2017 Crozes Hermitage Domaine Roure
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Tasting notes
Dark, shimmering violet color. Powerful, mineral-accented black/blue fruit qualities on the nose, along with olive, licorice and floral notes that build in the glass. Supple and energetic in the mouth, offering expansive blackberry and boysenberry flavors that become sweeter with air. The floral note comes back strong on the animated finish, which shows outstanding persistence and fine-grained, well-knit tannins.
Critic scores
Average Score
Jeb Dunnuck
Josh Raynolds
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The 2017 Crozes-Hermitage Domaine de Roure comes from a granite terroir northwest of Hermitage Hill. It has lots of granite character in its crème de cassis, graphite, ground pepper, and scorched earth aromas and flavors. Rich, full-bodied, with beautiful tannins, it’s a serious 2017 that’s going to benefit from short-term cellaring and keep for 10-12 years. Readers who love older vintages of Jaboulet’s flagship Hermitage La Chapelle should be happy with how owner Caroline Frey has managed this domaine since taking over in 2006. She has singlehandedly brought this estate back to its former glory, particularly with their Hermitage releases. Their second wine today, the Maison Bleue, is unquestionably a better wine than many past vintages of their flagship La Chapelle, and I suspect will age even longer.
Bearing more than a passing resemblance to an actual Hermitage, the 2017 Crozes Hermitage Domaine de Roure comes from granitic soils, and it comes across as darker, more concentrated and sturdier than Jaboulet's other Crozes bottlings. Cassis and black olive notes abound in this full-bodied, structured wine, which finishes long and velvety, picking up hints of baking spices along the way.
Deep violet. Displays expansive blackberry and cherry compote flavors, along with hints of exotic spices, incense and olive paste. Round and fleshy but lively as well, offering intense black and blue fruit and spicecake flavors that are supported by a spine of juicy acidity. A smoky note appears on the youthfully tannic, penetrating finish, which hangs on with strong, spice-driven tenacity. I really like the interplay of power and finesse here.