1993 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape

When I tasted the 1993 Beaucastel in Chateauneuf du Pape, the wine was far more showy, flashy, and open-knit than bottles tasted state-side, admittedly right after reaching these shores. I backed off my initial high rating a bit and added the question mark because of how tannic, backward, and firm the wine showed on two separate occasions from a case I purchased. It certainly possesses the dense color I described in my original review (issue #101), as well as plenty of body and intensity. However, the rich, sweet, open-knit bouquet has gone into hibernation, leaving a tightly-knit wine that is frozen in place, reluctantly offering up aromas of black fruits and smoke. Tannic, austere, and more in step with the 1988, this appears to be a vintage that will require more initial cellaring than I had anticipated. It will be interesting to re-taste this wine after it has had 4-6 months of rest on these shores. Beaucastel is imported by Vineyard Brands, Chester, VT; tel. (802) 875-2139