2012 E. Guigal Côte-Rôtie La Turque
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Tasting notes
Not far off the exuberant style of the 2011, the 2012 Côte Rôtie La Turque (93% Syrah and 7% Viognier) is nevertheless slightly more reserved and will benefit from another couple of years of bottle age. Nevertheless, it’s one sexy beauty! A dense purple color, notes of smoky black and blue fruits, cured meats, chocolate, and roasted herbs, full-bodied richness, and sweet, seamless tannins all make for a magical Côte Rôtie. Give bottles another 2-3 years, count yourself lucky, and enjoy over the following two decades or more.
Critic scores
Jancis Robinson MW
James Suckling
More reviews and scores
Youthful violet. Powerful, smoke- and mineral-accented black and blue fruits and incense on the explosively perfumed nose. Stains the palate with sweet blueberry, cherry, violet pastille and spicecake flavors that show superb depth as well as vivacity. Seamless and alluringly sweet; a core of juicy acidity adds lift and spine. Supple tannins build steadily on an extremely long, focused finish that leaves suave floral and Moroccan spice notes behind.
Similar to the La Mouline with its forward, incredibly sexy style, the 2012 Côte Rôtie La Turque (there’s 7% Viognier in the blend) offers a saturated purple color to go with meaty, smoky notes of cassis, cured meats, chocolate and roasted herbs. It’s a big mouthful of a wine, with full-bodied richness and a stacked mid-palate, but it has a seamless, weightless texture, perfectly ripe tannin and a blockbuster finish. I’d happily drink a glass today, but it should be at its finest from 2020-2046.
Made from Syrah and 7% Viognier, this has an intriguingly assertive yet elegant stance. it's compact, powerful and composed. Very complex, fragrant notes on the nose of orange zest, pepper, cloves and cardamom: It's all really spicy. On the palate, this is elegant and silky with plenty of fine tannin and a structure that's striking for its density. Dark-chocolate flavors are also a prominent feature. This expands vertically on the palate, even if oak ageing has mellowed this nicely all the way up to its creamy finish. A wine of clarity and purity: complex but refined.