2003 Clos des Papes Châteauneuf-du-Pape Châteauneuf-du-Pape Rhône France Wine Tasting Note

Concentrated, lush and full bodied, the powerful wine kicks off with jammy black cherries, pepper, figs and Provencal herbs. Not exactly delicate, this is more focused on the volume and stylistic character. There is a touch of dryness in the finish that is not off putting, but part of the wines character. There is no touch of heat or over-ripeness here. Still young, this is not your grandmother's Clos des Papes.

5,134 Views   Tasted Jan 10, 2018

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Much better than a bottle tasted a few months ago, still, while there was a lot to like here, with its jammy kirsch, spice, earth and peppery profile, this is not a wine I'd hold for more development. Drink up over the next few years is my advice.

Hopefully, as my instincts say, this was an off bottle. Much of the freshness and red fruit were missing, and instead, the wine showed an intense jammy, fig like quality that was far too overripe, and flabby. This was from the same case as other bottles that have been stunning. So, sadly, your guess was as good as mine.

Not as robust as it was during the prime of its youth, but then who is? Layers of sweet, ripe, very ripe and over ripe dark red fruits, licorice, spice, earth, herbs and kirsch liqueur are all over the place. Rich, lusty, but not over the top, this is not a wine to hold from here.

Perfectly ripe cherries, lavender, pepper and garrigue, with a faint hint of prune in the nose. Silky, soft and plus, with a great sense of purity, there is nothing over the top, or out of place in this wine. The sweet, ripe, cherries and kirsch carry all the way through. One could quibble and with the minor sense of heat in the finish, but that does not detract from the experience. At 11 years of age, this could be in the sweet spot.

Ripe scents of black cherry liqueur, raisins, pepper, black raspberry, spice and kirsch lead to a full bodied, packed youthful Chateauneuf du Pape. This is a very ripe, concentrated, powerful style of Clos des Papes that some tasters like more than others.

Smokey black cherry, garrigue, lavender, all spice, kirsch liqueur, fresh cut herbs and intense black raspberry scents create the compelling perfume. Dense, corpulent, concentrated and packed with layers of sweet, ripe, juicy fruit, this wine grabs your attention without an apology.The wine fills your mouth and coats your palate with layers of fruit and flavor. This seems young and should only get better over the next decade or two... This is not a wine of finesse. But it is a delicious wine of Chateauneuf du Pape.

When this wine was first delivered to the states, it stirred an intense controversy over the Internet. Awarded a high score by Robert Parker, some tasters called the wine a mess. I've enjoyed stunning bottles of this wine at times. On other occasions, the wine seemed like it suffered heat damage at some point. One specific friend has opened it numerous times and everyone of his bottles have been flawed. All my bottles have been sublime. At dinner last night, a guest brought a bottle and clearly, the wine endured damage along the way. The wine was light in color, flavor and density. There was an enjoyable level of kirsch, garrigue and herbs, but that is not what the wine delivers at its best. It was not a bad tasting experience, but this bottle was at best average.

This sports one of the darkest colors I’ve seen in a young Chateauneuf. Intensely concentrated with massive layers of ripe, dark and peppery, ripe red fruit. Full bodied, ABVic and richly concentrated, I'm not sure why this wine invites all the controversy.