Chateauneuf du Pape

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Paul Lin

Paul's interest in wine extends beyond simple appreciation and enjoyment. As an academic, he's never without his notepad and pen, and he loves to analyze a wine the way a scholar might pore over a fine piece of literature. After being bitten by the wine bug during graduate school, Paul embarked on his wine journey out of a sense of intellectual curiosity and romantic self-indulgence. Recently, he has turned his sights from simply drinking and writing about wine to actually making the stuff. In 2007, under the label Terra Novus, Paul produced his first barrel of Pinot Noir from grapes from the Sonoma Coast.

Eric Anderson

Eric first became interested in wine in 1983, after sampling the 1982 Bordeaux vintage. It was a watershed event, and he immediately began to accumulate a library of wine books, and spent the next several years attending as many wine tastings and seminars as possible. Since 1990, Eric has chronicled over 600 visits to wineries, both in the U.S. and Europe. Aside from simply enjoying the beverage, he found his interactions with winemakers and proprietors has further enriched his life, and continued to nourish his interest in wine. Eric is also part of GrapeRadio, the James Beard nominated podcast series.

Châteauneuf-du-Pape - August, 2007

Everyone would probably agree that wine tasting is a subjective matter - maybe even highly subjective. One person's "stunner" might be another person's "blah." Yet, there are also occasions when there is a meeting of the mind as to what is in the glass. We've always wondered just how much and how often tasters will differ in their opinions of the same wine. With that in mind, we felt it would be downright interesting, if not instructional, to have two tasters sample the same wines and write tasting notes on each - for side-by-side comparison.

Overall impressions: this Châteauneuf-du-Pape lineup offered an interesting opportunity to taste through eight vintages, giving us a nice cross-section. It's probably safe to say that we were looking forward to the '98s. Oddly, it looked as though we had an extra wine that one of us didn't get to, hence only the one note on the 2000 Paul Autard.

Our two tasters agreed, relatively speaking, on several of the wines poured at this tasting. Yet, they obviously had differing opinions about some of the other wines - some quite notable. In fact, when reading the notes, you might even wonder if they were tasting the same wine. So, who's right? Well, if you learn one thing from this episode, there is no right or wrong - just differences. There are differences in how we each perceive aromas and flavors, differences in how we think one thing compares to another, and so on. There are also external forces at work at most tastings. For instance, the fact is that this was also a dinner tasting, and thus the food component could have easily swayed one into a positive or not-so-positive opinion about a given wine. So, let's take a look at the same wines from 'both sides now.'

Paul's Tasting Notes

Flight #1 - Whites

Eric's Tasting Notes

Flight #1 - Whites

2005 Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc La Crau -
A very nice white to prepare the palate and begin the evening. Notes of beeswax, lemon, curd, and white flowers. Slightly sweet on the attack, but the stony midpalate and acid uplift balance out the wine. Excellent. 90-91 points. (90 pts.)

2005 Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc La Crau -
Lovely notes of candlewax, sweet lemon, and floral aromas. Nice minerality through midpalate and very good balance.

2005 Ampelos Viognier - Central Coast, Santa Ynez Valley
A slightly simple but still enjoyable viognier. Notes of peach and vanilla cream. A bit more mineral and acid would have been nice, but still a commendable effort. 87-88 points. (87 pts.)

2005 Ampelos Viognier - Santa Ynez Valley
Light notes of white and yellow peach, with the slightest hint of floral aromas.

2004 François Chidaine Montlouis-sur-Loire Les Tuffeaux - Montlouis-sur-Loire
This was a very interesting wine to drink, in part because it was very different from what I was expecting. Notes of matchstick, honeyed green tea, and lemon oil. Slightly soapy from the midpalate through to the finish, but a really nice wine nonetheless. 89-90 points. (89 pts.

2004 François Chidaine Montlouis-sur-Loire Les Tuffeaux - Montlouis-sur-Loire
Flinty and a bit steely initially, the mouthfeel is something akin to waxy, but not quite. Nice enough, though I wouldn't go looking for it.

Flight #1 - Reds

1990 Bosquet des Papes Châteauneuf-du-Pape -
This bottle may have been mature than the other CT reviews suggest, but this wine reminds me of an elderly man recalling the exploits of his spectacular youth. Initially begins with muscular aromas of raisins, dates, smoke, and pepper. But on the palate, the wine seems unable to pound its chest any longer and collapses, exhausted, into fading red fruits and mushroom flavors. 84-85 points. (84 pts.)

1990 Bosquet des Papes Châteauneuf-du-Pape -
This had a slight bricking at the rim of the otherwise medium garnet color. Funky, produce-laden scent (wet lettuce), with a bit of candied strawberry and very nice smoky quality to the spices. Spicy mouthfeel, with almost a sense of hot pepper, fading flavors through the latter palate. Better nose than mouth.

1998 Domaine de Beaurenard (Paul Coulon et Fils) Châteauneuf-du-Pape -
A nice CdP. Aromas of black plum framed with smoke and pepper. Mouth-filling flavors of plum, spicebox, and truffles. (88 pts.)

1998 Domaine de Beaurenard (Paul Coulon et Fils) Châteauneuf-du-Pape -
Medium-dark ruby color. Very smoky, with a mint/menthol quality, and lightly grilled meats. Tasty, very nice balance, with wild strawberry and rhubarb flavors and a sense of tannins on the palate. This is going to be wonderful with a few more years on it.

1999 Domaine de la Solitude (Lançon Père et Fils) Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Barberini -
There was some controversy surrounding this wine, but by the time it got to our side of the table, I felt it was clearly corked. NR (flawed)

1999 Domaine de la Solitude (Lançon Père et Fils) Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Barberini -
This baby was corked (reeked of TCA), though with some heavy swirling you could sense what might have been there. Bummer.

2000 Éric Texier Châteauneuf-du-Pape Vieilles Vignes -
Earthy aromas topped with a touch of barnyard. Additional notes of spice, clove, and white pepper. Smooth entry and a nice finish. (88 pts.)

2000 Éric Texier Châteauneuf-du-Pape Vieilles Vignes -
Beautiful ruby-garnet color. Fascinating nose of red and black fruit, melon, seemingly perfect ripeness, a sappy almost resin-like quality, and orange zest. Young in mouthfeel with moderate tannins, yet the fruit comes pumping through. Big concentrated and chewy, with a hint of bretty quality to the dark fruit. Very very long finish. Really nice!

2000 Clos des Papes Châteauneuf-du-Pape -
A lovely CdP. Notes of red fruits, tobacco leaf, anise, and roasted meats. Light and elegant on the palate, and with air picked up a hint of sweetness. 90-91 points. (90 pts.)

2000 Clos des Papes Châteauneuf-du-Pape -
Medium garnet color. Vague hint of stemmy/whole cluster quality, big ripe effusive new World nose with tons of red and black raspberry. Excellent balance and structure; has the barest hint of volatile acidity (VA).

2000 Domaine Paul Autard Châteauneuf-du-Pape -
This nose smelled French! Smoky and brooding red and black fruit, Kalamata olive, capers and spices. Almost a roasted quality to the fruit (think Cote Rotie), with mouthwatering acids and very long finish.

2001 E. Guigal Châteauneuf-du-Pape -
This wine has never really lived up to its promise for me. Nose of roasted meats, black pepper, and touch of menthol. Balsam wood and herb garden flavors in the mouth. (86 pts.)

2001 E. Guigal Châteauneuf-du-Pape -
Lovely orange blossom and floral scents aren't quite enough to mask the obvious hint of brett in the nose. Acid-based balance in mouthfeel, but the Guigal seems to deliver more sweeter substance on the palate than the previous '00 Autard.

2003 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape -
A wonderful CdP. Seductive aromas of raspberry, cocoa powder, and truffles. Sweet and mouth-filling flavors of black cherry, plum and spice. A plush wine that should only get better with time and my WOTN. (92 pts.)

2003 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape -
This was a worthy substitute for Clos du Mont Olivet that didn't materialize. Lovely nose of raspberry and floral aromas, with a spicy orange infusion. Excellent balance, delicious red and black flavors, and nice long finish.

2003 Saint-Cosme Châteauneuf-du-Pape -
Notes of spice, balsam wood, and soy. Contrary to what David Rosengarten thinks, a little more fruit would have been nice. Not bad, but not my favorite either. 86-87 points. (86 pts.)

2003 Saint-Cosme Châteauneuf-du-Pape -
Knockout nose of beef bourgogne and portobello really jack up the intensity in the nose. Here is a case where mouth follows nose: lots of meaty qualities, drippings, charcuterie, etc. This was a decidely different take on CdP, but I loved it.

2003 Domaine du Vieux Lazaret Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Exceptionelle -
Exceptionnelle indeed! Rich raspberry, black cherry, and kirsch aromas followed by round fruit flavors of blueberry, smoked meats, and a touch of soy. Unctuous mouthfeel. If the New World could make CdP, this is what it might taste like. (91 pts.)

2003 Domaine du Vieux Lazaret Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Exceptionelle -
Dark ruby-garnet in color. Very smoky, with a Cote Rotie quality. Touches of balsamic and mushroom add to the spicy dark fruit. Beautiful balance, excellent fruit and spice, and very long seamless finish. Excellent!

2004 Clos des Papes Châteauneuf-du-Pape -
Based upon the other reviews on CT, I suspect that this bottle might be shut down as the fruit seems to be missing. In its place, notes of white and black pepper, soy, and herbs. (87 pts.)

2004 Clos des Papes Châteauneuf-du-Pape -
Smooth yet a bit shy throughout, this wine could easily be mistaken for slumbering at the moment. I sat with this for awhile to see if it came out of it's shell, but it never really did. Hey, maybe is IS slumbering.

2004 Domaine Isabel Ferrando Châteauneuf-du-Pape Colombis -
This wine kind of got lost among the rest, but I do recall enjoying this wine. A unique mix of bright red fruits, pink grapefruit, cocoa, and cured meats. (88 pts.)

2004 Domaine Isabel Ferrando Châteauneuf-du-Pape Colombis -
If one wine in the flight could be described as New World-like, this would be it. Very spicy nose of dark fruit, it almost screamed Aussie. Nice profile, seemingly no heat, but a very big wine, with just a slight bitterness on the extended finish.

2004 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape -
A very meaty and hearty but ultimately very young CdP. Notes of beef blood, red cherries, and peppercorns. Needs more time to mellow out. (89 pts.)

2004 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape -
Effusive nose of very ripe fruit spice and soy. Huge and chewy mouthfeel, this wine seemed riper and sweeter than the '03 version, bordering on a prune-like quality.

2005 Cuvée du Vatican Châteauneuf-du-Pape -
This innocuous wine did not really stand out for me. Nose of red fruits and white pepper, but I found the palate rather watery and thin and really lacking in flavor. (85 pts.)

2005 Cuvée du Vatican Châteauneuf-du-Pape -
Interesting backnotes in this wine had me thinking there was a very healthy dose of Syrah in there. A bit dark and brooding, with a peppery streak, along with some tarry aspects. Well balanced and smooth, this seemed to hit more bass than treble notes.

2005 Domaine Pierre Usseglio & Fils Châteauneuf-du-Pape -
Decanted for 3 hours. Notes of dark cherry, kirsch, and white pepper. Full and lush on the palate. Oak needs time to further integate. An excellent wine nonetheless, and my #2 WOTN. 91-92 points. (91 pts.)

2005 Domaine Pierre Usseglio & Fils Châteauneuf-du-Pape -
The nose of this wine also betrayed some Syrah, confirmed by the back label stating that it was indeed 50/50 Grenache and Syrah. Nose of crushed oranges and red fruit lying on an asphalt road (yes, I liked it). Big rich and mouthfilling, with excellent balance and wonderful flavors. Nice enough nose, but a definite WOW mouthfeel!

2005 Domaine Paul Autard Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée La Cote Ronde -
An excellent CdP. Nose of roasted meats, cocoa, and garrigue followed by blackberry fruit and cocoa. Grippy tannins. (90 pts.)

2005 Domaine Paul Autard Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée La Cote Ronde -
Just huge throughout. This seemed almost Petite Sirah-based, with it's nearly impenetrable heavy mouthfeel, yet ironically smooth finish. Hell of a wine, but very backward right now.

2005 Domaine de la Janasse Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Chaupin -
Notes of cocoa, roasted meats, pepper, and herb garden. Excellent texture and flavor, but significant heat on the finish. (90 pts.)

2005 Domaine de la Janasse Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Chaupin -
Spicy dark red fruit, with a bit of cured meat. Big with nice tannins, very good balance of acids, juicy fruit-filled mouthfeel, with a nice kick of tannins at the entry and at the finish.

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