2003 Mas de la Barben Calice

I think there is a tremendous potential for Coteaux du Languedoc to produce outstanding wines so a lot of the wines in my cellar come from this place. Today I had the chance to re-taste the 3rd time a wine from a relative small producer that made an amazing cuvee in the hot 2003 vintage. Mas de la Barben is not an internationally acclaimed producer therefore the prices are still decent and the quality of this wine is really good. The label on the bottle is a beautiful work of art.

2003 Mas de la Barben Calice

Price: 30 EUR

The wine has an opaque dark red color and  an oily appearance in the glass. The nose is very rich and complex with ripe cherry/strawberry jam, a big plum component, tobacco, a lactic flavor,wine lees and some pleasant earthiness. In the mouth this wine is extremely viscous,reminding of a good Chateauneuf du pape, silky tannins with really no aggression on the palate and an immediate sweet sensation probably from the high alcohol level. The Grenache is really outstanding and pure in this wine. It has layers of ripe cherry and  strawberry liquor, black pepper, very fat, bacon comes to mind, licorice, very round and smooth. At 15% alc this wine has a tremendous balance and there is only a very discreet sign of heat but nothing disturbing. Considering the high temperature from outside, 35 Celsius degrees, I would say this wine has perfect balance and is fairly easy to drink. However make no mistake: its high alcohol level is heavy to indulge during a hot summer day and needs some serious food to be paired with. Make sure to decant it at least 1 h prior to serving and serve it at 16-17 C degrees. The aftertaste is medium to long with pure ripe red currant and cherry liquor. This is an outstanding wine therefore for my palate I find it Excellent.

This is a really good wine for the price it sells and probably if it would have had the Chateauneuf du pape label, the price would have been much higher. So for anyone that wants to taste high quality Grenache this is really a very good pick.

Thanks for reading!

You can find this wine at La Chambre store on Calea Dorobantilor, Bucharest