Mas de la Dame, Stele Rouge, Les Baux-de-Provence

Really dark color and mostly mature notes exude from this. Loads of meaty, smokey, and toasty notes and a lingering follow through. Pretty good but now fully mature. Drink up.

Clear dark ruby, bricking at the edges. Much better than the last bottle I had. This one brings back the thrill I had when I frist tried this back in a wine bar in Cassis, 3 years ago. It's a 60/40 Syrah / Cabernet Sauvignon blend with 18 months in oak. Clean nose and those 18 months are evident, vanilla, liquorice & other sweet spices. There's mint, lavender dark fruits (blackberries & blueberries as well as dark plums) as well …

Clear dark ruby, ruby brown edges. Reductive pong upon opening, takes a while to lessen but never really completely leaves. Slightly musty, rustic funky smell. Dark fruits in the background with earth and leather too. Tannins still alive as is the acidity. Palate still has the dark fruits and herbal notes that I first tasted some years back in Cassis, Provence. Shame.

Drank at Jeff's mem day bbq. Surprisingly good, I wasn't expecting this from a Provencal wine. Definite barnyard/gravel on the nose, some nice dark notes (smoke? leather?) in balance with the fruit. Really good. May have to investigate more like this. Addendum: Found this info on the web about the 1999 cuvee Stele: Superb palate where the Syrah (15%) brings its spiciness to the front balancing the Grenache (55%) and Cabernet Sauvignon(30%). The structure is good, the ripe fruits shows …

Samples : Dark fruits. Very tannic. Pepper. Pretty tough and rustic. On day two this showed much better, with some mint notes and more dark fruits emerging. It became quite enjoyable, although not quite worth the price tag in my opinion. 84? moved up to 87

Random Samples from Freixenet, Palm Bay, and Rutherford Ranch (The Jug (Upstairs)) : Tasted over two day period. First day: Funky, brett dominated nose. Some black fruits, very chewy tannin structure, and an off finish of rubberband qualities. Not too sure about this one. Day two: After learning a little about this winery and their production methods, I understand it's unique characteristics and where they are coming from. The palate opened up, tannins softened, and the wierd funky finish dissolved. …