2018 Domaine Jean Royer Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Prestige
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Tasting notes
Limpid ruby-red. Highly perfumed black raspberry and cherry liqueur aromas are complemented by floral and baking spice nuances and a smoky mineral note. Juicy and appealingly sweet, displaying intense red and blue fruit and lavender pastille flavors and smooth, seamless texture. Deftly balances richness and vivacity and finishes impressively long and spicy, with smooth, harmonious tannins and an echo of candied flowers.
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Average Score
Richard Hemming MW, jancisrobinson.com
Jeb Dunnuck
More reviews and scores
Deep vivid red. Potent, mineral-laced red berry and cherry preserve, spicecake and floral aromas are complicated by suggestions of dusty minerals and licorice. Chewy, sharply focused black raspberry and bitter cherry flavors become sweeter with air while picking up a sexy floral pastille nuance. Shows impressive energy and spicy cut on the sweet, floral-tinged, strikingly long finish, which is framed by slow-building tannins.
85% Grenache, 15% Mourvèdre. Aged in concrete and old oak. Tank sample. Tasted blind. Super-succulent nose with fragrant red fruit and lovely violet perfume adding complexity. Well-integrated spice gives another dimension of flavour, and the chalky tannins seem digestible even now. (RH)
The 2018 Châteauneuf Du Pape Prestige has a similar vibe to the traditional cuvée yet has slightly darker fruits and more structure. It's elegant, seamless, and beautifully balanced on the palate, with a great mid-palate. This cuvée is 85% Grenache and 15% Mourvèdre, all from the pebbly soils of the Bois de la Ville and Les Grandes Serres lieux-dits, brought up 65% in demi-muids and the balance in stainless steel. I was surprised not to see any 2017s presented by Jean-Marie Royer as they showed beautifully last year. His 2018s are impressive and have plenty of upside as well. Lovers of pure, elegant, yet sexy Grenache owe it themselves to try these wines.