TN: Chateauneuf du Pape at Nice Matin NYC
 

nice group gathered Wednesday night at Nice Matin for Chateauneuf-du-Pape night. Great to see a bunch of friends, some of whom I hadnt seen in a couple of years. Nice table, nice service, nice stemware, Nice Matin. There was a nice cauliflower soup amuse, I started with escargots and had a main of duck, escarole, and sweet potato.

2006 Clos des Papes Chateauneuf-du-Pape Blanc
Im not a white Rhone fan but I dont think even a Roussanne/Marsanne fanatic would find this enjoyable. Volatile/chemical nose, I said I have household cleaners that smell better. Better on the palate, but what wouldnt be? Hot and volatile, with bitter edge to the fruit. But it got better, started as a D, became a C-

1983 Beaucastel Chateauneuf-du-Pape
Some thought this past it, but I found enjoyable. Red fruit, pepper and spice, light on texture, high acids. I thought mature but not tired, though not especially Rhonish. One person said it reminded him of mature Rioja, and Id agree, but I like mature Rioja. B/B+

1990 Clos des Papes Chateauneuf-du-Pape
Red and black fruit, smoked meat and herbs, full bodied and drinking well. A-/B+

1995 Beaucastel Chateauneuf-du-Pape
Sturdy rather than flashy, but nice black fruit, smoke, garrigue. Some tannin left, held up well. B/B+

1998 Pegau Cuvee Reservee Chateauneuf-du-Pape
Ripe, a little barnyard, earth, I liked but others loved. B+/B

1999 Beaucastel Hommage a Jacques Perrin Chateauneuf-du-Pape
Wine of the night for me. Unlike some prestige cuvee CdPs this is not about €œmore, one of the more perfectly balanced southern Rhones Ive run across. Black cherries, cassis, a pleasant earthy funk, smoked meat. Nice length. A-

2001 Rayas Pignan Reserve Chateauneuf-du-Pape
Most divisive wine of the night, I was on pro side. Lots of herby/stemmy notes which others didnt like but I found added complexity, red fruited, elegant for CdP.. B+/A-

2003 Pegau Cuvee Reservee Chateauneuf-du-Pape
I thought this was surprisingly well balanced for 2003, its big and ripe but not excessively roasted or hot. Some exotic sandalwoody aromas on solid fruit. B/B+

2000 Beaucastel Chateauneuf-du-Pape
This actually seemed riper than the "03 Pegau, fully mature, a touch hot, with fruit beginning to edge towards pruney and a lack of acid. B-

Very fun night, I liked almost all the wines, I liked all the people!
Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent wine, B a good wine, C drinkable. Anything below C means I wouldn't drink at a party where it was only choice.Furthermore, I offer no promises of objectivity, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency.

TN: Chateauneuf du Pape at Nice Matin NYC
 

On 11/14/19 4:09 PM, DaleW wrote:

> 2006 Clos des Papes Chateauneuf-du-Pape Blanc
> Im not a white Rhone fan but I dont think even a Roussanne/Marsanne fanatic would find this enjoyable. Volatile/chemical nose, I said I have household cleaners that smell better. Better on the palate, but what wouldnt be? Hot and volatile, with bitter edge to the fruit. But it got better, started as a D, became a C-

Wow. I'm not a big CdP blanc fan, either, but this sounds off in a
serious way.


> 1995 Beaucastel Chateauneuf-du-Pape
> Sturdy rather than flashy, but nice black fruit, smoke, garrigue. Some tannin left, held up well. B/B+

I opened a bottle of this not so long ago, but mine was compromised by
TCA. It was a shame, because there was a very nice wine evident beneath
the maderization.

>
> 1998 Pegau Cuvee Reservee Chateauneuf-du-Pape
> Ripe, a little barnyard, earth, I liked but others loved. B+/B

Yeah, not my favorite vintage of Pegau. I drank all mine up a few years
ago and there was a palpable sense of ripeness to them.


> 2000 Beaucastel Chateauneuf-du-Pape
> This actually seemed riper than the "03 Pegau, fully mature, a touch hot, with fruit beginning to edge towards pruney and a lack of acid. B-

2000 as a year was too low in acid IMO. I drank mine up (or traded them
away).

Lots of nice wines there, Dale, including a few (Rayas, Perrin) that I
don't usually see. Thanks for the notes!

Mark Lipton



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TN: Chateauneuf du Pape at Nice Matin NYC
 

On Friday, November 15, 2019 at 11:15:40 AM UTC-5, Mark Lipton wrote:
>
> > Yeah, not my favorite vintage of Pegau. I drank all mine up a few years
> ago and there was a palpable sense of ripeness to them.
>
>
>
> 2000 as a year was too low in acid IMO. I drank mine up (or traded them
> away).
>
Several people had the 98 Pegau as top 3 wine
I only bought a few '00 CdP, didn't care for and tucked away a very few to see if improved, think I have single bottles of P Usseglio, Vieux Donjon, and Charvin, will try soon with low expectations
But as a not frequent CdP drinker, overall I was happy with night

TN: Chateauneuf du Pape at Nice Matin NYC
 

On 11/15/19 2:03 PM, DaleW wrote:

> Several people had the 98 Pegau as top 3 wine
> I only bought a few '00 CdP, didn't care for and tucked away a very few to see if improved, think I have single bottles of P Usseglio, Vieux Donjon, and Charvin, will try soon with low expectations
> But as a not frequent CdP drinker, overall I was happy with night
>

I liked the '98 Pegau but '01 was far more structured and a bit more
restrained in character. '99 was a charmer of a vintage. The Charvin
you should definitely hang onto: he can make good wine in even a hot
year. These days, I only buy VT, Pegau and Charvin (even Beaucastel has
become too clean for my tastes since '05) and I don't buy that much of
them, either.

Mark Lipton

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