Wednesday, October 25, 2006

2003 Domaine Charvin Chateauneuf du Pape


I turned 27 today and to celebrate I decided to crack this one open.

We received this bottle last Christmas from my parents...knowing my parents I assumed this was a bottle we shouldn’t just open on a random evening.

This has been sitting in our brand spanking new decanter for four hours

The nose presents Fran with spice and cherries. I get alcohol and not a whole lot else.

Chateauneuf du Pape are sometimes described as funky and this fits the bill. The finish has a burn and I’m almost getting Port qualities. Tobacco, anise, spice, and lots of earth. A common term to describe these wines is “barnyard” which to those of you who have never visited a barnyard, is a nice term for manure. Believe it or not, that’s a good quality....it’s present in this wine and oddly, it’s not offensive. Fruit-wise, there is some cherries and strawberries, but my palate tells me this wine is all about the earth and funk.

I am modest enough to know when I’ve been bested. I know that this is good, there’s a depth here, a level of strange funkiness that, like an expensive Riesling, is desired by many in the wine world. It just doesn’t work for me. Not yet, anyway. A white wine that has hints of gasoline and a red that hints of manure....maybe I'll get it at some point, but for now I’m just not there.

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