same day came very close in my opinion, and I believe to be a bargain at $30 (Domaine Pierre Usseglio & Fils 07 CDP). I am going to cellar both wines for a few years, and then compare again.
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2007 Chateauneufs (K&L Wines, San Francisco): 80% Grenache. Medium color and weight. This shares a similar elegant style to the Tradition but has more natural fruit sweetness, acidity, and length with a lovely late spicy note. Not a big wine at all, but excellent.
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4/26/2024 - prism wrote: 90 Points
Slow O'd for an hour. Too old: smokey raspberries, but oxidation is creeping in. Drink now.
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2/15/2024 - europat55 wrote: 90 Points
Nose: 89-90; Palate: 89-90
My #5; Group's #4; Tasted Blind.
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2/1/2024 - christian.tellvik@limab.se Likes this wine: 92 Points
Dark red color with clear ripeness. Dull sweet big aroma of dark ripe berries. Ripe strawberries, warm typical sun-ripened berries, barrel and leather. Delicious.
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10/26/2023 - cos65 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Clear garnet, browning at the edge, moderate sediment requiring a decant or first pour.
Heady kirsch aromas and flavors; a fairly big ripe example, moderate structure which is smoothing out. Really in a nice place tonight. YFS
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2/5/2023 - nkirsch Likes this wine: 89 Points
Seems to have lost a little life. Good bottle but fruit, nose, finish were all a little less pronounced than I would have liked. Probably time to drink the last bottle
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12/31/2022 - VlgJeff Likes this wine: 93 Points
A New Year's Eve Gathering at our place: From magnum: Decanted the first half of this bottle for 30 minutes while the second half slo-oxed in the bottle for over an hour. This allowed the wine to darken in color and add some weight. This wine appeared younger and fresher than the single bottle opened two years ago. The color was a medium garnet to a faded rim. Lots of red fruits and some earth on the nose. On the medium bodied palate these red fruits and earth (garrigue) were joined by some darker fruits and touches of spice and minerality. The acidity was nicely balancing, and all tannins were completely integrated. Drinking very well (from Magnum) where it should continue to hold for several more years.
Overall, this wine was quite enjoyable and paired very nicely with both the stuffed mushroom appetizer and the Turducken main course.
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4/27/2022 - nkirsch Likes this wine: 92 Points
Really enjoyable wine. Drank right after opening and it got better with more air time. Medium color, nice nose. Soft fruit and tannins. Probably peaking now so wouldn't cellar for too many more years.
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10/16/2021 - whitmanlholt Likes this wine: 92 Points
Popped and poured. This is a medium-red wine with some notable sediment toward the end of the bottle. On the nose, I get ripe cherries, kirsch, scrub, and a warm cedar plank. In the mouth, this displays a chewy character with raisins, herbs, and crushed red fruits. The finish is juicy, wild, and characterized by smooth tannins. Overall, I thought this was a perfect wine to drink outside on a fall day. This is distinctive CdP with a nice showing today. The stated downsides of the 2007 vintage were not present with this wine. 92 points.
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5/23/2021 - linuhage Likes this wine: 94 Points
Excellent! Probably peaking right now.
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3/17/2021 - 309VEB wrote: flawed
Unfortunately oxidized. Cork was perfect so bottle variation. I was hoping for the experience that the last reviewer had but it was not to be. Still have some bottles so hope this was a one off.
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3/14/2021 - rmarkey Likes this wine: 94 Points
Excellent. Gorgeous wine drinking so much better than the bottle we had last November.
Colour: deep blackberry
Bouquet: spicey dark berries and cherries, with cherry oak
Palate: just as bouquet, inky chocolate characters, chalky, cherries, dried twigs, herbs and smoke. Leather. Full bodied, full soft tannins and long ultra dry finish.
March 2021
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12/26/2020 - auldalliance Likes this wine:
Coravined a couple of glasses over a few days.
Last one of these.
Still got plenty of life, but pretty heady. The fruit is less vibrant than I remember, slightly cooked feeling to it. Decent balance though, but more mature now. Needs hearty food.
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12/26/2020 - VlgJeff wrote: 92 Points
Decanted for 30 minutes - with a fair amount of sediment - but could benefit from an additional 15 - 30 minutes. The color was a mahogany red that faded to a colorless rim. The nose was all red fruits. The medium bodied palate showed lots of red fruits, some garrigue, a touch of minerality, nicely balancing acidity, and well integrated tannins. This wine is definitely ready to please, if given a chance to breathe up front, and can probably hold for several years more.
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12/20/2020 - nkirsch Likes this wine: 92 Points
Opened but didn't really drink until the next night. Soft tannins, fruit with some hints of herbs and smoke. Definitely still has more time
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11/14/2020 - rmarkey Likes this wine: 87 Points
Very good. 14.5% alc.
Colour: mid red berries, some browning
Bouquet: leather, pepper, some hot alcohol, dried herbs.
Palate: as bouquet, huge body, little fruit character left, leathery, dried herbs and spice, long finish.
November 2020
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9/12/2020 - 309VEB Likes this wine: 91 Points
Very big wine. Still firm with good acidity. Probably will improve with further age as the wine smooths out. Very enjoyable but no rush to drink.
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8/22/2020 - wstromb404 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Needs time to open up, but drinking nicely now. Not a superstar CdP but very enjoyable.
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7/29/2020 - bonedoc wrote: 93 Points
last bottle, still has plenty of life, mostly red and some purple fruits, paired well w/ smoked pork chop and fried rice.
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4/25/2020 - Larre Likes this wine: 96 Points
My last bottle of this outstanding effort. With all components integrated and in balance, dense, seamless and elegant fruit, this beauty is drinking perfectly now. Elegant and lingering finish. Enjoy this beauty over the next 5 years!
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1/20/2020 - sdwineguru Likes this wine: 92 Points
2007 Bosquet des Papes Châteauneuf-du-Pape Chante Le Merle Vieilles Vignes. (84% Grenache, 8 Syrah, 8 Mourvedre). light-mid brick, amber edges; earthy, floral nose; briar and smoke, red fruit; balanced; nice fruit and flavor; refined; long smooth fruity finish. w/cassoulet. 17 UC Davis scale; 92 other scales.
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12/2/2019 - dcwino wrote: 95 Points
Clearly showing the ripe vintage character but there is enough material and complexity to make the wine interesting and enjoyable. A lot of tobacco, lavender and tapenade. Excellent concentration, nicely layered slightly dry black fruit, good acidity and earthy mineral, and a long ripe black fruit driven finish with tobacco at the end. My favorite wine of the flight.
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8/17/2019 - bonedoc wrote:
Limited notes. White pepper.
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8/3/2019 - RonniePiemonte wrote: 93 Points
Dark raspberry entry. Earth and acid.
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2/17/2019 - Grinner wrote: 93 Points
Hoping for more but still a great wine. You pull a "12" yr old upper crusty wine and you want to be thrilled. Well, we're still enjoying the heck out of this. Decanted an hour into the "Duck"! and followed another 2 hrs. This is a medium bodied wine with more savory notes than fruity ones AND THAT'S OK WITH ME! Just not deep or profoundly complex enough to go higher, score wise tonight. Kirsch and plum, garrigue, kelp, sangre de toro, ferrous and anise notes. TINY bitter note on the finish that brought it down a point or two for me. Decent tannins an acidity. Still has 8+ years.
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1/13/2019 - bonedoc wrote: 93 Points
Ditto last note.
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12/24/2018 - scott_ Likes this wine:
I'm relatively unfamiliar with French wines but the combination of fruit and spice was very well balanced.
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10/28/2018 - winemaker Likes this wine: 98 Points
Wine of the night in a tasting of 14 2007 CdPs. Just stunning and complete.
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6/14/2018 - Lord of the Bottles wrote:
At West London Wine School's 2007 Rhone Superstar Tasting. Clear garnet. Strawberry kirsch, earthy finish that was shorter than expected and not impressive that night. I was going to score 86-88 but as it seemed to be more of a problem with bottle variation or that this wine is entering a closed phase score withheld.
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1/4/2018 - Zonk Likes this wine: 92 Points
Deep purple color. Dark fruit including plums, some earth iron notes. Would probably give this a bit more time. Somewhat muted.
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10/7/2017 - Puteljen! wrote: 93 Points
See previous note from 2015. This bottle just a bit more muted, hence the lower score (previous 94). No discernable development since last bottle.
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8/24/2017 - DugyDog Likes this wine: 94 Points
Disagree with some of the previous tasting notes. Out of a 750ml, this wine sang right out of bottle. peppery, spicy, bacon/meaty...closed down after an hour or so but it was tremendous prior to that.
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6/7/2017 - pdbender wrote: 88 Points
This wine seems to still be improving as it ages in this large format
bottle(1.5L). Dark and brooding, it produces layers of fruit with little tannin to speak of. The granache seems to protrude in the finish and dominate the flavor.
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4/28/2017 - danstrings Likes this wine: 90 Points
Developing nicely, inky unctuous red, bright brambly fruit. Nice!
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3/23/2017 - bonedoc wrote: 92 Points
Ripe but not overdone, black pepper, silky, a 2007 CDP that is ripe and delicious but not overdone. Drink now or over 5 yrs.
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3/12/2017 - WineGuyDelMar Likes this wine: 92 Points
Decanted 2 hours and overall still tannic but nice balance. I liked the wine as it has nice extraction for a CNDP. A little must on the nose but not overbearing. Paired with Char Siu marinated cross ribs & it was perfect. Nice fruit, nose quite muted & it would have been hard to guess the wine from the nose. Overall not disappointed with what I paid ($65).
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2/2/2017 - KeithAkers wrote: 88 Points
2007 CdP retro (with sushi food pairing) (Streeterville, Chicago): Nose: The nose shows a riper, yet somewhat savory side with licorice, raspberries, leather tones, spice notes, dark red cherries, liqueur tones, and some plums. There is some balance here, but it is lacking some depth.
Taste: Medium bodied with medium tannins. The tannins are silky and ripe with a plush quality to the feel along with raspberries, spice tones, dark red cherries, licorice, and liqueur tones.
Overall: This was a very good Chateauneuf du Pape. It was showing on the riper side, but it lacked some depth and expression that would've really driven it.
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2/2/2017 - acyso wrote: 80 Points
#alternativepairings (Chicago, IL): Boring wine, tastes like plum. MSM keeps trying to make people like these things, but they are WRONG! Wine should not taste rusty and bitter.
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1/4/2017 - pdbender wrote:
Should hold these bad boys for a while, seems like they may age gracefully for a few more years as magnums.
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11/20/2016 - W&FS Cellar Chair wrote: 94 Points
Upon opening and decanting, the wine seemed lighter than expected. However, over the next half hour the wine opened up and put on weight. The nose remained somewhat reticent, but the wine displayed a lovely combination of complex fruit flavors, earthiness and beautiful balance. It was a fine accompaniment to roast chicken. Improved overnight on the vacuvin - indicating a better future ahead in a few more years.
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9/10/2016 - Larre Likes this wine: 95 Points
Very nice C9P indeed. Dark fruit, black olives and french herbs on the nose. Layers of cassis, fig and licorice on the palate...Even though it appears to be somewhat closed at the moment..it is a really great wine. Long and refreshing finish. This will keep for another 5-15 years for sure!
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9/3/2016 - Golf_Wine wrote: 84 Points
Decanted for 1-2 hours. Pretty good but not great. I don't get the ratings in the 90's...that said I've been drinking mostly pinot noir lately. It is a pretty brut wine. Nose gives me, meat, blood, iron, floral, almonds and some ripe read fruits. Drinking - what fruit is there gives away fairly fast to oak, alcohol and little tannic. Finish is not that pleasant but as I'm sitting here writing this a bit of cherries and other fruits comes around after a fairly long time. I can not see this getting better by aging further - drink up and move on. Looking at my cellar - I'm not certain if I have 2 left or if this was the last. Honestly if it was the last...I'm fine.
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7/3/2016 - fedro Likes this wine: 92 Points
should have decanted, this is still tight upon opening (and this was a .375 bottle!). After an hour or so, the whole beast mellowed out, fruit came out and it was super silky. I would imagine a full bottle could easily do with a few more years of cellaring ..
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10/3/2015 - Puteljen! Likes this wine: 94 Points
Generous fruit, lots of spice, good structure with some tannins, nice earthy minerality and a well balanced acidity adding some freshness.
Great wine with dito balance between fruit and structure, not always the case with '07 Ch9dP. Good future too. Lovely!
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6/26/2015 - Christoffer78 Likes this wine: 95 Points
Last bottle, but surely a nice one! A totally brilliant effort. The Chante Le Merle continues to sing beautifully with plenty of integrated and balanced dark mature fruit, wet saddle leather, classy garrigue, abundant liquorice and fresh herbs. With an impressive texture and complexity, the integration is just superb. This is "total" experience - without doubt... The palate is full-throttle and has an impressive length and vibrant exuberant texture. Acidity is there, but still not overly expressed, just balanced. There is no sign of heat at all. The integration has just continued to improve and is no very impressive. Altogether a super effort! (score is 95+)
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6/11/2015 - alpsjourney Likes this wine: 90 Points
I was reluctant to rate this one because Rhone wines are apparently not really my thing. As they go, though this one was extremely pleasant. Very rich, strong floral bouquet; nicely integrated tannins, not overpowering the delicious ripe fruit; surprisingly long finish. A little heavy duty for my tastes, but an excellent and well balanced wine.
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5/15/2015 - Rollerball wrote: 91 Points
Gorgeous sophisticated port-like bouquet leads to a sharply bifurcated wine of over-ripe fruit and lingering, bitter tannins with traditional Rhone accents. I hope this will come together with time.
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4/29/2015 - Hazevedo Does not like this wine: 88 Points
decepcion
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4/25/2015 - alpha_ori Likes this wine: 92 Points
Nose is mostly raspberry and kirsch for me. The palate, though, is really interesting; a combination of cherry liqueur, blood, and tart acids. It's the sanguine flavor that really get me -- I'm a fan. But I could use a little more of a counterpoint to the fruit and tart. Still -- a wine worth watching, and I am glad that Bosquet is on my radar.
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3/8/2015 - Lilja wrote: 90 Points
Extremely ripe fruit on the nose, with some raisins and tons of dark fruit. Blackberries, plums and morello cherries. Perfumed spiciness, something slightly green and lots of oak.
Medium(-) acidity, sweetish fruit, full bodied, high intensity, long finish. Distinct alcoholic warmth. This is bombastic to the max. Not a big fan though, and I'm really missing all the CdP funkyness! This is way to clean! :)
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12/29/2014 - Dovberg Likes this wine: 91 Points
Had a vertical tasting with Chante le Merle from four vintages: 07, 09, 11 and 12.
This bottle came out to be the best of the four vintages.
A fine, fine nose with roses, vanilla ice cream, candied cherries, juniper tree and goose berry jam.
Balanced on the palate with bacon, kirsch and zingy acid. Great balance between fruit and acid. Tannins still a bit tough. Can rest for a few more years.
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10/22/2014 - Gott vin Likes this wine: 91 Points
Typisk både i smak och doft. Drickfärdig och min gissning är att den inte blir bättre med tiden.
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9/12/2014 - ledocq Likes this wine:
Deep, deep purple, and if you were to stick your nose in the dictionary under "Chateauneuf" it would smell like this and you'd be happy. Opened up after 4-5 hours, and after the opening you'd hope for (cherries, cough syrup, fig) it goes to licorice and menthol, long finish. Good stuff, glad I have another couple bottles. Not sure if it's distinguished or just a very good in-the-mold-of CnP. On Day #2, it's not as thick as Robitussin anymore, but it still has that gripping taste. Smooth, though.
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5/18/2014 - CO CHRIS wrote: 92 Points
Drinking in a very nice place right now. Plenty of fruit, no obvious alcohol, generous.
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4/26/2014 - mattyboy_ wrote: 85 Points
Medicinal, and candied red fruits. Concentrated candied red fruit with herbal and spicy top notes. Quite thick on the palate. Couldn't come to quite finishing this.
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1/11/2014 - dsimmons Likes this wine: 93 Points
This wine is drinking nicely now but I believe it may get even better with a little time. Problem is keeping my hands off.
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12/23/2013 - dsimmons Likes this wine: 92 Points
Loads of fruit here. yummy.
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12/6/2013 - Christoffer78 Likes this wine: 95 Points
A superb wine! Tonight the Chante Le Merle sings beautifully with an array of dark mature fruits, roasted almonds, leather, garrigue, sweet licorice and provencal herbs. The texture and complexity is impressive as is the integration of the different components. The palate is full-bodied with exceptional length and vivid, vibrant texture. The acidity is very nice, but not overly expressed. There is no sign of heat very much improving the overall impression. Integration between the different components seems to be emerging as time passes by. Altogether a lovely effort! (Without the slightest doubt, the score is 95 tonight.)
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11/16/2013 - dbermanmd Likes this wine: 92 Points
Just a beautiful cdp in its youth. Highly enjoyable and glad I have a bunch more.
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9/29/2013 - Dovberg Likes this wine: 91 Points
Had to try one of these since -07 is supposed to be an early drinking vintage. Was not dissappointed even though there is no rush for this wine.
Typical CdP nose, but had more elegance and perfyme than any other CdP I've had before. Open and generous nose, dominanted by eucalyptos along with some new leather, banana, vanilla and viols
On the palate the spiciness is quite forward, but is washed away nicely by the absolutely lovely soda pop acid. Black pepper, eucalyptos, blackberry, liquorice, candied cherries, viols and some strawberry jam made this wine the best CdP I ever had. The high acidity here really speaks to me since other CdP seems to be too heady and too jammy for my taste. 42 euros were well spended . High QPR.
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12/8/2012 - Pour Boy wrote: 94 Points
Definitely drinkable, but will only improve. Fruit forward wine with great balance. Drank this before I'd wanted to.
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11/22/2012 - Bayfield_Cabin_Cellar Likes this wine: 90 Points
Outstanding wine with some interesting characteristics—of all things a present background note of menthol—sounds strange but was quite nice.
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7/12/2012 - Larre wrote: 96 Points
Wow - this is really a great C9P!! Layers of dark complex fruit intermixed with herbs, smoke, dark olives and sweet liquorice. Amazing backbone and tannins and well integrated oak. This wine will of course benefit from further cellaring, but it is hard to resist its charming appearance at this stage. Glad to have more bottles of this one! 96+
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2/18/2012 - Jeff Leve wrote: 94 Points
Full blown aromas of kirsch, spice box, jammy black raspberry and garrigue are all over the place. Powerful, concentrated and lush, this stylish Chateauneuf du Pape ends with a long, fresh, pure array of ripe, sweet, spicy cherries. 84% Grenache from 100 year old vines is the key to this wine. The remainder of the blend is 8% Syrah and 8% Mourvedre. This is drinking well now and will only get better.
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1/20/2012 - Christoffer78 Likes this wine: 93 Points
A lovely wine, tonight expressing tons of the typical rustic, garrigue, herbs, stable, dark mature fruit, morellos and kirsch liquour. The texture of the wine is impressive as is the integration of the different components. It is certainly a very appealing and nice effort. Tonight the sense of heat experienced from earlier tastings was much less present, probably due to serving at lower temperature. (score is 93-94)
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8/23/2011 - Christoffer78 wrote: 93 Points
Lovely! Tonight the Chante Le Merle sings beautifully with a cascade of dark mature fruits, roasted almonds, leather, garrigue and provencal herbs. The palate is full-bodied with exceptional length and vivid texture. The acidity is very nice, but not overly expressed. There is a touch of heat slightly reducing the overall impression. Day 2: The wine is a bit more integrated but the touch of heat is more expressed.
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12/11/2010 - sdwineguru wrote: 93 Points
Complex Grenache nose (mint, earth, mushrooms, wood); mid-body; balanced; stylish; rich flavor and finish; fine wine with lamb. Good life ahead.
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8/7/2010 - Finare Vinare wrote: 93 Points
Everything is there, and even better after 24h. Just needs time to integrate its sweetness and alcohol. Will be stellar from 2014 and onwards, so be patient.
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6/26/2010 - Christoffer78 Likes this wine: 93 Points
A lovely 2007 Châteauneuf. The nose explodes of dark berries, mature fruit, tons of garrigue, leather and tones of dried flowers. Palate reveals exactly what could be expected but I found tones of red currant and sweet licorice. So far, the wine really delivered... But there is also a very present heat in the wine which does not correspond to the otherwise somewhat elegant approach. I know it is difficult to make wines with the type of concentration required by modern taste without increasing alcohol, but what I look for is -integration- between the different components... Altogether a lovely effort worthwhile trying. Recommended.
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6/9/2010 - varnhem wrote: 95 Points
Wow - really good wine. Shy on the nose but with class. Tasted intensly from the first second, rich and big taste with loooong aftertaste. Dark berries and a sense of some licorice tasting root that we tested as kids in school, forgotten the name. Real mineral feeling in the end which makes the mouth watery. This is a fantastic wine but fantastic in the sense of root vegetables rather than fruit.
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6/4/2010 - danstrings wrote: 93 Points
Chris BDAY – A HUGE unctuous red, oozing with candied chocolate cherries, roast meats and scorched earth. But not out of balance, a nice elegance to the waves of fruit and spice.
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5/9/2010 - NPD wrote: 93 Points
great wine. enjoyed by all. fruit open wth nice finish. got better through the night. decanted for about 30mins.
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2/15/2010 - txfireman wrote: 93 Points
Red Vanilla Extract. Excellent floral nose. Pepper hints of blackberry. Buttery smooth at finish. Vanilla beans. Smooth like a baby's butt.
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1/26/2010 - vinopa wrote: 91 Points
dark red in color..Nose: Black pepper, herbs, red fruit..Palate: medium weight..Dark and red fruit, Black pepper, a hint of spice..A bit tight at this early stage but still approachable..Very nice cdp...Cheers!!!
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10/17/2009 - mtred wrote: 94 Points
Overall I found this wine to be an outstanding Rhone and should improve with age. It has the qualities of a very nice CDP, and ends with a hint of spice and buttery sensation. I found this CDP Chante Le Merle at $46. Another wine I tasted the same day came very close in my opinion, and I believe to be a bargain at $30 (Domaine Pierre Usseglio & Fils 07 CDP). I am going to cellar both wines for a few years, and then compare again.
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3/28/2009 - drwine2001 wrote:
2007 Chateauneufs (K&L Wines, San Francisco): 80% Grenache. Medium color and weight. This shares a similar elegant style to the Tradition but has more natural fruit sweetness, acidity, and length with a lovely late spicy note. Not a big wine at all, but excellent.
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