Domaine Santa Duc Châteauneuf du Pape ‘Habemus Papam’ 2019
Notes in comments
by kevinfarber
7 Comments
kevinfarber
Hey all,
I’m not a regular poster here but wanted to share some notes on a CdP I bought impulsively at one of my accounts today.
Per the producer’s website, it’s 70% Grenache and 30% Syrah. The bottle lists ABV at 14.5%. I bought it for $59.99 USD.
The color is medium concentration ruby with medium + tearing and very little staining.
The aromatic and flavor intensities are both quite pronounced. The stars of the show here are super savory herbs: thyme, oregano, and lavender. There is a very satisfying briny Kalamata olive character that I love in a lot of Rhône wines. There’s also some pretty muscular tart to ripe black fruit here. Dried purple flowers/potpourri give a nice perfumed lift.
Structurally, I’d put acidity at medium with medium + tannin which, although mouth coating, are pretty smooth and not all that abrasive. I’d call this full bodied.
I don’t drink all that much Grenache. I’ve been drinking the same regions ad nauseam lately and am trying to force myself to be a little more adventurous. I just opened this about 15 minutes ago but am really enjoying it; it’s already super expressive with plenty of nuanced complexity and a fairly long finish.
It hit all the marks for me. It’s always super disappointing to spend that much on a bottle that doesn’t deliver but fortunately that’s not the case here and I’m interested to try some of their other bottlings.
Cheers!
JPATime
Nice review, thanks for that!
So 2019 Châteauneuf is in a good spot to drink right now? Iam considering buying a la nerthe 2019. 2017 was singing a few months ago
vaalyr
The work Benjamin is doing to modernize Gigondas and Chateauneuf is incredibly important, the wines are even better in the recent vintages.
students-tea
Great review. But, with a name like “habemus papam,” you couldn’t wait just a couple weeks? 🤣
bungocheese
Their gigondas is awesome, we visited a few years ago and I got to pet their cat and try some wines in the cellar. I give extra points when I get to pet vineyard animals. The Bernese mountain dog and German shepherd at beaucastel also gave them extra points.
Paiev
I had a couple bottles of this exact wine in my online shopping cart. Thanks for the notes!
Witty-Assistant-6390
We have some cuvées from Santa Duc and the names all seem a little tongue in cheek and I can’t tell if it’s intentional or not 😆 Their Gigondas ‘Derrière Vielle’ is an example and the wine is amazing. Also their cheaper ‘Aux Lieux Dits’ is very Grenache expressive and it reminds me of Rayas or Domaine des Tours by Reynaud Great find!
7 Comments
Hey all,
I’m not a regular poster here but wanted to share some notes on a CdP I bought impulsively at one of my accounts today.
Per the producer’s website, it’s 70% Grenache and 30% Syrah. The bottle lists ABV at 14.5%. I bought it for $59.99 USD.
The color is medium concentration ruby with medium + tearing and very little staining.
The aromatic and flavor intensities are both quite pronounced. The stars of the show here are super savory herbs: thyme, oregano, and lavender. There is a very satisfying briny Kalamata olive character that I love in a lot of Rhône wines. There’s also some pretty muscular tart to ripe black fruit here. Dried purple flowers/potpourri give a nice perfumed lift.
Structurally, I’d put acidity at medium with medium + tannin which, although mouth coating, are pretty smooth and not all that abrasive. I’d call this full bodied.
I don’t drink all that much Grenache. I’ve been drinking the same regions ad nauseam lately and am trying to force myself to be a little more adventurous. I just opened this about 15 minutes ago but am really enjoying it; it’s already super expressive with plenty of nuanced complexity and a fairly long finish.
It hit all the marks for me. It’s always super disappointing to spend that much on a bottle that doesn’t deliver but fortunately that’s not the case here and I’m interested to try some of their other bottlings.
Cheers!
Nice review, thanks for that!
So 2019 Châteauneuf is in a good spot to drink right now? Iam considering buying a la nerthe 2019.
2017 was singing a few months ago
The work Benjamin is doing to modernize Gigondas and Chateauneuf is incredibly important, the wines are even better in the recent vintages.
Great review. But, with a name like “habemus papam,” you couldn’t wait just a couple weeks? 🤣
Their gigondas is awesome, we visited a few years ago and I got to pet their cat and try some wines in the cellar. I give extra points when I get to pet vineyard animals. The Bernese mountain dog and German shepherd at beaucastel also gave them extra points.
I had a couple bottles of this exact wine in my online shopping cart. Thanks for the notes!
We have some cuvées from Santa Duc and the names all seem a little tongue in cheek and I can’t tell if it’s intentional or not 😆
Their Gigondas ‘Derrière Vielle’ is an example and the wine is amazing. Also their cheaper ‘Aux Lieux Dits’ is very Grenache expressive and it reminds me of Rayas or Domaine des Tours by Reynaud
Great find!