Looks like I'm the first member of the clan to get to this.

£3.99 at Sainsbury's

If you were to blind test me on the origin of this wine on 1st opening, I would have said Goats Do Roam.

Very New World style when I pulled the composite "nomacork 98925" cork, and offered it up. Nose a bit benign for CdR at 1st, now overly blackberry and apple cordial for francophiles.

Sweet, as in unusually sweet fruit for a Cotes dur Rhone Villages, interesting braile like nobles on the label. The sweetness is actually just ok when you splosh the wine around, and increase the air and temperatiure to the wine. A bit worrying and disconcerting at first.

This tabloid comment from Jane Maquerky is ~@#$& make of it as you will "this terrific robust, chunky, inky "

Grenache, Syrah & 15% native varietues - I wonder what these native ones really are, could hazard a guess or two I spose,

Good depth of ripe fruit on the '07, deep colour as well. I wonder how much experimentation it took for Chapoutier to take on the southern hemisphere with this one. Chaptalised and inocculated ? I'd be suprised if not, but OK chapping.

More sploshing, and you can just coax out a tiny bit of garrique and grenacha notes, not much pepper at all, but then Maison Chapoutier is trying to hit the Oz folks between the eyes with this. He does, and at £3.99 with green transport costs and an easy ripe vintage, you can't really knock his intention.

In fact, for the offer price, it is quite remarkable. Blackberries and more blackberries....must be higher % syrah mix than usual.

Who in their right mind would buy Kumala sugary impala juice, Jacobs bladder, or Hardys Mr Kippling Crust when you can buy sweet and full-on very easy CdR villages like this, with a tiny bit of charater for just 4 quid.

I will see what happens on Day 2, at the mo, one dimension plus a few tiny tiny bits. I hope the over blown pop NW style subsides a bit, then I may look inside it better.

_________________
Duncan

Hi Duncan

Any update on this. I picked up a bottle on the previous, lesser offer. Was impressed with Chaps Belleruche but if this is close to as good at that price, might need to pick up a few more. Probably won't get chance to try it before the weekend myself.

_________________
tribs

Tribs Yes. Revealed ? No, it went a tad warm and jammy after 24, probably at its nicest 4 hours in. Decided it was best served very slightly cooler that norm but with lots of airation. I should have left in the fridge door overnight, then a warm up with my mit around the glass

My memory says it is quite close to the PL Clancy Shiraz mix in flavour, no old burried iron though. You will find it acceptable, most agreeable at that price.

Tibs, you should pick up, you can always take back, no bother when I took back halves to Sains, one Chab had been in the porch in a box for more than a month !

_________________
Duncan

Im so tempted to go and grab a case of this but was lookind at the rack over the weekend, I've got lots of stuff that needs drinking up, particularly new world reds from '03/'04/'05, basic blends and cabs, plus some Rioja's. They wont last much longer.

Plus I seem to be replacing each bottle I drink with two more, I must stop.

I wont be buying anything for a month or two, the cull has begun.

Good luck with that mate.

I've tried that but it doesn't last long.

I picked up 4 Montes Alpha 2007 last night (was in Tescos at 2am ! ) and told myself that would be it now for a while as I'm tending to buy more than I'm drinking

Then I'll see another tasting note/offer on here or in a store and that abstinence idea will go out of the window

My Misses is picking up more for me tonight - IF, she finds it still there.

At 4 quid - She immediately jumped up and offered

Now ......If Beaune 1er - Are you sure you need more of that Dunc ? Just how are you going to survive without it when we retire - Duh.

Less often I retort ........Such is the way......



She found the new Volnay nest eggs on Monday

_________________
Duncan

Indeed, but this time I mean it !*





*I do believe in fairies, I do, I do....

Just walked past the new Laithwaites store at Londdon Bridge.

Managed to avoid the lure but then as I was walking past Oddbins the heavens openned so I had to jump inside for cover

No cash/bottles exchanged but how tempted was I

Poachers Blend and Gamekeepers are in my sites ffor some summmer quaffing while on offfer now at waitrose...

this CDR sounds like a possible andd even cheaper alternative to the Gamekeepers tho...

Took the bottle round to the in laws last weekend.

My wife's sister's family beat us to it an had already opened a JC Shiraz on the 07 plate, so when we opened this, the taste buds were probably not quite right. Even so my BIL commented that it was more cultured than the Jacobs and he was right. It seemed good but perhaps, as mentioned by Dunc, a little one dimensional but what do you expect for £4. Last day of offer, I'm going to grab one or two if any left on my way home from the office.

In my opinion the Belleruche is at least one step up from this though.

_________________
tribs

Tribs - hello, the '07 is very friendly in S. Rhone .....but........> > > > > > >

Please tell me bout the 2007 Belleruche which is £6.99 for multiple - The '07 is fast running out of the door.
a) holding potential to end of 2011, any structure, enough tannins ?
b) Syrah content or if not known - or Syrah flavour, don't want tooooo much crunchy grenache
c) Tasted like ripe CdR Très bon, rather than the very easy but nice TTD version which was more france meets NW shiraz + mouvedre plus other bits....period.

Subject to your call, will ask Mark @ Maj to hold some 07 pour moi.

_________________
Duncan

Duncan

I'm going off memory here so hopefully accurate I do have another 6 bottles so I will open one of these next and update. Anyway for now...

The Belleruche is a similar style to the Sains Ttd in that it has some new world nuances. There is more depth though and it was not at its best until a couple of days after opening. It has beautiful ripe fruit and a finesse about it. If I remember correctly on day 4 the finish was sooo smooth.
A very stylish bottle also but quite modern with Braille on the label as does the Ttd.

Not sure about the Syrah content. I would hazard a guess at around 20%

Although a little more than the Ttd, I'd say it is low on tannins. 2 years max on this but drinking well now.

I am not surprised about stocks running low, it took considerable effort to acquire the bottles I have. Apparently it has been very popular.

_________________
tribs

Tribs
Cheers for the info. I shall order some over the phone and add to.... because I have already reserved some Jacquart Brut tradition (chard & pinot) from Maj that Mrs D and my eldest daughter think is really great for posh Summer quaffing, and on offer for £15. Mrs D is paying the bill this time

It is not a girly style at all, but they particularly asked me to get quite a few. Obliging chap that I am, I called on Monday, and had a box put round the back.

Tidy service at Majestic.

_________________
Duncan

I did call in Sainsburys on the way home, but the Ttd offer had ended!?!

_________________
tribs

Today.

_________________
mel

It was the 12th and it had already ended. Checked the website and they were not there either.

_________________
tribs