Garon, Cote Rotie, Rochins

Kind of underwhelmed. Quite rich and a lot of bacon fat on the nose. Silky dark berries, smooth and intense. But I find it not complex and nuanced enough for the price.

Decanted for one hour and drank over two days. Full-bodied and interesting but also kinda rustic and unkempt.

PNP consumed over 3 days. First reaction is this wine is on the prettier side of Rhone. A balanced palate with silky tannin texture. A bit modern, some would guess new world blinded. Gaining savory weight and depth without loosing baby fat energy with each passing day. Overall this is a fantastic wine that earns the price point. Flyer purchase from TheBottleList.com 94/95

A misty mid red with early signs of age. On opening it shows a lively red cherry compote on the nose with more savoury salt and pepper character on the palate, ending with a rather awkward spicy oak edge. With air it shows more dried fruit, prune, leather, tobacco, and finishes rather more smoothly. The acid remains fresh and the tannins are fully resolved. Drink or hold.

My second bottle, similar to the first, but perhaps a little more muted in power.

This is great stuff. Pepper and bacon on the nose, a fruity mineral attack followed by waves of savoury mouthwatering oaky acidity with a crust of bacon, still retaining that mineral seam. The finish lasts for some minutes, a mix of oak and bacon. Tannins are mild but lengthy. There's a hint of mint in the finish too. After a few hours air, the bacon has subsided substantially but the savoury elements remain. Tannins are somewhat more prominent, and the …

Côte brune: Very black nose, ripe cassis, mûres, fumé... Quite masculine, loads of silky tannin, more black than lancement, delicious!!

Great wine of nice Rhône year. Now 12 years old, but enough tannins to cellar it for many more years. Well balanced wine with ripe fruit, and notes of laurel and liquorice, although not too dominant. Also the characteristic taste of older, matured, wines - a kind of leather.

Northern Rhone tasting (London) : The opposite of what I look for in a Cote Rotie. Super-ripe, forward, fleshy, hot, stewed fruits. Unbalanced -- lacks acidity or tannin structure to balance out the fruit. Doesn't have the stuff to age, either -- suspect this wine will fall apart over time. Some pleasure to be had for those who like big, phenolic, ripe wines -- not me.

Fresh, bright, sweet kirsch, black raspberries and earthy notes lead to an open, soft, vibrant, Cote Rotie with a lot of charm.