Montirius, Vacqueyras, Le Clos

Decanted for sediment, waited about 10 minutes and drank over 2 hours. Deep red and no signs of bricking. Beautiful nose of earth floor and fruit. Garrigue and black and some blue fruits. The finish might be a little short, but this delivers a huge amount of pleasure, and has benefitted tremendously from the extra 5 years in the cellar. Originally paid $<20 bottle, my wife noted: this tastes like an $85 bottle. She is right. Huge value here.

2013 vintage

Has lost a bit too much fruit but still quite nice. Lots of herbs and earthy minerals.

2007 vintage

Big soft red berries and so so smooth, tannins gone but bold fruits still prominent with slight liquorice tones. Lasts 30+ seconds and acidity leaves a clean finish still absolutely great

2007 vintage

Fantastic right now, so smooth and easygoing. Wish I had more bottles left.

2007 vintage

Surprisingly youthfull. Polished, cool and elegant, very light on its feet considering the appellation and the vintage. Dark fruit, blood, light smoke, some herbs. I wish for a little more complexity. Medium lenght. Very good.

2007 vintage

Very similar to previous notes. This is a solid wine that will stand up a couple more years without faltering.

2007 vintage

Elegant vacqueyras - definitely the lighter side of S. Rhone. Attractive rosemary, garrigue, and meat on the nose. Medium palate, with good purity of black fruits coming through - plum, ripe fig. Meaty (iron, blood, but not really bacon) and herbaceous in a good way. Moderately grippy tannins. No heat poking through. Went superbly with venison.

2013 vintage

Notes from memory. Magnum was ready within 20-min of opening. Fully mature, with funk, garrigue, raspberries, blackeberries, red licorice and herbs. Pure and elegant. Paried nicely with seared flank steak. Technical score: 92. Enjoyment score: 92.

2007 vintage

Absolutely gorgeous!

2007 vintage

Nose is savory, with soft prunes and a touch of black pudding. The palate is also somewhat sanguine initially. The texture is soft, with good acidity and just a touch of tannins on the finish. It seems the grenache has taken over the syrah in this 50/50 blend, and I think I like it!

2007 vintage

The nose is on the blackberries and blueberries. The palate is a bit thin, like watered down blueberry jam. There is a tannic structure and good acidity on the finish which leads me to think this bottle is in a dumb phase. Used mostly as cooking wine with veal shanks.

2007 vintage

Very similar to previous notes, with maybe just a touch more animal matter on the palate. Always a great drinker!

2007 vintage

Very subtle Vacqueyras. Not a powerhouse at all. Black fruits, some cinnamon and other spices. Very elegant

2007 vintage

The color is clear, medium intensity ruby. The nose is youthful with a medium aroma intensity. Aromas of blackberries, raspberries, raw meat, bacon fat, blood, iron, garrigue and a hint of butterscotch. The wine is dry with a medium acidity, medium(+) tannins and body. The flavor intensity is medium with flavors of blackberries, garrigue, black pepper, violets, fudge and slaughtering bench. The finish is medium. I'm not as impressed with this as I was with their Garrigues. This lacks that …

2013 vintage

Robe framboise profonde, à peine évolué! Sur les fruits noirs bien mûres, le chêne, le sous-bois, avec une note d'olive noire. La bouche est fondue et onctueuse. Note de crème fraiche également. Alcool perceptible. Une petite coche sous la dernière dégusté il y a 2 ans.

2007 vintage

Punchy black currants on the nose. The fruit is just as vibrant on the palate with beautiful spice and volume. The finish is as elegant as ever with tannins balanced by acidity. Simply beautiful!

2007 vintage

A beautiful delivery, with great complexity and harmony. Very hard to stay away from these bottles as they are now. Great companion to grilled pork-loin stuffed with dried plums and thyme.

2007 vintage

Une semaine après la dégustation Apparence rouge grenat, nez ouvert, mentholé, thé des bois, framboise noire, légèrement animal. En bouche attaque ample sur le fruit très mure, une certaine sucrosité résiduel confère de la rondeur, les tanins sont intégré, l'acidité mince, le vin est à maturité. Rappelle encore une fois les plaisirs du fruit blanc du thé des bois. Bon rapport Qualité-Prix-Plaisir.

2007 vintage

See previous notes. Still peppery and with hints of red fruit. Nice enough and perfectly pleasant full bodied wine. I think it has peaked though. Not seeing any further ageing potential as the fruit is subsiding. 2/3 = good to very good

2007 vintage

Ripe black fruit with jammy notes, stone minerals, spice, garrigue, and a smoked meat note in the moderate finish. A slightly rich rather monolithic wine with an assertive personality, an acidic/mineral spine, and some rough edged tannin to shed. This needs time to come together. Became austere after a few hours.

2007 vintage

From magnum. Opened for a party and consumed over the next 3-4 days. Effusive ripe new world nose of vanilla, cocoa powder and Bing cherry. In the mouth, ripe as all get-out, fruit forward, somewhat jammy, very creamy, bubblegum, and altogether quite Californian. This is not at all my style but it was a crowd pleaser and matches anything on the grill quite well. Nothing wrong with this of course but not sure this does any justice or homage to …

2007 vintage

Opened a magnum in the morning, about 8 hours before dinner, and then decanted incrementally throughout the afternoon and evening with a traditional Thanksgiving dinner on Christmas. Purple hue, cloudy violet colors. Nose of musty earth, garrigue, tart raspberries, green onion, and subtle black licorice. Medium-bodied palate brings dark cherries, blackberries, bloody meat, and stone minerals. The finish leaves a lingering wave of candied strawberries and lasts 30-45 seconds, bringing a subtle creaminess against a very satisfying, juicy acidity that …

2007 vintage

An interesting and thought-provoking development, with tertiary aromas of garrigue undergrowth, rusty iron, salty liquorice, polypody fern, black olives, meat juices, and blackberries. Now almost totally dry perceptive-wise, rounded yet transparent, and distinctly mineral on the palate, with refreshing acidity, melted tannins, good grip, and a long, spicy, salty mineral finish. The 14% alcohol we barely notice. It drinks really well at this juncture, but should keep for another five in a good cellar and might become even more northern-rhône-like …

2007 vintage

Deep ruby color, full bodied. Heady aroma of violets and blackberries. Balanced on the palate with soft tannins still present. Long finish, especially on the front of the palate. Paired beautifully with grouse and mushrooms, and with rack of lamb.

2007 vintage

Arômes de prunes et de mures avec un petit coté animal, rehaussé de subtiles notes d'olives noires et d'herbes aromatiques... Belle finale épicé de longueur moyenne. Goûteux. Alcool perceptible (14%) mais pas trop. Très bien! 89+

2007 vintage

Substantially better than last time. Lost of sweet fruit and herbs. Drinks great at the moment.

2007 vintage

Not as good as previous bottles. There is still plenty of berries (blue and red) and herbs but the alcohol is starting to shine through. The structure is still good but I would consume rather soon.

2007 vintage

Rich Syrah spice and dark fruit, but with an meaty, animal overlay that I have mixed feelings about. Will suit some but not all. Nice and ruby red. DAY 2 UPDATE: vey intense Syrah flavours still - black fruit growing more prominent and intense, meatiness fading a bit (though not all the way). Above commentary still basically holds but it is a bit more mainstream on day 2.

2007 vintage

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