Clos St Jean, Chateauneuf Du Pape Deus Ex Machina 2005

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Reviewed by: Jeb Dunnuck

I’ve been lucky enough to have the 2005 Chateauneuf du Pape Deus ex Machina numerous times over the past year, and while still youthful, it’s starting to shows hints of evolution and secondary nuances. Cassis, crushed rocks, graphite, beef blood and iron-like aromas and flavors are all present here, and it offers incredible depth and richness on the palate, with gorgeous purity, masses of tannin and a rock-star finish. A wine that could make you run out of adjectives, it too is another wine that goes flying off the scale. Since taking control of the estate in 2002, and bringing on board rock star consultant Philippe Cambie, the Maurel brothers has been knocking it out of the park in literally every vintage. 2004? Gorgeous wines and easily at the top in a recent retrospective. The cooler, rainy 2008? Beautiful ripeness and texture, and again, at the top of the hierarchy. 2011 is the same story, and it’s amazing what this team has accomplished in all of their vintages. Looking at this retrospective, we went through all of their cuvees going back to 2003. Unfortunately, there’s no new information here, and this tasting simply confirmed what myself and Robert Parker have been saying for some time now; Clos Saint Jean is at the top of their game and producing some of the most singular, hedonistic and brilliant wines in the world. Starting out with the classic Chateauneuf du Pape, it’s normally a blend of 75% Grenache, with the balance a mix of Syrah, Mourvedre, Cinsault, Muscardin and Vaccarese. As is common at this estate, the Grenache is aged all in tank, and the other varieties in a mix of tank and barrels. While I think this cuvee always lags the Vieilles Vignes bottling, it is consistently outstanding and always a super value. Moving to the old vine cuvee, this is made especially for the US Market and is 85% tank aged, old vine Grenache, and the balance Syrah and Mourvedre. It too almost always represents a crazy value and has a broad drink window. I’m currently finishing up a case of the ’08, and purchased two cases of the 2010, which is just starting to open back up after closing down shortly after release. As to the Combe des Fous release, this cuvée comes from a single plot of vines and is based largely on Grenache, with roughly 20% Syrah and 10% each of Vaccarese and Cinsault in the blend. The Grenache is aged all in tank and the other components see time in mostly demi-muids. While the Deux ex Machina always impresses more with its overt power and muscle, this cuvee always seems more polished, fine and elegant to me. One of the greatest cuvees on earth, the Maurel brother’s Sanctus Sanctorum is 100% Grenache that comes from a single plot of vines in the La Crau lieu dit. Aged all in demi-muid, it’s been one of the greatest wines I’ve ever tasted, every time I’ve tasted it. All three of these were sheer perfection on this occasion, yet each has its own unique profile. Lastly, and always the most powerful of the cuvees, the Deus Ex Machina is a blend of 60% tank aged Grenache and 40% demi-muid aged Mourvedre that all comes from 70-100 year old vines. The Mourvedre component is really what defines this cuvee, and it possesses the most obvious structure and mid-palate richness in the lineup. Seeming to hit maturity around age 10 or so, it can be consumed relatively early in its life due to its wealth of fruit, texture, and incredibly polished tannin. In addition, don’t miss this cuvee in the lighter vintages, as even their 2004 and 2008 show classic character and no shortage of richness. Importers: Eric Solomon, European Cellars, Charlotte, NC; tel. (704) 358-1565

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Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.

A real “wow” characterizes the extraordinary 2005 Chateauneuf du Pape Deus-Ex Machina, a blend of 60% Grenache aged in foudres and 40% Mourvedre aged in small barrels. Virtually all of this comes from two sectors in Chateauneuf du Pape, the old vines of Clos Saint-Jean on La Crau and some old Mourvedre located in the Bois Dauphin section of Chateauneuf du Pape. A beautifully sweet nose of Christmas pudding, figs, black cherry jam, roasted herbs, and meat is followed by a full-bodied, multi-layered wine with terrific structure, fabulous intensity, massive fruit concentration, and fabulous length. This is a blockbuster wine that should age effortlessly for two decades or more. This is truly great Chateauneuf du Pape and a testament to the efforts being exhibited by proprietors Pascal and Vincent Maurel and their brilliant consulting oenologist Philippe Cambie. Under the inspired winemaking talent of Rhone oenologist Philippe Cambie in addition to proprietor Vincent Maurel, 2003 marked a breakthrough vintage for Clos Saint-Jean, and that has been followed by some of the finest wines of 2004 and blockbusters again in 2005. This 120-acre estate possesses some of the best old vine parcels of the appellation and has always had enormous potential, but the style of aging the wines in foudres for 5-6 years or longer resulted in too many wines that were dried out and lacked freshness. That has all changed under Cambie’s inspired winemaking, which keeps the Grenache in large foudres or demi-muids, and then ages the Syrah and Mourvedre components in smaller barrels. Yields, which were already low, have been lowered even further, and the wine is now bottled with neither fining nor filtration. If you haven’t caught on to the exquisite quality of Clos Saint-Jean’s Chateauneuf du Papes, now is the time. Just a reminder – their 2003s were some of the great wines of that irregular vintage in Chateauneuf du Pape, and they can still be found in the marketplace. These wines still remain somewhat underpriced vis-a-vis their quality, and a real bargain is the regular cuvee of Chateauneuf du Pape, normally a blend of 70-75% Grenache all aged in tank or large foudres and the rest Syrah, Mourvedre, and Cinsault. Importer: Peter Weygandt, Weygandt-Metzler, Unionville, PA; tel. (610) 486-0800

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Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.

The 2005 Chateauneuf du Pape Deus-Ex Machina is utter perfection in the glass – an awesome wine both comparable to and eclipsing the otherworldly 2003. Saturated purple to the rim, with an extraordinary nose of incense, fruitcake, blackberry and black cherry notes with some subtle roasted herbs, roast beef, smoke, and licorice, massive fruit concentration, extraordinary intensity, unreal purity and harmony, and a seamless integration of acidity, tannin, and alcohol, this is a tour de force in winemaking and certainly one of the most compelling Chateauneuf du Papes I have ever tasted. The length goes on well past a minute, and the wine should age effortlessly for 25-30+ years. The tannins are formidable according to consulting oenologist Philippe Cambie, but they are nearly obscured by the wine’s remarkable concentration and intensity. This is a riveting wine. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2030+. Importer: Peter Weygandt, Weygandt-Metzler, Unionville, PA; tel. (610) 486-0800