2012 Paul Jaboulet Aîné Hermitage La Chapelle
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Tasting notes
Grilled raspberry, cumin, incense, sandalwood, smoked earth, tobacco leaf. Delivers a concentrated umami character, with black chocolate, red peppers, soy. Tannins remain intense and structured, and needs a little longer to fully resolve - something that is particularly highlighted when tasting against these melted older vintages. Caroline Frey owner and winemaker.
Critic scores
Jeb Dunnuck
Jeff Leve, The Wine Cellar Insider
More reviews and scores
The 2012 Hermitage La Chapelle is a step up over the 2011 and brings more density, depth, and opulence. Giving up a stunning bouquet of black currants, wood smoke, cured meats, and soy sauce, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a round, seamless, sexy mouthfeel, velvety tannins, and a great, great finish. There's a touch of the opulence and breadth of the 1990 in this beauty, and it's clearly on par with the benchmark 2009 and 2010 vintages. It can be drunk any time over the coming 20-30 years.
The first year where winemaker Caroline Frey really feels her organic farming drive paid off, the 2012 Hermitage la Chapelle is a gorgeous effort that shows the purity and texture of the vintage, as well as the class of the le Meal lieu-dit. Offering up classic black raspberry and sweet dark fruit, Asian spice, toasted bread, licorice and savory herbs, this beauty is full-bodied, beautifully concentrated and has enough tannic grip to demand 4-5 years of bottle age. It will have 3+ decades of longevity.