This kind of experience is how wine gets under our skin time and time again. As soon as I put my nose to a glass of 2008 Gros Frere et Souers Richebourg, I was hooked. Highly aromatic with distinct red fruit notes of cherries, strawberries and red plums with undertones of Asian spice and flowers. Powerful on the palate that builds in intensity as the wine glides from the front to the back of the mouth; broad textured with soft and silky tannins. Persistent length; sumptuous flavors of red fruits on the finish. Clearly youthful right now but the ripe fruit and the silky mouthfeel makes this wines such a pleasure to drink now. Given the wine’s balance between the structure and generous fruit, this will age very well.
Other notables from this line-up included the 1996 Chateau Montrose which was sported a knockout nose of cedar and roasted herbs with a nice core of blackcurrants and blackberries; a nice whiff of roasted espresso beans. Full bodied with very polished tannins and smooth, rounded texture. As the wine warmed up in the glass, it showed more complexity with layered notes of sweet black fruits, wet clay, cedar, roasted sweet herbs and a smoky/toasty oak notes. I love where this wine is now –tons of fruits in the front but showing some semblance of flavor and structural maturity — but this has definitely has the stuffing to age very well in bottle.
A bottle of 1999 Jaboulet Hermitage La Chapelle was likewise shared around the table. This was the second bottle I’ve had in the last week and I thought this was more evolved that the bottle before than. Very savory with a bouquet of smoky tar, iron, forest floor and earth layered with plums, baking spices and licorice. Well-structured, supple textured with medium finish.