Domaine du Grand Prieur Cotes du Rhone, 2005

My recent disappointment with the 2005 Domaine de la Janasse Cotes du Rhone highlights my respect for Bertin Gras' Domaine du Grand Prieur. Six years after the vintage, Janasse is showing its age, Grand Prieur is just beginning to show its stuff.

The color has lost its dark, bluish tints and the nose no longer offers up gushy scents of blueberries and cream. There is still strong fruit, however, backed by herbes de Provence, and the finish has taken on subtle notes of black pepper and minerals. The grapes for this Cotes du Rhone come from vineyards in Vacqueyras, but the yields are too high to qualify for that appellation. At this stage of its development, the Vacqueyras heritage is becoming more apparent. It's not as showy a wine as it was in its youth, but it's now showing more subtlety and depth