If you’re looking for an outstanding wine in a great vintage, focus on the 2007 Domaine Moulin-Tacussel Chateauneuf-du-Pape.
In 1976, Robert and Annette Moulin purchased Henri Tacussel’s vineyards. The 20 acres are spread across 11 plots and contain some vines a century old that are used in a special bottling labeled Hommage a Henri Tacussel. While Chateaunueuf-du-Pape regulations allow for 13 different grapes to be grown and used in its red wine, Domaine Moulin-Tacussel concentrates on the Grenache grape with supporting roles from syrah and mourvedre.

The 2007 vintage in Chateauneuf-du-Pape was the most successful of all the major appellations in France. Located in the southern section of the Rhone Valley, Chateauneuf-du-Pape experienced a long, warm harvest season unlike anywhere else in the country. While Bordeaux, Burgundy, Champagne, and the northern Rhone suffered through a cool fall and intermitten rains, vineyard workers in Chateauneuf-du-Pape and the surrounding areas harvested fully ripened grapes.

Winemaker Didier Latour made the 2007 Domaine Moulin-Tacussel Chateauneuf-du-Pape from a blend of 70 percent grenache, 10 percent each syrah and mourvedre, and the final 10 percent from four minor grapes. The wine was aged in used large wood vats and barrels (called foudres in Chateauneuf-du-Pape) for a little over a year, preserving the natural richness of the 2007 vintage.

In the glass, the 2007 Domaine Moulin-Tacussel Chateauneuf-du-Pape is a glistening black cherry color with exploding black fruit and herbal scents. A bushel of blackberry and plum flavors cascades on the palate with round, ripe tannins providing a velvety texture. Perfectly balanced, this full-bodied wine lingers in the mouth long enough to be charged rent. Put this wine in your cellar for the next five to 10 years, and you’ll have a delicious wine from a great vintage.

It would be remiss of me not to point out the complexity and superior aging of the intensly scented and flavored 2007 Domaine Moulin-Tacussel Hommage a Henri Tacussel Chateaunuef-du-Pape. Made from 95 percent grenache grown on vines planted in 1904 and aged in a mix of new and older foudres, this wine is limited to 1,200 bottles. In a vintage like 2007, wine collectors should seek a few bottles for their cellar.

The regular bottling of the 2007 Chateauneuf-du-Pape retails for approximately $40, the 2007 Hommage a Henri Tacussel is about $60.