| Score: |
94 JG.
"The Clos de la Dioterie is the oldest parcel of vines in the Joguet portfolio, as the vines are a mix of seventy and eighty year-old cabernet franc vines planted on a deep soil of clay and gravel right next to the domaine. The wine is fermented very traditionally, with no temperature control, and then aged for a year in old oak barrels before bottling. The 2003 is another brilliant bottle of Chinon, as the wine soars from the glass in an aromatic mélange of black cherries, sweet cassis, violets, tobacco leaf and deep soil tones. On the palate the wine is full-bodied, deep and beautifully balanced, with a great core of fruit, ripe, well-integrated tannins, and great length and grip on the complex and palate-staining finish. What is remarkable about all of these 2003s from Domaine Joguet is that, with the exception of the regular bottling of the Varennes du Grand Clos, none of them shows any signs of sur maturité or elevated alcohol levels from the torrid conditions of the summer of ’03. Across the board, this is brilliant winemaking on display, and the Clos de la Dioterie may well be the pick of the litter in this outstanding vintage chez Joguet." View From the Cellar, Jul/Aug 2006, Issue #4 |