Château de Beaucastel - Coudoulet de Beaucastel rouge 2017

Bettane & Desseauve

About the wine:

Finesse and elegance for this outstanding Côtes-du-Rhône. Not to be missed!

About the domain :

Beaucastel has been owned by the Perrin family since 1909, and is now run by Jean-Pierre and François, the sons of Jacques Perrin, along with Cécile, Marc, Pierre, Thomas, Charles, Mathieu and César, the fifth generation. In other words: a family affair! Situated on a 100-hectare terroir of rolled pebbles, including 30 hectares of Côtes du Rhône (Coudoulet de Beaucastel), Château Beaucastel produces four wines. In white, a classic cuvée dominated by Roussanne, and the famous cuvée Roussanne-Vieilles-Vignes. In the reds, Mourvèdre plays a major role, accounting for almost a third of plantings, as much as Grenache. This unusual proportion was strategic in 2018, helping to achieve Beaucastel's characteristic finesse and freshness. This is undoubtedly one of France's finest domains vineyards, with, it seems to us, an added purity in recent years.

Robert Parker - Wine Advocate

About the wine:

Still maturing at the time of my June visit (it was due to be bottled at the end of the month). The final blend of the 2017 Côtes du Rhône Coudoulet de Beaucastel showed plenty of garrigue and dried spice notes overlaid with cherry aromas. Full-bodied, with a silky texture and long finish, it should drink well for a decade or more.

RVF - La Revue du Vin de France / Guide des Meilleurs Vins de France

About the domain :

With its distinctive terroir of rolled pebbles, Château de Beaucastel is one of the emblems of Châteauneuf-du-Pape. This estate is proud to be one of the few to use all thirteen authorized grape varieties to produce its red wine. This is a wine of consistently high quality, but one that faces competition from cuvées that have upset the appellation's hierarchy. Of course, the extremely rare and remarkable cuvée Hommage à Jacques Perrin, made from a large majority of Mourvèdre and produced only in the best years, remains a benchmark, as does the sumptuous white Roussanne Vieilles Vignes, which reveals itself with age. Under the efficient management of the Perrin family, Château de Beaucastel remains a benchmark for wines from the south of France, a status it must now share with others domains that have reached, or even surpassed, its level.

Vinous A. Galloni

James Suckling

About the wine:

Abundant, rich, ripe red fruit with a hint of spicy pastry and firm complexity. The palate is boldly structured, very fleshy, with frank tannins. Fresh and easy. Drink now.

Jeb Dunnuck

About the wine:

The 2017 Coudoulet de Beaucastel is the perfect example of this cuvée. Although it tends to be relatively expensive for a Côtes Du Rhône, it's well worth the price. Complex garrigue, ground pepper and earthy black fruits spill over into a medium- to full-bodied wine with an elegant, polished texture and the sunny, Provençal style of the vintage. It can last 15 years or more.