Rob's "Wine of the Week" Archives
So here is my wine review for the week of January 5th, 2009...
JOSEPH PHELPS LE MISTRAL 2006
Description: My goal when I opened this bottle from my “ready-to-drink” wine cellar (meaning it was in the category of wines that no longer need cellaring) was to offer you a review of a very reasonably priced wine that often delivers well above adequate quality. I was stunned to learn that Phelps is getting $45 per bottle from this wine. When I discovered it in 2000, it was a $15 bottle!
Le Mistral is Phelps’ attempt at reproducing a French style wine using grapes grown in Monterey California. Phelps describes the wine as “a blend which includes the major grape varieties, or cépages, that have been grown in the Southern Rhône Valley of France for centuries.”
The 2006 Le Mistral is 62% Syrah, 35% Grenache and 3% Alicante Bouscher.
How and when I drank it: Tuesday, December 02, 2008 at my house.
How to get it: The winery sells it on their website, it appears on restaurant wine lists throughout Northern Nevada and California and many wine stores carry it both in retail centers and online.
How Much: The bottle is $45 from the winery
My Thoughts: As a guy who generally loathes French wines and most attempts to clone them, this is a nice wine. Not amazing, not superb, but nice. It’s funny to read the winemaker’s notes as compared to the actual taste of the wine. Since the wine is more than half Syrah, it SHOULD have flavors of pepper, spice and some mineral. It doesn’t. This wine is designed to be a young, less full red wine than a full syrah and Phelps should acknowledge that in their tasting notes. There is zero pepper, zeros spice and still plenty of body and spice. There’s no need to be ashamed of a fruity, dark, full finishing red wine that is far from balanced, heavy on fruit and a little sweet.
Overall Score: This would be a great wine if it was under $25. I cannot believe Phelps has the audacity to charge $45 for this wine. It simply is not worth such a price tag. It’s a nice wine, and I enjoyed and drank the whole bottle but I would never spend that much for a second bottle, so it’s scored get dinged. 2 vines.
JOSEPH PHELP LE MISTRAL 2006 = 
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