2010 Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Réserve, Roger Sabon, Rhône

2010 Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Réserve, Roger Sabon, Rhône

Product: 20108015620
Prices start from £200.00 per case Buying options
2010 Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Réserve, Roger Sabon, Rhône

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Available by the case In Bond. Pricing excludes duty and VAT, which must be paid separately before delivery. Storage charges apply.
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12 x 75cl bottle
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6 x 75cl bottle
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Description

Didier prefers to blend before ageing, and given the oxidative nature of Grenache, he prefers to use larger wooden containers. The Reserve is made up of 75% of Grenache, with the balance shared between Syrah and Mourvdre. This year there is no Cinsault in this cuve; the wine is correspondingly richer with more emphasis on the darker fruits. A whistle-clean finish however. Very complete.
Simon Field MW, BBR Buyer, February 2012

Didier Negron is the son-in-law of Jean-Jacques Sabon, who tragically died at the end of 2011 after a long illness. Didier is now the chief winemaker at this increasingly impressive property.. He certainly talks the talk, fluently in English as we found out latterly, but to no great surprise, given his ability elsewhere. Owning 15 parcels across 17 hectares over the appellation, Domaine Sabon produce four cuves of red, the most famous of which is seen as one of the very best wines in Chteauneuf-du-Pape. The secret is out!

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Critics reviews

Wine Advocate93/100
The 2010 Chateauneuf du Pape Cuvee Reserve reveals a boatload of roasted Provencal herbs intermixed with lavender, licorice, cassis, kirsch, cedar, underbrush and pepper. In addition to great fruit, it possesses fabulous concentration, a full-bodied mouthfeel and a sensational, 40-second finish. It should drink well for 12-15+ years.
Robert M. Parker, Jr. - 31/10/2012 Read more

About this WINE

Domaine Roger Sabon

Domaine Roger Sabon

Roger Sabon is described by Robert Parker as "one of the more intellectual vignerons in Châteauneuf du-Pape".

His vineyard holdings are surprisingly small, around 14 hectares, which are divided between his properties in Lirac, Chateauneuf-du-Pape and Cotes du Rhône. The Châteauneuf vineyards are well situated in Les Cabrieres, La Crau, Courtherzon and Nalys and the average age of his vines is unusually high with some of them dating back to the early 1900s.

The general cepage is made up of 70% Grenache although this is reduced in his top two cuvées, the Cuvee Reservee and he Cuvée Prestige. Roger Sabon is a traditionalist and prefers to age his wines in small oak piece, none of which are new, for six months following a sojourn en cuve. He places great emphasis upon elegance rather than power in his wines and in youth his wine can be deceiving.

With time, however, they grow and gain in depth and complexity and are some of the finest Châteauneufs being produced today.

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Châteauneuf-du-Pape

Châteauneuf-du-Pape

The most celebrated village of the Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape is the birthplace of the now indispensable French Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée system – imperfect though it may be. Compared to the Northern Rhône, the vineyards here are relatively flat and often feature the iconic galet pebbles – the precise benefits of which are a source of much debate. Minimum alcohol levels required by the AOC are the highest in France, but at 12.5% it is well below the natural generosity of Grenache, which only achieves its full aromatic potential when it is fully ripe and laden with the resultant high sugars. Syrah and Mourvèdre contribute the other defining elements in the blend, adding pepper, savoury spice and structure to the decadent Grenache. There are a further 10 permitted red grape varieties which can be used to adjust the “seasoning”. Of the five white varieties permitted, it is Grenache Noir’s sibling – predictably perhaps – Grenache Blanc, which dominates, though Roussanne shows a great deal of promise when handled well, notably at Château de Beaucastel.

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Southern Rhône Blend

Southern Rhône Blend

The vast majority of wines from the Southern Rhône are blends. There are 5 main black varieties, although others are used and the most famous wine of the region, Châteauneuf du Pape, can be made from as many as 13 different varieties. Grenache is the most important grape in the southern Rhône - it contributes alcohol, warmth and gentle juicy fruit and is an ideal base wine in the blend. Plantings of Syrah in the southern Rhône have risen dramatically in the last decade and it is an increasingly important component in blends. It rarely attains the heights that it does in the North but adds colour, backbone, tannins and soft ripe fruit to the blend.

The much-maligned Carignan has been on the retreat recently but is still included in many blends - the best old vines can add colour, body and spicy fruits. Cinsault is also backtracking but, if yields are restricted, can produce moderately well-coloured wines adding pleasant-light fruit to red and rosé blends. Finally, Mourvèdre, a grape from Bandol on the Mediterranean coast, has recently become an increasingly significant component of Southern Rhône blends - it often struggles to ripen fully but can add acidity, ripe spicy berry fruits and hints of tobacco to blends.

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