Orders are available for pick-up at Restaurant Nicholas at 160 Route 35 South Red Bank, NJ 07701 during the following times:
Monday: 9:30-3:30; Tuesday – Friday: 9:15am – 9:00pm; Saturday: 11:00am – 9:00pm; Sunday: Closed
$54.00
This year marks the 10th vintage I’ve tasted of Xavier Vignon Chateauneuf du Pape Cuvee Anonyme from the winemaker Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate affectionately refers to as the ‘mad scientist’. Let me say this from the start just to remove any shadow of doubt: It’s the best he’s done yet and by far. Here’s why.
2017 wasn’t the easiest of vintages to navigate for the average winemaker in the Southern Rhone. A weird bout of spring weather created headaches for many, with some vineyards not even producing fruit! Those that did had to change their blends or winemaking style– or both. Advantage, Xavier Vignon.
The ‘mad scientist’ is built for these types of challenges. In the best of vintages, Xavier (a chemist by nature) is constantly tinkering– experimenting with different blends, level of extraction, and vineyard sources. Each vintage, he’s able to craft the perfect answer to whatever nature throws his way.
Turbulence in 2017 called for drastic measures. Unlike the softball vintage of the previous year, the 2017 vintage called for a completely new playbook. Xavier cut way down on his extraction instead relying on infusion. The stress on the vines caused the grapes to hold back imparting a rich tannic backbone to the wine that produced a wine that more closely resembles truly legendary vintages like 2007 and even 2010.
So add this one to the canon of those rare vintages of CDP that can continue to age gracefully for 30 years. Of course, the top wines of the vintage are going to cost you. Hommage de Perrins from Beaucastel, but that’ll run you $450 a bottle. Le Clos du Caillou Reserve, with basically the same score – a cool $200 a bottle.
It’s not often that you find value among the most prestigious wines in the world, but that’s exactly what we have today. Buy a bottle of Hommage, why not? Or get six bottles of Xavier Vignon’s Châteauneuf du Pape Cuvee Anonyme and put the extra $100 in your pocket.
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95-97 Points
Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
Tasted from barrel, the 2017 Chateauneuf du Pape Cuvee Anonyme adds toasty notes, cedar and vanilla to the whirlwind of fruit Vignon was able to harness in 2017. Blueberries, black cherries and stone fruit notes abound in this plush, full-bodied red that remains silky and focused on the long finish. It looks to be a terrific effort.
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95 Points, Jeb Dunnuck – 95 Points, Lisa Perotti-Brown
The oft 100-point winemaker, Jayson Woodbridge had this to say when tasting his 2021 ‘Stargazing’ Sonoma Pinot: “The wine is vibrant and complex with subtle dark fruits and berries, grandmother’s cherry pie, minerals, and a slight touch of rain-soaked earth, intertwined with a balance and very pleasing easy-going luxury. Should have been priced higher but what the hell.” I have no doubt this clerical error will be addressed in the vintages moving forward. But for now, this is a cult Pinot for under $100/bottle.
Winemaker Pascal Sirat consistently puts out some of the best value Bordeaux in the region but he may have outdone himself in what was a stellar 2019 vintage throughout the region. Just south of Pomerol, the vines at Panchille borrow deep in the soil. The resulting wines are ripe but fresh, with an aromatic complexity and stony finish usually reserved for wine twice the price. Daniel Boulud tells me it’s been the hottest bottle of wine at Bar Boulud for over a month, so I figured I’d better hurry up and secure my allocation! Don’t miss it.
The secret to Philippe’s tightly wound, complex Pinot Noir is a combo of ancient vines, natural farming techniques, and low yields. The wines are built to age, with incredible tension and length. And the secret to me securing his other-wordly 2017 old-vine Gevry-Chambertin can be chalked up to a great relationship and over a decade supporting superior Burgundian winemaking. The wine is scary good. The nose is wild, filled with spiced dark raspberries, red flowers, and baking spices. The palate is elegant and racy, with a dynamic tension that runs right through its minute-long finish. This is a high-toned, wound-up Pinot, that is starting to hit its prime and is really turning out to be a ‘must-have’ for true Burgundy lovers.
The newly released Fiancetto Howell Mt. Cabernet is a dream – a gorgeous, elegant dark-fruited Cabernet Sauvignon that is it picks up time in the glass, unfurls its full signature of cedar laced cassis nose and mid palate of chocolate-covered cherries and savory spices. Only four palates of this (224 cases) were made off a gorgeous, sprawling high elevation spot 1500 feet above sea level. It’s full and plush and finishes fresh and oh so long. The price is crazy for Howell Mountain Cabernet but that’s what Ry Richards and Fiancetto is all about.
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