'99 Cote Rotie- Anyone done the smart thing...

...and actually tasted a bottle from this vintage yet? I've picked up about a half dozen bottles from various producers that interest me; Rene Rostaing, Guigal Ch.D'Ampuis, Gaillard etc. but seeing as they are so hard to come by I am sitting on them for now as I suspect I probably should...

Anyone have any deep insights into this vintage and when I should take the plunge and crack the capsule on one? Also, is the 2000 vintage as mediocre as some would suggest as these are pretty common and I've picked up some of these as well...

Thanks Michael Leduc

Reply to
th_duck
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th_duck wrote: : ...and actually tasted a bottle from this vintage yet? I've picked up : about a half dozen bottles from various producers that interest me; : Rene Rostaing, Guigal Ch.D'Ampuis, Gaillard etc. but seeing as they : are so hard to come by I am sitting on them for now as I suspect I : probably should...

I believe in letting these age awhile yet, for my tastes, they are still much too young. That being said, I am *sure* you can drink them now, but I find syrah needs a good 8 years to turn into the surly little sauvage animal that is behind its elegant breeding.

: Anyone have any deep insights into this vintage and when I should take : the plunge and crack the capsule on one? Also, is the 2000 vintage as : mediocre as some would suggest as these are pretty common and I've : picked up some of these as well...

Keep in mind that 2000 made lighter wines, so they will age faster than the riper 1999's. A Gallet drunk recently confirmed this, but 2-3 years on that bottle would have rounded things out more. This is assumming they had some concentration there to begin with; some producers really made washed-out wines that year.

Mark S

Reply to
<mjsverei

Hi there Micheal

I was lucky enough to attend a Guigal tasting which covered quite a few of his wines including his 99 d'Ampuis. My tasting note is as follows

Appearance: Has an intense dark purple core with a purple rim.

On the nose very complex and intense with furniture polish, floral notes (violets), wax, sour cherries, herbs (lavender?) and a definite new oak aroma. (I describe it as marzipan).

On the palate the mouthfeel is silky with terrific length, beautifully balanced, acidity, tannin and rich, ripe fruit just sing together in the most delightful chorus. Quite promenent new oak but it's balanced well with the rich red and black fruits. Dark chocolate, black olives and chocolate mocha on the finish.

As a conclusion I've noted that it's a beautiful wine which will only improve with age - but as you've already bought it I guess you know that already!

Regards

Siobhan

Reply to
Siobhan Leachman

Well I have bought a couple, but have not actually tasted it--hence my inquiry. Thank you very much for the notes...have you tried any other

99's...and what of 98's and 2000's? To age (a long time) or not to age (so long)

Though you have set my mouth a watering I must say...no, must not touch! (sound of one hand slapping the other)

Thanks M.Leduc

Reply to
th_duck

Parker had this to say about E. Guigal's 1999 Brune et Blonde. Lovely. Both elegant and intense. Medium-bodied, with floral, red berry and mineral notes. Subtle and fruity finish, with smooth tannins, but the intense finish suggests it might improve with age. Drink now through 2006. 25,000 cases made.

Reply to
JB

We basically ran the gauntlet of Guigal's wines and the line up included the following

Condrieu 2001 Condrieu 'La Doriane' 2001 Cote du Rhone 2000 Gigondas 2000 Chateauneuf du Pape 2000 Croze Hermitage 2000 Hermitage 2000 Cote Rotie Brune et Blonde 1999 Chateau d'Ampuis Cote Rotie 1999 Cote Rotie 'La Mouline' 1999 Cote Rotie 'La Turque' 1999 Cote Rotie 'La Landonne' 1999

The last three were the reason I paid quite a bit to attend as I had never tasted them and am unlikely to again - mainly for two reasons. The first cost - I've got a mortgage and I would have to take out a second one to afford them :), secondly the lack of availability in New Zealand - my region got allocated about three bottles each of the top three wines and New Zealand as a whole got under a case of each for the WHOLE COUNTRY. But I guess that's as a result of the cost.

As for the ageing question I certainly would NOT open any of the Cote Roties yet, with the possible exception of the Brune et Blonde. Although they were all beautifully intense and complex they had little if any complexity that's brought on by bottle age. But how long you age them I'm not qualified to tell as I've only been collecting and aging wine for about five years. Other people in the tasting were talking about them aging for at least 15 years before opening. For the d'Ampuis a figure of around 10 years was mentioned. But I guess it depends on how you like your wines - open earlier if you enjoy the fruity aspects or later if you enjoy the bottle aged tertiary flavours.

I've got tasting notes for all of the above although as usual they get more and more illegible as the night went on. Let me know if you're interested and I'll have a go at deciphering them.

Regards

Siobhan

Reply to
Siobhan Leachman

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