CDP Cuvée des Cadettes, Château La Nerthe 2010

Not unexpectedly, the 2010 Chateauneuf du Pape Cuvee des Cadettes (a blend of 39% Mourvedre, 35% Syrah and the rest Grenache, aged in small barrels) is a long-term proposition for Rhone wine enthusiasts. Dense bluish/purple to the rim, with notes of blueberry, black raspberry liqueur, kirsch, spice box, vanillin, graphite and licorice, the wine is extraordinarily complex, deep, full-bodied and juicy, with a sweet, luxurious mid-palate and long finish with moderately high tannin. Give this wine a good 5-6 years of cellaring, as it should age for 30-35 years. Christian Voeux, the general administrator at La Nerthe, told me that of all the wines made at the estate since 1998, this has the highest dry extract and polyphenols ever measured, even richer than their 2001 Cuvee des Cadettes.