Domaine Jamet, Côte-Rôtie, Rhône, France, 2018
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Overview of the Wine
One look at the steeply perched, ancient terroirs of Northern Rhône’s Côte-Rôtie is enough to understand why farming them is a badge of honor, yet the Jamet family is fortunate enough to own 7 hectares among 20 of the appellation’s most superb parcels in 15 lieux-dits. Joseph Jamet started the domaine in 1950 with only a third of a hectare in the Côte Brune. Like many of his neighbors, his land had been planted to peach and apricot orchards, as they were easier to farm than the steep vineyard terraces of Côte-Rôtie. Over the years, however, Joseph began to acquire more vineyard parcels throughout the appellation, clearing and replanting several of them himself. Today, his son Jean-Paul and Jean-Paul’s wife, Corinne, run the domaine and have made vast improvements to the estate by instigating soil studies and installing gravity-fed systems into their winery.
Grapes/Blend
Syrah
Origin
Rhône, France
Winemaker's Tasting Notes
The assemblage, a key word for Jean-Paul, makes it possible to access the Côte Rôtie of the Domaine Jamet. The variety of terroirs, exposure and the age of the vines are complementary elements that combine their strengths. Produced from twenty parcels and essentially in whole bunches, the wine is subsequently kept in barrels for twenty-two months.
I was able to taste numerous barrel samples of the 2018 Côte Rôtie, all rating between 95 and 99 points, which is a good sign! Most barrels were not destemmed and all the samples displayed inky colors, beautiful purity of fruit, classic Jamet style and complexity, and building tannins. Is this a remake of 1999? It has more upfront charm than the Côte Brune, but as with all great vintages of Jamet, 5-7 years of bottle age are rewarded.
Liqueur-fruited, incredibly dense and opulent. The alcohol is quite high and the fruit very dark, underscored by big, slightly blocky and tight tannins. Rich, warming and generous style; very much a solaire vintage.
It's never easy to prognosticate how the final assemblage will turn out, but I tasted eight different lots of the 2018 Cote Rotie, the least of which I rated (92 - 94), with some as high as (95 - 97). Overall, the wines are very ripe (le Plomb clocks in at over 15% alcohol), with supple tannins but also adequate freshness. Together, the result should be a full-bodied, rich yet lively wine, with notes of violets, hickory smoke, black olives and cassis. Based on past experience, I'd expect this wine to look firmer out of bottle than it does presently, with two decades or more of cellaring possible.
Product size: 750ml