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96-98 WA. "The fabulous 2019 Chateauneuf du Pape Le Grand Pin features complex pine and floral nuances that perfectly complement its ripe black-cherry fruit notes. Full-bodied, lush and creamy-textured, this is wonderfully expansive and mouthfilling without being weighty, and it finishes with tremendous length, echoing with complex notes of cola and Campari-like spices. The two tiny vineyards for Chapelle St. Theodoric are owned by American importer Peter Weygandt, while the wines are made at Domaine de Cristia, with the hands-on work done by Baptiste Grangeon and his cellar team. The focus is on Grenache grown in the nearly pure sand terroirs of la Guigasse and le Grand Pin (part of Pignan). The bunches are fermented whole, with aging taking place in demi-muids, typically for two years. Occasionally, a third wine, Les Sablons, is produced, sometimes blended from declassified barrels of La Guigasse and/or Le Grand Pin, but the 2019 is from young vines in la Guigasse (planted in 2013)." Joe Czerwinski, Wine Advocate Interim, May 2022 |