French red wine values tasted in 2004

The selected French bottlings have given me much pleasure for the price. I have purchased them again for personal consumption. Featured values include three Rhône rangers.
 

The below wines were tasted in France, in 2004 (between April and December).The tasting notes are listed by increasing prices, with the following format:

Appellation - producer - plot or brand - variety
Vintage - approximate price - general impression - on nose - on palate - after swallowing
 

 Vin-de-pays - Domaine Roger Perrin
Non vintage - 2 € - grape - grape, dries the gum and the palate, fresh
route de Châteauneuf, 84100 Orange, tél : +33 (0) 4 90 34 25 64
 

 Coteaux-du-languedoc-saint-saturnin - Cave des vignerons de Saint-Saturnin - Lucian
2001 - 3.2 € - I have only tasted it: - a nose dominated by crushed fruit, a pleasant aroma that reminds of wine after fermentation and before bottling - dense, fruity, balanced, dries the palate, herbaceous, a little stiff - the aftertaste is overwhelmed by plant, sustained by alcohol
Auchan
 

 Vin-de-pays-du-Jardin-de-la-France - Marc Ollivier - Domaine de la Pépière - Côt
2001 - 4 € - the wine is clear and pure, green pepper dominates the flavour - the palate is very slightly offdry, light with a hint of hardness

Where to purchase Ollivier wines
 

 Coteaux-varois - Domaine de la Gayolle - Jacques Paul - Orante (80% syrah, 20% grenache)
2000 - 5.3 € - red fruit - supple on entry, the palate is aromatic and balanced
Domaine de la Gayolle, quart Pourchières, route Nationale 7, 83170 Brignoles, tél. +33/4 94 59 10 88
 

 Vin-de-pays-de-l'Ardèche - Le Mazel - Cuvée C'est Im-Portant
2002 - 6.2 € - served cool (maybe at 14°C), do not decant - formidable on the nose, fruit jelly, blackberry or blackcurrant sorbet, crushed blackberry, a note of smokiness, cherry, ligneous - juicy, cherry, a plant note, dry, fresh like a fruit juice (with a hint of grapefruit) - the wine lingers with blackcurrant and strawberry

Where to purchase Le Mazel wines
 

 Bourgogne-hautes-côtes-de-nuits - Domaine Patrick Hudelot - (Pinot noir, à la propriété / sans nom de cuvée en grande distribution)
2001 - 7.2 € - a nose of cherry and underbrush: classical Burgundy - rich and flattering on entry (thanks to oak treatment?), onctuous, cherry, dries the palate, ends with a pronounced plant note (maybe due to an incomplete ripeness of grapes) - (to be compared to the same vintage tasted one year earlier)
 

 Côtes-du-rhône - Domaine La Réméjeanne - Rémy Klein - Les Genévriers - Grenache 50%, syrah 40%, mourvèdre 10%
2000 - 9 € - rather quiet on the nose, with mature fruit and roasting - dense on the palate without a plant note, velvety, delicate aromas of liquorice, blackcurrant and prune, the balance is well made thanks to a nice acidity
Sabran, +33 (0) 4 66 89 44 51
 

 Morey-st-denis - Dominique Laurent - 1er cru Les Monts luisants
1997 - 48 € - this sublime wine does not require ageing any more, it shows both fruit and nerve - a harmonious bouquet of flower, earth, and red berry - the liquid is very intense in the mouth, with red berry, fur, and freshness
Village, 21220 L'Étang Vergy, tél. +33 (0) 3 80 61 49 94
 
 

This article is completed by a primer on organizing wine tasting parties.