The grapes were de-stalked and fermentation was carried out at high temperature (30 to 35°C) with daily rack and return . Maceration depended on the grape variety (4 days for Grenache and more than 15 days for Syrah and Carignan). After draining, two types of blend were aged on lees for several months...
Boisrenard Chateauneuf du Pape 2005
Colour : Deep garnet to acacia depending on the age.
Nose : aromas of dried fruits, red fruits, and cocoa, roasted coffee appearing with the years.
Mouth : very powerfull, long lenght in mouth, the fruits and the chocolate are the majour aromas of this very long ageing wine.
Chapoutier Barbe Rac 1999 - Closeout
The 1999 Chateauneuf du Pape Barbe-Rac is a beautiful, medium dark ruby-colored effort with a gorgeously sweet nose of kirsch liqueur, Provencal herbs, licorice, earth, and spice. Cropped at an amazingly low 15 hectoliters per hectare, it possesses full body, super concentration, and a long finish. Anticipated maturity: now-2016. - Rated 92, Robert Parker Soft and satisfying, this voluptuous red delivers roasted game and grilled notes along the black fruit. Lovely, supple tannins and a satisfying, balanced finish." - Rated 87, Wine Spectator
Chateauneuf du Pape, Southern Rhone, Rhone The 1998, which comes from a parcel of Grenache vines planted in 1901 in the western sector of the appellation. A dark plum/purple color is accompanied by a smoky, kirsch, roasted meat, and saddle leather-scented bouquet. The wine took a full year to ferment dry. The result is a blockbuster, full-bodied, super-concentrated Chateauneuf du Pape with multiple nuances of spice and Christmas fruit cake, as well as a lusty, heady, alcoholic finish nicely balanced by abundant quantities of glycerin and dense, layered fruit. Don’t hesitate to drink it now as well as over the next two decades. - Rated 96, Robert Parker
Chapoutier Chateauneuf du Pape Bernadine Red 2005
Color : Deep purple.
Nose : Complex and subtle, blackcurrant, plum, followed by roasted coffee, cinnamon, cherry, morello cherry and liquorice.
Mouth : Spicy aromas developing into animal scents.
"The 2005 Chateauneuf du Pape La Bernardine, which is mostly Grenache, is an elegant take on this appellation, with notes of sweet...
Chapoutier Cote Rotie La Modoree 98
Cote Rotie, Northern Rhone, Rhone The 1998 Cote Rotie La Mordoree, a wine that spends 12 months in 100% new oak, and is made from 75-80-year old Syrah vines planted on both the Cote Blonde and Cote Brune (some are adjacent to Guigal's La Turque), exhibits an opaque ruby/purple color in addition to a spectacular nose of grilled toast, cured olives, cassis, fried bacon, and smoke. As it sits in the glass, additional nuances emerge. Deep, full-bodied, powerful, and concentrated, this 1998 is already approachable. The unctuous texture and long, 45-second finish suggest even greater promise for the future. Anticipated maturity: 2004-2020. - Rated 94, Robert Parker
Chapoutier Cote Rotie La Morderee 1.5L 2006
Colour : Deep purple red.
Nose : Rapsberry, a hint of violet, a touch of olive and tapenade , of rosemary, with a dominante of spice.
Mouth : Full flavoured, elegant, very well-structured and balanced.
Chapoutier Cotes du Rhone Belleruche Blanc
Colour : Pale yellow and clear.
Nose : Sour apple, hawthorn and white flowers.
Mouth : Fresh and well-balanced.
Chapoutier Cotes du Rhone Belleruche Rouge 2007
The vineyards of the red Côtes du Rhône Belleruche covers 4 departments (Drôme,Vaucluse, Gard and Ardèche) on different soils (clay and calcareous alluvial deposit terraces, clay) giving to the Belleruche an extraordinary richness and complexity. Colour : Garnet red.
Nose : Red fruit aromas, mainly Morello cherries.
Mouth : aromas of...
Chapoutier Crozes Hermitage Les Meysonniers Rouge 2006
Colour : Deep purple red.
Nose : Red fruit and blackcurrant dominate, followed by aromas of violet.
Mouth : Generous and round tasting with a finish of stewed fruits and a hint of vanilla.
Chapoutier Crozes Hermitage Petite Ruche Rouge 2007
Colour : Deep purple red.
Nose : Red fruits, blackcurrant and raspberry.
Mouth : Fresh and round tasting with a finish of stewed fruits all in finess.
Chapoutier Ermitage l'Ermite 1.5L 2006
Colour : Very deep garnet, almost black in colour.
Nose : Black fruits with spicy and ink notes.
Mouth : Tannins are not only very powerful but also mellow, smokey notes, pepper, highlights wonderfully the Syrah variety on granite soils.
Chapoutier Ermitage les Greffieux 2005
Colour : Deep red garnet with violet highlights during the first years.
Nose : Ripe fruits during the early years.
Mouth : Powerful tannins, mellow, stewed blackberries, can be kept for a considerable time.
Chapoutier Hermitage la Sizeranne 2002
Colour : Deep garnet red, with purple highlights.
Nose : Red fruit (raspberry, blackcurrant), with a hint of liquorice.
Mouth : Good attack, it is a round, elegant wine, soft and concentrated tannins, and a long aftertaste of blackcurrant and raspberry, spicy when it is young.
Chapoutier Hermitage la Sizeranne 2005
Colour : Deep garnet red, with purple highlights.
Nose : Red fruit (raspberry, blackcurrant), with a hint of liquorice.
Mouth : Good attack, it is a round, elegant wine, soft and concentrated tannins, and a long aftertaste of blackcurrant and raspberry, spicy when it is young.
Chapoutier La Bernadine Blanc - Closeout
After pressing, the must is cold-racked for 48 hours. Only the indigenous yeasts are used for the fermentation, which has been made with a temperature between 17 and 21°C.Fermentation lasts from 15 days to 3 weeks at a temperature which does not exceed 32°C. Colour : Golden, yellow, brilliant. Nose :...
Hermitage, Northern Rhone The 1998 Ermitage Le Pavillon flirts with perfection ... again. Revealing a striking bouquet of violets, blackberries, smoke, licorice, and minerals, it is luxuriously rich, full-bodied, and layered on the palate. It is a wine with a finish that lasts beyond a minute. Remarkably, yields were a mere 10 hectoliters per hectare. There is plenty of tannin in the finish, but it is ripe and well-integrated. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2050 - Rated 98, Robert Parker
Chapoutier St. Joseph Rouge Les Granits 1.5L 2006
St Joseph, Northern Rhone One of the finest wines Chapoutier has made from this appellation (possibly the greatest wine ever produced there) is the 2006 St.-Joseph Les Granits. Incredible aromas of spring flowers, graphite, crushed rocks, licorice, subtle wood, truffles, black raspberries, and black currants soar from the glass of this full-bodied effort. Dense and rich yet light on its feet, this is a stunning wine of exceptional individuality as well as potential. It will be drinkable young, but should keep for 12-15+ years.
- Rated 95 Robert Parker This has good guts for the vintage, with blackberry, briar and aged tobacco notes laid over solid, grippy tannins. Bittersweet cocoa and Black Forest cake notes stretch out on the finish. Offers very solid depth for the vintage. Drink now through 2011. 755 cases made. –JM
- Rated 92 Wine Spectator
Chateau de Saint Cosme Chateauneuf du Pape 1.5L 2005
60% grenache + 40% mourvèdre, La Crau and Valori, Aged for 24 months in two to four years old barrels. The 2005 was an out-standing vintage and the most impressive appellation. Balance! Strength! Structure! Complexity! With the entire range of magical aromas from Chateauneuf. Brandied cherries, squashed strawberries, truffle, thyme, black...
Chateau de Saint Cosme Chateauneuf du Pape 2004
The 2004 Chateauneuf du Pape is a nicely structured, deep plum/garnet-colored wine with plenty of Provencal herbs, sweet black cherries, and currants, some resiny notes, and broad flavors. It is a fine 2004 to drink over the next decade. Readers should keep in mind that the young, talented proprietor Louis Barruol...
Chateau de Saint Cosme Chateauneuf du Pape 2005
60% grenache + 40% mourvèdre, La Crau and Valori, Aged for 24 months in two to four years old barrels. The 2005 was an out-standing vintage and the most impressive appellation. Balance! Strength! Structure! Complexity! With the entire range of magical aromas from Chateauneuf. Brandied cherries, squashed strawberries, truffle, thyme, black...
Chateau de Saint Cosme Condrieu Puyvert 2007
100% Viognier, Arènes granitiques,Aged for eight months 40% in new oak, 30% in 1 year old barrels, 30% in 2 years old barrels. 2007 definitely looked like 2006 in Condrieu: two vintages with freshness, acidity, relief and minerality. These reserves of freshness allow us to begin the ageing with confidences: a...
Chateau de Saint Cosme Cote Rotie 2006
100% Syrah, Aged for 15 months in new oak, Schistes and arènes granitiques. Elegance is the major word in 2006 which will remain as a good classical vintage. Their vine in the Cote-Blonde confirmed a quality improvement related to the drought of the last vintages... All the vines around the Viaillère...
Chateau de Saint Cosme Cotes du Rhone Le Deux Albion 2003
A consistently brilliant effort from Louis Barruol is the Cotes du Rhone Les Deux Albions. Like its predecessors, the 2003 represents the poor person’s Cote Rotie La Mouline. A blend of 40% Syrah, 30% Grenache, 10% Mourvedre, 10% Carignan, and 10% Clairette (a white grape), it offers an exotic, floral, tropical fruit, black currant, and cherry-scented bouquet. This hedonistic, beautifully-textured, medium-bodied red is loaded with fruit, glycerin, and the warmth of generous alcohol (a character of the vintage). It should be consumed over the next 2-3 years. By the way, 2002 is a horrendous vintage in the southern Rhone. I do not say that lightly, because there are some producers who made very competent wines, but my scores for that vintage tended to plateau at 87-88. However, one of the top 2002s is the Chateau St.-Cosme 2002 Gigondas, a wine that I rated 88. Tasty and sexy with fine ripeness, it reveals no signs of dilution or greenness. The young Barruol is indeed a talented winemaker who exhibits a magical touch that is well beyond his youthful age with so many different types of wine. - Rated 90, Robert Parker
Chateau de Saint Cosme Gigondas Valbelle Fut de Chene
90 % Grenache - 10 % Syrah / Centenarian vines Twelve months ageing : 30 % new barrels - 70 % one year old barrels. Valbelle is a co-fermentation of our oldest vines: le Travers de Guérin, le Grand Plantier, les Hautes Garrigues, les Sables. Thyme, rosemary, pine trees, oak trees,...
Deep ruby color. Concentrated raspberry, pepper and violet aromas. Medium to full-body, with a supple texture and good acidic structure. Lovely pure syrah flavors from the Northern Rhône.
Domaine de la Charbonniere Chateauneuf du Pape Mourre des Perdrix 2005
Domaine de la Janasse Cotes du Rhone Villages Terre d’Argile 2006
Domaine de la Janasse was created in 1973 by Aimé Sabon and is now run by the exceptionally talented Christophe Sabon and his oenologist sister, Isabelle. Christophe has introduced organic farming to the domaine and concentrated on the old vines of the property in a way that has made this estate...
Domaine de la Milleire Chateauneuf du Pape 2005 Vieilles Vignes
The 2004 Chateauneuf du Pape Vieilles Vignes is evolved with undeniable Provencal notes of pepper, seaweed, sweet, and smoky cherries and herbs in a medium-bodied, supple style. Even some earthy beet root characteristics, reminiscent of Pinot Noir, jump from the glass of this medium-bodied, plummy, round and seductive Chateauneuf du Pape. Drink it over the next 5-6 years. - Rated 89, Robert Parker
Domaine du Caillou Chateauneuf du Pape 2005
Domaine du Vieille Julienne Chateauneuf du Pape 2003
The 2003 Chateauneuf du Pape has started to close down after bottling, but there is no doubting its high quality. Inky ruby/purple to the rim with a glorious nose of black cherry liqueur, minerals, and flowers, the wine is full-bodied, surprisingly well-defined despite what Daumen said was virtually no acidity and...
Domaine la Garrigue Cotes du Rhone Cuvee Romaine 2006
Domaine de la Garrigue is one of the oldest in the region and is owned by the Bernard family. The family owns one of the most famous restaurants and inns in the area called Les Florets” which is located on the hillside facing the Dentelles in Gigondas. Fashioning some of the...
6 exceptional terroirs : Le Clos Cote Blonde , La Garde Cote Blonde , La Grande Plantee Cote Blonde , La Pommiere Cote Brune , Le Pavillon Rouge Cote Brune , Le Moulin Cote Brune . Winemaking: Closed stainless steel tanks. Temperature controlled alcoholic fermentation, 4 week maceration. 38 months in new oak. Average yield: 35 Hl/Hectare...
Guigal Cotes du Rhone Red 2005
Eye : Deep and dark red. Shiny.
Nose : Fresh fruits with red berries and spices.
Palate : Full, round and racy. Rounded and smooth tannins. A full-bodied, rich and intensly aromatic wine.
Overall : Full with a long finish and plenty of elegance and finesse due to the well balanced...
The Guigal domain was founded in 1946 by Etienne Guigal in the ancient village of Ampuis, home of the wines of the Côte-Rôtie. In these vineyards of over 2400 years old you can still see the small terraced walls characteristic of the Roman period. Etienne Guigal arrived in this region in...
Soil type: Limestone clay and silt soil. Sandy gravel.
Average age of vines: 40 years.
Winemaking: Temperature controlled alcoholic fermentation. 3 weeks maceration in vats. 24 months in oak barrels.
Average yield: 40 Hl / hectares.
Average annual production: 88,000 bottles.
Pair with: Small game, red meat and cheese.
Jean-Luc Colombo Cotes du Rhone Les Abeilles 2005
The grapes are harvested manually in small cases. The bunches are destemmed and lightly crushed and then vinified in stainless steel vats. The wine is bottled after being raised for 9 months, 18% in new oak. Robe : Intense purple, bright. Nose : Seductive nose of small red fruits, but also...
Jean-Luc Colombo St. Joseph Les Prieure 2000
The grapes are harvested manually in small cases to ensure their arrival at the winery in perfect condition. The grapes undergo a long maceration / vinification of 3 weeks to one month in stainless steel vats with temperature control. The wine is matured in oak barrels of 1 or 2 years...
Like so many other accomplished people, Etienne Montes parlayed the fruits of one successful carrer into a second as winemaker. An award-winning photojournalist, he retired” in 1987 to his familly estate, La Casenove, nestled between the Pyrenees and the Mediterranean, within 10 miles of the Spanigh frontier. In an area better...
la Piece sous la Bras Chateauneuf Du Pape 2005
Marcoux Lirac Domaine Lorentine 2005
As far back as 1344, it is clear that the Armenier family has owned vines in what is now Chateaneuf-du-Pape. Today, the Armenier family is still intimately linked with the village and its vineyards. The property is run and managed by sisters Catherine Armenier and Sophie Estevenin. Together, they share the...
The grapes for the Plan Pegau are sourced from two small vineyards (Le Plan and Les Mayres) that are classed as Vin de Table. The Le Plan is on the right bank of a branch of the Rhone river, the Les Mayres is just beyond the eastern boundary of the appellation,...
Telegram du Vieux Telegraphe Chateauneuf du Pape 2006
This is dense and chewy, but not tiring to drink, thanks to fresh acidity and an edgy, gravelly feel that drives the blackberry, currant and sweet spice notes. The long finish has great briary grip, with notes of garrigue and hot stone checking in. Best from 2010 through 2030. 15,830 cases made. –JM - Rated 95, Wine Spectator The 2005 Vieux Telegraphe Chateauneuf du Pape, this estate’s strongest vintage since 1998, has put on serious weight since last year. Dense ruby/purple-colored with an exquisite perfume of black raspberries, kirsch, ground pepper, and incense, this full-bodied, powerful, concentrated wine reveals fabulous purity as well as a finish that lasts over 45 seconds. Purchasers of this beauty will need patience. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2025. - Rated 95, Robert Parker