1971 Hermitage La Chapelle

Next were three legendary Rhône wines. The 1971 Hermitage La Chapelle from Paul Jaboulet Aîné is a vintage that I had not tasted for a decade. This is a reminder of Jaboulet’s purple patch throughout the Sixties and Seventies, decades bejeweled with wines that continue to show brilliantly after half-a-century. It has an absolutely bewitching nose with precise red fruit, peppermint and camphor, vivacious and focused, constantly gaining intensity in the glass. The palate has a velvety-like texture, moderate acidity, utterly harmonious with layered piquant red fruit interlaced with Provençal herbs and a light minty note on the finish. There is a quasi-Burgundy allure about this Hermitage, and I could have drunk it all night.

The 1971 Hermitage La Chapelle has a gorgeous, opulent, gamey bouquet with the same peppermint aromas that I noticed before. Given its age, this is beautifully defined. The palate is fleshy and ripe with impressive mid-palate density wrapped up in a silky texture that disguises any rusticity. It segues into a spicy finish with wild fennel and clove, reassuringly long on the finish. Marvelous. Well-stored bottles should still be chugging along nicely.

Served blind initially, alongside the Seppelt Australian Shiraz of the same vintage. Dark crimson. Very sweet start with a dry finish and some leatheriness (aged Syrah?) on the mid palate. Wonderfully limpid fruit somehow. Beautifully pure. It got better and better in the glass. Amazing condition for a wine that is nearly a half-century old. (JR)