Tasting Notes
JancisRobinson.com 16.5
[For obvious (to many of you) reasons, I am falling over myself to see the good points in this year’s Pavie – but am sad that I was robbed of the chance of tasting it blind with its peers, as I was able to with the infamous 2003, because the proprietor Gérard Perse has decided this year not to show his wines in the UGC tasting (see Visiting Ch Pavie).] Very dark purple with a certain rich smokiness on the nose. Quite a spread of inky fruit across the palate (less rasping than Pavie Decesse) but then those tannins start to insist. The evolution of this wine is going to be a tricky balancing act between the very marked, dry tannins and that slightly fragile fruit quality. At the moment the wine is extremely severe, as though the fruit has been sucked out of the middle. It is certainly fresher than the 2003, without any porty hints, but if Pavie 2003 is like an exaggerated version of the characteristics of the 2003 vintage, this is certainly its 2004 counterpart.
Anticipated maturity: 2018-2028
Robert Parker 95+
A brilliant effort from proprietors Chantal and Gerard Perse, Pavie’s 2004 (7,050 cases) exhibits an inky/ruby/purple color, a surprisingly soft, forward style for this hallowed terroir, full-bodied, and concentrated creme de cassis flavors intermixed with cherries, truffles, and subtle smoky wood notes. Beautifully-textured as well as expansive, this may be the most developed and forward Pavie made by Perse since his acquisition of the property in 1998. Anticipated maturity: 2009-2025+.
Anticipated maturity: 2009-2025
