WTN: 2001 Ch. du Donjon (Minervois)

2001 Ch. du Donjon, Cuvee Prestige (Minervois)
I recently purchased based upon a retailers recommendation. I might add that this retailer knows I'm somewhat oak and high alcohol adverse.
Opened and decanted for about 2 hours prior to a comfort dinner of good old pot roast. Some nice black fruit and red raspberryish flavors suggesting this wine is some sort of Syrah and Grenache blend (the label provides no details however). Unfortunately the fruit is obliterated by 250% new oak. How a retailer who knows my tastes pretty well could recommend this is unfathomable. But, I'll take the blame since 'Chene" is prominently displayed on the label and the "Cuvee Prestige" should have tipped me off that this is perhaps a wine made to cater to the 'American Palate".
There was still quite a bit left in the decanter this morning, so I took a sniff...It still smells like a lumberyard.

Imported by Hand Picked Selections and retailed for ~ $17.
BP

I recently bought a bottle of your wine's younger sibling, a 2005 Ch. du Donjon Minervois and thoroughly enjoyed it. My database does not indicate the name Cuvee Prestige associated with it, and I only paid $11, so I'm sure it was a different bottling. I suspect you paid that extra money for the oak aging you despise so much.

I recommend you discuss this with your local wine shop owner, because they clearly blew it. Perhaps they got these two bottlings confused. Maybe they will give you a good price on the same bottle I recently tried.

According to one of my reference books, Minervois typically contains Carignan, Grenache, Mourvedre, Syrah and possibly other grapes.

-- Clark

Clark,
I'll definitely have a chat with the retailer. I consider him to be a friend, so no punches will be pulled. The lovely NJ, who is somewhat of an oak lover, wouldn't take a sip on day two. She said it was too damn oaky.
Now that you mention it, I seem to recall (can't locate any notes) tasting their regular bottling a few years ago, and if memory serves, it was quite good.
Bill