Mourvedre/Monastrell

A friend of mine stopped by with a bottle.  My first reaction was that it was too young, so I was going to open an older bottle and then accidently opened this.  Glad I did.  While this will probably shut down, it was great.  Deep garnet in color, mostly clear and bright.  The nose is  clean with black cherry fruit along with roasted meats, smoke/char and a slight floral note.  Full bodied.  On the pallet, this is drinking great.  Delicious.  Black raspberry fruit over char.  Clean (how long has it been since this was an issue at Beaucastel?).  Nice finish.  Obviously young with silky tanni

This is a blend of 77% Mourvedre, 19% Grenache and 4% Counoise.

This is another project from Elaine and Manfred Krankl.  Very impressive wine.   It is a blend of 53% Mourvèdre, 16% Syrah, 14% Grenache, 9% Petit Sirah, 6% Graciano and 2% Viognier.  It comes in a very cool shaped bottle and label, which by the way lists the alcohol at 15.8%.  Inky purple in color.  The nose has black cherries, black raspberries, some char, plums and mint.  What a wonderful texture.  Its is big yet dances on the palate with energy.  Delicious.  The black fruits come thru to the palate but there is an ash quality  that is very interesting too.  A long finish.  This is drink

This is drinking very well these days.  It is a blend of 82% Syrah and 18% Mourvèdre.  Inky purple in color.  The nose is great with black raspberries, roasted meats, slight violets and a bit of earthiness.  Full bodied.  On the palate, this has a lush structure.  Juicy black raspberry fruit over a bit of smoke and earth.  Nice energy.  Long finish.  This may still improve a bit.  It will make great drinking over the next ten to twelve years.  A nice match for ribs on the grill or roasted veggies.  

During this period of "Stay Home", it helps to every once in a while open something really good.  Even during the middle of the week (to the extent I can keep track of what day it is).  The 2011 Saxum's are drinking beautifully.  That vintage seems to be maturing a bit faster than most.  This is a blend of 58% Syran, 27% Grenache and 5% Mourvedre.  inky purple in color with a thin magenta line at the rim.  The nose is great with black raspberries, black cherries, roasted meats, dried floral notes and slight chocolate.  On the palate, this has a lovely texture.  Rich but not overblown.  Smoo

I really like this wineries whites and I have liked some reds, but this wine was not at all to my liking.  Now, your mileage may vary.  And, it did taste better on day 2, so perhaps it just needs more time.

Another great wine from Denner.  It is a blend of 55% Grenache, 20% Mourvèdre, 10% Syrah, 5% Counoise, 5% Cinsault and 5% Tannat.

What a great showing for this wine.  Yes, it is still a bit young, but really one of the best showings from this house I have seen.  Time to get a few more bottles.  It is 75% Grenache, 10% Syrah, 10% Mourvèdre, and 5% Cinsault.  Purple in color, ruby at the core.  The nose is great with black raspberries, baking spices, garrique and slight lavender.  Full bodied.  Luxurious texture.  Rich and full bodied.  Medium tannins.  Lots of concentrated black raspberry fruit over a bed of char and gravel.  Long finish.  Delicious.  One of those wine when each sip makes one want another.  It drinks g

Tablas Creek has some great levels of wine clubs which offer up wines not available outside the winery or in different formats.  This one is easily available although this particular bottle was from a 375ml bottle ($25).  It is a blend of 49% Mourvèdre, 25% Grenache, 21% Syrah, and 5% Counoise.  Purple in color, ruby at the rim.  A lovely nose of black raspberries, raspberries, spice and anise.  On the palate, this has firm tannins but the fruit is open and drinking well.  Juicy black raspberries, raspberries, over a clean dry earthiness with just a touch of char.  This is a big wine but no

A very impressive showing.  This is a blend of 80% Grenache and 20% Mourvèdre.  It took some time to open and then drank beautifully.