A truly great Châteauneuf-du-Pape in Domaine de la Biscarelle

Domaine de la Biscarelle is a Châteauneuf-du-Pape for those looking for a taste of the real thing.

Matthew Jukes
By Matthew Jukes
published

2011 Chteauneuf-du-Pape, Domainede la Biscarelle, southern Rhne,France (£22.30, Vine Trail, 0117-921 1770).

Which French appellation do you think is the most disappointing? My vote would unreservedly go to Chteauneuf. There are a handful of stellar producers there, and a few dozen decent wineries, but the oceans of dross labelled with these three heavyweight words is frankly terrifying.

On the whole, I would implore you to avoid supermarket Chteauneuf. Why drink the dregs of this historic region for £12 to £18 when you can spend far less for a superbly balanced and evocative Ctes-du-Rhne? There are many to choose from and they would all knock an iffy Chteauneuf into a cocked hat.

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For those of you who have bought regal-looking Chteauneuf that tasted like an Avignon pissoir, here is an example of a truly great version from one of the most visionary wine merchants in the land.

Made from a grenache-dominant blend which includes the ragtag mob of mourvdre, carignan, cinsault, syrah and counoise (as it should!), this is a velvety smooth, aromatically splendid wine with immediate appeal and masses of power and bravado which will propel it forwards for a further five to eight years.

It's time to fall back in love with this noble wine while repelling the pretenders for evermore.

Matthew Jukes is a winner of the International Wine & Spirit Competition's Communicator of the Year (www.matthewjukes.com).

Matthew Jukes
Matthew Jukes

Matthew Jukes has worked in the UK wine business for well over three decades and during this time has written 14 wine books.  

Matthew regularly lectures, judges, speaks at wine conferences and runs masterclass tastings for both corporate and private clients all over the world. Matthew is also the creator of his ground-breaking initiative, the One Day Wine School, an indulgent day of tasting and learning first performed in 2006.

He has been the MoneyWeek wine correspondent since 2006 and has written a weekly column for the Daily Mail’s Weekend Magazine since 1999. His four highly-acclaimed, annual wine reports – the Burgundy En Primeur Report, the Bordeaux En Primeur Report, the Piemonte Report and the 100 Best Australian Wines – are published on his website, www.matthewjukes.com.

Matthew is one of the world’s leading experts on Australian wine and, with Brisbane-based wine writer Tyson Stelzer, runs an annual competition in Australia to find ‘The Great Australian Red’.  He was made Honorary Australian of the Year in the UK at the 2012 Australia Day Foundation Gala dinner. 

Matthew is a winner of the International Wine and Spirit Competition's Communicator of the Year Trophy.  His thoughts, recommendations and tastings notes are followed very closely by the wine world at large.

 

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