Tried the 2004 Vieux Telegraphe, Chateauneuf-du-Pape Rouge tonight. It’s been upright for about 3 weeks, so a crystal-clear decant was easy. Decanted for about an hour before the first taste. A beautiful crimson red in the glass, a bit of clearing on the edges, but actually younger-appearing than some notes on CT would indicate. Gorgeous nose of plum, kirsch, menthol, earth, smoke, and spices. Supple texture starting to appear on the palate, although it still has a bit of tannin to shed, with intense plum and brambly blackberry fruit, smoke, meat, spice, and gravelly earth. Really gorgeous CdP, everything is in balance, and it will do nothing but improve for at least another 5 years, but this is not at peak now (nor declining…hah!) despite some recent CT notes. I think I should just add 5 years to anything on CT that says any wine like this is ready, as they rarely are. Honestly, I think there is so much variability in wholesale/retail/personal storage conditions that the only way to know a truly representative bottle of any wine is to know the provenance. I have probably had more vintages of VT Rouge than any other wine over the years, and they always age better, and longer, than most people predict, even from “mediocre” vintages, as long as the provenance is good. From proper storage, this is a first-rate CdP that is just starting to enter it’s prime drinking zone. The '04/'05 vintages have always reminded me of the '94/'95 vintages, just 10 years later. The '95/'05 were always rated higher, as they were bigger, more structured years, but the '94/'04 wines have always been a touch prettier, more elegant, and maybe a touch more classically balanced. Sadly, only one more 750 and a monster of a 3 liter left in the cellar. That 3 liter might be a nice centerpiece for a 75th birthday party in 2039? Approx…94-95.
Great note, and I completely agree, I usually take the over when consulting CT. Also have an affinity for '04, under-appreciated, under-valued, and less forward as a generality.
Had this from magnum about 6 weeks ago and it is indeed a beautiful wine right now.
Good note, Marshall, thank you. I sold a lot of my CdP, but I kept all of my Vieux Telegraphe.
Hi Marshall, been a while since my visit to you up north. I opened the 98 Vieux Donjon tonight and its still beautiful and going strong. On the other hand the 98 Clos des Papes was so mildly corked that I was able to open it smell it as clean but upon tasting, decides somethings not right here. Glad I had the VD ready to go to. Happy New Year! Good to see you posting here… Everett
Yep, it’s the only one I still purchase, although since they often need 20+ years, that will probably cease soon, too. Old age and all.
Marshall,
Much more eloquent than my note from May. I am am sadly down to my last two bottles as well.
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2004 Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe Châteauneuf-du-Pape La Crau - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Châteauneuf-du-Pape (5/9/2020)
The 2004 Vieux Telegraphe always pleases me. It’s a less powerful vintage but with all of the usual VT pallette, and now getting to the age where it becomes much more expressive. It’s great to drink now and probably for another decade. Or more. Excellent. (93 pts.)
Posted from CellarTracker
I’ve loved my '04 Chateauneufs Marshall and to my mind they have been drinking superbly for a number of years with wonderful elegance and perfume. My most recent was a Clos des Papes last month which opened up to some lovely florality. Sadly; that was my last bottle out of all my '04s but I had planned to pull out an '05 Vieux Telegraphe to see how it is faring.
Very Holmesque title!
Very nice note. I have an 89 on tap for tonight.
Hey Everett! I think I have a couple of '98 VTs left and that’s about it for the vintage. It wouldn’t surprise me that VD and CdP would still be good, but so many of the other '98s were too jammy and ripe for me…I really decreased my CdP buying after that vintage.
Not to take anything away from Jeremy, but I’ve been posting TN puns and annoyances (according to some) since the old AOL wine boards back in 1994.
can you Marshall some support for that? From those of us Manning the pun production? I think your title Telegraphed the fine wine note.
You are telegraphing now…
PS. Killer note.
Great post, Marshall, thank you. I stopped buying this with the 2006 vintage, age and all. If you get anxious to open that 3.0L, my 75th is a mere 20 years away - it’ll be ready then, too!
in 2008, during a visit, they blind tasted me, and I nailed the '94, and the '95 they opened for me. Blind squirrel, and all…
I drink their CdP once or twice a year now - used to be a case or two each year - and I’d be perfectly lost if blind tasting them today.
special wine, this
I can’t recall much experience with 2004 Vieux Telegraphe, though I do have a 3.0l in the cellar as one of the birth year wines to bequeath my youngest daughter when she hits drinking age. But for VT in general, I have a long history with the wine dating back to the ‘83 vintage. It took me a few decades to come to the view that this was the CnDP that is most in sympathy with my palate. Unlike others, Beaucastel, Donjon, Clos de Pape, etc., it is never flamboyant in its youth. Might this be why it’s never really been a darling of the critics and so scores more modestly on release? I’m glad for that. It’s keeps the wine within reach and has allowed me to buy pretty steadily from the ‘85 vintage on up to around 2005 when my buying in general slowed down. My experience of the wine though is that the restraint that marks the wine on release manifests in later years into an incredibly nuanced and complex nose and palate. I still think about the ‘88 VT I had at Chez Panisse in 2008. Ethereal! Not what you generally expect from a CnDP - certainly not Clos de Pape, or Donjon or Beaucastel (ok, yes, with Rayas, but let’s stick with wines in reach of the working man!). Further, VT seems much less dependent on the vintage prognostication. Whatever the vintage, you can have a reasonable level of comfort in purchasing it, cellaring it, and letting time work its’ magic. Patience will be rewarded. Just don’t buy any of the older vintages, I’m still backfilling…
Thanks, David. Lots of good insight here, and I totally agree with you. This is the only CdP I still buy, and I think one of the main reasons for the restraint is the relatively high proportions of other grapes here along with the Grenache, which tends to cut down on the overt jammy, one-dimensional character of many of the Grenache-heavy wines. I was lucky enough to have a number of wine friends open older vintages earlier in my wine career, as well as visiting the domaine a number of times on the KL tour, so I’ve been able to taste most vintages from '71 through '15. Even in vintages that most people didn’t cellar, these wines age well and develop suppleness and complexity. A '93, tried a couple of years ago was still stunning at age 25, for example. Once this Covid thing is done, we’re due for a SoCal trip, so I’d love to share a few bottles.
Sounds like a plan Marshall! Give me a buzz after this pesky COVID thing!
James may have to eat Crau now…
And I for one am happy to see them again.
Though IIRC I mostly knew them from WCWN? Or was it WLDG?