Philippe Pacalet Côte-Rôtie

Philippe Pacalet Tasting (Pure Spirits HQ) : Wine opened the day before Red clay soil, 13.0% alc -/- The wine shows a very fragrant profile, ethereal, red floral notes, red cherry notes, a very thin oak and spice frame. The wine shows a rather expanding decadent profile. In the palate, the wine follows the pattern, raspberry notes, high acidity, lean, vertical, the oak is there adding sweet spice notes, cinnamon, clove notes, the tannins are there, still kicking, med to …

Clean, elegant, red fruited and drinking well

Very expressive nose with savory, olive, cherry, and bacon. It screams classic Northern Rhone Syrah with elegant character. Nice balance on the palate with mostly primary flavors and similar notes compared to the nose. Great finish. Delicious wine that should age very well, but it's very approachable already. 93++

Pacalet is one of my favorite winemakers and this was a perfect example of his style. Natural but flawless. Dry ripe blackberry fruit, so much pepper. Juicy, vin de soif, elegant. Tiny bit of dried meat, black olives, dark red florals but mostly black peppercorn. Medium body, little bit of acid to balance the fruit. Needed more than an hour in the decanter as first few tastes were a tad closed. I imagine only more will come out of this …

Pacalet’s first vintage of Cote Rotie. Nose was punget with bright cherry fruit, smoke, spice and violets. Palate was so elegant and expressive with sweet flowery fruit and violets. It reminded me of Jamet’s Cote Rotie. An excellent Cote Rotie in Burgundian style. 91-92

From glass. Large nose with something corny or sweaty in there in addition to the more commonplace red-fruited glycerol dill, and also some nice sweet spice. Biggest impressions on palate of strength and firmness of fruit and acidity. Smooth, fresh, and bright red-fruited palate, some of the sweet spice from the nose, showing more play of bitterness and sweetness toward end of glass, more precise cranberry-type fruit character, but mostly straightforward. Firm, strong. Pleasurable. Delicious and powerful, if overpriced.