2019 Château de Beaucastel, Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc, Roussanne, Vieilles Vignes, Rhône Valley, France.
The Beaucastel old vine Roussanne is one of France’s great white wines, like Grand Cru white Burgundy, is one of the most brilliant and complex single varietal wines you’ll ever try, and the 2019 is an absolute stunner with exceptional layering, intensity and length. The straw/gold hued Roussanne is lovely in the glass, the nose is wonderful with liquid rock, white blossoms, fresh peaches and tropical notes, leading to a luxurious full bodied palate with apricot, golden fig, honeyed citrus and apple butter, along with touches of spice, chalky wet stone, anise, lychee and vanilla. The mouth feel is oily and viscous, but there is a nice cut of acidity and tension too, so everything is sublimely poised and this wine was excellent with a range of foods, though I recommend lobster tail, if given the choice. Over time I’m sure it will develop a more creamy creme brulee richness, as I’ve seen in this wine in prior vintages, but wow, this is perfectly delicious, if not spectacular right now. This wine rivals top Hermitage bottlings and is a must try for any serious wine drinker, especially those who are joyful hedonists.
Château de Beaucastel, one of the most coveted Châteauneuf-du-Pape producers, owned by the Perrin Family, was one of the first to promote all organic farming and are great leaders in preserving old vines and varietals. While obviously widely admired for their epic Châteauneuf-du-Pape reds, including the rare cuvée Jacques Perrin, Beaucastel does fantastic whites, with their classic Blanc, which a full range of white Rhône grapes, and this outrageously opulent 100% Roussanne. The wine is sourced from a plot of very old vines set on ancient seabed known as Molasse, with clay and limestone covered by diluvial alpine deposits, scattered by large pebbles or galets. For this unique Châteauneuf Blanc, Beaucastel carefully hand harvests, selecting ultra ripe fruit with the grapes coming to the cellars, cool, in small cases and then sorted for perfection, after which they were pneumatically soft and gently pressed. There is a settling of the juice to allow for green phenolics to drop out and the fermentation is done in 30% in oak and 70% in stainless steel tanks with the Roussanne getting bottled after a fine lees aging of close to eight months. These top family Perrin Château de Beaucastel wines never fail to impress me, make me grin selfishly, and it is always a treat to pop the corks, as this wine did.
($185-250 Est.) 96 Points, grapelive