Rhone (Rhône)

• Châteauneuf-du-Pape
• Cornas
• Crozes-Hermitage
• Gigondas
• Hermitage
• Lirac
• Saint Joseph

This is an 80/20 blend of Grenache and Syrah from the Rhone region of France on the border with Provence.  Deep garnet in color with some ruby swirls, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose is very nice with black cherries, black raspberries, black pepper, spice and slight lavender notes.  Full bodied.  Light tannins.  Good balance.  On the palate, black cherries and black raspberries with some minerality.  Nice finish.  This drinks well on its own and is food friendly.  It will work well with stew or cold cuts.  Drink over the next five years.  Great value.

Inky purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is deep with boysenberries, black pepper, spice and roasted meats.  Full bodied.  Medium tannins.  On the palate, this is very concentrated.  It opens in the glass nicely though.  Boysenberries with char and some black pepper.  Good finish.  This is drinking well but not yet at peak.  Drink over the next ten years.  It will work well with roasted veggies or roasted meats and also went well with Moroccan food.  

A blend of 80% Grenache, 6% Syrah, and 4% Mourvedre plus another 10% in various permitted varietals.  Not the best vintage, but this wine rocked.  At age 13, it was close to peak.  Deep ruby in color, mostly clear and bright.  The nose has black cherries, herbs (Garrique), slight black pepper and spices.  Great texture.  Light tannins.  On the palate, this is vibrant and complex.  Also delicious.  Cherries, black cherries and spices.  Deep.  Long finish.  Great on its own, this will work well with meat dishes.  Cassoulet is classic.  Drink over the next five to ten years.  

This rosé is a blend of 50% Grenache Noir, 25% Cinsault, 20% Syrah and 5% Mourvedre.  Light salmon pink in color, clear and bright.  The nose has light cherries and light strawberries.  Slightly viscous texture.  13.5% abv.  On the palate, this is clean with strawberries and a bit of spice.  Some minerality.  Moderate finish.  A pleasant wine that is nice on its own and certainly food friendly.  It would match well with a Niçoise salad.  Drink now.

The wines of Pegau can reach great heights, but they often have a lot of barnyard notes which are not for everyone.  I love them.  Purple in color with ruby swirls.  Most opaque and bright.  The nose has black cherries, cigar, cedar and yes, barnyard.  Medium bodied.  Lower acidity.  On the palate, black cherries with some earthiness.  Complex.  Getting pretty close to peak.  Long finish.  This is great on its own, but probably better with food.  A nice beef stew would be classic but it would work with a bowl of chili, too.  Drink over the next five to ten years.  

With all of the top level wines from Guigal, sometimes, this one gets lost in the mix.  That's a shame because this is am outstanding wine and an excellent value in Cote Rotie.  Purple in color with some ruby hues, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose is a bit earthy with black raspberries, spices, black olives and slight dark chocolate.  Medium to full bodied.  Medium tannins.  Good balance.  On the palate, this is on the leaner side but still has a great delivery.  Boysenberries, char and some earthiness.  Good finish.  This seems to be about at peak but should have another ten years.  Goo

This is Syrah from the Northern Rhone Valley in France.  Purple in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose has black raspberries, black pepper, slight bacon fat and spices.  Medium to full bodied.  Light tannins.  On the palate, this seems to be close to peak.  Some depth and complexity.  Juicy black raspberries with some pepper and spice.  Good acidity.  Nice finish.  This should drink well for another seven to ten years.  It will work better with food although it is nice on its own.  A nice match for a chunky beef tew with roasted veggies.  

Found this lost in my cellar.  From an historically hot vintage, I had little hope for this wine, but opened it anyway.  I was wrong again.  What a lovely CdP.  This is not their luxury cuvée, so perhaps that helped get the less ripe grapes, but at age 21, this bottle was excellent.  Purple in color with some ruby swirls, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose has black cherries, some black raspberries, "purple" flowers, slight barnyard and spice.  Medium to full bodied.  Wispy tannins.  lovely, juicy texture.  On the palate, black cherries with depth and complexity.  Good finish.  The bottle

Purple in color, opaque and slightly flat.  The nose features black raspberries, black pepper, bacon fat, and spice.  Medium to full bodied.  On the palate, this has some complexity and depth.  Black raspberries with black pepper and spices.  Nice finish. This seemed to be close to peak but should have another five to seven years at this level.  It went very well with a black olive tapenade and flat bread.  

This is a delicious Syrah from the Northern Rhone value.  Purple in color with some ruby hues, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose has black raspberries with some funk/Brettanomyces.  Also a slight lavender note.  Full bodied.  Medium tannins.  On the palate, cleaner with black raspberries, minerality an char.  Nice finish.  Obviously young, but drinking well, it will mature and improve.  That said, drink over the next twenty years.  A nice match would be Lamb stew.