A tasting of mostly 2004 Chateauneuf du Papes tasted double blind.

Vieux Donjon - colour on the lighter end of the spectrum, decent nose
with some pepper, nice middle weight and some spice and pepper in the
mouth. I thought it pleasant but ultimately a bit weak.

Janasse - darker with a hotter sweeter nose - some thought this might
be the ringer we were told was lurking in the pack. Sweet entry, long
finish with good acidity, but on the simple side.

Charbonierre Vielles Vignes - excellent fruit in the nose but not as
sweet and heavy as the Janasse, medium body, soft tannin, medium
length. Nice but not outstanding.

Duclaux - some nice things in this nose, but not very expressive yet
and you had to search for them. Starts out OK on palate but the fruit
falls off the edge and it ends badly. No cigar here.

Charbonierre - this one was $12 less expensive than the VV but scored
about the same. Reticent nose, fruit but no pepper, good middle and
sweet end, well balanced with sweet well integrated tannins.

2003 Vieux Donjon - thrown in to compare the previous vintage. warm
violet and tar nose, not quite over the top for me but too ripe for
some. Warm long tannic finish, and the nose was a bit oxidative which
made us wonder about the future for this wine, although it was
pleasant enough now for those that liked the style.

Dom. de l'Oratoire St. Martin Reserve des Seigneurs - a Cairanne from
the 2004 vintage, at about half the price of the other wines came up
2nd or 3rd favourite in some pretty tough competition! Dark and
peppery, classic garrigue nose, excellent concentration, fine tannins
and good length. Great value! Should have seen the high syrah in
retrospect.

Chante Perdrix - lighter than the last wine, with sweet fruit and
leather nose (no Bret in evidence on any of them today), medium body,
nice freshness and good length. Good showing.

Pegau - clear class of the bunch, very dark with a dark, even heavy
ripe nose, quite a bit of tannin, huge wine needing lots of time but
with all the elements to be very good. If you have this, don't drink
it now - it will drink pretty well, but you'll be depriving yourself
of a future treat!

Bill S. wrote:
> A tasting of mostly 2004 Chateauneuf du Papes tasted double blind.

Thanks for the notes, Bill. As '04 is the birthyear of our son, I've
been casting about for '04 wines to set aside for birthday celebrations,
and CdPs have been high on the list.

>
> Vieux Donjon - colour on the lighter end of the spectrum, decent nose
> with some pepper, nice middle weight and some spice and pepper in the
> mouth. I thought it pleasant but ultimately a bit weak.

That surprises me. My only exposure to Vieux Donjon has been the '90
and '95, both of which were profound wines. From what I read later on
in your post, I suspect that this might be a reflection of vintage.


> Pegau - clear class of the bunch, very dark with a dark, even heavy
> ripe nose, quite a bit of tannin, huge wine needing lots of time but
> with all the elements to be very good. If you have this, don't drink
> it now - it will drink pretty well, but you'll be depriving yourself
> of a future treat!

I just picked up two bottles of this yesterday -- my first purchase of
an '04 CdP -- but I suffered a severe case of sticker shock. I may not
be buying any more vintages of this wine if the price keeps escalating
the way it has recently.

Mark Lipton
--
alt.food.wine FAQ: http://winefaq.hostexcellence.com

On Apr 8, 11:24�am, "Bill S." > wrote:
> A tasting of mostly 2004 Chateauneuf du Papes tasted double blind.
>
> Vieux Donjon - colour on the lighter end of the spectrum, decent nose
> with some pepper, nice middle weight and some spice and pepper in the
> mouth. I thought it pleasant but ultimately a bit weak.
>
> Janasse - darker with a hotter sweeter nose - some thought this might
> be the ringer we were told was lurking in the pack. Sweet entry, long
> finish with good acidity, but on the simple side.
>
> Charbonierre Vielles Vignes - excellent fruit in the nose but not as
> sweet and heavy as the Janasse, medium body, soft tannin, medium
> length. Nice but not outstanding.
>
> Duclaux - some nice things in this nose, but not very expressive yet
> and you had to search for them. Starts out OK on palate but the fruit
> falls off the edge and it ends badly. No cigar here.
>
> Charbonierre - this one was $12 less expensive than the VV but scored
> about the same. Reticent nose, fruit but no pepper, good middle and
> sweet end, well balanced with sweet well integrated tannins.
>
> 2003 Vieux Donjon *- thrown in to compare the previous vintage. warm
> violet and tar nose, not quite over the top for me but too ripe for
> some. Warm long tannic finish, and the nose was a bit oxidative which
> made us wonder about the future for this wine, although it was
> pleasant enough now for those that liked the style.
>
> Dom. de l'Oratoire St. Martin Reserve des Seigneurs - a Cairanne from
> the 2004 vintage, at about half the price of the other wines came up
> 2nd or 3rd favourite in some pretty tough competition! *Dark and
> peppery, classic garrigue nose, excellent concentration, fine tannins
> and good length. Great value! *Should have seen the high syrah in
> retrospect.
>
> Chante Perdrix - lighter than the last wine, with sweet fruit and
> leather nose (no Bret in evidence on any of them today), medium body,
> nice freshness and good length. Good showing.
>
> Pegau - clear class of the bunch, very dark with a dark, even heavy
> ripe nose, quite a bit of tannin, huge wine needing lots of time but
> with all the elements to be very good. *If you have this, don't drink
> it now - it will drink pretty well, but you'll be depriving yourself
> of a future treat!

Thanks for the notes. Notes like these make buying decisions so much
easier. Your impressions of the 2004's seem to mirror mine regarding
the ripeness of the fruit. A few of the wines that I tasted of the
'04 vintage seemed to have almost a stewed fruit note to them they
were so ripe.

Bill S. wrote:
> A tasting of mostly 2004 Chateauneuf du Papes tasted double blind.


>
> Charbonierre Vielles Vignes - excellent fruit in the nose but not as
> sweet and heavy as the Janasse, medium body, soft tannin, medium
> length. Nice but not outstanding.

Was thinking about a 2003 Charbonniere Cuvee Mourre de Perdrix for
tonight. Any thoughts before I commit the cork?

On Apr 8, 11:24�am, "Bill S." > wrote:
> A tasting of mostly 2004 Chateauneuf du Papes tasted double blind.
>
> Vieux Donjon - colour on the lighter end of the spectrum, decent nose
> with some pepper, nice middle weight and some spice and pepper in the
> mouth. I thought it pleasant but ultimately a bit weak.
>
> Janasse - darker with a hotter sweeter nose - some thought this might
> be the ringer we were told was lurking in the pack. Sweet entry, long
> finish with good acidity, but on the simple side.
>
> Charbonierre Vielles Vignes - excellent fruit in the nose but not as
> sweet and heavy as the Janasse, medium body, soft tannin, medium
> length. Nice but not outstanding.
>
> Duclaux - some nice things in this nose, but not very expressive yet
> and you had to search for them. Starts out OK on palate but the fruit
> falls off the edge and it ends badly. No cigar here.
>
> Charbonierre - this one was $12 less expensive than the VV but scored
> about the same. Reticent nose, fruit but no pepper, good middle and
> sweet end, well balanced with sweet well integrated tannins.
>
> 2003 Vieux Donjon *- thrown in to compare the previous vintage. warm
> violet and tar nose, not quite over the top for me but too ripe for
> some. Warm long tannic finish, and the nose was a bit oxidative which
> made us wonder about the future for this wine, although it was
> pleasant enough now for those that liked the style.
>
> Dom. de l'Oratoire St. Martin Reserve des Seigneurs - a Cairanne from
> the 2004 vintage, at about half the price of the other wines came up
> 2nd or 3rd favourite in some pretty tough competition! *Dark and
> peppery, classic garrigue nose, excellent concentration, fine tannins
> and good length. Great value! *Should have seen the high syrah in
> retrospect.
>
> Chante Perdrix - lighter than the last wine, with sweet fruit and
> leather nose (no Bret in evidence on any of them today), medium body,
> nice freshness and good length. Good showing.
>
> Pegau - clear class of the bunch, very dark with a dark, even heavy
> ripe nose, quite a bit of tannin, huge wine needing lots of time but
> with all the elements to be very good. *If you have this, don't drink
> it now - it will drink pretty well, but you'll be depriving yourself
> of a future treat!

Thanks for notes. Might look for the Chante Perdrix, as Pegau is no
longer in my CdP price range,.