Mas de Daumas Gassac 2000: Popped and poured, this wine exhibits a clear, light violet color, just slightly reddening on the rim, with good glycerin: a “leggy” wine, if you will. The nose is beautifully fresh, mint- and, especially, herb-infused, and even a bit floral and sweet, yet there peeks through some evolved note of underbrush, bordering on mushroom, but hardly pronounced, and just barely felt on the palate. The palate evokes dark red fruit and blueberry, interestingly combined with orange rind. Tightens up on the finish just a bit, shows perhaps potential for further aging. I think this wine is drinking very well today; a bit better than the last time I tried it back in 2005 with Mike Lux. Not the greatest vintage from the Languedoc but very fine, and versatile for food: from seasoned lamb to chicken a l’orange. I am glad I have one more bottle…
Day 2 and the wine is even fresher on the nose, a combination of pine forest and menthol mixed with distinct blueberry. There is even some creeping Cabernet-derived cigar box. Some nuances of milk chocolate, followed through on the palate, evoking for a moment my favorite ice cream as a child: Breyer’s Mint Chocolate Chip. The palate is pleasantly attacked, and again I get notions of orange skin and slight underbrush. The mid palate is just full enough. The only critique I would level against this wine is a slight thinness on the finish, certainly a mark of a less than super vintage. All in all, however, this wine is very pleasurable! The nose basically invites drinking.