19-Apr-2002
Wine Tasting with Jean-Luc Colombo
Jun-Luc Colombo is a 'character'. No doubt about that. A modern, opinionated winemaker from Cornas (in the southern end of the Northern Rhone) who, for the last 10 years or so, has been an influential figure, a consultant to others and the maker of high quality Northern Rhone wines.
Solidly built and outspoken, Jean-Luc does not hesitate to deviate from traditional techniques in order to achieve what he considers the true expression of terroir for the different appellations he makes wines from.
He believes, preaches and practices low yields, total destemming and long maceration. He does not think a wine has to be deprived of fruit and charm in order to be considered 'serious'.
On Friday evening we tasted seven wines with J-L Colombo before dinner. These were followed by six more wines that accompanied the fantastic dinner prepared by Alan Ford, Hintlesham Hall extraordinary Chef.
1999 Cotes du Rhone Blanc 'Les Figuieres' - Simple flowery acidic white wine made from Viognier and Roussanne. 20% matured in oak barrels. Fresh and drinkable, but nothing more.
Passable. MARK 14/20.
1999 St.-Peray 'La Belle de Mai' - More complex wine made from 80 years-old Roussanne vines with yields less than 25 hl/ha. Nice deep nose and reasonable taste
Fair. MARK 15/20.
1998 Cotes du Roussillon 'La Chance de St.-Luc' - Simple and very fruity red wine from near the Spanish border. Grenache and Syrah from old vines give this wine a spicy touch. Expressive but lacks any real complexity.
Fair. MARK 15/20.
1999 Cotes du Rhone 'Les Forots' - Dark color typical Cotes du Rhone Syrah. Sweetish black fruit. Quite drinkable but not really deep or concentrated.
Reasonable. MARK 15.5/20.
1999 Coteaux d'Aix en Provance Rouge 'Les Pin Couches' - Very dark color wine made from 30 years-old Syrah and 60 years-old Mourvedre vines from the hill of Cote Bleue. Quite rich nose of spicy red fruit. Concentrated fruit on the palate with fine grip, round tannins and good long aftertaste.
Good. MARK 16/20.
1999 Cornas 'Les Terres Brulees' - Made from pure Syrah grapes organically grown on steep granite soil. Deep dark color. Big, expressive nose of red and black fruit, tobacco and spice. Rich and concentrated on the palate with spicy flavors. Elegant focused and well balanced. Extremely tasty now with great future ahead.
Very Fine. MARK 18/20.
1998 Cornas 'Les Ruchets' - Made from 90 years-old Syrah grapes yielding 15 hl/ha! This single vineyard wine is matured in new oak and fined but not filtered before bottling. Again, red and black fruit on the nose with complex spice notes. Full bodied with excellent texture. A tad less expressive than the Terres Brulees, but Jean-Luc assured me that the 1999 vintage (comparable vintage to the Terres Brulees) is much better.
Fine. MARK 17.5/20.
The following wines accompanied the excellent Friday night dinner. Jean-Luc sat at our table so we could chat a bit more intimately abut wines in general and his wines in particular.
2000 Coteaux d'Aix en Provance Rose 'Pioche et Cabanon' - I can't say I'm a big fan of Rose wines. This one made from Syrah Mourvedre and Counoise. Light rosy color. some notes of white fruit on the nose. Pleasant and drinkable but not much more.
Passable. MARK 15/20.
2000 Vin de Payes d'Oc, Viognier 'Le Vallon de la Violette' - Pure Viognier from a vineyard where J-L is a consulting oenologist. Light color, nice nose of pears and apples. Simple but pleasant and refreshing.
Reasonable. MARK 15.5/20.
1999 Crozes-Hermitage 'La Tuiliere' - Pure Syrah. Typical spicy fruity Syrah nose. A bit coarse on the palate but with promising complexity and depth of flavors.
Good. MARK 16/20.
2000 St.-Joseph 'Le Prieure' - Pure Syrah. Black fruit and some wood notes on the nose. Very young and coarse but not lacking in flavors or body.
Reasonable. MARK 15.5/20.
1999 Hermitage 'Le Rouet' - Some Marsanne added to the Syrah here. Complete destemming, long maceration and new oak for 18 months. Dark red color. Spicy fruity nose that needs time to harmonize. Well structured and flavorful on the palate. May very well improve with time.
Very Good. MARK 17/20.
1999 Cornas 'Les Terres Brulees' - Same wine as number 6 (see above). Tasted even better with food.
Very Fine. MARK 18/20.
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Jacob "Yak" Shaya.