Tribute to Jacques Perrin - Château de Beaucastel

Wine Advocate

99 / 100

byJeb Dunnuckthe2/28/2015

Shockingly good, the 2009 Châteauneuf du Pape Hommage À Jacques Perrin offers an off-the-charts bouquet of Provençal herbs, truffle and wet-dog-like qualities intermixed with classic blueberry, blackberry and cassis fruit. Massive and full-bodied on the palate, with a sheer density and decadence that’s hard to believe, this is a pedal-to-the-metal effort that has the fruit to drink beautifully today, yet the concentration, mid-palate, tannin and balance to age for 3-4 decades. Made from a blend of 60% Mourvedre, 20% Syrah and the rest Counoise and Grenache, this is one of the wines of the vintage.

Coming mostly from a plot of old vines located behind the estate, the Perrin Family’s Châteauneuf du Pape Hommage à Jacques Perrin was first created in 1989 and is a tribute to the late Jacques Perrin, who passed away in 1978. Aged all in foudre and normally a blend of 60% Mourvedre, 20% Grenache, 10% Counoise and the rest Syrah, it’s only produced in top vintages and there’s normally a scant 400-500 cases to go around. It’s an incredible, yet atypical Châteauneuf du Pape due to its high Mourvèdre content. While most vintages require upwards of a decade of cellaring, the more forward, sexy vintages can certainly be enjoyable in their youth as well.

Wine Spectator

97 / 100

byJames Molesworththe7/31/2014

Very dense, with Turkish coffee, roasted alder and allspice notes out front, followed by a huge core of Black Mission fig, crushed black currant and black licorice notes. The long finish lets loam and ganache flavors stride through, showing cut and precision. This has serious power and intensity, and should cruise easily in the cellar. Best from 2017 through 2030. 500 cases made.

Vinous

96 / 100

the1/31/2012

(70% mourvedre and 10% each of grenache, counoise and syrah, all raised in foudre): Glass-staining purple. Hypnotic bouquet of black and blue fruits, potpourri and exotic spices. Broad, sappy and strikingly pure, with intense blackberry and boysenberry flavors that reach ever corner of the palate. Rich but lithe wine with a seamless texture and superb finishing clarity. This wine's marriage of power and vivacity is something else.

Wine Advocate

99 / 100

byRobert Parkerthe10/31/2011

Potentially the wine of the vintage, the 2009 Beaucastel Chateauneuf du Pape Hommage a Jacques Perrin had just been bottled two weeks before my visit. A wine of extraordinary density, richness, precision and unreal flavor intensity, it reveals abundant gamey, meaty notes intermixed with smoked duck, Provencal herbs, blueberries, blackberries, kirsch and licorice. This loaded, multidimensional, massively concentrated 2009 is much softer than most Hommages. It should be drinkable in 3-4 years and keep for 30-40 years thereafter. Kudos to one of the world’s great winemaking families!

Brothers Jean-Pierre and Francois Perrin as well as their four sons, Thomas, Marc, Pierre and Mathieu, have quickly become the dominate wine producers of the entire southern Rhone Valley. They have expanded their operation even further by partnering with the Jaboulets. Now having over 1,200 acres in vine and extensive contracts, this is a high quality locomotive, great news for consumers seeking a range of top quality red and white wines in all price ranges. The Perrins’ greatest success is undeniably their enormous quantities of high quality, inexpensive wines called La Vieille Ferme, a white from the Cotes du Luberon and a red from the Cotes du Ventoux. The Perrins are now the top producers of wines from the cool climate southern Rhone appellation of Vinsobres, located in the northern sector of the region and meaning “sober wine.” In 2008, the Perrins purchased one of the better estates in Gigondas, Clos des Tourelles, a 25 acre property located at the southern end of the village from which they make two cuvees. True stars in the Perrin portfolio are the white and red Cotes du Rhone from their estate called Coudoulet which is adjacent to the appellation of Chateauneuf du Pape. As longtime readers know, Chateau de Beaucastel makes two of the great white wines of the southern Rhone, although in Chateauneuf du Pape the rather dramatic amelioration of quality that has taken place with white winemaking has given them more competition than they had a decade ago.

Wine Advocate

96-98 / 100

byRobert Parkerthe10/30/2011

The 2009 Beaucastel Chateauneuf du Pape Hommage a Jacques Perrin (60% Mourvedre, 20% Syrah and the rest Counoise and Grenache) may turn out to be the wine of the vintage. Its opaque purple color is followed by notes of camphor, smoked herbs, sweet, smoky, gamy meat, blueberries, blackberries, cherries and licorice. The wine possesses enormous richness, but it is never heavy or overbearing. With exquisite precision, an extraordinary finish and a fabulous texture, this is another prodigious example of this cuvee, which was launched in 1989 (that wine is still an infant at age 21). The 2009 should have 50+ years of longevity ... at a minimum.

(Not yet released)

The Perrin brothers, Jean-Pierre and Francois, and their sons, Thomas, Marc, Pierre and Mathieu, have long owned over 200 acres of top sites in Chateauneuf du Pape and can now claim over 1,000 acres in the southern Rhone as their empire under the Perrin et Fils label expands considerably. This is good news for consumers as the Perrins, one of the great winemaking families of France, are dedicated to producing high quality wines, preserving top terroirs, and to providing a range of wines in all price ranges that are as good as consumers can expect. Purchasing a wine from this family is about as close to a guarantee of authenticity and high quality as one can expect. There is no secret to surviving the recent world-wide recession and fragile economy. No matter what field one is in – wine, the service industry, product development, etc., one has to over deliver in order to keep consumers happy. Don’t do that, expect a dwindling economic return and possible failure. The Perrins long ago adopted this philosophy, even in boom times. Speaking of wines that over deliver, readers should be searching out the super inexpensive, bargain priced La Vieille Ferme offerings. The Perrins have put together a terrific portfolio of top wines from the leading Cotes du Rhone Villages. With the exception of the estate wines in Vinsobres, they are all dominated by Grenache. To date, the finest wines have emerged from the 2007 vintage, but very strong efforts have been produced in 2009.