Wines were all served double blind in a Rayas lineup. They were double decanted for sediment about two hours before service.
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2001 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc Réserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Served double blind in a Rayas lineup. A nice enough nose, with some ripe stone fruit, tart apple, and slight herbal aromatics. Quite a rich and powerful palate, with a touch of peachiness. On the other hand, there’s almost no discernible acidity on the palate. Very generous amount of glycerol, wax, and all sorts of palate-coating richness. A little bit of barnyard and a touch of bitterness. This finishes with a splash of licorice on the finish. Well made for what this is (clearly a Rhone white), but certainly not my style. However, there were whiffs of TCA here and there, and while others seemed to think that this wasn’t corked (just old), I wasn’t quite as confident. (93- pts.) -
2007 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc Réserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Served double blind in a Rayas lineup. A very nice nose with something that seems to evoke tart green apples. This, too, is obviously a Rhone white, and a little better than the previous with its more dominant apple tones. The palate still has a very light touch of acidity, but there is nowhere near enough to balance out the waxy texture. Some green herbs on the palate, with a hint of fennel and licorice. Good for what it is (white Rhone has never been my thing). (93 pts.) -
2006 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Served double blind in a Rayas lineup. Very moderate nose, with a beautiful nose of red fruit – a little bit of dirt and earth and a slight hint of pepper. Slight hint of leafiness. There’s a good amount of earth and dirt on the palate, but there is also some sweetness from the fruit. The alcohol does seem to poke out a little bit, and that burn on the back end is something I am not too keen about. My guess is that this is a lesser wine. My 8th, group’s 8th. (93 pts.) -
2003 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Served double blind in a Rayas lineup. A relatively pure nose, although there’s a bit of brown spice and coffee. A little figgy and brown on the nose as well, I’m guessing that this has a spot of age on it. The palate here shows a good amount of dried fruit, with a slight autumnal character. Despite that, this is a very clean wine with lovely development. A touch of tannin still seems to indicate that this is a relatively sturdy year. In no rush. My 5th, group’s 3rd. (93 pts.) -
1995 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Served double blind in a Rayas lineup. Slightly faecal and mulchy on the nose, with some notes of decaying something or other. There also seems to be a slight hint of brett and rusty iron here. The palate is quite heady, although there’s no alcoholic heat at all. In fact, despite the rustic nose, the palate is very clean, showing lovely fruit, as well as a character that moves a little bit more towards black fruit. Fairly rich and powerful. My 6th, group’s 9th. (93 pts.) -
2000 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Served double blind in a Rayas lineup. A hint of brown spice and coffee, as well as a slight touch of brett on the nose here. The palate here also shows a slight bit of brown character, and there’s a sweetness here that seems slightly odd in the context of the age of this (probably 15-20 years). However sweet and ripe this is, it doesn’t feel hot at all, and this is nicely balanced. Still, this comes off a little thin to my palate. My 7th, group’s 4th. (93 pts.) -
1995 Château Rayas Côtes du Rhône Château de Fonsalette Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône
Served double blind in a Rayas lineup. A little rusty and bretty on the nose here, but there’s a splash of brown spice that adds good interest. Black fruited in character. The palate has a little bit of balsamic, as well as plenty of chewy and dusty tannins. Not too complex, and a bit of headiness from the ripeness here. On the other hand, this is still really well balanced, and despite that ripeness on the palate, there’s no outright feeling of heat. Seems a little old. My 9th, group’s 10th. (93 pts.) -
2005 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Pignan Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Served double blind in a Rayas lineup. An almost nutty quality on the nose here, with some browned and earthy notes, dried fruit, and a hint of iodine. Sweet and a little weird on the palate here, with lots of tannin showing, and some heat really poking through. Definitely a weaker wine in the context of things, with so much alcoholic heat poking out. Really tannic and heavy-handed; seems like a real outlier. My 10th, group’s 11th. (93 pts.) -
2006 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Pignan Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Served double blind in a Rayas lineup. Relatively clean nose, but still a slight hint of brett. There’s an odd note here that almost reminds me of apricots. Brown spice and heady, with some furriness on the nose. The palate feels a little overripe, and there are very intense tannins here. Heat, tannin, and short. I’m guessing this is a lesser 2003. My 11th, group’s 1st(!). (93 pts.) -
2008 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Served double blind in a Rayas lineup. A very slight hint of tomato on the nose, but it somehow works with the rest of it. There’s a leafiness here that is also interesting; seems to point to a cooler vintage. Touch of smoke on the nose and palate here. Not as rich and fruity as many of the other wines; in fact, there’s a green coolness here that feels almost refreshing, to the point that in the context of the lineup this is almost minty fresh. There’s still some sneaky tannin on the back end though. My 4th, group’s 2nd. (93 pts.) -
2004 Château Rayas Côtes du Rhône Château de Fonsalette Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône
Served double blind in a Rayas lineup. Very intense nose with some darker fruit tones and a lovely hint of white pepper. Layered and complex, with some secondary fruit tones as well. The palate is spicy yet delicate, with a luscious juiciness that is just fantastic. Ample acidity and freshness. Tannins are still present but on the verge of resolution. My 3rd, group’s 7th. (93 pts.) -
2005 Château Rayas Côtes du Rhône Château de Fonsalette Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône
Served double blind in a Rayas lineup. A very dark character here, with dense brown spice notes. Really powerful and dense, with inky fruit. Sweet and rich, with a powerful tannic character as well. Intense and sweet, but there’s a slight bit of alcohol on the finish. Very powerful, but lovely at the same time. My 2nd, group’s 6th. (93 pts.) -
2006 Château Rayas Côtes du Rhône Château de Fonsalette Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône
Served double blind in a Rayas lineup. Possibly lightly corked. Not sound in any case, this is thin and weak in comparison to the other wines, with a fairly simple palate. My 12th, group’s 12th. (93- pts.) -
2008 Château Rayas Côtes du Rhône Château de Fonsalette Reserve - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône
Served double blind in a Rayas lineup. What a nose. Strawberries and white pepper; intensely complex. This is light and floral on the palate, with an airy brightness that is just lovely. A slight bit of stemminess here as well adds so much lightness and freshness here. Very long finish that leaves some really delicious red berries on the back end; it’s very pretty and lovely. A little bit of heat here still, but this wine holds it so well. My 1st, group’s 4th. (93 pts.)
