WTN: Best wine QPR I've had so far this year

A slight follow-up from that thread Jenise posted the note on the Ch. Mylord (and Garagiste's massive hype) in. While Garagiste does go extravagantly over the top in their emails/prose on a regular basis, every now and then they really hit it out of the park and leave you wondering "Why the hell did I not buy a case of this?"

This is one of those wines - the Domaine La Blaque Coteaux de Pierrevert 2007.

The email came several months ago with typically lavish Garagiste praise; calling them the Chave of the Pierrevert, then making mention of Cornas and Cote-Rotie and the really scary thing is that this actually lives up to some of the hype (not the Chave comment, but the rest).

Right now smelling this I'm inclined to think of a slightly ripe Northern Rhone or a northern Cali Syrah (and I mean that in a VERY good way). Phenomenal aromatics. Starts out with a ton of ripe plum and black cherry fruit, but with some air it really opens out to show black and white pepper and faintly meaty notes as well. Medium bodied in the mouth with a range of spicy, meaty, earthy and dark fruited flavours delivered with good acidity and grippy, firm tannins on the back end. Amazing depth and complexity. This cost $12.82 plus shipping. Unreal value for money (this seriously does remind me of a much pricier Northern Rhone or North Cali Syrah), and the best wine value I've found this year by a mile.

(My only issue here is the plastic cork, a closure I hate more than any other. Between the richness of fruit and other flavours, acidity and tannin structure, this seems to have the balance and spine to last some time. Shame it won't thanks to the closure.)

[David M. Bueker]

Somehow a plastic plug in a wine called Pierrevert...hmm.

Sounds good. And nice to have a fun wine at that price exhibiting real Syrah character and poise, which can be all too rare. I don't know how much has changed at the domaine in the past decade but here is a note of mine on the 96 Réserve, tasted in Feb. 2005:

1996 Domaine la Blaque Coteaux de Pierrevert “Réserve”
On open this tastes almost too mature, with pruning red fruits, some mineral on finish, and stretching thin with crinkly iron fading fruit. But, with two hours of air it gains all the depth and vigor it needs to become a thoroughly pleasing wine. It becomes: floral cherry mineral resin with some fur, minty pinot-esque woodsy orchard flavors, while broader and suppler evidencing the syrah. To my tastes this is peaking right now, so fun, so delicate, so delicious, couldn’t stop drinking and couldn’t bring myself to spit a single morsel. I paid around 10euros last month and would easily buy more at that price, but for short-term drinking, as it won’t last forever.

Sounds like a winner, I'd love to try it but I don't think I'll be getting my hands on any over here. Will keep in the back of my mind for later down the line, however!

Best "QPR" this year so far for me was while dining in a very "in" Tel Aviv restaurant, there being recognized by several of my readers, each of whom decided it would be a nice gesture to send a glass of wine to my table. Among those - a fine Brunello, an excellent Tuscan Merlot, a truly lovely Rioja Grand Reserva, a lovely St-Emilion red, and a superb Sauternes.

Better QPR than that one cannot ask for.

Best
Rogov

If only I had fans in Tel Aviv... I don't even have fans in Niagara Falls.

[Jenise]

Somehow a plastic plug in a wine called Pierrevert...hmm.

Comes with a gerbil, too.

[Jenise]

The email came several months ago with typically lavish Garagiste praise; calling them the Chave of the Pierrevert, then making mention of Cornas and Cote-Rotie and the really scary thing is that this actually lives up to some of the hype (not the Chave comment, but the rest).

Of course I immediately ran to my inventory to see if I'd purchased any, and I didn't. Where exactly IS the Pierrevert, anyway, did you check it out on a map?

Didn't look up a map, but it's apparently located in the Alpes de Haute Provence.

Didn't look up a map, but it's apparently located in the Alpes de Haute Provence.

Which is not a bad area for syrah in my limited experience. Seems to be higher elevation and cooler than the Southern Rhone so it produces some interesting stuff. Not necessarily profound rivals to the Northern Rhone, but you don't exactly see a lot of Provencal syrah being sold anyway.