Châteauneuf-du-Pape Red Rhone Blend

Dark ruby in color with a wide purplish rim.

Soft nose of cherries, blueberries, red currants, licorice, light oak, spices, chocolates, dark coffee, tobacco leaf, earth, herbs, eucalyptus, light barnyard, green vegetables and black pepper.

Medium bodied with medium plus acidity and nice legs.

Dry on the palate with plums, black currants, cherries, raspberries, wood, licorice, spices, leather, tobacco leaf, earth, herbs, cola, vinaigrette, vegetables and peppercorn.

Nice length on the finish with soft tannins and tangy cranberries.

This is a nice Châteauneuf-du-Pape red wine. Still young, but already drinking nicely with nice complexity and a soft mouthfeel. Showing a lot of earth and vegetable notes, especially on the palate.


Needs a couple of hours to open up properly. I used the VSpin for 15 minutes, after an hour in a decanter.

A blend of 60% Grenache, 15% Syrah, 15% Mourvedre and 10% Cinsault.

I paired it with cheeses and light appetizers.

14.5% alcohol by volume.

87 Points.

$40.

Dark ruby in color with a purplish/reddish rim.

Nice nose of blueberries, cherries, strawberries, wood, licorice, vanilla, earth, vegetables, graphite, spices, alcohol, herbs, bell pepper, wet leaves, light barnyard, smoke, light vinaigrette, cloves and peppercorn.

Full bodied and smooth with medium plus acidity and nice legs.

Dry on the palate with plums, raspberries, strawberries, currants, vanilla, cloves, oak, earth, pencil lead, peppercorn, leather, tobacco, green vegetables, bitter herbs, dark chocolates, coffee and spices.

Medium finish with fine grained tannins and tangy cranberries.

This Châteauneuf-du-Pape is already drinking nicely, but it is still young. Not fully balanced yet, but still enjoyable by itself. Good food wine too.

Showing great complexity and a very pleasant mouthfeel. Still a bit bitter on the ending, though. The nose is earthier than the palate.

Will be better in a few years, even though this vintage was not the best, like the one right after it. I have a few more bottles, and I'll check them out in the next few years.

I paired it with Asiago cheese crackers and blackberries.

Needed over 2 hours to open up.

A blend of 60% Grenache, 15% Syrah, 15% Mourvedre and 10% Cinsault.

14.5% alcohol by volume.



$30.

This is a very enjoyable CDP.
Showing black fruits with earth notes, cola, dark chocolates, graphites and peppercorn.

Better after 3 hours of airtime when it shows the tannins and complexity.

Drinking nicely now and will be better in the next few years. I've had this vintage a few times before and it is getting better every 6 months.

Nice by itself or with food. I paired it with Brie cheese and light appetizers.

A blend of 60% Grenache, 15% Syrah, 15% Mourvedre and 10% Cinsault.

14.5% alcohol by volume.

89 points.

$40.

3.31.18, decanted ~45 mins

clear, medium, ruby

clean, medium + intensity
ripe blackberry, prune, clove, licorice

dry, low + acidity, med tannin, med + body
ripe fruit forward, then spices
med long finish with mild spice and longer lasting acidity

quite good

First of 2 from a super hot vintage

Black fruits. Nice balanced CDP that was a nice match with lamb and elk.

Soft and supple with a strong oak resonance and medium tannins. Balanced fruit, but not a lot of nuance. A good, but not great CDP.

3rd bottle. Still drinkable

Deep and bold flavor. More earthy and dark berry flavor. A bitter and dry finish but very drinkable. Best enjoyed slow

2nd bottle in a case. Went down as easy as the first.