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TN: Usseglio 2009

Rifling through my racks for something tonight, I stumbled across a rather larger stash of Raymond Usseglio's 2009 Chateauneuf-du-Pape. I don't recall buying quite so many for myself and can't find my original TN so can only assume I thought extremely highly of it at the time. Of course, the website entry for this wine was probably based on the TN so it looks like I did.

On opening, the nose is youthful but not harsh, a good sign. The fruit is foremost: quite deep, liquorish and liqueur-ish. On the palate the mouthfeel is an instant hit, coating the inside of my cheeks with just enough glycerine to subdue the tannins but beyond the fruit there is an explosion of spices. Wow! This is a development which, not altogether unforeseen, was not something I had been expecting to such a degree. The flavours really need to knit together for me but there is so much going on here that this is an exciting prospect.

One more thing: after the first slurp, I went off to attend to some food on the cooker and had to put all thoughts of the wine on hold. When done, I realised I could still taste it. What a finish!

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