Clos de Papes Chateauneuf-du-Pape Rouge 2006
- Vintage
- 2006
- Country
- France
- Region
- Rhone
- Size
- 750ml
- Rating
- WS95, WA95
- Grape
- Granache,Mourvedre
This has terrific purity, with a stunningly pure beam of cassis holding sway over fruitcake, melted licorice and incense notes. Shows impressive density for the vintage, but this is suave, elegant and seamless through the finish, with terrific underlying minerality. Best from 2009 through 2030. - WS95
From the normal tiny yields of this estate (on the order of 22 hectoliters per hectare), the 2006 Chateauneuf du Pape from Paul-Vincent has shed its baby fat and now shows a supple, elegant, seamless profile that's hard to resist. Kirsch, licorice, garrigue and sweet spice all emerge from this medium to full-bodied, beautifully balanced 2006. It benefits from a short decant, and while showing plenty of maturity, it will evolve gracefully for at least another decade. - WA95
In 1549, "Noble Pierre de Beaucastel" bought "a barn with its land holdings, containing 25 saumees at Coudoulet". More than four centuries later, this remarkable domaine, known today as Chateau de Beaucastel, is producing what most people acknowledge to be the finest wines of Chateauneuf-du-Pape. In 1903, a young chemical engineer and mathematics professor named Pierre Perrin, together with his father-in-law, began to restore the domaine following the ravages of phylloxera. His son, Jacques Perrin, took over the domaine in 1953 and introduced many innovations such as improved grape varietals, integrated pest control, and a flash-heat exchanger.
Today, the third and fourth generations of Perrins, François and Jean-Pierre and Jean-Pierre's sons Pierre, Marc and Thomas, continue in the tradition of their father and grandfather. The vineyards of Beaucastel are treated as a garden: no chemical fertilizer, no chemical week killers or sprays are permitted. Organic fertilizer comes from compost and only a minimum of traditional sulphur-copper spray is used in the vineyards. The vineyards are planted in all the traditional grapes of Chateauneuf-du-Pape.