Wine Advisor
Thierry Allemand, Cornas Reynard 2015
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Josh Raynolds
Brilliant violet. An expansive bouquet evokes dark berry liqueur, Indian spices, violet candy and incense, brightened by a smoky mineral nuance that builds in the glass. Sappy, sweet and penetrating on the palate, offering pliant black raspberry, cherry liqueur and floral pastille flavors complemented by exotic five-spice powder and white pepper accents. Spicy, sweet and seamless on the remarkably persistent finish, which displays velvety, harmonious tannins and resonating floral and blue fruit notes.
Reviewed by: Josh Raynolds
(no new oak): Lurid purple. An explosively perfumed bouquet evokes ripe black and blue fruits, incense and Asian spices, with a suave floral overtone gaining strength in the glass. Stains the palate with sweet, impressively concentrated blackberry, boysenberry, violet pastille and spicecake flavors, with juicy acidity providing shape and energetic lift. Dark fruit liqueur and allspice notes cling on a strikingly long, expansive finish that's framed and given grip by supple, harmonious tannins. In a predictably richer style than usual for Allemand (that's the vintage speaking, he said) but this wine still displays the domains's typical vivacity and detail.
Reviewed by: Josh Raynolds
Dark purple. Powerful, highly complex aromas of red and blue fruit liqueur, licorice and potpourri carry a sexy floral overtone. Stains the palate with vibrant red and blue fruit flavors, while a sappy violet pastille nuance lends an exotic touch. Velvety tannins shape a remarkably long, chewy, mineral- and spice-accented finish that shows outstanding power and focus.
Reviewed by: Josh Raynolds
(no new oak): Lurid purple. An explosively perfumed bouquet evokes ripe black and blue fruits, incense and Asian spices, with a suave floral overtone gaining strength in the glass. Stains the palate with sweet, impressively concentrated blackberry, boysenberry, violet pastille and spicecake flavors, with juicy acidity providing shape and energetic lift. Dark fruit liqueur and allspice notes cling on a strikingly long, expansive finish that's framed and given grip by supple, harmonious tannins. In a predictably richer style than usual for Allemand ("that's the vintage speaking", he said) but this wine still displays the domains's typical vivacity and detail.
About the Producer
Thierry Allemand is located in the Cornas appellation of the Rhone Valley in France. Like the sleeping beauty of the Rhone Valley, Cornas has just awakened from its slumber. The wines produced here were once praised by Charlemagne, but for centuries they were under-appreciated. It was not until 1980 that a passionate winemaker with a dream arrived in Cornas and woke her up from her slumber: Thierry Allemand. At the age of 18, Thierry Allemand came to work at the Robert Michel winery in Colnas, and at the age of 19, he began making his first barrels of wine. He worked at the winery during the day and ran his own 1.5 hectare vineyard in his spare time. In 1987 he started selling his raw wine to wine merchants and in 1991 he started producing and commercialising bottled wine. After 15 years of running two jobs at the same time, he built Château Tillarimont with his own efforts, without taking out a bank loan. Château Tillarimont is situated on a north-south facing slope on the west bank of the Rhone Valley and covers just under 5 hectares. The vineyard soil is mainly composed of limestone-clay and granite soils, where there is plenty of light and the grapes tend to ripen early. The vineyard is dedicated to Syrah grapes and all the ripe grapes are hand-picked. Like all of the Corners legal reds, Thierry Allemande's wines are made from 100% Syrah. These wines are generally powerful, heavy-bodied, with supple, ripe tannins and intense aromas of red fruit, spice and liquorice.
