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The February 2018 Distinguished Cellar Auction Featuring The Tower Cellar
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1 / 2Lot 475
Estimate: $2,000
5cm, nicked capsule, lightly stained vintage neck tag, scuffed and lightly torn label.
This auction has ended. Bidding is closed.
Reviews
100RP
"The 1978 has provided me with some of the most decadent nectar of my life. It is one of the most precious wines in my collection, and I would not trade it for anything less than a 1961 Chateau Latour a Pomerol! The wine began life as a massive but structured, backward Rayas and came into full bloom during the mid-eighties. It has not lost any of its huge concentration of jammy black-raspberry/kirsch/cherry fruit. The dark garnet color reveals some amber at the edge. The smoky, earthy, gamy nose that interplays with the extraordinary quantity of fruit is a hedonist's dream. Thick, juicy, and succulent, with no hard edges, this high-octane, marvelously proportioned and concentrated wine is Rayas at its greatest. It remains to be seen if the 1989, 1990, and 1995 live up to the sumptuous quality of the 1978 Rayas. My gut feeling is that the 1990 should surpass this monumental wine, the 1995 and 1989 should rival it, and the 1988 might come close to equaling it. Drink it over the next 7-8 years, as the finest Chateauneuf du Papes from this vintage have proven to have uncommon ageability."
Region
Red
Country
Score
"The 1978 has provided me with some of the most decadent nectar of my life. It is one of the most precious wines in my collection, and I would not trade it for anything less than a 1961 Chateau Latour a Pomerol! The wine began life as a massive but structured, backward Rayas and came into full bloom during the mid-eighties. It has not lost any of its huge concentration of jammy black-raspberry/kirsch/cherry fruit. The dark garnet color reveals some amber at the edge. The smoky, earthy, gamy nose that interplays with the extraordinary quantity of fruit is a hedonist's dream. Thick, juicy, and succulent, with no hard edges, this high-octane, marvelously proportioned and concentrated wine is Rayas at its greatest. It remains to be seen if the 1989, 1990, and 1995 live up to the sumptuous quality of the 1978 Rayas. My gut feeling is that the 1990 should surpass this monumental wine, the 1995 and 1989 should rival it, and the 1988 might come close to equaling it. Drink it over the next 7-8 years, as the finest Chateauneuf du Papes from this vintage have proven to have uncommon ageability."
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The world's most influential fine-wine producer and the benchmark for Bordeaux, Burgundy, Champagne and the Rhone. Its appellation (AOC) system codifies geography, grape and method, and its wines set the global standard for age-worthiness and terroir expression.
Spans the Syrah-driven northern crus of Cote-Rotie and Hermitage and the Grenache-based blends of the warmer south, led by Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Its wines are known for power, spice and warmth.
The southern Rhone's most famous appellation, blending Grenache with Syrah, Mourvedre and more into rich, warming, spice-laden reds from galet-strewn soils.
A warm-climate red giving generous, high-alcohol wines of red fruit and spice. It anchors southern Rhone blends and old-vine wines in Spain and Australia.
A late-ripening red lending structure, dark fruit and gamey, meaty complexity to southern Rhone and Mediterranean blends.
Syrah (Shiraz) produces dark, powerful reds with black fruit, pepper and smoked-meat notes. It yields elegant, perfumed wines in the northern Rhone and bold, rich styles in Australia.