1994 Domaine Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage

Community Tasting Notes (141) Avg Score: 92.8 points

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  3/26/2024 - walkerjfw wrote: 89 Points

  Celebrating my 30th Anniversary, brought this one to dinner at Gramercy Tavern (one of my favorite NYC restaurants and corkage friendly). Looking to match a 1994 vintage from my cellar w my Anniversary year. This one in my cellar from circa 2012, first time tasting this vintage of Chave. Splash decanted and strained by the somm at the restaurant.
  
  Medium/light garnet color, fading, some thinning at the edges. Rustic and expressive nose, some barnyard/earth, dried cherries, smoked meats, leather. Palate thinner than expected, sour cherry, black olives, "beef blood". Medium body, medium/short finish.
  
  I would put this bottle in the category of "good-not-great". Other tasters of this wine seemed to have a better experience than what I had with this bottle. I am a big fan of Chave, this wine is a bit thin for a Northern Rhone Syrah. Lots going on from the mix of flavors, but lacked depth and persistence (IMO). Nose outperformed the palate...Went well with savory dishes, no surprise. No reason to wait, would drink now.

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  2/22/2024 - acyso wrote: 95 Points

  (Not a) birthday dinner (Hinsdale, IL): A very good showing of this wine -- it's a lither and more elegant version of Chave, but it carries a lot of the rustic silkiness (does that even make sense?) of the Gerard-era wines. It's perfumed, with smoked meat, iron, spice, leather, and saline, while the palate is mature, resolved, and clean yet rustic. I have always loved the way syrah manages to hold both a refined and feral character at the same time, and this epitomizes that.

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  1/28/2024 - Kemo Sabe Likes this wine: 94 Points

  94 for 1994. Consistent notes to the bottle from 5 years ago. This was on point. Black and white pepper, grilled meat, campfire, spices, delicate red fruits. Power and nuance at once. At 30 years old this wine is in its stride and a long way to go. Incredible bottle of wine.

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  9/5/2023 - Nanda wrote: 94 Points

  Wow, love that gorgeous nose of mature Chave Hermitage. Intense pepper, game and florals all intertwined with black fruit. Plenty of still fresh and even primary black fruit though there is a lot of classic, mature Chave layering here as well. Right in the middle of a peak window.

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  9/5/2023 - acyso wrote: 95 Points

  Tuesday (Chicago, IL): The last bottle I had of this, which I was incredibly excited for, was unfortunately corked. This one wasn't. It's a fantastic, drinking Chave right now, along the lines of the 1997. Takes a few minutes to really come into bloom, but you get all those old school, smoked fat notes with leathery black fruit and a modest amount of velvety tannins. I'm really loving how these earlier drinking 1990s vintages are right now, and will make a point of opening more of them.

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