2009 Comte Louis de Clermont-Tonnerre (Alain Corcia) Châteauneuf du Pape Cuvée Hervé
Alain Corcia is a family-run negotiant wine firm, Prestige des Grand Vins de France (international) and La Cave (French), based in Burgundy, according to this wonderfully informative site, chateauneuf.dk. The Comte Louis de Clermont-Tonnerre is an administrator of the firm who has inherited the French title. This particular CdP, Hervé, is named after one of Alain and Patricia Corcia’s children. Hervé is extremely blessed. I wish that someone would name a CdP after me!
We tasted this at K & L recently as part of a Rhône event. They had numerous other CdPs with the Comte Louis de Clermont-Tonnerre (Alain Corcia) label, which makes me think that this is a direct import for the shop in San Francisco. We had the chance to taste André Eleazar and Hervé then. Well all agreed that we preferred the second.
It is difficult getting information about this negociant firm so I tried e-mailing Patricia Corcia through her blog. I’ll keep you posted.
Our great friend, Chris, bought this bottle of Hervé which we enjoyed at home that afternoon.
K & L writes that the wine is 60% Grenache and 20% each syrah and mourvedre.
It was a murky translucent purplish red in the glass with an appealing nose of tobacco and licorice. We tasted lots of fruit with some interesting complexity, refined tannins and earth notes on a medium body with a long finish. Hegui said “It doesn’t offend me in any way. It’s just pleasant wine all around.”