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Cornas, Domaine Auguste Clape 2016

RegionRhône
Subregion France > Rhône > Northern Rhône > Cornas
ColourRed
TypeStill
Grape VarietySyrah

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Label

Tasting Notes

Many layers of aromas, complex and spicy with a fragrant array of dark brambly berries, dark plums, dark chocolate. Spices and peppers, as well as graphite-like stony notes. There’s a silky core to the palate with extreme power, all delivered so precisely that appear light and elegant. Sweet spiced-fruit flavors run long and bright, exploding in a spectacular spicy finish. Spends two winters in the cellar to deliver finesse in terms of tannins. Barrel sample.

98/99
Nick Stock, JamesSuckling.com, August 2018

The 2016 Cornas is cut from the same cloth yet has slightly more density as well as structure. Crazy notes of incense, beef blood, plums, ground pepper, and blueberries all emerge from this perfumed, massively concentrated Cornas that has building tannins, a tight, chiseled mouthfeel, and a great, great finish. Hide bottles for 5-7 years and it will keep for 2+ decades.

97
Jeb Dunnuck, JebDunnuck.com, December 2018

This is brimming with steeped plum, blackberry and cassis notes, inlaid liberally with licorice root, singed juniper, tar and tobacco accents. A lingering echo of smoldering cast iron emerges on the grippy finish, along with a swath of warm humus details, giving this a dense and chewy feel. The core of fruit is massive, but this will require patience. Best from 2022 through 2045.

98
James Molesworth, Wine Spectator Insider, October 2019

Marked by hints of tar and black pepper on the nose, Clape's 2016 Cornas is earthy and savory, loaded with notes of black olives but with enough blueberries and blackberries to satisfy fans of fruit as well. It's full-bodied, rich and tannic but not tough or hard, with incredible balance. It's so harmonious that it's not overly difficult to drink now, yet it should age gracefully for a couple of decades.

96
Joe Czerwinski, Wine Advocate, December 2019

For the 2016 Cornas, a couple of the foudres I tasted from were truly amazing, like the Sabarotte, which is imbued with the bloody-meaty essence of Cornas, velvety tannins and the Reynards Vieilles Vignes, replanted after phylloxera, which showed incredible perfumes and complexity. Drink Date 2021 - 2040

93/97
Joe Czerwinski, Wine Advocate (234), December 2017
Please note that these tasting notes/scores are not intended to be exhaustive and in some cases they may not be the most recently published figures. However, we always do our best to add latest scores and reviews when these come to our attention. We advise customers who wish to purchase wines based simply on critical reviews to carry out further research into the latest reports.