Winemaker Notes
This wine offers aromas of fresh black fruit and dried herbs. On the palate, the richness of the tannins harmonizes with the smoothness of the wine. The finish is long, with spicy aromas of licorice.
Great with red meats and cheeses.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Slightly lighter on its feet, with more red fruits, cassis, garrigue, spice, and subtle minerality, the 2016 Vacqueyras Chateau Mazane stays incredibly light and graceful on the palate and has incredible class. Nuanced, elegant and lightly textured, yet brilliantly concentrated and full-bodied, it's another undeniably delicious, seriously good wine from this estate. The blend is 60% Syrah, 30% Syrah and the rest Mourvèdre and it has a decade of terrific drinking ahead of it.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Unlike the 2015, the 2016 Vacqueyras Chateau Mazane skirts the very edge of over-ripeness. It does show lovely floral garrigue notes, but the fruit is also plummy and, at times, veers into the realm of warm chocolate fudge. Full-bodied and richly concentrated, I'd still opt to drink this over the near term.
With bold fruit flavors and accents of sweet spice, Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre form the base of the classic Rhône Red Blend, while Carignan, Cinsault and Counoise often come in to play. Though they originated from France’s southern Rhône Valley, with some creative interpretation, Rhône blends have also become popular in other countries. Somm Secret—Putting their own local spin on the Rhône Red Blend, those from Priorat often include Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. In California, it is not uncommon to see Petite Sirah make an appearance.
This charming appellation within the Côtes du Rhône Villages was second only to Gigondas to earn its own village appellation status. Its wines may be red, rosé or white—though hardly any is white. Its high winemaking standards follow many of the same rules as Chateauneuf-du-Pape. But for Vacqueyras red wines, half of the grapes have to be Grenache and the remainder is usually a combination of Syrah, Mourvedre and Cinsault.
While they can be robust and rustic in style, typically a great Vacqueyras red combines delicate aromas with intense fruit and a bright, crisp texture. They certainly don’t lack any character and show an abundance of black cherry, wild berry, plum, fig, baking spice, and a touch of game or smoke.