Wine of the Month - March 2021

Our selections for March are:

Paul Jaboulet Aîné La Maison Bleue 2016  Last month, we presented Paul Jaboulet Aîné Crozes-Hermitage Domaine de Thalabert.  This month, we bring you another wine from the same producer.  Domaine Paul Jaboulet Aîné is considered one of the jewels of Hermitage, producing beautiful Syrah with unparalleled complexity and intensity.  The vineyards were established almost 200 years ago by Antoine Jaboulet on the slopes of the Rhône Valley.  A small chapel, built in 1235, sits on top of the hill surrounded by vineyards.  The chapel was lived in by a hermit.  Hence, the name for the appellation, Hermitage.  The current winemaker and viticulturist, Caroline Frey, took over operations at the property in 2014 after graduating from Bordeaux University.  She converted Paul Jaboulet Aîné over to biodynamic viticultural practices and installed a 100% gravity-flow vat room.  The wines are truly stunning and continue to improve year after year.  The 2016 vintage is an impressive one, racking in high scores and critical acclaim across the board.  

Château Les Gravieres 2018  This property has been family owned since its inception at the end of the 19th Century.  Accomplished vigneron Denis Barraud has been in charge of the Saint-Émilion Grand Cru estate since 1971 after inheriting it from his grandfather, Pierre-Henri Descrambe.  Château Les Gravieres produces dense and concentrated wines, with an attractive mineral quality that hails from the limestone terroir of this Right Bank appellation.  Their 4.5-hectare vineyard planted with 100% Merlot rests in the gravely communes of St. Sulpice de Faleyrens and St. Laurent des Combes.  The vines are 38-45 years of age on average and harvested by hand, while undergoing a long maceration process in new oak barrels.  The 2018 Vintage was a great year for Château Les Gravieres, receiving high scores from a variety of critics across the board. Antonio Galloni of Vinous called it a "sleepter of the vintage", and "a gorgeous wine".  Lisa Perrotti-Brown of the Wine Advocate rated it 94-96 points.  It deserves attention from serious Bordeaux followers.  

Pagodes de Cos 2016 Pagodes de Cos is considered one of the top second wines from an astounding producer in St-Estèphe, Château Cos d’Estournel.  The founder of the property, Louis Gaspard d’Estournel, was extremely passionate about exotic places like the Far East and the Orient.  The wines of Cos d’Estournel were often sold to royalty in India and due to their powerful concentration, traveled very well. Presently, Château Cos d’Estournel produces knockout vintages year after year -- catapulting it into, “Super Second” territory.  The wines of this estate have higher concentrations of Merlot, giving a luxurious finesse that counterbalances that signature St-Estèphe spiciness. They beg to be paired with Asian or Indian cuisine due to their opulence and rampant sensuality.  The 2016 Vintage of Pagodes de Cos was an excellent one, receiving high scores from a variety of critics.  

Château La Tour Carnet 2015  Château La Tour Carnet is one of the oldest structures in the Médoc, with a round tower dating back to the 11th Century.  The estate was an old military outpost in Bordeaux, and the property derives its name from the estate’s horseman, who bravely aided his master to fight off French royalty during the 100 Years War.  This Fourth Growth may be one of the largest Classified Growths in the Médoc, spanning a massive 190-hectares of vines.  Despite its great size, Château La Tour Carnet is diligently run by 85-year old Bernard Magrez –the sole owner of four classified growths producers in Bordeaux: Château Pape Clement in Graves/Pessac-Léognan, Château La Tour Carnet in Haut-Médoc, Château Fombrauge in Saint-Emilion, and Château Clos Haut-Peyraguey in Sauternes.  He also counts a Chateauneuf-du-Pape as his new addition. The diverse terroirs of gravel, clay and limestone are home to plantings of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.  The wine is incredibly pure and bursting forth with fruit with a remarkable depth and concentration to them.  The 2015 vintage of Château La Tour Carnet was a wildly successful one – well ranked by many critics.