Two wines that blew me away were the old vine Gigondas cuvees! The 2011 Gigondas Domaine du Clos des Tourelles shows shocking depth and concentration in the vintage, with full-bodied power, beautiful ripeness and sweet tannin. Showing plenty of cedar, spice and meaty dark fruits, it is one serious Gigondas to drink over the coming decade or more. Drink now-2023.
Covering a full 175 acres in Chateauneuf du Pape, with significant holdings throughout the Southern Rhone (mostly vinified at and released under their Famille Perrin brand), Chateau De Beaucastel is a benchmark estate that excels at all price points. Looking at the wines reviewed here, 2011 is surprisingly strong (especially for the Chateauneufs) and with their perfumed aromatics and supple textures, they show a lot of similarities to the 2009s. The 2012s as a whole show more freshness and purity, with good concentration, and should require more bottle age to come around. Both vintages are worth seeking out. Looking at the 2011s across the board, all of which were in bottle, it appears to be a strong vintage here. While the vintage suffered due to uneven ripening in the Grenache, it was actually a solid vintage for Mourvedre and this shows, particularly in the Chateauneufs.
Importer: Vineyard Brands, Birmingham, AL; tel. (205) 980-8802
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