Unauthorized

A carry-in Chinese dinner with friends at home in Beaver Creek, Colorado was so-so, but the wines were brilliant. The star of the whites was the 2004 Guigal Condrieu Dorine. I normally drink these wines in the first several years of life, but this bottle proved that even at five years of age, it can still be superb. A fresh, vibrant, full-bodied Condrieu, it was showing tremendous character as well as plenty of exotic fruit, good minerality, and a subtle smokiness. The 2003 René Rostaing Condrieu exhibited some residual CO2 and may have had a problem trying to re-ferment in the bottle. It offers some interesting flavors, but the wine is disjointed and impossible to evaluate. The extraordinary 2003 Guigal Côte Rôtie La Turque was perfect. From people who hailed this vintage right (a minority for sure), it is one of the great vintages of our lifetime. Dense purple-colored with an amazing nose of spring flowers, camphor, incense, blueberries, blackberries, crème brülée, and subtle smoke, it is unctuously-textured, opulent, sensationally concentrated, and long. It should be drinkable for three decades or more.

The group of Châteauneuf du Papes was interesting in that the 2003 Pégaü Cuvée da Capowas relatively tannic, but it displayed plenty of kirsch, licorice, lavender, and Provençal herb characteristics. Although it is still tightly-wound in the mouth, one can sense its full-bodied richness as well as its extravagant amount of fruit and glycerin. This cuvée was slightly out-performed by the more approachable, dense purple-colored 2005 Châteauneuf du Pape Clos St.-Jean Combe des Fous. A brilliant effort, it boasts abundant amounts of blackberry fruit intermixed with notions of road tar, earth, lavender, and licorice. The monstrous 2005 Janasse Châteauneuf du Pape Vieilles Vignes comes close to rivaling their colossal 2007 Vieilles Vignes. This sensational wine possesses a dense purple color along with a boatload of tannins that still need to be resolved, fabulous concentration, and copious notes of blueberries, black raspberries, blackberries, smoke, Provençal herbs, pepper, and lavender. Both 2005s should evolve the next 20-25 years, and the 2003 Capo will last for 30 years.