Tasting- Chateau De Valcombe

 

Name: Costieres De Nimes Chateau De Valcombe

Variety: 70% Syrah, 30% Grenache

Region: Costieres De Nimes, Rhone

Country: France

Year: 2022

Price: $19.95

Winery Review: "Chateau de Valcomb Costieres de Nimes Rouge, Rhone 2022 is a rich and flavorful red wine produced in the Rhone Valley of France. This wine is a blend of Grenache and Syrah grapes, and boasts an intense ruby red color with aromas of ripe red fruits, black berry, and hints of spice. On the palate, it is full-bodied with a silky texture, balanced acidity, and a long and persistent finish. The wine is aged in oak barrel for several months, which gives it a subtle and elegant touch of vanilla and toasted notes. (Vintage Cellar)

Wine Folly: On page 172, Syrah which is the prominent varietal in this wine is described as having notes of blue berry, plum, chocolate, and green peppercorns. I could detect the fruity pieces, though not much of the blueberry. The chocolate and spice of the peppercorns were not lost on me though and added wonderful flavor and mouth feel. For the other main varietal present, page 117 describes Grenache as containing flavors of strawberry, plum, dried herbs, and leather. I believe that the plum and strawberry coalesced into a flavor resembling that of black cherry which was a prominent taste for me and the dried herbs present I think aided in the spice to give it a bite on the way down which lingered in the throat. On page 219, Wine folly looked at Syrah from Rhone, and mentioned it containing flavors of olive, plum, black pepper and even meat juices. While the meat juices remained a mystery to me, the plum once again added to the fruity flavor I detected along with the black pepper for spice. I was also pleasantly surprised to see mention of olive because it placed wording or the salty, almost buttery sensation I detected that I couldn't put a finger on which was a wonderful addition of flavor.

My Review: This was a wonderful wine and one of my favorite so far. It had an abundance of conflicting flavors and sensation that created a jubilant experience for the tongue. The deep fruity flavors I detected resembled darker fruits like cherry and plum and created a nice taste, compounded with what I though was almost nutty and buttery in the form of olives, added complexity to it. This was moved further by the abundance of spice that was strongly evident on the way down after swallowing and an aftertaste that paired perfectly with the tannins working in harmony with the flavorings provided. I enjoyed this wine and am excited to experiment with more blends of Syrah, as well as more wines from this region.

This was not tasted with any food.