The
wines of
Perrin & Fils
and Château de Beaucastel, Southern Rhône,
France
Château
de Beaucastel enjoys an almost legendary reputation as one of the
great estates in Châteauneuf du Pape. It is owned by the Perrin
family, and they have now set their sites on expanding their portfolio
of wines from the
Southern
Rhône
.
According to Pierre Perrin, who showed me through the range, their
concept is to become the specialists of the
Southern Rhône
, making
small volumes of wines that have a real identity from each part of the
region. The Vieille Ferme label is used for wines made from bought-in
grapes, while the name Perrin & Fils is used for a more upmarket
range made from vineyards owned by the Perrins or under their control.
As
many readers will know, the Rhône in general suffered a nightmare
vintage in 2002. As a result, there will be no 2002 Ch de Beaucastel
red, although the whites were picked before the widespread flooding
that ruined the vintage, and there will be an estate white in 2002.
The good news is that 2001 was a pretty good year and as I write
(August 2003), things are shaping up very well for 2003.
My
overall impression here was that the Perrins are definitely on the
right lines, with good quality across the board. These are wines with
personality and a sense of place, something we can always do with more
of. No indication is given of prices here. As a general guide, the
Vieille Ferme wines are under £6, the Perrin & Fils wines are £7–£11,
Coudoulet is around £10–12 and the Beaucastel estate wines £25–£35
on release. If you have to ask the price of the Hommage, then, as they
say, you can’t afford it—we’re talking trophy wine status and
more than £100 a pop.
Pierre
mentioned about the slightly controversial flash heating that
Beaucastel employs. The grapes are heated to 80 degrees centrigrade
before crushing. The purpose is twofold. First, it kills the
polyphenol oxidases which are partly responsible for oxidation of the
must, which allows them to use less sulphur dioxide. Second, heating
the grape skins kills the cells which then allows better extraction.
It’s a technique that has been used at Beaucastel since 1964, and
when they built the Perrin & Fils winery they decided to use it
there also.
Vieille
Ferme Blanc 2002 Côtes de Luberon
Fresh, crisp, fruity and quite nice in a light sort of style. Very
good 83
Perrin
Reserve Côtes du Rhône Blanc 2002
This blend of 50% Grenache Blanc, 20% Viognier and 10% each of
Roussanne and Marsanne is an estate wine from Château de Grand
Prebois. Nice gently herby nose is quite pretty, with some floral
notes. Expressive fruity palate with some gently floral, grapey
character. Very good+ 87
Coudoulet
de Beaucastel Blanc 2002 Côtes du Rhône
Quite a pretty, floral fresh nose that’s delicate and crisp.
Lovely fruit quality on the palate which is quite crisp and delicate.
Nicely floral. Very good+ 89
Ch
de Beaucastel Blanc 2002 Châteauneuf du Pape
Lovely open, complex nose which is herby and fresh with a nice
nuttiness. Fresh, complex palate is herby and nutty with good acidity.
Very good/excellent 90
Vieille
Ferme (VF) 2002 Costières de Nîmes
Screwcapped and beautifully presented. Lovely sweetly fruited nose
is approachable and nicely spicy. Soft, ripe sweet fruit on the
palate, which is gently spicy and approachable. Impressive and showing
good concentration. Very good+ 87
Vieille
Ferme 2001 Côtes de Ventoux
Lovely nose: slightly spicy and a bit meaty, with a deliciously
spicy edge. Nice savoury peppery fruit on the palate with a
deliciously savoury twist. Quite delicious. Very good+ 88
Perrin
& Fils Reserve Côtes du Rhône 2001
From Château de Grand Prebois, where the Perrins built a winery
in 1994. Nice savoury spicy nose with ripe berry fruit. Lovely
structured, savoury palate is quite full and satisfying with good
concentration. Very good+ 87
Perrin
& Fils Vinsobres ‘Les Cornuds’ 2001 Côtes du Rhône Villages
The Perrins bought grapes from two vineyards in Vinsobres in 2000
and 2001; in 2002 they purchased these estates. This has a lovely
spicy, slightly meaty, herby nose. The ripe, elegant palate is
midweight and shows expressive berry fruit with smooth, spicy tannins.
Appealing. Very good+ 88
Perrin
& Fils Cairanne 2001 Côtes du Rhône Villages
Very ripe, open sweet berry fruit nose with a touch of caramel.
Expressive palate is quite sweetly fruited. Very good+ 88
Perrin
& Fils Rasteau ‘L’Andéol’ 2001 Côtes du Rhône Villages
From 1.5 ha vineyard that’s almost entirely Grenache. Lovely
minerally, spicy nose with some sweet fruit. Lovely structure to the
fruit which is quite sweet with a nice peppery, spicy edge. Lovely
terroir wine. Very good/excellent 90
Perrin
& Fils Vacqueyras ‘Les Christins’ 2001 Côtes du Rhône
Villages
85% Grenache from an 8 ha vineyard that is owned by a cousin.
Lovely spicy, slightly meaty berry fruit nose—expressive, with a
chocolatey edge. Palate is ripe, full and chocolatey with nice spicy
structure. Open and sweetly fruited with good balance. Very good+ 89
Perrin
& Fils ‘Les Sinards’ 2001 Châteauneuf du Pape
There are two sources for Les Sinards: young vines at Beaucastel
and a little vineyard 2 km east of the estate. It is 70% Grenache with
10% each of Counoise, Syrah and Mourvèdre. In 2002, Beaucastel was
declassified and will be bottled under this label. The 2001 has a
subtle, sweetly fruited, spicy nose. The nicely weighted palate is
quite elegant with some minerality. Not a big wine but an expressive
one. Very good+ 89
Coudoulet de Beaucastel 2001 Côtes de Rhône
Not bottled yet. Sweet, ripe, spicy, caramelly nose is very
forward and herby. Almost exotic. The palate shows nice, ripe,
chocolatey fruit with good concentration and structure. Very forward
and approachable. Very good+ 89
Château de Beaucastel 2001 Châteauneuf du Pape
Not bottled yet. Lovely sweet, ripe, herby, chocolatey nose with
exotic black fruits. The palate is rich, full, soft and chocolatey
with lots of spicy complexity (apparently the Grenache is dominant at
the moment, but after bottling there will be less oxygen and the wine
will show more of a Mourvèdre character). I think it’s all there
for future development. Very good/excellent 94
Hommage à Jacques Perrin 2000 Châteauneuf du Pape
Made from the oldest part of Mourvèdre at Beaucastel, which forms
70% of the blend, together with Syrah, Counoise and Grenache. Produced
only in good vintages and only 5000 bottles are made, since the
Perrins don’t want to decrease the quality of Beaucastel. Lovely
sweet complex nose with some savoury animal-like notes hiding under
the very sweet fruit. The palate is hugely concentrated with a savoury,
firm structure underneath ripe opulent fruit. There’s a slight
animal streak here (brett?), together with lovely herbal complexity.
Excellent 95
wines tasted summer 2003
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