I think some younger Levets show OK, but 15 especially is a tough vintage to open young.
While I agree, you have to do it once to know for sure!
Gordon
I brought the Levet and double decanted the morning of the tasting. This is similar treatment used ahead of previous N. Rhone tastings.
I have enjoyed the Levet Chavaroche (bought '10 and '13 for instance) but the '15 is one tannic beast. I took the half finished bottle home and tasted the next day and it was even harder/tannic. I am sure it will develop well but seems to need another 20 years.
Paul
It’s my understanding 2015 was a warm weather vintage with near ideal conditions and nicely ripened fruit. Some of the 2015 N. Rhone’s I’ve sampled are showing well, particularly with plenty of air time. That said, I’m going to sit on the rest of mine.
Smart. Very smart.
It is indeed a warmer, bigger vintage - as all Rhône vintages of this century divisible by 3 are. I much prefer the cooler, more classic, or even so-called “off” vintages, particularly 05, 10, 13, and 16.
We usually hold these every 6 or so weeks apart, when I am in CA. PM me if interested. Not sure what next theme is, but its a good group going back ~20 years now.
Alan, during bottling day lunch break on Thursday and the usual brown bag guess game someone brought what turned out to be a 2012 La Sirena Syrah, pretty much a Saxum, on the nose, and palate. Just a reference point.
Tasting wise, I was disappointed with a few of them. Will make sure to tell everyone they should double decant if they feel the wines will benefit, something that was never really discussed before, nor pointed out. Most were popped right there and, as you said, some would definitely benefit, in hind sight.
All wines were served in exactly same bags, ramdomly split into flights of 4 (4 flights), sans foils and only tops of naked necks visible, to make this as fair as it gets.
Kudos to Paul, Halcon really showed well and easily WOTN, I think on all cards. Great vineyard location, management and cellar work. This was my 3rd time with the wine in the past year or so, and always shows well. And TBH, since I had the first 2 sans double decant, I think the wine would have still showed well, regardless. One of very few New World Syrah I enjoy. Very Old World in style and presence on palate. Highly recommended.
Kudos to Eric Lundblad as well, he wasn’t afraid to bring a just bottled Ladd Cellars Tempranillo, a pleasant surprise to me. I picked up some very fine dusty tannins on the palate (in a good way to me), which dissolved by the end of the night when I re-tasted the wine. On the palate nice darker red fruits (for a change!) and balance, with nary an oak note, this should be really, really good upon release (have no idea when, ask Eric). Highly recommended. And a great starter before we dived in to Syrah (actually, a great palate cleanser after, for me, after too much oak in a number of Syrah bottles).
Levet. Don’t know where to begin, having been drinking and tasting Rhones for over 20 years now, and not recalling one that offended me, some OK, some great. This was just hard on the palate, never mind that rat fur nose, and some very odd palate notes, and not in a good way. My usual take on young wines is that even when young they still show their stuffing to some extent at the least, and this one, no matter how I tried, even upon re-taste at the end of the tasting, I saw nothing that compelled me to say it will turn into something good, never even mind great. I’ll try to find a bottle with 20+ years on it now, just want to see what it is I am missing in this particular wine.
Saxum, my bottle, and a disappointment, just not right on the nose and palate with a number of technical faults. Took the remains home and tasted next day, got worse.
Lagier-Meredith, I brought this one, and upon recollection I should have double decanted it, it definitely improved by the end. Overall, #3 for me.
Peay, expected more out of it, TBH, not complex enough for me, and not sure if its the year or not, but they usually do better. Not convinced double decant would have helped.
Aussies, nothing compelling in either, too much oak for me, despite buying/drinking plenty of them back in the '90s/early '00s. Even though d’Arenberg Dead Arm is still one of my faves, provided some age.
Edmunds St. John, really good wine in all respects, good fruit, good balance, pretty much par for the course, IMO. #2 wine of the night for me.
Nice tasting. My top wines were the Halcon, Levet and the ESJ. The Levet was ‘difficult’ to appreciate, but at the time it seemed to have the elements to show well in a million years or so 
. The ESJ was showing extremely well. I disagree with the 'drink soon’assessment. My experience with ESJ’s is this will continue to drink well and evolve for some time to come. As will the Halcon, which was top notch. Several others were very good, but not quite at the lever of those three that night.
Greg’s Iskaranu wines/Pinots (tasted before hand) showed quite well…esp the ‘Secret Clone’ and the RRV. Nice job.