This vintage, full-bodied and round offers all the characteristics of an exceptional vintage: lots of fruit and spice and great ageing potential. It is a wine that will be exquisite in the next 15-20 years.
Presentation
Presentation
Château de Beaucastel has long been considered one of the great wines of France. It is unanimously renowned for its balance, elegance and ageing potential. Beaucastel has an extraordinary terroir at the Northern end of the appellation with heavy exposure to the Mistral. All 13 varieties of the appellation have been organically grown here since the sixties.
The vintage
A great vintage, this year is characterised by the contrast between an extremely hot July and a very cool August.
September experienced heat and two heavy rain pours during the first half of the month. This did not hurt the quality of the vintage and we were able to harvest late with the beautiful Indian summer lasting until mid October.
September experienced heat and two heavy rain pours during the first half of the month. This did not hurt the quality of the vintage and we were able to harvest late with the beautiful Indian summer lasting until mid October.
Location
Châteauneuf du Pape, between Orange and Avignon, Château de Beaucastel red is a 70-hectare vineyard.
Terroir
Château de Beaucastel is 110 hectares, with one single plot at the north of the appellation. The terroir is archetypal of the best terroirs in Châteauneuf: rolled pebbles on the surface, sand, clay and limestone deeper down. The vines are old and have been organically grown for 50 years, which has allowed the roots to grow exceptionally deep.
Beaucastel grows all thirteen grape varieties authorised by the appellation.
Beaucastel grows all thirteen grape varieties authorised by the appellation.
Ageing
Each variety is harvested manually and separately. Vinification is completed in truncated oak barrels for the reductive grapes (Mourvèdre and Syrah) and in traditional tiled cement tanks for the oxidative grapes (such as Grenache). After the malolactic fermentations, the family blends the different varieties and then the wine ages in oak Foudres for a year before bottling.
Varietals
Grenache : 30%
Mourvèdre : 30%
Vaccarèse, Terret noir, Muscardin, Clairette, Picpoul, Picardan, Bourboulenc, Roussanne : 15%
Counoise : 10%
Syrah : 10%
Cinsault : 5%
Mourvèdre : 30%
Vaccarèse, Terret noir, Muscardin, Clairette, Picpoul, Picardan, Bourboulenc, Roussanne : 15%
Counoise : 10%
Syrah : 10%
Cinsault : 5%
Specifications
Advice
Serving
15°C and if possible decant before serving.
Tasting
Colour: dark and deep ruby with purple undertones.
Nose: very rich with ripe black fruit, cherry, fig and slightly smoky.
Mouth: round and powerful, great balance between the tannins and the body, with notes of red fruit.
Good ageing potential
Nose: very rich with ripe black fruit, cherry, fig and slightly smoky.
Mouth: round and powerful, great balance between the tannins and the body, with notes of red fruit.
Good ageing potential
Reviews
"Powerful, with a round, almost creamy core of blackberry and raspberry fruit all layered with cocoa, sweet toast, mesquite and fig paste. Long and rich through the finish. Still quite primal, with lots in reserve. Best from 2010 through 2030. "
"Medium to deep garnet colour. Pretty perfume of freshly crushed raspberries / blackberries with nuances of wet leaves, cinnamon and white pepper. The medium to full bodied palate provides a good concentration of juicy berry fruit countered by medium to high acidity and a medium level of velvety tannins. Wonderfully balanced. Long finish with notes of white pepper. 13.4% alcohol. Drink 2010 - 2030. Tasted August 2009."
"Mid to pale crimson. Sweet and flirtatious. Transparent. Doesn’t taste 14.5% at all! There is fesh acidity here and a certain meat-and-two-veg quality. You could enjoy it already although I’d be inclined to wait for more aromatic complexity to develop. "
"A crisp wine with a great texture that make this vintage very elegant.
Drink now
Stand the bottle upright 48 hours before serving to avoid any deposit
"
Drink now
Stand the bottle upright 48 hours before serving to avoid any deposit
"
"The 2006 vintage is airy; nice colour, animal notes on the nose, and a balanced mouth between acidity and softness."
"The nose reveals fruity characters, marked by a very aromatic structure which is incredibly present. The gourmet character of this wine gives it great potential and its youth allows it to be enjoyed right now..
Decant 2 hours before serving."
Decant 2 hours before serving."
"A fantastic wine, the 2006 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du- Pape fleshes out with air and displays deep, earthy aromatics of dark fruit, roasted meat, graphite, mushroom and old wood. In the mouth, the wine displays a medium to full bodied, structured personality to go with a fantastic texture, concentrated fruit and a long finish. If drinking anytime soon this needs plenty of air."
"This wine’s dense plum/ruby/purple color is followed by a big, sweet perfume of black truffles, camphor, earth, incense, new saddle leather, and loads of peppery, blackberry, and herb-infused, meaty, black cherry fruit. Deep, full-bodied, and dense, with sweet tannin, this explosively rich Chateauneuf is a stronger effort than the 2005, 2004, or 2003."
"Vivid ruby. Spicy, finely etched red berry and cherry aromas are complicated by fresh lavender, herbs and minerals. The palate offers tangy raspberry and cherry skin flavors, with gentle tannins adding shape. Impressively pure, even delicate, with outstanding finishing clarity and length. This beguiles rather than brutalizes; I underestimated it last year."
"Powerful, with a round, almost creamy core of blackberry and
raspberry fruit all layered with cocoa, sweet toast, mesquite and fig
paste. Long and rich through the finish. Still quite primal, with lots in
reserve."
raspberry fruit all layered with cocoa, sweet toast, mesquite and fig
paste. Long and rich through the finish. Still quite primal, with lots in
reserve."
"The 2006 Beaucastel shows the textbook character of a mature Châteauneuf-du-Pape. It has expansive raspberry and cherry scents with suggestions of succulent herbs, pungent flowers, cigar box and just a hint of earth. Given the high percentage of Mourvèdre (almost a third of the blend), I would have thought that the earthy aspect would have been more pronounced, but that is not the case here. The 2006 is silky in texture, and the suave blend of depth and energy highlights its red fruit along with floral pastille and baking spice flavors. It finishes extremely long and precise, with superb clarity and just a hint of finely polished tannins adding gentle grip. Beaucastel often shows some gamy character when the wines are young; however, the 2006 did not in barrel nor after it was bottled, and there’s no trace of it now. I noted almost twelve years ago that this was a wine that “beguiles rather than brutalizes”, and I’m happy with that assessment today."
