A couple of weeks ago we went to Verulam School in St Albans where, once a month, a group of 80 or so (all of them over 18!) meets to taste and talk about wine. We had been invited to present a selection of Southern Rhône wines, three white and half a dozen red. They like to start with the first white (Château Juvenal's Ribes de Vallat Blanc) before the tasting so that saves my voice a bit as the tasting proper kicks off with the second white.
I thought it would be interesting for them (OK, for me too) to taste Xavier Vignon's Intra and Extra cuvées side by side, obviously starting with the latter (you can read more about these wines on the relevant pages but, essentially, Xavier has built a 7000 litre tank into which he immerses five regular barrels. The wine inside these, Intra, is a white Châteauneuf - reds are next - and, in the large outer barrel is Extra. The idea is to reduce opportunities of oxidation in the inner barrel whose wine also protects the outer barrel wine with its release of CO2). The Côtes du Rhône, Extra, was showing rather well but is inevitably quite restrained and, for me, shows a little too much oak character at this stage although it is losing it quite well over time. Intra, the Châteauneuf-du-Pape in the inner barrels is magnificent. Last time I tasted it I had some reservations but it has grown fabulously since then. All three white wines are dominated by Claudette, the new darling of the south (it handles the hot weather better than Grenache Blanc or Roussanne).
As always, the red selection should begin with a house wine, the red counterpart to the first wine of the evening, Château Juvenal's Ribes de Vallat Rouge. Always a lovely wine, it's 80% Grenache betraying a Burgundian finesse. This was followed by a wine from Domaine Brusset: 2020 Cairanne Sans Sulfites Ajoutées. Wines with no added sulphur are finding their way into more of the region's estates' portfolios. They can have a funky nose but always vibrantly fruity palates thanks to the lack of sulphites. This is a very good example. The lack of sulphites does, of course, mean it won't go the distance of its sulphite-laden peers but this one is showing no signs of slowing down.
On to more serious stuff: Coudoulet de Beaucastel is the Côtes du Rhône from Beaucastel, rightly regarded as being as good as most Châteauneuf. The Grenache, Mourvèdre and Syrah that form the core of this 2019 wine are beautifully merged now. That said, Xavier Vignon's Beaumes-de-Venise Etoile, from his Arcane range, has near perfect mouthfeel and the fruit is absolutely gorgeous at the moment. A contender for my Christmas wine, perhaps.
Also from the Beaucastel stable, Famille Perrin's 2019 Vinsobres Les Hauts de Julien is a brooding, serious wine and with around 50% Syrah was far and away the most black fruited wine of the night. It could use more time in the bottle, perhaps.
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We ended the tasting with the little known Château Capucine, Châteauneuf-du-Pape 2009 from Christophe Coste in Saze which proved to be my wine of the night (and, it seems many other people's too). So elegant with fruit that lingers gracefully and just enough weight. This was Christophe's first vintage of this wine, named after his oldest daughter, and what a success it has proved to be. It deserves to be so much better known, as do all the wines from Domaine Christophe Coste. Christophe: if you read this, thank you! |
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