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96 WA. "The 2012 Châteauneuf du Pape la Combe des Fous is another gorgeous wine from this estate that offers incredible richness while never seeming heavy, cumbersome or over-the-top. A blend of 60% Grenache, 20% Syrah and the rest Muscardin, Vaccarese and Cinsault, it exhibits thrilling cassis, black raspberry, chocolate, crushed flowers and exotic spice. Full-bodied, seamless and incredibly elegant, it has the polish and balance to drink nicely now, but will evolve for 15 years or more. This 120 acres estate, under the leadership of the Maurel brothers and oenologist Philippe Cambie, continues to fashion some of the most profound wines on the planet. Their 2012s, which is a vintage compared to a mix of 2009 and 2010 by Vincent, fall just short of what was accomplished here in 2010 and 2007, but are incredible wines that certainly rank at the top of the vintage. Readers should also check out the retrospective from this estate in Issue 214 to get an idea how these wines evolve." Wine Advocate #215, Oct 2014 |