A dullish brick-red colour greets, slight browning at the edges but still retaining some purple hues. Tarry, charry black plum and cherry lead the way on the nose, with meat and spice – star anise, cardamom – some marzipan character and a touch of VA (it's OK). There’s some brambly earth and blackberry, red raisined currants, and a little leafy black tea and herb.
The structure of this wine is pretty sound. Firm yet approachable tannin, relaxed acid, supple texture, mid-weight and a reasonably lengthy sweet finish. On the flavour-ometer we get black cherry, rasberry/blueberry, earthy, gamey and pretty much all-round grenachey-ness. There was a muddy coffee character, some tar,licorice and coconut, and a certain marshmallowy sweetness that was highlighted when combined with our spare ribs and pork belly and rice.
I almost forgot about the oak treatment because, quite frankly, I didn’t really notice it – I’m sure it’s there and supporting the structure perfectly, but it melds so effortlessly with the savoury flavours it doesn’t stick out.
Vibe
I liked it. Quintessential Rhone and probably best tried with food. More savoury than sweet – it handled the spiciness of the ribs and the salty crispness of the belly nicely. A bloody nice wine from a bloody nice vintage.
Value: This aint cheap. I picked this up at a bargain rate from a mate who was changing his wine-list, but I think in the big wide world you’d pay near-on $80 for it. Big number, wine is good, you be the judge.
Tasted: April 2011
Closure: Cork (a perfect example)
Tech-head
Producer: Domaine de Villeneuve – www.domainedevilleneuve.com – owned since 1993 by the Wallut and Roy de Blicquy families.
Region: Chateauneuf du Pape, Rhone Valley, south-eastern France.
Site: A mixture of red clay, silt and pebbles – some sites on silt, clay and fine sand – a real historical maritime area.
Vintage: Outstanding. Warm, but not hot, with cool nights. Wines will be long-lived.
