I think more of my Rhone budget for 2005's will go to the Northern Rhone than the Southern. I'll probably try and get at least a case of Chave's 05 Hermitage. From CDP it will be Boisrenard, Beaucastel and probably Donjon. I'm thinking I might will some of the Rhone space in the cellar with some Bandols as well.

James...

I have heard the Levet's '03 was atypical for him, even though I still think compared to nearly every other '03, and quite a few '04/'05's I've had, it maintained that sense of "old world" style. I recently had an '01 Levet Chavaroche and while it had similarities to the '03, it was much more tight, rustic, and old world in style. In fact, if it had been served to me blind, I would have thought it to be a good tannic vintage of Bordeaux!

The night before you posted your note a week or two ago of the '99 Tardieu Laurent, I had shared a corked bottle of it with another forumite. We were both even more disappointed once you chimed in! Now I HAVE to find another one....

For 05 I bought Janasse chopin, Viex Telegraphe, clos des Papes, and Beaucastel from premier cru. Unfortunately the Mordoree reine des bois and Pegau reservee were sold out but I'm on the waiting list.They were all under $70 so I couldn't wait to buy.

Bought 3 of the Clos des Papes today from PC. The lady I spoke to said it was selling fast today for some reason?

AV

I am part of the reason, bought two more of Clos Des Papes myself today. Opted for the 04 Pegau instead of another 05 right now.

I would like to pick up a few more but for now I just picked up 2 V. Telegraphe 05 from PC today. Still feeling myself around CDP wines....I'm more of a Bordeaux drinker but I do like grenache and syrah.

I wonder why the 05 Pegau sold out before the 04 Pegau at PC? Maybe people think its a riper vintage with more extracted fruit? James?

vieux telegraphe
pegau
guigal
clos de papes
fortia
beaucastel

Domaine des Senechaux
Boisrenard
Paul Autard
Roger Sabon
Vieux Telegraphe

Vieux Telegraphe
Beaucastel
Clos Des Papes

Pegau
Guigal
Beaucastel
Vieux Telegraphe

Mpls: '05 is generally a bigger, denser vintage than '05. But I did not think Pegau did that much better in '05 than in '04. The rush is probably on just because of the vintage hype.

lovelandre: La Nerthe makes rich, flashy, forward styled wines that tend to age on a bit faster curve than the VT, Clos des Papes, Coulon, Beaucastel, etc group. La Nerthe did just fine in '05.

THIII: That's a shame that Kravitz is already talking up his price on '05 Pegau. He's done very nicely on that wine over the years. Shop around though, you'll fine it for $70 - at MacArthur's in DC for instance.

Mareff: I haven't tasted Moulin Tacussel or Clos des Brusquières from barrel yet, so I'll have to wait for the finished wines to show up in my blind tastings...

Winetarelli: The Les Journaries is the name for a parcel within La Landonne that makes up the bulk of the new cuvée. There is also juice from the Moulins and Cote Brune lieu-dits as well.

Thanks for the info James, I just ordered 04 Pegau from PC.

My daughter was born in Jan of '05, so I've been looking to make some cellar buys with 20-30 yr aging potential for special occasions with her. I love the Rhones, and anyway top-flight bordeaux are just priced in another stratosphere. Of the names most folks have brought up here, any particular thoughts from the group on which might be most suitable for this longer-term purchase?

My top priorities:

Clos des Papes
Boisrenard
Clos du Caillou
Pegau
Perrin, VV
Janasse, VV
Mon Aieul

On the '05 Pegau: I bet some of the rush is due to the fact that many know that there will be no Cuvee Capo, so I'm betting they're expecting a noticable improvement from the injection of the juice that normally goes to Capo.

James,
I'm trying to educate myself about different CdP styles. Is there a source you recommend, particularly for information regarding soil types (sandy versus stony)? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Jonny: It's a great vintage for cellaring. The Clos des Papes, Vieux Télé, Vieux Donjon, Pegau, Beaucastel and Coulon Boisrenard will all go the 21 year distance easily, along with many others.

If it's for a special occasion though, then the wine should have some personal connection for you, more than just picking what will last long enough.

Stickman: You might want to check out my "Châteauneuf at a Glance", which ran along with a feature on the region in last year's July 31 issue. Here's the link to the web archive of it, though it lacks the pretty pictures of the different soil types...

My wife and I just got back from 12 days in the S. of France, including a visit to CdeP. Most everyone on this thread is speaking about reds, because, I guess that 95% (or more?) of the CdeP's imported here are red. But, frankly, I really liked the whites over there.
Now, I am not saying that the whites are wonderful, fantastic great classic wines. But they are really drinkable and pleasant. They are usually consumed one or two years out. We had some 2005s and 2006s.
The 2003 reds are quite good and the wine does evolve.
The winery guy who I spent the most time with was down on the 2004s. He forcasts that 2006 will be a very good year for the reds. He also said that he is replacing some red vines with whites, because he believes that white consumption is up (in France).
He exports hardly any wine to the US, though he makes about 1 million bottles per year.
I will be writing a more detailed report of the trip in the Travel section, but not until after the jet lag and a cold wear off.
We also had a ton of decent wines from Cote du Rhone areas, Cote de Provence, Cote de Mt. St. Victoire, and Cote just about anything else. Stayed in Avignon which is a great town and an easy drive to the CdeP region, particularly if you enjoy traffic circles.
So, if you are interested in my thoughts, I'll spill the details in the not too distant future.
(By the way, I told him some prices we pay for red CdeP's and he laughed--- The retail price in France is perhaps 30% of what you pay).

James,

I already bought Janasse CdP & CdP Chaupin after tasting them. They were both excellent to great and offer a much better value than Bordeaux or Burgundy. I also find CdP a better fit to Mediterranean food. As I'm not into buying big names for the cellar/show-off/etc., Rhone wines (as well as other southern france) are the best choise.

I don't have a vintage preference. As long as the wines are as good as they have been in the last 3 vintages, there is a good time for each of those styles.

Yaron.

Hey mpls I received an email from tcwc.com and thought you might be interested in the 2005 Pegau. I think tcwc is like premiercru...

http://www.tcwc.com/s.nl/it.A/id.69243/.f

Thanks K, I'm all over it!

I'm just going with a few low priced (hopefully good value) selections for now:

Monpertuis
Cristia
La Milliere (VV)

Starting to see some scores trickle out. Interested to se how JM scored the 05 Clos des Papes.

AV

quote:

Originally posted by Art Vandelay:
Starting to see some scores trickle out. Interested to se how JM scored the 05 Clos des Papes.

AV

I have to admit that I am too, but I really want to see that tasting note. He has mentioned (a couple of times, I think) that he is leaning towards this wine being better than the '03 and '04, which is impressive since he scored those wines 97 and 96, respectively. I don't think the wine has made it over here yet, so it may be a little while before we see the review - I could be wrong, of course.