Clos des Papes - Chateauneuf du Pape 2007

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "One of the great vintages from this estate, surpassing even the 1990, 2000, 2001, 2003, and maybe the 2010 (time will tell with this one), the 2007 Chateauneuf du Pape from Vincent Avril delivers everything you could want from a wine. Full-bodied, intense and beautifully concentrated, with plenty of muscle and depth, it shows the hallmark elegance and purity of the estate, with sensational notes of kirsch liqueur, raspberries, incense, smoked meats and Asian spices. The blend is the normal 65% Grenache, 20% Mourvedre, 10% Syrah and the rest a mix of permitted varieties, brought up all in older foudre, and it's just now entering its prime drink window and has another two decades of longevity."

JEB DUNNUCK: "Taking the better part of the evening to open up, and really not shining until the second day, the monumental 2007 Clos des Papes Châteauneuf-du-Pape has shed some of the bombastic levels of fruit it possessed on release, and is developing into a textbook Clos des Papes that exudes richness, as well as finesse and elegance. Loaded with kirsch liqueur, licorice, crushed rock, flowers, and sweet spice, this full-bodied Châteauneuf-du-Pape hits the palate with a wealth of fruit and glycerin, yet remains perfectly balanced, seamless, and incredibly fresh and light. There’s no shortage of tannin or structure, and this needs a solid 4-5 years of bottle age to really start to hit its stride. It should be very long lived and any southern Rhône lover needs to have this wine in the cellar!"

WEINWISSER: "Klare, sehr schöne und präzise gezeichnete Frucht mit Him- und Waldbeeren, rote Kirschen gepaart mit einem Hauch Speck und Animalik. Diese durchaus feingliedrige Art setzt sich am Gaumen weiter fort, in dem eine saftig-klare, würzig unterlegte Frucht betört, die trotz des Volumens und nicht selten auch (Über-)Reife immer auch was Beschwingtes hat und die klare Herkunft zeigt, wenn es nicht zu portig wird, was hier nicht der Fall ist."

JANCIS ROBINSON: "Plenty of oil, medicine and furniture polish on the nose – yet not a hint of faultiness. Instead, the fruit and the complexity blend together, and keep balance with the fiery body too. Spectacular effort! "

WINE SPECTATOR: "Absolutely stunning, with a deep well of crème de cassis that's thoroughly pure and captivating, while black tea, fig cake, hoisin sauce, incense and graphite notes weave throughout. The supervelvety finish lets blackberry, boysenberry and crushed cherry fruit take an encore -- as if this needed any more fruit. A fantastic display of precision in a very opulent year. Best from 2010 through 2030. 8,000 cases made."

THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "Hedonistic, and online it! Rich, ripe, and lush, but spicy, sweet, meaty, and intense, with a perfume sporting aromas of smoked meat, herbs, property spices and black cherries, the wine finishes with waves of dark, ripe cherries and plums. Drink from 2025-2035."