Beaucastel Blog

Beaucastel -夏都懦夫·第·巴泼

Nice tasting of Beaucastel's wines in Singapore.
Read the report here by the wine social media: jiuwine.com

Jancis Robinson about coudoulet red 2006

A great article from Jancis Robinson in her excellent purple pages:

'This is the time of year when thousands of fine wine lovers usually place their orders for the latest vintage of red bordeaux offered en primeur, writing out large cheques to merchants in anticipation of wine that is still in cask and will be delivered from the cellars of Bordeaux two years hence. This year’s offering however is of 2007 bordeaux. Our tasting notes on more than 500 reds and, much more exciting, whites can be found here. But 2007 is a curious vintage for red bordeaux, producing wines that look as though they will mature too fast to provide much excitement for investors, and so far there has not been a great deal of enthusiasm about the vintage.

Here’s a strong alternative suggestion for a widely-offered wine that costs much less than classed growth red Bordeaux, is already in bottle and should be shipped later this year when, if my tasting of it from cask in Châteauneuf du Pape is anything to go by, it should already provide some delicious drinking, although it should continue to improve for another four or five years or so at least.

The blend of this Côtes du Rhône produced by the Perrin family of Ch de Beaucastel from 30 hectares of vines that don’t qualify for the Châteauneuf appellation is 30% Grenache, 30% Mourvèdre, 20% Syrah and 20% Cinsault and was just bursting with health and interest. The first three ingredients are of course the classic triumvirate of thesouthern Rhône but I think it may be the Cinsault portion that makes this wine so approachable in youth. It’s an often under-estimated grape variety capable of oozing charm and fruit. “A wine to make you smile”, I wrote when tasting a sample of pure Cinsault 2007 at Beaucastel.

I made the white version my wine of the week back in January but make no apologies for revisiting Coudoulet this week. This is a wine with a great track record, as purple pagers on the members’ forum have attested in this thread. The 2006 vintage was a real hit in the southern Rhône. The spicy, herby, complex style of southern Rhône wines is so easy to like. I really don’t think you can go wrong by ordering a case of a dozen bottles of this beautifully balanced wine.'

"Les 13 Cépages de Beaucastel"

In Beaucastel we use all the 13 grapes varieties which are allowed in Chateauneuf du Pape.

Fabrice Langlois, our sommelier, explains their specificities in the final blend.

Thanks to VINOTV.fr for this video.

Tablas Creek elected 'best winery blog'...

... at the America wine blog awards. Congratulations Jason for this well-deserved trophy. Tablas creek blog is indeed great, well-written and definitely worth reading!

Technorati Tags: wine

Coudoulet 2005, wine of the week in the Los Angeles Times

The Perrin brothers, who own the Châteauneuf-du-Pape estate Château de Beaucastel, are very much stars of the appellation. But as prices for Châteauneuf creep upward, it pays to look at the brothers' Coudoulet de Beaucastel, especially in the terrific 2005 vintage. The Coudoulet vineyard is just outside the borders of the appellation, so it qualifies only as Côtes-du-Rhône. But what a Côtes-du-Rhône! Made from a blend of 30% Mourvèdre and about the same of Grenache with 20% each Syrah and Cinsault (all cultivated organically), it's rich and spicy, with a scent of wild thyme and red, red fruit, it's drinking beautifully now, but it can also be aged 10 years or more. And it's vibrant enough to make a great showing against grilled chops, roast leg of lamb, or, right now, braised lamb shanks with beans and herbs.

--S. Irene Virbila
Los Angeles Times; Feb 27 2008

Technorati Tags: beaucastel, chateauneuf, rhone

A nice and interesting article about Tablas Creek

In appellation america. Worth reading if you have interest in the Rhone varietals wines from California.

Is it Really Terroir or Is it Just Marketing?

By Michael Apstein
Feb 12, 2008
It is often difficult for American consumers, who are accustomed to varietal labeling, to understand and the see the virtue in the European tradition of naming wines by reference to place of origin rather than the name of the grape--a system that highlights the importance of terroir or place.

Part of the difficulty stems from determining whether the character of the wine is due to the producer's style or whether it is truly due to the origin of the grapes. Maybe the difference between wines made from grapes in adjacent regions--or even vineyards--is due to the winemaker's techniques and has little to do with the locale.

Certainly in Burgundy, tasting two Puligny-Montrachet Les Folatières from different producers, such as Louis Latour and Olivier Leflaive, who have vastly different styles, can make you wonder how they could have both come from the same vineyard.

This is not a problem limited to a single grape variety or an individual country. In California and other New World wine areas, producers are trumpeting the uniqueness of wines made from grapes grown in a single vineyard or specific regions. Pine Ridge, an outstanding Napa Valley-based winery, bottles a variety of Cabernet Sauvignon made from grapes grown in different subregions of Napa, such as Stags Leap, Howell Mountain, Rutherford and Oakville.

Pinot Noir and Chardonnay--perhaps it's the Burgundy paradigm at work--seem to be the favorite grapes for winemakers to use in an attempt to capture a sense of place. While Patz & Hall produces a Napa Valley Chardonnay made from a blend of grapes grown in five vineyards, they also produce ones from grapes grown exclusively in vineyards scattered over Northern California: the Hyde Vineyard in Carneros, the Durell Vineyard in Sonoma, Dutton Ranch and Zio Tony Ranch, both in the Russian River Valley, and Alder Springs Vineyard in Mendocino. They also have six single vineyards bottlings for Pinot Noir from similarly diverse geographic locations. Patz & Hall emphasizes the importance of vineyard by putting the vineyard name on the front label and relegating the varietal name to the back label.

Morgan, an excellent Monterey-based producer that focuses on Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, bottles several wines from single vineyards that are only miles apart from one another. They produce Chardonnays from grapes grown in their Double L vineyard, located in southern end of Santa Lucia Highlands, and from Gary and Rosella Franscioni's Rosella's Vineyard, just three miles down the road. The soil in the two vineyards is similar--sandy loam with traces of limestone--but Rosella's Vineyard is slightly warmer and has more protection from the wind. Gary's Vineyard, from which Morgan makes an excellent Pinot Noir, is just four miles south of their Double L Vineyard, which is planted to Pinot Noir as well as Chardonnay. (Both Chardonnay and Pinot Noir can flourish in different parts of same vineyard. The best European example is Corton, which has Grand Cru status for both Chardonnay and Pinot Noir-based wines).

More and more, we are seeing single vineyard wines from places like New Zealand, countries that have a shorter tract record for discerning individuality of specific geographic areas. Villa Maria, one of the country's leading producers, bottles both a Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir from the Taylors Pass vineyard in the Marlborough region on the northern tip of the South Island.

The fundamental question remains. Are the wines unique and reflective of the site, or is this single vineyard labeling just a marketing tool?

Do Try This at Home

The obvious way to answer this question is to taste wines--from the same vintage--from different vineyards or areas made by the same producer. It's a worthy exercise that offers consumers an instructional home wine tasting and an easy way to entertain a small group of friends.

Compare Patz & Hall Chardonnay and Pinot Noir

The limited availability and the plethora of single vineyard bottlings from California producers make a full comparison difficult. But the pairing of two of Patz & Hall's Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs is a good place to start. Patz & Hall's 2005 Pinot Noir from Hyde Vineyard ($60) in Carneros delivers pure raspberry-like bright fruit and uplifting acidity that contrasts nicely with the deep black ripe fruit--almost what I call 'Pinot Syrah' style--from their 2005 Pisoni Vineyard ($80) in the Santa Lucia Highlands. These are clearly different and distinctive wines that will appeal to different consumers.

Their 2005 Durell Vineyard ($44) and Hyde Vineyard ($50) Chardonnays also demonstrate real differences. The former has riper, more tropical fruit flavors and comes across richer and slightly heavier compared to the sleeker version from Carneros's Hyde vineyard. Again, these wines are unique, will appeal to different audiences and dramatically demonstrate the point that location matters in determining wine style.

Compare Perrin & Fils Wines from the Southern Rhone

A selection of wines from Perrin & Fils allows you to determine for yourself if the maze of appellations in the southern Rhone makes sense. The Perrin family, owners of the famed Château de Beaucastel in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, has a négociant business that buys grapes and unfinished wines from growers--often neighbors--in various appellations in the southern Rhone Valley. They make the wines (or complete the winemaking) and sell the finished wine under the Perrin & Fils label.

Tasting Perrin & Fils wines-- the 2005 Côtes du Rhone Villages and Châteauneuf-du-Pape 'Les Sinards' or their 2006 Rasteau 'l'Andeol' or Vacqueyras 'Les Christins'--side by side allows consumers to experience the influence of terroir because the same winemaking team made all the wines usually from the same blend of grapes. The only variable is the individual locale. Their Châteauneuf-du-Pape 'Les Sinards' ($33) has a floral aspect, minerality and silkiness that set it apart from their Côtes du Rhone Villages ($12). Similarly, their Vacqueyras ($25) is a more broodingly tannic wine that needs time compared to the more polished, but less complex, Rasteau ($16), despite the same blend of grapes, 80% Grenache and 20% Syrah. Not surprisingly, location matters.

Pierre Perrin in the Wine & Dine magazine

beaucastel, chateauneuf, philosophie

Jeroboam elected best Japanese wine importer

Jeroboam the Japanese wine importer we founded 5 years ago together with our friends Hugel from Alsace and Laurent Perrier (who since then was replaced by Pol Roger) has just been elected Japan's best importer by Wine business international magazine. That's a fantastic achievement for the team leaded by Carl Robinson. Congratulations!

UK market: Berry Bros buys our agent for UK.

from BBR website: Berry Bros. & Rudd is delighted to announce that it is acquiring the business of Mistral Wines, the prestigious agency house founded in 1970 and run by Anthony and Novella Lacey since 1976, which specialises in the wines of the Loire, Rhône and Midi. Mistral Wines will be integrated into BB&R's agency arm, Fields, Morris & Verdin (FMV), which supplies hotels and restaurants in Greater London and leading merchants throughout the UK FMV already boasts an enviable clutch of top-flight agencies, including Vega Sicilia, Ridge Vineyards, Champagne Jacquesson, Domaines Lafon, Carillon and Ostertag, Luciano Sandrone, Isabel Estate and Dog Point Vineyard, and the inclusion of the Mistral exclusivities, Château de Beaucastel and Perrin et Fils along with other substantial producers, considerably strengthens this portfolio. John Hutton, FMV Managing Director, says "This exciting acquisition of Mistral Wines not only strengthens the FMV agency portfolio but also offers us the opportunity to grow our business in new markets." Anthony Lacey, adds "Novella and I are very pleased that Mistral has been bought by the distinguished family firm of Berry Bros. & Rudd and we very much look forward to joining forces with their agency division Fields, Morris & Verdin"

Chateauneuf on Wine Spectator

End of the harvest

That's it, the harvest is over.
We finished the counoise and mourvedre in Beaucastel this week-end and the grenache in Vinsobres today.
We believe that 2007 will be a great vintage in the southern rhone and will keep you posted on the wines.

Technorati Tags: 2007, beaucastel

Friday sept 28th: Mourvèdre and Counoise at Beaucastel

Technorati Tags: perrin, philosophy, terroir

2007 vintage report Chateauneuf du Pape

2007 vintage report from the Federation des syndicats de producteurs de Chateauneuf du Pape:

"A very healthy grape harvest following an exceptionally dry summer...

With just 35 mm of rain between the 16th of June and the 15th of September, we can
confirm that the summer of 2007 at Châteauneuf-du-Pape was an exceptionally dry one.
According to the agricultural weather forecast based at Carpentras, it is probably the
driest in the last twenty years. The average rainfall registered at 161 mm (The weather
station at Orange).

The rainfall of these last few days (about 20 mm between the 16th and the 18th of
September) were welcomed. The short spell of rain did not bear any negative
consequences on the course of the grape harvest which starts to draw to an end.

The summer of 2007 had more wind than normally predicted (20 days of strong Mistral
between the 1st of July and the 15th of September) and slight surplus on the level of
seasonal sunshine (1.157 h against 1.145 h on average).

In spite of strong variability in temperatures, marked by 30 days when the minimal
temperatures laid between 10 et 15°C, and only 7 days when the maximum
temperatures were higher than 35°C, the seasonal averages remain in conformity with
the normal (slightly higher in June and September and slightly lower in July and August).

The climate results over the last few months confirm what was visible in the vines : the
summer of 2007 was particularly favorable to obtaining a vintage of quality, endowed
with good aromatic balances and beautiful colours.

In the vines the sorting needed was minimum, the grape pickers advanced with ease,
thus giving the possibility to winemakers to stop their harvesting a day or two in the
week to leave the grapes reach their perfect maturity. Optimizing the potential of the
2007 vintage.

The quantity of this year’s harvest is slightly higher than the decennial average with
yields which should range between 32 and 34 hl/ha, for an authorized maximum of 35
hl/ha.

2007 vintage is situated along the same lines as the four previous ones. 2003, 2004,
2005 and 2006 vintages were tasted on September 15th at a seminar organized during
the ‘Rhône Valley wines festival’ in Copenhagen, and will also be presented on October
22nd in London during a demonstration with wines from Tavel and Châteauneuf-du-Pape."

Technorati Tags: contact, history, philosophy, rhone, terroir, vinification

Update on the harvest: Tuesday Sept 25th

Well, i think we can start saying that this year we are very lucky.
The weather is still outstanding, very sunny and very windy.
We had about 20 mm of rain last tuesday, and then the mistral started again and the sun came back.
The weather forecast for the next days is the same and we feel really lucky especially when we look at the forecast for tomorrow which shows once again that south-east of France has unique weather conditions this year.

We will finish harvesting the Grenache in Chateauneuf du Pape by the end of this week. Next week we will start harvesting the Mourvedre and Counoise.
In Gigondas, Vacqueyras and Cotes du Rhône, we just finished.
In Vinsobres, we started harvesting the Syrah yesterday.
People start saying that 2007 will be in line with 89 or 90. Great colour, great concentration... we will see but for sure it will be at least a very good vintage.

Technorati Tags: 2007, beaucastel, chateauneuf, rhone

Picture of the day...

 

                        Must from Syrahs freshly picked

Wednesday sept 19th

The temperature since yesterday are quite cold: around 68°F which is good for grape-picking...

Today Grenaches and Syrahs have been picked; the harvest, which is picked by hand, is carefully sorted out on arrival at the cellar and only the best grapes are vinified. After being destemmed completely the grapes are going into the fermentation vats where they undergo a traditional vinification.

 

Technorati Tags: beaucastel, contact, millésimes, perrin, philosophie, rhone, terroir, vinification

Monday sept 17th

We continued picking some Grenaches by the parcel just front of the Chateau de Beaucastel...

Technorati Tags: beaucastel, contact, millésimes, perrin, philosophie, terroir, vinification, wine

Friday sept 14th- Grenaches at Beaucastel...

Live with Pierre Perrin...

 

Technorati Tags: beaucastel, contact, millésimes, perrin, philosophie, rhone, terroir, vinification, wine

Thursday sept 13th

We started very early this morning to pick our first Syrah in Gigondas for our Perrin et Fils "La Gille".

At the same time an other team of pickers finished harvesting the Syrah in Coudoulet and also harvested some Grenache there.

The mistral stopped blowing yesterday and the weather is beautiful on most of France as you can see on this satellite picture from Meteo France...

Technorati Tags: beaucastel, contact, millésimes, perrin, philosophie, terroir, vinification