2005 Château Rayas Châteauneuf-du-Pape Reserve Châteauneuf-du-Pape Rhône France Wine Tasting Note

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2005
97
With the price of Rayas being what it is today, I am not sure how much more often I will see these wines. What a treat! The nose, with its flowers, wild strawberry, kirsch, peppery cherry, and mild herbal slants hit it just right. But it was on the palate, with its purity, silky textures, length, and lift that stole the show. Wines like this should be tasted at least once so wine lovers know what the benchmark wines taste like.

With the price of Rayas being what it is today, I am not sure how much more often I will see these wines. What a treat! The nose, with its flowers, wild strawberry, kirsch, peppery cherry, and mild herbal slants hit it just right. But it was on the palate, with its purity, silky textures, length, and lift that stole the show. Wines like this should be tasted at least once so wine lovers know what the benchmark wines taste like.

4,247 Views   Tasted
Just starting to get interesting, the wine is full, supple, complex, deep and displays its purity of fruit, refinement and silky tannins with ease. If you own any, you can pop it now for its gorgeous, pure, sweet, fresh, red fruit, or wait another 5-10 years for more secondary development.

Just starting to get interesting, the wine is full, supple, complex, deep and displays its purity of fruit, refinement and silky tannins with ease. If you own any, you can pop it now for its gorgeous, pure, sweet, fresh, red fruit, or wait another 5-10 years for more secondary development.

5,188 Views   Tasted
A beautiful expression of Grenache and Rays, with its silky, smooth, ripe, fresh cherries, black raspberries and spice. Still young, you can enjoy it now for its youthful, vigor, ripe red berries and freshness, or you can age it for a decade for more complexity.

A beautiful expression of Grenache and Rays, with its silky, smooth, ripe, fresh cherries, black raspberries and spice. Still young, you can enjoy it now for its youthful, vigor, ripe red berries and freshness, or you can age it for a decade for more complexity.

7,523 Views   Tasted
Wow! That says it all. Clearly, this vintage marks the return to greatness for what many people think is the best wine of Chateauneuf du Pape. Pepper, jammy kirsch, fennel, black raspberries, spice and earthy scents explode from the glass. Rich and mouth filling, with an elegant presence, the wine offers intense, silky, pure, lush, fresh, spicy strawberry, dark cherry, pepper and raspberry jam flavors. Like all great vintages of Rayas, this should age and improve for at least 20-25 years.

Wow! That says it all. Clearly, this vintage marks the return to greatness for what many people think is the best wine of Chateauneuf du Pape. Pepper, jammy kirsch, fennel, black raspberries, spice and earthy scents explode from the glass. Rich and mouth filling, with an elegant presence, the wine offers intense, silky, pure, lush, fresh, spicy strawberry, dark cherry, pepper and raspberry jam flavors. Like all great vintages of Rayas, this should age and improve for at least 20-25 years.

7,246 Views   Tasted

When to Drink Chateau Rayas, Anticipated Maturity, Decanting Time

Chateau Rayas can be enjoyed on the young side. However, the wine is much better with age. Still, due to its soft, pure, elegant, fresh style young vintages can be popped and poured, or decanted for 2 hours, give or take. This allows the wine to soften and open its perfume. Older vintages might need very little decanting, just enough to remove the sediment.

Chateau Rayas is usually better after 8-10 years of bottle age. Of course, that can vary slightly, depending on the vintage. In the best vintages, the wine should be consumed within 10-30 years after the vintage.

Serving Chateau Rayas with Wine, Food Pairing Tips

Rayas is best served at 15.5 degrees Celsius, 60 degrees Fahrenheit. The cool, almost cellar temperature gives the wine more freshness and lift.

Chateau Rayas is best served with all types of classic meat dishes, veal, pork, beef, lamb, duck, game, roast chicken, roasted, braised, stewed dishes, sausage, and cassoulet. Chateau Rayas is also good with Asian dishes, hearty fish courses like tuna, mushrooms pasta, eggplant, and tomatoes.

The white wine of Rayas is best served with a myriad of different seafood dishes, shellfish, crab, lobster, sushi, sashimi, chicken, pork, and veal, as well as Asian cuisine.

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