2020 Cote Rotie La Mordoree
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Tasting notes
Much like the 2019, the 2020 Cote Rotie la Mordorée is one of the best Chapoutier Cote Roties I can recall tasting. Scents of menthol, cedar, wild blueberries, vanilla and violets all show up on the nose, while the palate is medium to full-bodied, smooth, silky and elegant. Really long on the finish, it's a beauty that should drink well for close to two decades.
Critic scores
Average Score
Jeb Dunnuck
Josh Raynolds
More reviews and scores
The 2020 Côte Rôtie La Mordorée brings the quality up a significant notch. Based on 100% Syrah from the Côte Blonde and Côte Brune lieux-dits, it was completely destemmed and spent two years in 30% new French oak before bottling. Liquid rock-like minerality, smoked red and black fruits, violets, and exotic, gamey, floral nuances all emerge on the nose, and it just about screams Côte Rôtie aromatically. Medium to full-bodied on the palate, this cuvée is never over the top, and the 2020 offers an incredible mix of richness and elegance, with flawless balance, ultra-fine tannins, a dense mid-palate, and a great, great finish. It's going to flirt with perfection in 7-8 years and have 25-30 years of prime drinking. Hello, beautiful!
Dark ruby. Displays expansive cherry liqueur, cassis and candied violet qualities on the intensely perfumed nose, along with hints of vanilla, violet and olive. Juicy and broad on the palate, offering appealingly sweet black/blue fruit, mocha, licorice and floral pastille flavors that are enlivened by a core of juicy acidity. Gently chewy tannins add shape to a strikingly long finish that features resonating blue fruit, olive paste and spice notes. 50% new oak.