Delas Hermitage Marquis de la Tourette 2003
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Robert
Parker -
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Spectator
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Also brilliant, and only a small step back from the top cuvee, the 2003 Hermitage Marquise de la Tourette boasts fabulous aromas and flavors of blackcurrants, licorice, toast, spice-box and dried underbrush that flow to a full-bodied, awesomely concentrated Hermitage that stays fresh and lively on the palate. A thrill ride of a drink now, it will continue to shine through 2028.
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Wine Spectator
Fresh and racy, with lots of red currant and raspberry fruit backed by a strong, minerally spine. Darker toast, spice and fruit notes emerge on the finish, but this stays remarkably fresh and open throughout. Deftly done.
Other Vintages
1998-
Robert
Parker
Marked by an unmistakable deep purple hue and savory aromatics, Syrah makes an intense, powerful and often age-worthy red. Native to the Northern Rhône, Syrah achieves its maximum potential in the steep village of Hermitage and plays an important component in the Red Rhône Blends of the south, adding color and structure to Grenache and Mourvèdre. Syrah is the most widely planted grape of Australia and is important in California and Washington. Sommelier Secret—Such a synergy these three create together, the Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre trio often takes on the shorthand term, “GSM.”
One of the smallest and most important Syrah regions of northern Rhone, Hermitage is practically one single south-facing slope of crushed granite, thinly covered with varied, yet well-charted soil types. Many climats (well identified parcels) exist within Hermitage and while some smaller producers make single climat Syrahs, some larger ones blend to make one balanced expression of the appellation.
Though the AC regulations allow the addition of up to 15% white grapes to a red Hermitage, in practice it is usually made from Syrah alone. Winemaking is pretty traditional—or you might say historic—with hot fermentations and aging in older barrels of various sizes. The best wines, characterized by deep, dense and sexy flavors of black fruit, cocoa, licorice and tobacco, have massive textures and a solid 10-20 years aging potential.
The region of Hermitage is totally enclosed; the only place it could go really is to literally fall down its own hill into the city of Tain or the Rhone River. Soil erosion is a problem and terraces exist alongside the hill in order to keep the earth in place. Crozes-Hermitage encloses the region entirely to its north and south.
While Hermitage seems synonymous with some of the best Syrah on the planet, actually about one third of the wine produced here comes from white grapes. The full, lush and robust Marsanne or the less common, but almost more charming, Roussanne create wonderful whites in which the best have great potential for aging, like the reds.