Let´s talk Chateauneuf 2008

WINE TALK
1

I think we need a dedicated thread to collect all information and tasting notes from
the vintage 2008 in the Southern (and maybe Northern) Rhone so people can make
an educated buying decision.

To start the thread, here are a few impressions I had so far.

When you talk to the winemakers you will certainly hear how “easy” the year 2007 was. Near-perfect
weather conditions throughout the year, no problems whatsoever during the harvest. Ok, they were
missing a bit of rain, but hey, this is southern France where people are used to that.

For 2008, the picture was very different. Lots of rain and certainly one of the more difficult years. I have no
exact data for Chateauneuf, but in Tain L´Hermitage (some 100 miles to the north of Chateauneuf) they registered
the wettest year for the past 30 years with 887mm of rain. It didn´t rain throughout the harvest though, as it did
in 2002.

The results for the 2008 vintage - which will be sold at the Domaines starting in 6-8 weeks - vary wildly from
Domaine to Domaine. In general, it seems that sandy soils like Rayas or Vieille Julienne have profited from the quicker
evacuation of the abundant water than others. Also, those who have declassified fruit also have an advantage.
(Declassified is not really the word, I mean putting “super-cuvee” fruit in your base cuvee.)

My preferences so far from those I have tasted:

  • Pierre Usseglio
  • Domaine Giraud
  • Barroche
  • Clos des Papes

All had a great freshness to them that I haven´t found in the past few years (maybe 2000 comes close). Still, I
wouldn´t cellar them for 20 years, here I have doubts.

…and, some I liked less:

  • Comtes de Lauze
  • Juliette Avril
  • Pegau (which I usually like quite a bit, maybe I have to re-taste…)

All impressions welcome!

Cheers
Christian

2

Christian,

Good points on the vintage - difficult years like these are where you need to flee to the makers you know can produce quality product. In the vintage of all time ever in any viticultural area that has ever existed, it’s not so difficult to make a good wine - but it appears the ‘good’ part is subjective, as '07 is a very ripe year.

If '07 is typically classified as ‘ripe’ and big, how would you classify the vintage '08 with the makers you have highlighted?

3

Yeah but is it the greatest vintage EVER in any viticultural area? if not, easy pass.
[emot-words.gif]

4

Fresh. Elegant. Refined. Burgundian. - For the best wines.

Thin. Light. Watery. - For those who did not succeed.

In general I think we have more variance in styles than in 2007. It was difficult to make
a wine in 2007 that was not ripe, black cherry, concentrated, etc. In 2008 the top
winemakers made stunning wines whereas the 4th quartile is a bit of a catastrophe.

I have heard (read) Posner say that nobody will buy 2008. I can see his reasoning for the
US market where it is difficult to move wines that are sandwiched between 2007 and 2009.

I will get a first impression of 2009 in about 4 weeks when Morodoree puts their 2009 Tavel in bottle.

Cheers
Christian

5

Great post and thanks for the information Christian. Looking forward to trying these wines this summer.

6

+1, Christian, and Jeb, we’ll look for your notes this summer as well.

It seems like '08 would be the vintage to nab for those in the know - '07 will continue to be hyped, and priced as such, and perhaps the better '08’s will suffer in the shadow when it comes to pricing.

7

And for the number geeks out there…
For 2008, average daily max temp in orange was 79.2. Compare this to 80.3 in '07, 83.3 in '06, 81.5 in '05 and 81.4 in '04. I also have graphs of this and other temp values on my site as well… 2008 was cooold. Precipitation is harder info to get. If anyone has a quality place to get this info, please let me know.

8

First prices coming in from the Domaines:

Domaine de la Mordoree Chateauneuf 2008 €38

The 2007 had cost 45 Euros which means the discount is some 16%. I find
the price still quite high, but they probably bank on their loyal customer base
and the fact that yields have been extremely low.

Let´s see when the next prices are coming in.

Cheers
Christian

9

Next price offer from Clos des Papes.

They had already told me last year that due to the small yields in 2008 they can only offer
6 bottles per person (whereas it was 24 for the 2007).

Now the price has again increased from 42 Euros for the 2007 to now 46 Euros for the 2008. Wow.

They will have no problem selling through though.

Cheers
Christian

10

I’m already seeing discounts on Rhone 2006 and the clearance sale on 2004 is on full bore - $40 for 2006 Vieux Telegraphe and $12 for 2004 Mordoree Lirac just very recently. So, one would agree with the 2008 being sandwiched between 2 very good vintages should bode well for reduced pricing opportunities.