1998 | Henri Bonneau | Chateauneuf-du-Pape Cuvee Speciale

Deep red color. Porty cherry and cassis aromas are complicated by cured meat, dried rose, licorice, pipe tobacco and cracked pepper. Lush and packed with sweet kirsch and dark berry flavors, slowly picking up velvety tannins but maintaining improbable freshness. Juicy raspberry and strawberry preserve flavors kick in on the long, clinging finish.

Reviews:

• Wine Advocate: It is an amazing wine that tastes relatively dry, with huge extract of blackberries, roasted meats, and sweet strawberries and cherries intermixed with licorice, smoke and pepper. It makes a massive introduction on the palate and expands vertically, as if it were a skyscraper.

• Wine Spectator: This offers an aroma of chocolate-covered prunes stewing on the stove, along with notes of brick dust, black currant preserve, fresh espresso and powdered rust. Powerfully tannic and very heady, with layers of overripe fruit on the finish. Drinks like a Bual Madeira infused with black truffles, yet it somehow manages to maintain a sense of freshness.

Producer Information

Henri Bonneau, who died in 2016, was a critically acclaimed Châteauneuf-du-Pape producer. Bonneau was the twelfth-generation winemaker in the family, which has an extensive history in the southern Rhône. He first started working in the vineyards in the 1950s, though due to the popularity, value and scarcity of his wines, early vintages are virtually non-existent. Bonneau's last vintage was 2015, and he passed away in 2016. The estate consists of 6 hectares (15 acres) of estate vineyards in various Châteauneuf-du-Pape sites, including the esteemed La Crau plot. There are three cuvées – a simple Châteauneuf-du-Pape, the Cuvée Marie Beurrier and the top-tier Réserve des Célistins, rounded out with the Les Rouliers Vin de Table. The high quality of the 1990 and 1998 vintages also led Bonneau to make a Cuvée Speciale. Henri Bonneau's vineyards are planted with around 90 percent Grenache. The farming practices specifically produce low yields and the fruit is harvested relatively late for the region. Bonneau's winemaking process generally avoided destemming, except in poor vintages, and fermentation took place in cement vats. The wines were then aged in large, old barrels.

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