Hard as it may be to believe, there was a time in the distant past when I considered the pronouncements of Robert Parker to be akin to divine judgment. Back in those benighted days, I was invited to a conference in Nice and took that opportunity to visit a few choice producers in the Rhone Valley en route to Nice. Among our visits was the tasting room (that alone should be a beacon of warning) of Chapoutier in Tain, the most Californian of experiences we had during our '98 visit (quite a contrast to chatting with the most engaging Nöel Verset in his cramped cellar space in painfully broken French). Our only purchase at that visit was a '96 Cote-Rotie that seemed both decent and fairly priced. Last night, with a dinner of pan-seared venison steaks, we opened it:
1996 Chapoutier Côte-Rôtie nose: fair anemic, slightly meaty, hints of berries palate: medium weight, high acidity, drying fruit
Overall, had I tasted this blind, I would have guessed that it was a Crozes-Hermitage past its prime, certainly never given much thought to Côte-Rôtie. How it could be so devoid of aromatic interest, I fail understand. Decent enough Syrah, but nothing remarkable.
Mark Lipton