Villa Symposia
L'Origine Coteaux du Languedoc Syrah Blend
Coteaux du Languedoc, Languedoc, Languedoc Roussillon, France
Rich dark fruits, blackberries, blueberries, smoke, intense cocoa; a bit unbalanced and flabby, low acid , extremely low tannins
Rich dark fruits, blackberries, blueberries, smoke, intense cocoa; a bit unbalanced and flabby, low acid , extremely low tannins
Jun 24th, 2017
Villa Symposia is the Languedoc label from Éric Prissette, the founder of Château Rol Valentin. The winemaking is overseen by Stéphane Derenoncourt. And from what I gathered, L'Origine is the flagship, or at least 'the' high-end cuvée here. The importer label indicates it's 95% Syrah, 5% Grenache (but a blog post from Taste Languedoc mentioned Carignan was added to the blend in 2012). The Syrah comes from the oldest vines of the estate, ~50 years old.
Opens with a noticeable amount of Brett, which can go either way for me. I view Brett like abstract art... done well and it's a beautiful lens to which to view a wine. However, when it's done poorly it's shit (literally). This was done very well. The pungent barnyard, stinky cheese, and saddle leather arrive heavily seasoned with baking spices, noticeably cinnamon, and herbs, including rosemary and tarragon. Ripe, dark bramble fruit, lavender oil, and pine resin pervade the palate and continue through the lengthy and structured finish. An extraordinary mix of the old and new world, while maintaining a clear sense of terroir, and providing an intensely vivid experience. It really hits its stride after 1.5 hours. Fair warning, if you don't like Brett at all then I wouldn't recommend this wine... however if you've ever liked a wine because of Brett, I suspect you'll enjoy.
Villa Symposia is the Languedoc label from Éric Prissette, the founder of Château Rol Valentin. The winemaking is overseen by Stéphane Derenoncourt. And from what I gathered, L'Origine is the flagship, or at least 'the' high-end cuvée here. The importer label indicates it's 95% Syrah, 5% Grenache (but a blog post from Taste Languedoc mentioned Carignan was added to the blend in 2012). The Syrah comes from the oldest vines of the estate, ~50 years old.
Opens with a noticeable amount of Brett, which can go either way for me. I view Brett like abstract art... done well and it's a beautiful lens to which to view a wine. However, when it's done poorly it's shit (literally). This was done very well. The pungent barnyard, stinky cheese, and saddle leather arrive heavily seasoned with baking spices, noticeably cinnamon, and herbs, including rosemary and tarragon. Ripe, dark bramble fruit, lavender oil, and pine resin pervade the palate and continue through the lengthy and structured finish. An extraordinary mix of the old and new world, while maintaining a clear sense of terroir, and providing an intensely vivid experience. It really hits its stride after 1.5 hours. Fair warning, if you don't like Brett at all then I wouldn't recommend this wine... however if you've ever liked a wine because of Brett, I suspect you'll enjoy.
Feels like it's in a slightly shut down phase and wants to show more. Wonderful but little hollow in the middle.
Feels like it's in a slightly shut down phase and wants to show more. Wonderful but little hollow in the middle.
Jul 13th, 2016
A pretty smokey, earthy expression of Syrah. I like the idea of rounding that out with some fruit and spice from the Grenache but I'm not sure 5% was enough to make it happen. But all in all an nice, drinkable wine.
A pretty smokey, earthy expression of Syrah. I like the idea of rounding that out with some fruit and spice from the Grenache but I'm not sure 5% was enough to make it happen. But all in all an nice, drinkable wine.
Sep 10th, 2015
Leather and wet earth on the nose. Dark ripe fruit - cherry, plum. Some tannin but relatively smooth.
Leather and wet earth on the nose. Dark ripe fruit - cherry, plum. Some tannin but relatively smooth.
Jun 6th, 2021
A nice wine after decanting blew away the funk. Complex with cassis, cedar and sweet licorice. Limited finish with soft tannins made this a lovely easy dinner wine with grass fed beef baked ziti.
A nice wine after decanting blew away the funk. Complex with cassis, cedar and sweet licorice. Limited finish with soft tannins made this a lovely easy dinner wine with grass fed beef baked ziti.
Apr 5th, 2021
Rich, smooth, and silky. Slightly spicy. Awesome value!
Rich, smooth, and silky. Slightly spicy. Awesome value!
Apr 17th, 2017
Maybe I got a bad bottle, because this didn't live up to the positive reviews. Heavy flavors of peat smoke - for a second I could have sworn I was drinking scotch - and lots of pine. Didn't finish the bottle.
Maybe I got a bad bottle, because this didn't live up to the positive reviews. Heavy flavors of peat smoke - for a second I could have sworn I was drinking scotch - and lots of pine. Didn't finish the bottle.
Mar 2nd, 2017