WTN: Beaucastel, Rioja Alta, and the worst syrah EVER

[Jenise]

2017 El Castilla Syrah Spain
Egads. From Trader Joe's. Has definite syrah typicity in the background but it's otherwise mobbed by the heavy, blueberry, overtly sweet brown sugar and toasted barrel notes that more likely came from the lab, not the vineyard. Further evidence of tampering is in the unnatural mouthfeel--after a few sips, it's like someone sprayed latex all over the inside of your mouth. And water doesn't wash it away. When to drink next? NEVER!

2001 La Rioja Alta Gran Reserva 904
Nebbiolo-ish. That is, lighter in body and more acid-driven than expected, and it didn't open up much over the two hours we spent finishing the bottle. (Not decanted in advance since we wasted that opp on a corked bottle of same.) The drink date of 2028 on CT is comforting, but I honestly didn't see that kind of potential in last night's bottle.

2000 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape Red Rhone Blend
Redder and better than the tired bottle opened a few weeks ago. Pristeen clarity, too, vs. the very mild cloudiness in the other (which had stood up for a week, where this one was simply pulled off the shelf and opened). Bright berry flavors, orange peel, tar and a bit of leather--classic aged quality CdP.

What's the D.O. on that Syrah (if any)? I'm sort of glad that we don't have many T.J.s that sell wine here in NJ.

[Jenise]

What's the D.O. on that Syrah (if any)? I'm sort of glad that we don't have many T.J.s that sell wine here in NJ.

None, Joe. But yes, this is a loser. Yet there's that amazing Tavel for only $9 I bought a case of, so sometimes Trader Joe's does something right. Our store has a new wine dept head, which I found out when I went in to pick up the aforementioned case, so to test his judgement I asked what he considered the best red wine in the store at the moment. That syrah. So now I know.

[Jenise]

What's the D.O. on that Syrah (if any)? I'm sort of glad that we don't have many T.J.s that sell wine here in NJ.

None, Joe. But yes, this is a loser. Yet there's that amazing Tavel for only $9 I bought a case of, so sometimes Trader Joe's does something right. Our store has a new wine dept head, which I found out when I went in to pick up the aforementioned case, so to test his judgement I asked what he considered the best red wine in the store at the moment. That syrah. Won't ask his advice in the future.

I was just curious, as it sounds like it might come from some super hot region where Syrah would get overripe. When I was in Spain last summer I had the occasional glass of Syrah in bars but can't really decide if Spanish Syrah will ever amount to anything. There are some Monastrell/Syrah blends from places like Jumilla which seem quite decent.

[Jenise]

It didn't really taste overripe so much as manipulated, though that kind of ripeness could have been the goods it started with. But there was no jamminess whatsoever. Just sugar, and that strange mouth-coating!

So has Beaucastel finally sorted out their brett problem?

-Paul W.

[Jenise]

Not an expert, Paul. But from what I understand, some think so and some don't. I guess it depends on how long your memory is.

I visited Beaucastel in the mid-1990s. One striking thing about that winery was how squeaky clean everything was. They also had the very unusual practice of giving the grapes a blast of steam cleaning before crushing them. They gave a very hand-waving explanation when I asked them why the did that. After we left, I told my wine merchant, "Their problem is that Brettanomyces has established itself as an indigenous yeast in their vineyards, and they know it. The Brett is coming in on the grapes." About a decade later, Beaucastel admitted publicly that this indeed was the case.

-Paul W.