2018 Domaine La Bastide St. Dominique Châteauneuf-du-Pape Secrets de Pignan
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Tasting notes
Glistening ruby. Highly perfumed black raspberry, cherry, spicecake and potpourri scents, plus a hint of exotic spices on the perfumed nose. Juicy and appealingly sweet, offering red and dark berry, succulent herb and spicecake flavors that deepen as the wine opens up. Densely packed but lively as well, with harmonious tannins giving shape to the impressively long, sappy finish.
Critic scores
Average Score
Richard Hemming MW, jancisrobinson.com
Jeb Dunnuck
More reviews and scores
Showing even better from bottle than barrel (which is always a good sign), the 2018 Châteauneuf du Pape Les Secrets De Pignan is all Grenache brought up in tank. This beautifully blue-fruited, violet, floral, and peppery garrigue-scented beauty hits the palate with medium to full-bodied richness, a building, layered mid-palate, no hard edges, and a great, great finish. This is one sexy Grenache that delivers incredible elegance, purity, and length. Enjoy this undeniably delicious, Provençal Grenache over the coming 10-15 years.
The 100% Grenache 2018 Chateauneuf du Pape Secrets de Pignan boasts seductive notions of rose petals, herbal tea and raspberry confiture. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is supported by a web of silken tannins and bright acids that bring defining crispness, dustiness and admirable length to the finish, pulling all of the mouthwatering fruit and complex flower-garden notes together. A bit more structured than the Les Hespérides, I expect it will have a slightly longer drinking window while providing similar pleasure along the way.
100% Grenache. Aged for 18 months in stainless steel. Tank sample. Tasted blind. Extrovert red fruit on the nose, really emphatic and pure. Shows all the juiciness of Grenache, but with a furry tannic shell that deserves bottle age. The fruit is tempting to drink now, but greater rewards are surely in store. (RH)