99 Robert Parker
The wine of the vintage is the Perrin’s 2012 Châteauneuf du Pape Hommage A Jacques Perrin, and it will most likely merit a perfect rating in another couple of years. Full-bodied, massive and layered on the palate, with awesome purity and freshness, it delivers incredible aromatics of beef blood, truffle, graphite, iron and black and blue fruits. Given all of the fruit and texture, you almost have to hunt for the structure here, but trust me, it’s there. The tasting at Beaucastel took place a 9 a.m., and even then, this is one wine I found impossible to spit. It’s a tour de force that will have 3-4 decades of life. <br/><br/>One of the standout tasting while I working in the southern Rhône, the Perrin family, now largely under the helm of Thomas, Marc, Pierre, and Mathieu, continues to produce some of the top wines, at numerous price points, in the southern Rhône. Looking at this set of releases, the 2012s are incredibly strong, and given that, in general, the vintage was more challenging for Mourvedre due to water stress, I was amazed at what they were able to accomplish. The same can be said about their 2013s as well, and these wines transcend the vintage. The saving grace here is that Mourvedre excelled (truly special) in 2013. Another important point to consider is that the Perrins make multiple passes through each vineyard, sort again by cluster, completely destem all of the grapes, and then sort again. It’s this level of control that allows them to get awesome concentration and purity in these more difficult vintages. <br/>It’s worth noting as well, this estate is increasingly investing in Gigondas, with ownership of one of the top restaurants in the area, L’Oustalet (don’t miss a chance to dine here), a small set of top notch rooms that can be reserved, and ownership of the Clos des Tourelles estate there as well. I opted to include the Gigondas reviews here as opposed to waiting on the Gigondas report, but these are some of the strongest efforts in the vintages. In addition to these southern Rhônes, they’ve branched out to the northern Rhône as well, with their Nicolas Perrin label. Those wines will be reviewed in the forthcoming northern Rhône report in Issue 216.<br/>In short, this is a brilliant portfolio across the board. Also, going forward, the name Perrin et Fils has been changed to Famille Perrin.<br/><br/><br/><br/>Covering a full 175 acres in Chateauneuf du Pape, with significant holdings throughout the Southern Rhone (mostly vinified at and released under their Famille Perrin brand), Chateau De Beaucastel is a benchmark estate that excels at all price points. Looking at the wines reviewed here, 2011 is surprisingly strong (especially for the Chateauneufs) and with their perfumed aromatics and supple textures, they show a lot of similarities to the 2009s. The 2012s as a whole show more freshness and purity, with good concentration, and should require more bottle age to come around. Both vintages are worth seeking out. Looking at the 2011s across the board, all of which were in bottle, it appears to be a strong vintage here. While the vintage suffered due to uneven ripening in the Grenache, it was actually a solid vintage for Mourvedre and this shows, particularly in the Chateauneufs.
96 Wine Spectator
Serious, with dark fig, black currant and blackberry confiture notes forming a large-scale core, while licorice snap, Turkish coffee and pastis details lend an expansive feel. The long, dense finish has a brooding personality now, with a warm cast-iron note echoing. Should be a stunner when it reaches its peak. Best from 2019 through 2032. 500 cases made.
