Les Varonniers Crozes-Hermitage 1995

Date: 11 January 2007
Venue: Le Marrons, CWB

Another wine from Michel Chapoutier(see previous post Nov 06 De L'Oree Ermitage). Neighbour to the celebrated vineyards of Hermitage this Crozes Hermitage ‘Cuvee Prestige' is produced from a vineyard of 2.5 hectares which is planted exclusively with old Syrah vines. Neither fined nor filtered, there were lots of sediment in this 1995 bottle. We did not decant the wine and let it aired in-situ. Bouquet was initially overly musky but the chocolate, berries and truffles came through after 15 to 20 minutes. A tinge of smokiness was present through to the last drop. Tannin was a little rough and overpowering early on but became silky and smooth as the evening went on. There was abundant fruit on the palate with a long and elegant finish. This wine should improve with further cellaring.

Rating: excellent