Over the past week we had 2 outstanding Rhones with interesting differences. Both were decanted for a short time then drunk as they developed over the evening.
1998 Domaine du Pegau Cuvee da Capo – Very dark and young looking for a 15 year old CdP with intense aromas and flavors that you would expect from a great S Rhone. This bottle started out very good and evolved to outstanding! It has changed for the better since my last bottle a couple years ago.
1990 Jaboulet ‘La Chapelle’Hermitage – Even darker, outstanding syrah started out more open than previous bottles of the same wine. Another Great bottle but something odd seemed to happen with this one… after a short period of improving in the glass it stopped short of screaming “I’m here” and even seemed to close down a bit. The decanter was drained before I could complete the study. I will try again in a couple years!
Cheers, Gary
You’re living well!
The Jaboulet might need extended decanting. It’s not uncommon for Northern Rhones to give a lot when first poured and then close up for a while. An hour or two (or more) of decanting often works wonders.