La Nerthe Les Cadettes Châteauneuf-du-Pape 2010 (Magnum)

Wineadvocate

Not unexpectedly, the 2010 Chateauneuf du Pape Cuvee des Cadettes (a blend of 39% Mourvedre, 35% Syrah and the rest Grenache, aged in small barrels) is a long-term proposition for Rhone wine enthusiasts. Dense bluish/purple to the rim, with notes of blueberry, black raspberry liqueur, kirsch, spice box, vanillin, graphite and licorice, the wine is extraordinarily complex, deep, full-bodied and juicy, with a sweet, luxurious mid-palate and long finish with moderately high tannin. Give this wine a good 5-6 years of cellaring, as it should age for 30-35 years. Christian Voeux, the general administrator at La Nerthe, told me that of all the wines made at the estate since 1998, this has the highest dry extract and polyphenols ever measured, even richer than their 2001 Cuvee des Cadettes.

Vinous

Inky purple. Pungent black and blue fruit scents are complicated by intense vanilla and floral accents and pick up spiciness with air. Stains the palate with sappy blueberry, cassis and vanilla flavors that are lifted by juicy acidity. The oak element is strong but the fruit is even more powerful. Shows excellent energy and thrust on the clinging finish, which eventually leaves sweet dark fruit preserve and floral pastille notes behind.

Dunnuck

A blend of 40% Grenache, 30% Syrah, and 20% Mourvedre that is aged in small barrels and wooded tanks, the 2010 Château La Nerthe Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée des Cadettes is a knockout 2010 that will have a long life ahead of it. Showing a deep, opaque color as well as stunning aromas of cassis, licorice, spice-box, lead pencil, and meat juice, this hits the palate with a full-bodied, rich, and structured feel; while there are hints of its modern elevage on the nose, it stays in the background and there is first rate southern Rhône flair. It has bright acidity, fantastic purity of fruit, and ripe, yet firm tannin that emerges on the finish. Up there with the best vintage of this cuvee to date (reminiscent of the ’05), this beauty will not hit prime time until a decade after the vintage, and will shine for two decades or more.