I always knew the '98 Rhones were killer, but this one pushed the envelope way past the post office.
I pulled a few bottles of various stripes for a friend's birthday party last night. The basic food dish was Chicken Mole Poblano with Spanish rice, so it was going to require something strong enough to stand up to the chocolate and spices. In a back corner of the cellar I discovered a solitary 1998 Domaine La Garrigue Cuvee Romaine CdR. It was nothing especially fancy when I bought it in 2000 -- for $8. A note on it read, "Save til at leat 2005." Okay, that's done; might as well see if it survived.
Holy canoli, Batman. It not only survived, it flourished. Deep deep cherry flavor, some wood and leather, with a tad bit of minerality in the nose. I saved a little to try with dinner tonight (spicy Thai food), and it's still superb. As good as some CdP's I've had, no question about.
And you know what I'm thinking, right? "Why didn't I buy a case of this stuff!?!"
JJ