16+/20
Pale gold, maturing nose of earth mushroom and hints of citrus. Aggressive, generous mineralic palate, with alcohol coming through. Big lasting, finish. Impressive wine. Bold, but not over-blown despite the baked 2003 vintage. A great Premier Cru. Drink now.
Chateau les Eydins 'Cuvee des Consuls' 2005 (Cotes du Luberon, France)
15(+?)/20
Deep but not opaque, nose rather closed. Some red forest fruits. Palate quite firm, tannic and structured with little background hints of red fruit. Not sure what to make of this. Decanted ~2 hours in advance. I recall a great 'garrigue' wine when originally tasted at the winery but it seems a little confused now. perhaps its going through a closed period? Matched well with venison sausages in a red wine casserole - needs something hearty to balance it.
Domaine d'Aupilhac 'Le Carignan' 2000 (Montpeyroux, France)16.5/20
Despite hailing from the vineyards of one of my favourite wine villages in France, this is sold as a humble Vin de Pays due to the 100% Carignan blend, forbidden under the appellation rules. Deep core, only just lightening on the rim. Very open, enticing nose of mature leather and game with some beneficial Brett coming through. Palate is expansive, with tannin nicely balanced against a deep, mature fruit. Meaty with some rusticity. Medium finish. This is a great wine, no too dissimilar from a mature middle ranking Chateauneuf. Just shows what old vine Carignan can do in the right hands. Should keep another ~5 years, but probably not going to improve any further now.
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