An Excellent, Disappointing Wine

Domaine La Soumade
2003 Fleur de Confiance, Rasteau
$54.99
Shane’s Notes

My instincts told me not to buy this wine. I do not like spending more than $50 on a bottle of wine, I certainly don’t think Rhones are worth more than $50 and I don’t think Grenache is interesting enough to be a stand alone varietal (this wine is 90% Grenache). However, we have enjoyed Doumaine La Soumade’s lesser offerings and Parker gave this one a 95. I’ll admit that I was swayed by Parker’s rating.

It’s easy to see why Parker loves this wine – it is complex, elegant and magnificently structured. It is so elegant that it drinks more like a high class Bordeaux than a Rhone. The flavors (seamlessly blended into one another) include thyme, sweet fruit, kirsch, cherry, plum and smoke. We both characterized it as port-like. Our one complaint is that it finished a bit hot.

I should have listened to my instincts. Yes, this wine was extremely well-crafted, but neither of us thinks it is worth the price. While the palate showed moderate complexity, it just wasn’t concentrated enough for our tastes. We don’t want an elegant Rhone – We want a flavor bomb!!!