SINE QUA NON

2017 Chimere | Clos Saint-Jean Chateauneuf-du-Pape, Rhone Valley France 1.5L Magnum

The 2017 Chimère reminds me a little of the 2011 with its more elegant yet still powerful style. Beautiful notes of black cherries, blueberries, cured meats, pepper, tree bark, and new leather all emerge from the glass, followed by a rich, medium to full-bodied, tight, backward and unevolved Mourvèdre that needs to be forgotten for 4-5 years. As always, this cuvée is primarily Mourvèdre...| 95 points, Jeb Dunnuck for jebdunnuck.com

Chimere is a joint venture in Chateauneuf-du-Pape, in France's southern Rhone Valley, between Manfred Krankl, the brothers Vincent and Pascal Maurel, and oenologist Philippe Cambie. The venture was formed to make a Chateauneuf-du-Pape that would reflect the terroir of one of the most famous vineyards of the Rhone Valley, La Crau, and the collective know-how of several of the world's most admired winemakers. Krankl is the founder and winemaker behind Sine Qua Non, the Central California Coast cult producer of highly individualistic wines. The Maurels own and operate the renowned Clos Saint-Jean in Chateauneuf-du-Pape, and Cambie is the Rhone Valley's most admired consulting winemaker. Predominantly Mourvedre, Chimere is Fench for "chimera", or dream or fantasy... Only four 300-liter barrels were made, bottled only as magnums of which about 800 were bottled.