WTN: 2000 Chateau de Beaucastel CdP

13.5% alchol by volume
Dark crimson color with some density and also some viscosity.
Nose and flavor come close to blackberry but that is not a very exact description. Quite juicy and fruity with a slightly dry finish. Very pleasant with salisbury steak and onions; also enjoyable by itself as a quaffer.
Medium-long finish. I consider this a good QPR (quality-to-price ratio) wine. I would not hesitate to serve this at an intimate dinner party. As for maturity, this seems in its prime, but I don't have much experience with Rhone wines. I don't know if it will maintain this peak for several more years or go downhill soon or continue into enhanced secondary states. Anyone with more experience with this wine care to comment on aging potential?

While it is just now on the cusp of maturity, it will continue to evolve gracefully for another 15 years IMO.

[David M. Bueker]

I have a hard time believing that the 2000 is anywhere close to maturity.

As the previous posters intimated, Beaucastel has the reputation of being a wine that shouldn't be opened for about 10 years after the vintage, and good vintages should last for 25+ years. It could be the poster child for a true vin de gard!

'Juicy,' 'fruity,' 'quaffer,' 'QPR?'

Sounds more like Duboeuf than Beaucastel.

On what planet is a $60+ wine a 'quaffer?'

On what planet is a $60+ wine a 'quaffer?'

On the Bill Gates planet. It is all about disposable income. If you're drinking DRC, Petrus and Latour on a regular basis (like rich Italian wine importers), Beaucastel would just be a quaffer.

I don't recall paying that much for it. I think more in the $40-$45 range. And it did taste pleasant by itself where many more tannic wines taste better with food. Up until recently, I did not have proper storage for my wines and they were exposed to temperatures of about 68-74 degrees Fahrenheit. This may have hastened the maturing of this wine, but I was surprised myself at its accessability.

I don't recall paying that much for it. I think more in the $40-$45 range. And it did taste pleasant by itself where many more tannic wines taste better with food. Up until recently, I did not have proper storage for my wines and they were exposed to temperatures of about 68-74 degrees Fahrenheit. This may have hastened the maturing of this wine, but I was surprised myself at its accessability.

I've had this a few times since it came on sale here. It has IMO been very accessible all the time - something I've seen with many 2000 Rhones (n + s). I would have no qualms opening one now or in 10 years. But I do prefer the 2001s.

Thanks for the note JC.

-O-

A chef I once worked with gave me one of these for my birthday (2 years ago...3?). Since it was free I thought it made a fine quaffer. But I did have it with roast lamb so I guess that's not really quaffing, is it?

On what planet is a $60+ wine a 'quaffer?'

On the Bill Gates planet. It is all about disposable income. If you're drinking DRC, Petrus and Latour on a regular basis (like rich Italian wine importers), Beaucastel would just be a quaffer.

Croesus, that's me.

I hate Brett, and Beaucastel is too much of a lottery in that regard for me. I don't doubt that the good bottles are very good, though, much like the little girl in the nursery rhyme: 'When she was good she was very very good, but when she was bad she was horrid.'

I hate Brett, and Beaucastel is too much of a lottery in that regard for me.

I like Brett in small doses, but I'm in your Rhone sacrilege camp with regards to Beaucastel. There are several CdPs I like better -- at a cheaper price to boot.