Wine Advisor
Clos St Jean, Chateauneuf du Pape La Combe des Fous 2004
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Jeb Dunnuck
Deeper and richer, and one of the wines of the vintage, the 2004 Chateauneuf du Pape La Combe des Fous (60% Grenache, 20% Syrah, 10% Cinsault and 10% Vaccarese aged 60% in concrete tank and 40% in barrique) is loaded with meaty, smoky red and black fruits, licorice, toasted spice and flower-like aromas and flavors. Full-bodied, layered and seamless, this beauty will continue to dish out loads of pleasure over the coming 5-7 years. Located mostly in the warmer, southern part of the appellation, Clos Saint Jean, under the leadership of Pascal and Vincent Maurel (with help from Philippe Cambie), has produced some of the top wines of the vintage in 2004. All of their cuvees buck the vintage stereotype and have voluptuous, textured profiles that are hard to resist.
Reviewed by: Jeb Dunnuck
As is getting more and more common, this estate produced one of the wines of the vintage in 2004. A cooler vintage that featured higher acids and more mid-weight aromas and flavors, the 2004 Chateauneuf du Pape Combe des Fous sports rocking depth and richness to go with big black fruits, black licorice, roasted herbs and assorted meatiness. Drinking well, I'd pop bottles over the coming couple of years, yet no doubt it will have a solid evolution through 2019 or so. 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
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
The 2004 Chateauneuf du Pape La Combe des Fous, a blend of 60% Grenache (from vines planted in 1905) aged in foudre, 20% Syrah (aged in small oak), and the balance 20% Cinsault and Vaccarese aged in larger wood vessels, exhibits a dark ruby/purple color and a gorgeous nose of spring flowers intermixed with truffle, blueberry, blackberry, and kirsch liqueur. Medium to full-bodied, dense, chewy, and complex, this is a stunning 2004 that can be drunk now or cellared for 10-15+ years. 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
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
The Grenache, Syrah, Cinsault, and Vaccarese blend, the 2004 Chateauneuf du Pape La Combe des Fous, has glorious dark purple color and a big, sweet nose of blueberries, blackberries, white flowers, licorice, and black tea. Dense, full-bodied, big, and chewy, this is an inky, full-throttle Chateauneuf du Pape that should handsomely repay 10-15 years of cellaring although it will be drinkable within 2-3 years of release. This beauty is one of the vintage’s stars. Importer: Peter Weygandt, Weygandt-Metzler, Unionville, PA; tel. (610) 486-0800
Reviewed by: Josh Raynolds
Deep red color. Superripe aromas of roasted dark berries, fruitcake, molasses and roasted coffee grew deeper and warmer with air. Huge, thick and concentrated, with outsized cherry and blackberry jam flavors that coat the palate. Some exotic oak notes emerge with aeration, but the wine's powerful fruit seems sufficient to carry this wine for a good decade.
About the Producer
Clos Saint Jean is a family estate founded in 1900 by Edmund Tacussel. In 1910 he started to bottle wines with the name Clos Saint Jean. Since 1991 when the owner Guy Maurel died his two sons Pascal and Vincent have carried on at the property. The oenologist Philippe Gambie has since 2003 been assisting at the estate and something has happened: two-three famous special cuvées have merged and all the production became bottled at the domain.
