2008 Jean-Michel Stephan Côte-Rôtie Coteau de Bassenon- France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie (6/14/2014)
Quite a revelation - this was a producer that I have never heard of before, but I really like the style of the wine. It is still way too young of course, but it was a real pleasure in the glass. It had a truly arresting nose, wafting out of the glass with perfumy drifts of violets and sweet cherries and bright blueberry scents lined with slatey, stony mineral accents and a nice wreath of dried earth and garrigue - a smell that brought to mind Provence in summer. The palate was a bit more reticent, with a narrower range of expression, but still very drinkable even in its youth. Here, lovely juicy acidity and fine, silky tannins were draped over pure, red-fruited notes of cherries and redcurrants swirled with a gentle wash of spice. The finish still had a nice grippiness to it, pulling away with a kiss of wild herb and garrigue. A very pure, unadulterated wine, and really enjoyable. I think the lighter feel of the 2008 vintage also added a nice sense of light and transperancy to it. Still young, and maybe a touch on the simple side on the palate, but I liked this enough to purchase a few bottles. It would be lovely to try over the next 5, 10 and 15 years. (92 pts.)
The vintage 2008 in the Northern Rhone had not been a favorable one by most experts’ accounts. It’s good to see a positive note on this Cote Rotie producer, which I’ve not sampled.
Another one that I drank, that was much better than the generalized negative view of the vintage, was the 2008 Jamet CR. But by now I shouldn’t be really be surprised whenever this producer outperforms over and above any generalized bad vintage.
The impression that 08 was a weak year arises from ERPs score of 79 for Cote Rotie. I always felt that the successful wines from that year showed the feminine Burgundian style reminiscent of some of the bygone masters of the N Rhone. Those vintners who tried to make big extracted wines as in 07 or 09 produced less appealing wines in 08.
There is good value in 2008 N. Rhones. The wines are perfectly fine, albeit “elegant” and many are currently discounted. They still need a few years to come together.
Agree on your first 2 in the list. Have not tasted the others.
Since we’ve gone beyond Cote Rotie, I might as well throw in a couple of good 2008 from Cornas that I liked -
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