TN: First time among the round stones of CdP and Gigondas

[Tariq_K]

FIRST TIME AMONG THE ROUND STONES OF CDP AND GIGONDAS - Chateauneuf-du-pape, Gigondas (10/2/2018)

Wife and I visited Southern Rhone on a beautiful day in October. We arranged several tastings in advance. Because we were on vacation, and therefore slightly lazy, we did not quite get to everything on our agenda. That said, we had a pretty great introduction to wines of this region.
Chateau de Saint-Cosme
First time ever in a “show up and taste” scenario in France. Nice lady but a bit of an awkward setup. I didn’t know the wines so wasn’t really certain what I should be trying.

• 2015 Château de Saint-Cosme Côtes du Rhône Les Deux Albion - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône
  Dark crimson. Nice fruit on nose - red fruit, pepper, a touch of greenness.
  Good acid, fruit, pepper.
  Best balanced Cotes du Rhone I’ve had (90 pts.)
• 2016 Château de Saint-Cosme Gigondas - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Gigondas
  Deep crimson. Spice, pepper, red berries. Strong tannic backbone, front and center. Could be great in 4-5 years time.
  88-90

Caveau du Gigondas
Multi-producer tasting room which we hit up before lunch. Some of the wines tasted like they’d been open for a bit, which is not my thing.

• 2015 Domaine du Grand Bourjassot Gigondas Cuvée Cécile - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Gigondas
  Inky wine. Slight open bottle taste. Notes of Jolly Rancher, touch of tertiary note (probably due to open bottle), tobacco, leather. Medium alcohol, medium acid. (88 pts.)
• 2015 Domaine les Pallières Gigondas - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Gigondas
  Inky black as well (was it the lighting?). Stemmy, with sap, red fruit on nose. Moderately elegant. More syrah character. Strong acid core with fruit underneath. (89 pts.)
• 2015 Famille Perrin / Perrin & Fils Gigondas Domaine du Clos des Tourelles - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Gigondas
  Also deep and rich inky black wine. Fruit forward, spicy, complex. Balanced, with a touch of vanilla. (92 pts.)
• 2016 Moulin de la Gardette Gigondas - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Gigondas
  More typical nose but some open bottle scent. Good structure. Red fruits, spice, pepper. Lighter on palate, clean finish, some pepper. We ended up purchasing one of these and sipping it that evening (EUR 19). (91 pts.)

Chateau la Nerthe
Elaborate tasting room and cave visit. Nicely organized and run. We were accompanied, though, by a couple of private wine tours, one of which had an irritating, know-it-all guide. I’m glad he took the time to explain how wine aging works to me, a complete stranger who didn’t ask him.

• 2017 Château La Nerthe Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
  Clear straw
  Grapefruit, citrus, apricot
  Good acidity, honey, low alcohol
  Citrus really comes out.
  Very clean finish (92 pts.)
• 2014 Château La Nerthe Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc Clos de Beauvenir - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
  Golden, darker than the 2017 white.
  Honey pineapple, stone.
  Very clean, mineral on palate. Bone dry, clean finish. Not that complex. (88 pts.)
• 2015 Château La Nerthe Côtes du Rhône Villages Les Cassagnes Rouge - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône Villages
  All stainless steel.
  Purple crimson color. Strong pepper and berry fruit on nose. Strawberries, too.
  Soft tannins. Fruity, well balanced, crushable. (89 pts.)
• 2015 Château La Nerthe Châteauneuf-du-Pape - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
  GSMC
  More brick colored than I would have expected.
  Cedar, leather, sandalwood, red fruit, plum on nose.
  A little bit of open bottle taste.
  Moderate tannin. Finishes with a bitter snap. (88 pts.)
• 2013 Château La Nerthe Châteauneuf-du-Pape - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
  GSMC
  A little touch of brick.
  Blueberry, plum, tobacco, and leather touches on nose.
  Acidic backbone. Sandalwood, touch of tomato, some tannin.
  Gone dumb? Lost fruit but still has tannin. (88 pts.)
• 2015 Château La Nerthe Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée des Cadettes - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
  Low yield production. GSM.
  Deep crimson color.
  Salinity, nutmeg, red fruit on nose.
  Strong young tannin, red fruit core underneath, nicely balanced. Should age beautifully. (92 pts.)

Vieux-Telegraphe
This was the standout of the day. Grumpy guy with what I think was a Breton accent who warmed up to us after we showed strong interest. The wines were great - balanced, clean. I’ll buy more of this.

• 2016 Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
  Actually gets a 92+
  Very light color.
  Ripe fruit with characteristic CdP snap. Golden raisin. Could almost mistake for a chardonnay.
  Pineapple, vanillic snap, touch of honey. Full body, no elbows. (92 pts.)
• 2014 Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe Châteauneuf-du-Pape Piedlong - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
  Not a very concentrated crimson color.
  Red fruit forward on nose, with some pepper.
  White pepper, smoke, good acid, and a nice balance on the palate. (91 pts.)
• 2016 Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe Châteauneuf-du-Pape La Crau - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape
  Wine of the day.
  Moderately concentrated crimson.
  Red fruit, raisin on nose with a mineral core.
  Palate follows nose, with a touch of sap.
  Nice now, will age beautifully. (93 pts.)

Dinner at L’Essentiel
Pretty disappointing dinner. I think this place has gone downhill since the last time we ate here, which was admittedly nine years ago. Many things have changed since then, including us (FOR THE BETTER!!!). We did have a pretty nice wine at dinner though.

• 2013 Château de Beaucastel Côtes du Rhône Coudoulet de Beaucastel - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône
  Crimson, not super concentrated.
  Red fruit, stems, touch of earthiness, hint of sandalwood.
  Good acid, softer tannins. Fruit on palate.
  Great with food but not very refined. (88 pts.)

Our overall tasting experience was quite good. CdP is a pretty commercial place and wine tasting is big business, but we never felt like we were cogs in a machine. I can’t say that we were giant CdP wine lovers, though - I tend to get a strange bitter snap from them and my wife finds them too big. But worth adding a few of them to the cellar for the occasional excursion.
Posted from CellarTracker

[Michael_Martin]

“CdP is a pretty commercial place…”

OMG not even close to places in California. Napa is a wine Disneyland in comparison to the laid back CdP.
No club offerings, no nibbles. No glasses to buy. No polo shirts or bottle openers to purchase.

[Tariq_K]

Well two days later we went to Beaujolais, which was more of a “wander into a hippie’s shed”-type experience, so perhaps it seemed commercial in comparison. I do recall t-shirts for sale at Vieux Telegraphe, so there’s that.

[Michael_Martin]

Well two days later we went to Beaujolais, which was more of a “wander into a hippie’s shed”-type experience, so perhaps it seemed commercial in comparison. I do recall t-shirts for sale at Vieux Telegraphe, so there’s that.

Crap, had I known that I would have bought one.

We found our experiences very laid back. Zero effort to sell wine and more about introducing us to their wines. Very, very different than wine tasting in the USA.

Sounds like you had fun.

[John_Morris]

Gigondas, January 2017:

[John_Morris]

North side of CdP, January 2017. The vines tilt toward the east because of prevailing winds from the west:

[Tariq_K]

Nice pics John! Do you have tasting notes or a tasting story?

Here’s a few of my own. Note the sweet round pierres in the vineyard.

[Markus_S]

Gigondas, January 2017:
L1007780 - shrunk and cropped.jpg

Finally, a picture!

(I was hoping to see the actual stones!)

[Ramon_C]

I do recall t-shirts for sale at Vieux Telegraphe, so there’s that.

That, I remember. Coffee table books, too.