Tasting Notes - Maison Tardieu Laurent

Another excellent little educational put on by Rob Walters and team from Bimbendum. Approach these notes with caution as I really do know buggar all about all things Rhone....

Oh yeah, Rob Parker seems to like this dude...."Michel Tardieu's work with his Rhone Valley negociant firm is spectacular. This superstar estate in the Southern Rhone (the western end of Provence to be exact) will have an impact for decades to come.....I was blown away by these wines, and intend to purchase as many as my budget will allow."

2004 Condrieu $85 (Recommended)
(100% Viognier)
Ripeness evident on the nose and the variety is dead east to pick. Ripe notes again dominate the palate, very forceful compared to most Condrieu I have tried over the years. Spice and nutty oak to finish, along with some thickning on the back palate.

2005 Guy Louis Cotes Du Rhone Blanc $38
(Marsanne & Rousanne)
Less powerful aromas when compared to the Condrieu. Daggy old oak and just a hint of wet wool (not corked). Some bitterness on the finish.

2004 Hermitage Blanc $94 (Recommended)
(95% Marsanne & 5% Rousanne)
Attractive 'wide' palate style; would have easily picked as a marsanne rousanne blend such is the varietal character. Great oily mouthful and almond driven finish. Really quite good, perhaps one of the best white wines I have drunk in the last 12 months.

2004 Crozes Hermitage Vieilles Vignes (Old Vine) $47
(100% Syrah)
Earthy nose; the fruit takes a while to get going. Stinky notes underpin the aromas along with berry fruits and a hint of stone fruit. Long palate presence, salty, some spice, and an appropriate sliver of acid. Has a great floor that will bode very well for extending aging. Quite restrained but has obvious underlying power.

2004 Saint Joseph Vieilles Vignes 'Les Roches' (Old Vine) $54 (Recommended)
(100% Syrah)
Striking nose; I might have picked as a coriander and spice laden Belgian witbier. The tangy fruit aromas are very, very unique. Palate is similarly impressive with pepper, dark cherry and nice touches of charry oak. Just like a 5yr old Craiglee to taste.

2004 Cornas Coteaux $74
(Syrah & Petit Syrah)
Sweetish oak drives the nose with a striking saw-dust character. Plenty of berry and plums in a more modern twist than most wines from the region. Old fashion tannic finish; spicy and mouthcoating.

2004 Cornas Vieilles Vignes (Old Vine) $117
(Syrah & Petit Syrah)
Standard subdued shiraz fruit nose. Quite similar to the Coteaux with plenty of obvious tannin, and the structure suggests this wine will be very long lived. Call me a bogan but there's just not enough obvious appeal with respect to the fruit component.

2004 Grands Bastides Cotes Du Rhone $25 (Recommended)
(60% Grenache, 30% Syrah, 10% Mourvedre)
Brett on nose but done very well, and I like the complexity it brings through mazipan and sweet cake characters. Palate is very mellow, very European with low impact spicy oak, furry tannins, leaving a verry dry and long finish. Needs time I think. Great value at $26.

2004 Grands Bastides Gigondas $49
(70% Grenache, 20% Syrah, 10% Mourvedre)
Well balanced nose with hints of sweetness. On the nose grenache fruits arer more obvious and oak not really evident. The sweet grenache is very evident early in the palate but quickly gets kicked aside with some fairly fierce tannin. Will be interesting to see if the fruit holds up over time.

2004 Vacqueyras Vieilles Vignes (Old Vine) $59 (Recommended)
(85% Grenache, 15% Mourvedre & Syrah)
Softness nose of the three non-Chateau du Pape GSMs tried at this tasting with sweet red fruits. In fact not that far removed from a typical Barossa of comparable make-up. Hints of funk to smell as well. Manages to combine sweeter fruits and firm backbone really well. Slivers of barnyard right throught the palate together with spice and firm tannins. Should go 10 years with ease.

2004 Grands Bastides Chateauneuf Du Pape $59
Funky aromas, touches of brett, and a surprisingly strong hint of plums late in the aromas. Very good depth of pure fruits to smell - impressive. Spicy broad palate with more faint funky notes. Heaps of spice and medium weight tannins. Just lacked some spark on the fruit side.

2004 Chateauneuf Du Pape $77
(80% Grenache, 20% Mourvedre & Syrah)
Piercing nose with very upfront fruits. Tangy, zingy, nice acid lift. Very attractive aromas. Much drier and tannin in the palate than the nose suggests. Good underlying fruits and a spicy tanninc finish. Needs time.

2004 Chateauneuf Du Pape Cuvee Speciale $100
(100% & Grenache)
Beautiful perfumed paspberry and cherry fruits. Robust tannic structure, very long, and its very hard to see the fruit. Presumably will last for a long time. Sweet fruits poke through mildly on the finish.

2004 Chateauneuf Du Pape Vieilles Vignes (Old Vine) $113 (Recommended)
(80% Grenache, 20% Syrah, Mourvedre, Cinsault, Vacarese)
Fruit and blackcurrant laden nose. Excellent depth and penetration. Palate is very good; sweet grenache early before the house structure (ie big tannins) kick in. Nice cool licorice fruits as well.