Chateau de Beaucastel '01 CdP

[brappy]

Had this at a local Italian place here in Baltimore. Was out with my wife and her mother. I often wonder what she thinks when I stop my part of the conversation and start taking notes on wine..... I chose a french wine because it was priced incorrectly on thier list or at least not near the mark-up as the rest of the list. $150 for the bottle on the list. The rest of the list was priced 3 times retail. The list actually stated '96 as the year. When the Som. came over and presented the '01, I asked if it was the same price. I believe he thought I was saying the price should not be as much when really I was making sure the price wasn't increasing. He offered the bottle for $120. I took it.....

Blue and black fruits on the nose right after a quick decant. There is also a touch of red fruit on the nose; and a hint of earth but hard to tell. The palate has some black fruits but at this point seems a bit held back. This needs more time.

1 hour later. The nose has really come through; black and blue fruits are jumping out of the glass. That earthiness that really wasn't there has decided to grace us with its presence. The red fruit has increased on the palate. We are waiting for entrees. Me = Osso Bucco.

20 min later..... The Osso Bucco is great; the wine even better. The nose is the same as it was in between courses, but the palate has come on strong!!! The fruit is concentrated and the red fruit has jumped to almost the equal of the black and blue. The earthiness has come full on the nose and palate.

The tannic structure and the ripeness of the fruit suggests another 20+ years. This is great now but I imagine in another 5 - 7 years, she will be singing at full potential.

[dananne]

Thanks for the notes -- I've got this in the cellar, and I'd seen mixed opinions on the ageworthiness of the '01, compared to most Beaucastel wines.