WTN: 2001 Chateau Simone Rosé Grand Cru Provence France. Chambers Street, $39.99. Robert Chadderdon, importer, New York, NY.
Pale red color, clear hue, restrained complex aroma of flowers, red fruit, earth and I suspect but can't prove garrigue, very pretty tastes of flowers, fruit, spice, earth and mushrooms, mild acidity, very smooth medium mouth feel that leads seamlessly into a fairly long finish with several grace notes -- fruit, flowers, earth -- and that tiny hint of garrigue. [Or is it my imagination based on the lovely area in Provence this wine comes from?] 3*+.
Notes: Palette is a very small appellation of some 50 acres of vines in the hills east of Aix-en-Provence.
Wine and Spirits -- Palette ["pa-let"] Usually overpriced AC rosé and creamy white, well liked by holidayers in St. Tropez
Winery -- http://www.chateau-simone.fr Artsy, irritating site, in French only.
Wine Doctor -- Chateau Simone is Palette; Palette is Chateau Simone. Well, more or less. The tiny appellation of Palette, one of France’s oldest, having been established in 1948, covers just 23 ha. Seventeen of these are Chateau Simone, and much of the rest is pine forest with no likelihood of any deforestation in the near future. The sole estate in the appellation was planted in the 16th Century by the Carmelite sisters, who also excavated the cellars. The property took on the name Simone from a later owner, but since the 17th Century has been home to the Rougier family. Currently in charge are René and Jean-François, the seventh and eighth generations of this dynasty.
The vineyards are populated with Grenache and Mourvèdre, which make up 60% of the red cuvée. The remainder is a rag tag collection of other varieties, including the usual suspects; Syrah, Cinsaut, Carignan, for instance, but also some rarities such as Castet and Manosquin. Clairette dominates the white vineyards, with some Grenache Blanc and other varieties. The estate produces several cuvees, including red, rosé and white. The red is an idiosyncratic wine, made from largely destemmed berries fermented in stainless steel or cement, before some time in foudres and then barriques. The wine is fined before bottling. The style demands time in the cellar rather than being one for immediate enjoyment. There is a rosé of good reputation, a more substantial wine than many other local rosés, with more grip and body, more akin to Domaine Tempier’s example. No malolactic here (or for the white wines). The wine is filtered prior to bottling. Of the two white wines, the premier bottling sees eighteen months in barriques sourced from top Bordeaux chateaux.
Lyle Fass: France's answer to Lopez de Heredia (Spain's most famous cult rose) Tondonia Rosé. This is a blend of Grenache, Mourvedre, Cinsault, Syrah, Castet, Manosquin, Carignan & Muscat. Simone Rosé has the most devastatingly velvety texture of any rose wine you will ever put in your mouth. Complex, chewy, dense and very ageworthy. Worth trying a bottle. A favorite among wine geeks nationwide.
Robert Parker: Robert Chadderdon Selections, New York, NY; 212-757-8185 - Chadderdon remains one of the mystery men among top small importers in the United States. Rarely seen and difficult to reach by telephone, he represents a number of outstanding estates that can be counted on for impeccably high quality. His strengths are French wines, with top selections from every major viticultural regions. Prices are high, but the quality is faultless.
[Quite a gracious tribute, I think; in The Emperor of Wine, McCoy describes Parker's photographic memory for wines he's tasted as the stuff of legends, but the only example in the entire book of a blind tasting by Parker is with Chadderdon, who suckers Parker with two Swiss wines, which Parker promptly butchers and identifies as high class burgundies.]
Regards, Bob
