Domaine du Pegau, Chateauneuf-du-Pape, Cuvee Reservee Rouge

If you can find it, buy it. Even Pegau’s du Capo is no better than this. I’ve had a lot of Châteauneufs, but none better than this. Superlative in every way.

2003 vintage

Blackberries, black cherries, green herbs, a little manure, spice, damp earth, a little must, a bit of blood, and some hard-to-define savoriness on the nose. Blackberries, tart cherries, red cherries, herbs, black licorice, blood, earth, and a touch of saline on the palate. Lovely acidity, grippy tannins (this was not decanted and probably should have been), long-ish finish. Wow, this was terrific. So much going on and really quite delicious.

2007 vintage

Decanted briefly to remove sediment. Explosive aromatics of herb-infused black cherry, Coca-Cola, grilled meat, and the evocative mustiness of an old bookstore. On the palate, overripe yet unsweetened blackberry and raspberry mingle with tree resin, dried flowers, and garrigue. The wine delivers impressive power without heaviness—remarkable depth on a medium-weight frame, with bright acidity providing lift and balance. Complex, perfumed, and commanding, with a long, resonant finish. Drinking exactly where it should be. Excellent with lamb seasoned with merguez spices …

2007 vintage

Dark purple color. Very young showing again, the fruit is intense, sweet and spicy and very much on top. Some tertiary notes emerging underneath the fruit. Blood and iron, but not as pronounced as in the 2005. This has years to go. La Contadine with Ulrik, Steffen and Michael.

2003 vintage

Nose: 92; Palate: 91; Tasted Blind.

2007 vintage

Nose: 91; Palate: 90; Tasted Blind.

2003 vintage

Popped and poured through Vinturi but it needed more air. Fruit still vibrant. Better on Day 2.

2007 vintage

Popped & poured, excellent Pegau, ready, perfect balance, everything you want in a wine lovely nose with a great palate

2003 vintage

Decanted off moderate sediment half hour in advance. This was ready and open from the start, seems just past peak. Really enjoyable.

2000 vintage

Intense nose of kirsch liqueur, white pepper, black fruits. Still heavyweight, with plenty of sediment even after double decanting - spiced fruitcake, raisin, with lingering chewy sweet finish. Interesting not classic vintage, but enjoyable with a chicken orzo diavolo watching SB LX.

2003 vintage

Lovely CdP - very long finish; lots of minerality and herbs.

2007 vintage

If you like a more subtle CnDP with tertiary aromas but still with some fruit and meaty tones - this is a geat window.

2007 vintage

A massive whack of black olive tapenade on opening. This evolved over 3 hours to cover Headmaster’s study, wild thyme, black olive, white pepper, lingonberry, raspberry, horse, leather. Well balanced, this was always fresh and heady with a lovely lightness on the palate. It threatened some kirsch at one point as it got warm but never too much. Slightly faded after 3 hours so the last half glass was the least good. Drink sooner. A fair amount of sediment so …

2006 vintage

Flawed, almost undrinkable

2010 vintage

Mature, very elegant and smooth, certainly no sign of heat, very civilized and relaxed showing. The sweet Grenache rings through with plenty of spise. Will stay here, I think, some years.

2003 vintage

Decanted for 1 hour Brick colored and generally light appearing in the glass Wonderful nose of leather, benzoin and spicy/savory red fruit preserves The palate is savory, leathery and fairly complex Very enjoyable. 92-93

2001 vintage

Davyd's birthday dinner at Meyer. Theme = Beauty of Blends. My bottle. Drank in Spiegelau Definition Bordeaux. Appearance is clear, deep intensity, ruby colour with garnet rim. Legs. Nose medium+ intensity, with mild hint of brett, then aromas of leather, meat, ripe dark red plums, dark red cherries, Provencal herbs, lavendar, ripe sunshine earth. Developed. On the palate, dry, good high acidity, medium+ alcohol (14%), resolving high tannins, full body. Medium+ flavour intensity, with flavours of dark red cherries, dark …

2010 vintage

Full body with beautiful ruby color. Nose: black fruits, red fruits, hint chocolate and tobacco. Spices with strong pepper note. Flavours: earthy notes with strong blackberry and black cherry; red notes, especially cherry and raspberry with hint of strawberry. Amazing blend and well balanced. Brings the best of Southern Rhone and Chateauneuf du pape.

2021 vintage

Medium ruby in glass. Medium plus intensity on the nose. Plums, barnyard funk, Christmas cake and meat. Heavenly. Medium acidity and medium plus tannins. Opened up and improved substantially with air so recommend decanting. Long finish. Can drink now or hold for further development. Love this style of cdp. 93.5

2010 vintage

After a one-hr decant, this was drinking nicely. Notes of anise seed, cola, and ash. Fruit very subdued, but lots going on.

2017 vintage

Beautifully mature aromas of black cherries roasted with rosemary and thyme, lavender, roasting game pan-drippings, wood smoke and Asian spice. The palate is loaded with sandalwood incense, white pepper, red and black cherries and eucalyptus. A bit disjointed, this is moderately tannic, but as can be the case with CdP, the tannins are not of great quality. They combine with the moderate acidity to give a clipped sensation to the relatively short finish. That said, this is complex and quite …

2006 vintage

Wow! This bottle was much better than the last one opened five and a half years ago. Rich texture with generous fruit of cassis, plum and dark cherries. Hallmark house style with noticeable but pleasant brett in the background. Overall very balanced and elegant, with a long, refreshing finish. An amazing wine. 95+

2010 vintage

[three-hour decant needed for wine to open]. hazy medium ruby with garnet accents. very expressive in nose and, once open, in mouth. fresh and drying floral and herbal notes permeate fresh and maturing red and black fruit and kirsch with surprising appearances of fig and dried strawberry; sweet and savoury spices and accents galore add to the richness. dry, seemingly full-bodied, with plus acidity and notable but fine-grained tannins. ample, intense and balanced… needs a bit more time to find …

2016 vintage

Much better than some 2005s tasted recently. Cassis nose. Rich palate of black fruits and a particular kick of kirsch. No drying tannins, this is well balanced and drinking really well.

2010 vintage

Aging nicely, with some muted flavors definitely still in place, but lets see where it is in another 3-5 years. Now its definitely dropped off that early fruit buzz and is having it replaced by a more melded earthy compote of underbrush and dark figs. The finish has some nice brighter fruit upswing but sure is clipped . I think the16s will be long term standouts, but for now definitely a work in progress.

2016 vintage

Early drinking window. Good now, but another 4-5 years will be much better.

2016 vintage

From MAG. Still youthful, good material though. Freshness, body, tannins. Needs time, best after 2030.

2016 vintage

Tasted vis-a-vis the Beaucastel, this wins by miles - at least upon opening. Last tasted in Kandestederne with IB, this is really a winters wine, I think, a true blooded Pégau, singing of the land, bloodm, iron and stone. #NYE#GudmindrupLyng

2001 vintage

Big wine! No decant but about 10 minutes in the glass before we started drinking. Lots of strawberry, leather and blue fruits. Complex with good mouthfeel and finish. Wotn for everyone but me and I placed it 2nd. Probably still on its upward climb. Very good 93-94 I'll wait a few years to drink my other bottle to see where this goes.

2016 vintage

From 75cl, perfect cork, opened 3 hours, decanted off a tablespoon of grainy deposit just before serving, stable thereafter. Better than my previous bottle - same impeccable provenance - recorded here on 13.06.2025, Lovely complex Pegau-C9dP scent, a bit of barnyard, medium-red fruit, pepper and leather. Light-bodied entry, bright red fruit, more acidity than expected (a good thing): fresh and vibrant mid-palate with smooth, almost fully-resolved tannins; shortish finish. This bottle would have held but not improved for another 3–5 …

2006 vintage

A recent gift from a friend and taken to a large annual wine holiday party. Up next to a bunch of good Bordeaux. I was curious to try this warmer vintage of Pegau as I've really liked some other vintages such as 99/01/03/04 before. I expected this to be more like the 03 in showing the heat but it held it pretty well. Maybe the weight of the fruit and spices balanced it. Opened up a bit reticent and needing …

2007 vintage

Decanted two hours in advance. Late in its drinking window. Leather, mushroom, earth on the nose. Opened nicely after about 3.5 hours. Softened fruit, less tannins than typical. Still delicious

2003 vintage

Big fan of this producer. Own a lot of vintages. This did not show well on day one or two. Bummer

2016 vintage

Réservée is my favorite cuvée from Pegau and if I were to prove my point today, this is the bottle I would bring. Perfectly balanced and in a great place right now.

2010 vintage

Agree with Tward - seems incoherent at this time. I missed some fruit especially - also compared to other vintages. Might need more time in the cellar - I will indeed save my 2016's somewhat longer.

2017 vintage

Excellents les tanins fondus, de beaux fruits et des arômes en bouche et au nez, racés. Parfait dès maintenant et encore pour les 5 à 10 prochaines années.

2016 vintage

Decanted about an hour. Nice expressive nose. Fairly powerful palate with plenty of fruit and well integrated. Paired great with ham and Polish sausage.

2010 vintage

Decanted 2 hours. Very nice. Dark red/black'ish color. Dark berries, spice, prunes. Medium finish.

2017 vintage

Decanted for one hour. Nose of blackberry, red plum, fig, anise and herbs de Provence. Ripe blackberry, plum, fig, anise, forest floor and wet stone on the palate. Very long finish with excellent depth. Medium to full bodied. Served with a Swedish smorgasbord.

2016 vintage

Pop and pour into a decanter. One of those kind of evenings. In the glass, mature in color, auburn at the rim shading to a dark, brooding core. On the nose, high toned mint and cedar. On the palate, a bit of white pepper and a slightly pruny note, quickly resolving to a classic aged profile of mint and leather, with a bit of baked fruit in the background - but it's really all about those aged notes. This is …

2003 vintage

The 2021 Pegau Cuvee Reservee was elegant and precise. It was light on its feet. It was very enjoyable. Great QPR. 92+

2021 vintage

Although this is past peak, it is still drinking well, the red fruit having yielded to aromatic herbs and hints of caramel and Pegau funk with some coarse tannin texture. This has been an especially balanced and complex vintage of this wine, but I plan to have the last bottle in the near term. (Update: Second bottle was noticeably more fresh.)

2001 vintage

Antepenultimate bottle. 2nd time this year. Much more concentration than the last tasting I had. Notes of cheese, cured meat, garrigue, black tea, kumquat. Lovely. This wine still has firm tannins and an incredible freshness and will definitely still improve uo to 5-7more years.

2007 vintage

Farewell BYO : Mint, noe mørke bær, behagelig, balansert og flott! Svakt volatil, frisk. CNdP kan vinne på lagring!

2001 vintage

D2h Consistent

2017 vintage

dark, but starting to show translucency. Still young primary fruit. Big grenache, meaty mourvedre. Nicely resolved, but still supporting tannins. Long finish. This is as good as CnDP gets

2000 vintage

Decanted 30 minutes at a restaurant - Starts off with a bit of bandaid and funk which blows over after a few minutes. As the dark kirsch themed fruit emerges, the wine came across as a tad hot, nothing over the top, but the alcohol burn was clear. After the first glass things rounded into from, morphing this into a fine bottle of Pegau.

2010 vintage

Sampled at a holiday luncheon from an attendee's pristinely cellared magnum, this 25-year-old Châteauneuf proved to be stellar in every sense of the descriptor. My taste was poured approximately 90 minutes after the cork had been pulled. An approximate blend of 80% Grenache, 6% Syrah, 4% Mourvèdre and 10% other permitted varietals, it is medium garnet in color and aromatically effusive of dried cranberries, orange zest, fresh apricots, baking spices, Provençal herbs, aged leather, raw almonds and cigar tobacco. Medium-bodied, …

2000 vintage

Throwing a fair bit of sediment, but holding together OK after 25 years. Briary cherry wood smoke, black currants, violets followed by mineral-tinged dark fruits. Tannins fully integrated with a nicely balanced acidity. Drinking well right now but likely not getting better.

2000 vintage

Fifth and final bottle of this vintage. Fourth time tasted since 2021, one bottle left of this vintage. This was a perfect CNDP, probably my favorite producer. Still garnet and opaque. Dark garnet, with just the slightest hint of brown at the edge. Almost opaque. Immediate very pronounced "barnyard" aroma of earth, leather, roasted meat, charred wood, complex. Viscous, mouth-coating flavors of dark berries and plums, a touch of sweetness, still has light to medium tannin. The aftertaste is long …

2010 vintage

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Domaine du Pegau, Chateauneuf-du-Pape, Cuvee Reservee Rouge

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