Cuvée Impériale Châteauneuf-du-Pape Red Rhone Blend

Dark fruit on the nose. Ripe Grenache.. plum. A little raisin at the edges. On the palate a little hot and simple. There’s a real drop off in the midpalate. A pretty disappointing wine.

Sometimes you just want something dark and rich. Prunes, strawberry jam, leather and dried flowers. Pretty ripe stuff but did the trick.

Deep, dark purple. Plenty of brambles and spice...but really, there’s nothing here that gets me excited. This is a good wine and it’s quite quaffable actually, but not particularly remarkable to me. A bit of a reminder as to why I only focus on a handful of producers in CdP anymore.

A little too much--tastes too fruity, too hot and uni-dimensional. Even a decant didn't help ;(

It provides intensity in spades, but what really strikes me is its elegance. The underlying acidity manages to create something dangerously drinkable, which at the same time feels serious from start to finish. Age worthy too.

Easy traditional Chateauneuf.

violets, suede & cured meats waft from the glass before dark berries, kirsch, crushed minerals, pepper, dried herbs & sage coat the palate ~ will be fun pairing over the next decade

A lot of wine tonight and the CdP is the standout. It's the ultimate expression of fruit and because its a blend they can dial it in to be be beyond amazing. But this can get deeper. Needs a few more years c

This was smokin' tonight.

Fabulous brightness of strawberry and cherry and wet stones. Crushed herbs and sage.