1985 Chateau Cos d' Estournel Saint Estephe Bordeaux France

You probably noticed lately that my notes describe more expensive and high quality wines, and not anymore or rarely the good value that I used to taste, buy and write about.

Well, don't get any idea that I may have won the lottery, far from it, I just changed my job a few months ago and my boss is a wine lover and collector who has a great palate and extremely good taste for fancy rare and refined wines.

As one of the directors for his company's wine division and personal Sommelier, I do not buy anymore wines or even taste as much as I used to before while buying for boutique retailers and restaurants and I'm less aware of the current market.

However, I now get to taste some truly rare gems that I have never and surely will never be able to afford. Hence, even if only with words, I like to share these delightful experiences with you on my blog. It reminds me when I was a young Sommelier / Wine Buyer in London 15 years ago working with award winning wine lists full of these rare jewels.

I feel privilege and lucky every time I open one of these bottles, because rare and few like me have the opportunity to taste some if these truly sought after and revered wines combining history and stories, conveying emotions and nostalgia, as well as being the pinnacle of drinking luxury and the collection's centerpieces of the most established auction houses around the world from New York to London, Geneva and Hong Kong.

Nevertheless, I continue to drink pleasant, enticing, more approachable and accessible wines at home. Therefore I will go down from the luxury cloud from time to time to come back to reality and elaborate about everyday wines for everybody, not only the rich and fortunate.

Moreover, only writing about expensive wines will be like denying my roots and culture, and as a countryside Frenchman and grandson of a local winemaker, I feel the need to remain faithful to the small, independent, lesser known producers and appellations, which also corresponds more to my personality and interests.

I have been lucky enough to have tasted quite a few bottles of the following wine in this classic vintage, and I can't get enough of it. Most bottles that I have opened, although quite similar in taste and profile, behaved differently each time and evolved through the last 15 years, but the quality of the wine has remained constant to this day despite going through time and various storage conditions and handling. An undeniable sign of quality and potential for a wine of such a pedigree.

1985 Chateau Cos d' Estournel 2eme Cru Classe Saint Estephe Bordeaux France

In the glass, it exhibited a bright garnet color with slight brownish-brick nuances. The nose was nice and expressive right after opening; but knowing already that this wine needed to breath to fully unloaded its aromatic palette, I decanted it and went back to it after 30 minutes. It was then a fresh explosion of secondary and tertiary aromas. A meli-melo of nuances and hints all at the same time, dark and red berry fruit mingling with figs and old prune, mixed with floral, underbrush and oaky notes as well as mild spice, tobacco, saddle wood and soil.What a lovely nose. The palate was even more exhilarating and unexceptionably youthful (not all bottles are like that by experience, but this one was showing particularly well that day). Complex, rich with great acidity and earthiness, lively red and dark fruit and similar flavors as the nose suggested, but with more earthy, terroir oriented notes. Very long, well balanced and enticing, I loved it. It even showed the potential, texture and structure, combining the needed amount of fruit, acidity and tannins to last for quite a few more years. Definitely a pleasurable wine to get back to and give it a few more years to see how long it will last.    

Tasted on 18.7.2012

Enjoy!

LeDom du Vin

More wines from my back pocket notebooks....

More wines from my back pocket notebooks....

Everybody knows my penchant for Champagne. I even possess an extensive collection of Champagne capsules that I have been gathering for the past 20 years. My father bought me my first books to put them into and I still go from time to time to Reims, in the 2 shops the closest to the cathedral, to buy some limited edition and old and rare caps. Champagne is festive, bubbly, delicious and refreshing and usually should put a smile back on your face. Here is a few that are sure to please you, followed by a few wines from my current back pocket notebook. 

NV Billecart Salmon Brut Réserve Champagne France

Founded in 1818, Billecart-Salmon is a champagne house located in Mareuil-sur-Ay, France. The house was born from the marriage of Nicolas François Billecart and Elisabeth Salmon. It is one of the few remaining family owned house. 

Frankly, Billecart-Salmon has always been one of my favorite Champagne houses and I love their Rosé, which is also one of my top 3 Rosés with Laurent-Perrier Rosé and Marc Hebrart Rosé (a great small producer also located in Mareuil-sur-Ay).

Although it does not have, in my opinion, the appeal of their Rosé, Brut Réserve is still a sure value. Light, bright, a touch yeasty and toasted, nothing overwhelming but always very decent, enjoyable, balanced, quite long and lovely overall. (But I still think their Rosé is way above in quality). (Tasted last on 18.7.2012)

NV Gosset Brut Excellence Champagne France

Founded in 1584, Gosset is one of the oldest Champagne houses of the Champagne region in north-eastern France, located in Ay. No need to say that I love Gosset Brut Excellence, which is definitely my Champagne Brut of choice, hands down, for any occasion. 

Light, crisp, fragrant, very feminine and elegant, Gosset Excellence Brut is like a ballerina dancing on your palate, stimulating your taste buds and whetting your appetite. Balanced and refreshing, every sip is so enjoyable, the first glass is never enough. Far from the fat and the rich, vinous Brut out-there, Gosset Excellence is simply too good to be missed, especially for the price, which remains somewhat of a bargain compared to a lot more expensive and commercial champagnes on the market. (Tasted last in February 2012)      

1990 Louis Roederer Cristal Brut Champagne France 

No need to introduce Louis Roederer Champagne house that has been the Champagne of the Queens and Kings of Europe and Tsars of Russia since its the late 19th century. Or even Cristal, their prestige cuvee, available commercially since 1945, which, along with Dom Perignon and Krug, has been considered as the standard of high quality and luxurious Champagne.

Founded in 1776 under the name of Dubois Pere et Fils, it was renamed Louis Roederer in 1883 by its new eponymous owner, who inherirated the Champagne House from his uncle.

The 1990 Cristal possesses a lovely texture and a long finish, enhanced by yeasty, bready toasted notes, which mingle with aromas of yellow fruits, hay and elderflower. The balance and acidity don't fell to impress as well. Really  nice experience in the glass. I love it. (Tasted last on 18.7.2012)

2000 Chateau Cos d'Estournel 2eme Grand Cru Classe Saint Estephe Bordeaux France

Flagship of the Saint-Estephe appellation, the most northern fief of classified growth in the Haut-Medoc region, Cos d'Estournel has had an essential role on keeping the public interest on the appellation; which somewhat always seems in the shadows of other appellations.  

Despite the tremendous efforts from such classic as Montrose, Calon Segur and Cos, which, over the last decade worked hard to change that reputation and restore the public image of the appellation, producing fleshier, more opulent wines with riper fruit and richer texture, the wines from Saint Estephe still don't seem to have the appeal of those coming from the neighboring appellations to the south.

For this 2000, that I tasted many times, and specifically for this particular bottle: Nose is discreet and slightly woody. The palate is unfortunately to young and a bit tight at present. The tannins and the oak predominate overall, challenging the balance and harmony of the palate and masking the fruit. Otherwise the texture is fairly complex and rich, and the wine presents very good potential, yet for now it is too tight, tannic and closed. Not ready in my opinion, the tannins need to settle down and integrate. We will have to get to this one in a few more years. (Tasted last on 29.10.2012)

The finish is also quite dry; yet it is not surprising though as Saint Estephe wines are usually drier and more austere than most of their counterparts from the Haut-Medoc region, which may explains why consumers favor other appellations. Saint Julien, which offers the best compromise in terms of overall balance, fruit and structure, are usually fruitier; Margaux are more feminine and subtle; and Pauillac are the richest in texture and strongest in structure; while Moulis Listrac can be rustic and earthy.

1990 Chateau L'Evangile Pomerol Bordeaux France

The nose is rich of wild aromas mingling with underbrush, mushrooms, venison, game, very autumnal. The palate is rich, complex, with nice weight and length, well framed by integrated yet present tannins. Although still a bit young, it showed nice potential and decanting was needed. Let it rest for at least 45 minutes before serving. Very nice overall but still a touch too tight and chewy for my taste. The tannins may not please everybody at this time, yet the wine showed very good potential, texture and structure. We will definitely have to go back to this one within the next few years to observe the evolution. (Tasted last on 29.10.2012)

1982 Chateau Leoville Las Cases 2eme Grand Cru Classe Saint Julien Bordeaux France

As it is one of the usual suspect wines on my boss table, I had the chance to open and taste quite a few bottles and I must say that this wine is a bit temperamental. The cork is quite fragile and happens to break often. An Ah-So opener is indispensable, yet careful of not to push the cork in the bottle (Ah-So opener is normally called a twin prong cork puller). 

For this particular bottle, I didn't have my usual tools and evidently, even with the utmost care and years of experience, the cork happened to break at the very bottom. The remain part in the neck was immediately sucked in, splashing some drops all around, including my shirt, tie and my suit (fortunately dark as usual, to be used as a shied, very efficient when opening and tasting wines. Trust my experience, darker cloths are highly suggested in trade tasting and long gourmet dinners). 

Also, at first, just after opening the bottle, although the cork smell usually really good, some bottles may be slightly closed or tight on delivering their full palette aromatic, or I should say their Bouquet at this age. So the first thing that comes to mind is decanting, it needs to breath to fully express itself (what will you do after nearly 30 years stock in a bottle?). It usually takes about 30 to 45 minutes for this wine to wake up and bit more to start settling down and open up. "Patience is mother of virtue" becomes an unavoidable reality with this wine. Yet, waiting for this late bloomer is often rewarding. The drops were just a way to protest against the unjustified way to open such a bottle with a lame bottle opener. (Tasted last on 29.10.2012)

1982 Chateau Palmer 3eme Grand Cru Classe Margaux Bordeaux France 

No need to say that Palmer has always been one of Margaux most recognized offsprings. I never really tasted a bad bottle of Palmer in more than 20 years, even with older vintages going back to the 40's. They were not all great, don't get me wrong and that can be said for all Chateaux depending on the vintage; yet they were very consistent and in most case offering a really pleasant experience. 

But I'm a bit buyist as Palmer brings back to my mind very good memories of all the countless occasions I had the opportunity the be at the Chateaux or tasting the wines. Bernard  de Laage de Meux,  Palmer's marketing and communication director, has seen me under most of the roles and positions I had in the last 12 years, meeting him at the Chateau and many other places around the world: Sommelier, Maitre d'Hotel for private dinners and events working with a caterer friend of mine; Sommelier, Wine Buyer and Wine Director for established Wine & Spirits retail stores in New York; occasionally also as a guests and buyer during the 10+ years of En Primeur campaign before I stopped going because prices became way too high; Sommelier, wine buyer for restaurant while working in London and more recently Hong Kong.

Palmer is an excellent wine, and I know some people who do not like it but I do, and I can not understand what is not to like about this wine.

This 1982 was bright and light, with lovely red fruit enhanced by crisp acidity. Youthful, very gentle, smooth and refreshing, the palate is also quite versatile as it could even be nicely paired with fish. I just loved the acidity of this well balanced, very integrated and so easy to drink wine. While for most people Bordeaux is the expression of full bodied and tannic wines, this wine is the complete opposite of this image, which is one more reason for me to love it.  Highly recommended. (Tasted last on 29.10.2012)

2004 Jacques Frederic Mugnier Chambolle Musigny Burgundy 

Light, bright red showing unripe cherry aromas mingling with earthy, smoky, mineral notes on the nose. Slightly tight, it needs to open up. The palate is also light with green notes, sign of lack of ripress. Yet nothing major or even unusual for the vintage, as 2004 was not a very good vintage in Burgundy, more like a do-your-home-work-then-pick-and-choose type of vintage.

However, this 2004 nice, subtle refreshing and juicy red cherry flavors occupying the mid-palate somewhat help to forget the first impression. And the spicy, peppery nuances mixed with the mineral touch in the finish, allowed me to conclude that in the end, it is a fine example of a good wine for an ok vintage. (Tasted last on 18.07.2012)

1992 Chateau Cheval Blanc 1er Grand Cru Classe A Saint Emilion Bordeaux France

Nice surprise overall for a wine from such an odd and bad vintage as 1992 in Bordeaux. But, as they say, it is during the odd and bad vintages that one can recognize the value and quality of great producers, and more especially gifted winemakers: as it is more difficult to make good wines on bad vintages, than bad wines in good vintages. That said Cheval Blanc is never really bad, even the worst vintages always seem to deliver something more than average or mediocre.

Not everybody can pretend to be a Saint Emilion Grand Cru Classe A. And despite what some people may think about Bordeaux classification and especially the controversial right bank, most Chateaux were classified depending on their respective qualities, the price they fetched at that time, but also their reputation and the consumer's demand (i.e. the more demands, the higher the price and the value, hence a confirmation of the quality).

And that fact still hold strong even today. Some producers, Chateaux owners and wine trade professionals as well as wine critics may want to see certain things changing. And it is true that the tremendous efforts and quality achieved by some estates should be rewarded. Yet, the Bordelais hate changes and love the comforting idea that things will never change and things will continue routinely as they have been for the past 30 years.

In short, as long as interested buyers will be able to speculate on quality and prices before the release of the wines and continue to source and buy wines as a lucrative investment instead of for their own consumption and as long as there will be people rich enough to pay for them, then everything will be fine. 15 years ago London was strong, then New York became stronger for a while, and a few emerging countries like Brazil showed great potential and now Hong Kong and Beijing are the place to sell for Bordelais negociants who litterally turned their back or even abandoned their previous clients to concentrate on the Asian world where most of the world money has been for the past 4 years (although, it is now slightly decreasing and slowing down, but this is an entirely other subject....).

Coming back to that 1992 Cheval Blanc, I was quite impressed and it was a nice surprise as I said earlier. It lacked a bit of concentration and felt slightly diluted but it is normal for a bad vintage compared to a regular or even a good one. However, it was still focus and balanced and pretty expressive, with interesting fruit flavors, good acidity and tannic structure. Spicy, earthy, underbrush, smoky finish. Lovely and interesting overall. (Could it be a fake??? I do not think so, as we inspect the wines that we buy for the company about 3 times before buying, especially when we buy from Auction houses like Chistie's, Sotheby's, Zachy's, Acker Merrall & Condit, Spectrum, amongst others).


That's all for today, I have plenty more short tasting notes in my tasting books, so it is not good bye but to be continued with the next post.....

Enjoy,

LeDom du Vin

  

Wine Travel: T-Edwar trip to Bordeaux 09.17.08 to 09.21.08

Hi everybody,

I just came back from Bordeaux where I spent 3 days and a half with the team of T-Edward Wines (an up-and-coming importer and distributor of fine wines from all around the world). It was great to be in France, the weather was good, the wine showed really well and the food was amazing.

We took off from JFK on Wednesday (09.17.08) in the afternoon, and arrived in Bordeaux (after a connection in Paris CDG... one of the worst airport in the world in my opinion) early morning on Thursday (09.18.08).

T-Edward team included: Tom Edward (the owner of the company), John Roesch (my rep and friend), John Coyle (another rep. and a funny guy), Chris Wilford (another rep. and also a funny guy) and Patrick Burke (Director Domestic and French Brands and also a funny guy). The T-Edward team is great, knowledgeable and they all have a good sense of humor.

The guest were: Bernie Sun (Sommelier / Wine Buyer from "Jean-Georges" Group); Michael Eigen (Wine Buyer and owner of "Premier Cru" wine retail store on Madison St., NYC) and myself (LeDom du Vin a.k.a Dominique Noël, Sommelier / Wine Buyer / Wine Director for www.HeightsChateau.com and taster, writer and editor of this blog www.ledomduvin.com).

Thursday 09.18.08

We picked up a rental car and headed to Margaux for our first appointment of the day at Chateau Bellevue de Tayac.

Chateau Bellevue de Tayac Margaux

Chateau Bellevue de Tayac is a small property of 3 hectares bought in August 2004 by our host of the week-end: Jean-Luc Thunevin (quite a predestinate name for one of the most renown personality of the right bank, isn't it?). The property is managed by Guillaume Queron who is also managing some of the other properties of Jean-Luc Thunevin.

The vineyard is mainly planted on gravel and limestone soil offering very good drainage. It encompasses the 3 classic Bordeaux grapes varieties 80% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc.

For the vintage 2008, the veraison started quite late, around the middle of august. And the weather has been quite bad this summer in the Medoc, with 1 day of Sun and 2 days of rain, and vice-versa until mid september. Some vineyards are suffering of mildew and botrytis, and if the weather is not better for the next 10 to 15 days, the vintage should be really bad and deceiving. On the other hand, some vineyards present healthy bunches, the fruit taste quite good and seems to develop nicely, so most winemakers in Bordeaux are hoping that the sun will remain during the next 10 to 15 days to save the vintage. If it rains, it is over, but if it stays warm during the day with slightly cool night, the crop will be small with ok to great concentration and the vintage should be saved. Let's cross fingers.

Vinification: The gapes are double-sorted in the vineyard, harvested then keep refrigerated at low temperature to concentrate aromas and fruitiness. The alcoholic fermentation happen in stainless steel tank, followed by the malolactic fermentation in oak barrel. The wine stays in barrel for at least a year before bottling. They produce around 6000 bottles.

2008 will be the 5th vintage for J-L Thunevin and Guillaume Queron, and the 2006 wine that we tasted was bright with a good acidity but fairly tight, restrain with dry tannins. To be fare, I didn't write anything about this wine, I think that the next 2 or 3 vintages (if they have good weather) should show more complexity and fruit. A property to keep an eye on.

You can read everything about Jean-Luc Thunevin on his personal site:

www.thunevinblog.com

We left Cht. Bellevue de Tayac to go to our 2nd and last appointment in Margaux (also in the Medoc area for this trip): Chateau Marojallia

Chateau Marojallia Margaux

Chateau Marojallia is also a small property of 4-5 hectares (for Medoc standard to be more specific) bought by Jean-Luc Thunevin in 2000. The 5 hectares included 3 hectares in Margaux, 2 hectares in Arsac and 1 hectare in Soissan. The first vintage was made in 1999 in a garage in the village of Arsac and was immediately considered like and called a vin de garage, partly due to its small production. The renovation of the Chateau and other buildings surrounding it started in 2000 and came to an end in 2006. Since then this totally refurbished elegant Chateau has been used for different events, diners and also welcome important guests in its few bedrooms.

You will find much more info at:

www.marojallia.com

Vinification: The cellar includes 6 reverse cone shaped, temperature controlled stainless steel tank, 1 for each parcel divided into 3 tanks for Merlot and 3 tanks for Cabernet Sauvignon. The goal is to get the maximum extraction. The consulting oenologist is Michel Rolland. The yield is roughly 35hl/hc (approximately 6 bunches of grape per vine). The malolactic fermentation is done in 100% new french oak barrel. The cellar regroups about 60 barrels from 4 different cooper with 4 different type of toast per cooper in order to maximize the complexity of the aromas coming from the toasted oak and enhance the blend. They produce about 6500 bottles of Chateau Marojallia and 1700 bottles of the 2nd wine: Clos Margalaine. The wine rest after fermentations for a period of 14-18 months in French oak barrels. There are no filtration, no fining which explain the presence of sediments and the racking is done with slow pumping. Remember that the goal is to maximize the extraction in order to get the maximum of fruit, aromas and flavors.

We tasted a few wines: Margalaine 05, Margalaine 06 and Marjollia 06

Overall, I found them very bright with delicate fruit but once again (like in Bellevue de Tayac) the fruit was a bit restrain and the tannins were quite green. Here again, there is a lot of potential in this property and the wines are worth ageing. Although the wines that we tasted had green tannins, these tannins may settle down or ripen in the bottle with time (somehow, I doubt it...but you never know, the wines may show more open fruit within the next few years).

In resume, I will say that these 2 properties showed a lot of good positive signs for the futures and that the wines should get better and better. The wines offered good quality fruit in the attack and mid-palate, only the finish disappointed me a little with too much unintegrated oak and green tannins, but the combination Thunevin-Rolland worked already quite well in the past and it is only a question of small time before these 2 estates really start to achieve great wines.

Lunch

We then decided to stay in Margaux for a quick lunch at Le Pavillon de Margaux, an elegant and low key restaurant, on the road to Chateau Margaux (probably my favorite left bank Chateau).

Too early for lunch, we walked to Chateau Margaux. It was too tempting not to ask the question if we could get a quick visit, especially for some of us that never been in Bordeaux or even Margaux before and never seen or even visited Chateau Margaux. So I entered in the office, introduced myself (I come here every year for the Primeur so it was easier for me to ask). They promised us a visit around 2 pm, just the time for us to come back to the restaurant, eat quickly a nice lunch, simple but good, and return to Chateau Margaux.

We visited the different cellars, including the old cellar containing all the treasurable bottles of old vintages of Chateau Margaux (we only saw it from behind the iron gate because they rarely let people in but it was worth seeing it).

We finished the visit with a tasting of:

2004 Chateau Margaux 1st Growth Margaux

Suggested retail price $240-$260

The 2004 Chateau Margaux was subtle, elegant, extremely balanced and refined as always, just a bit tight and showing some light tannins, but overall fairly integrated for this difficult vintage and already quite pleasant. Chateau Margaux is very satisfying, even in lesser vintage, that is the beauty and the quality of a great wine.

We then left the left bank to go to Chateau Bel-Air Ouy (St. Emilion) and at our host's house in the middle of Saint-Emilion, on the right bank.

We arrived at Chateau Bel-Air Ouy which became our night house and headquarter for 4 days. After a quick shower and a bit of rest, enough to discover our new home, we drove to the heart of Saint-Emilion to Jean-Luc's house for an early dinner prepared by Murielle, Jean-Luc's wife.

Dinner at Jean-Luc Thunevin's house

Murielle, the wife of Jean-Luc Thunevin, who is by the way an excellent cook but also a very good white wine winemaker (#1 de Valandraud), prepared a nice, simple, tasty and flavorful dinner:

Jamon Iberico (as amuse bouche), followed by roasted beef black truffle complemented with a mashed potatoes with black truffle, and a piece of Reypermer cheese from Holland.

We drank some interesting wines:

1999 Chateau Cos D'estournel Saint-Estephe Bordeaux

This wine has really open up within the last 2 years and drinks beautifully now. The tannins are bit more integrated than they were in my previous tasting of this wine and the fruit seems more appearing and much more enjoyable. Lather, forest floor, mushroom, red berries are some of the character and flavors of this very interesting wines. A bit light and not as concentrated as some bigger and better vintage but very drinkable for a 1999 Bordeaux.

2001 Chateau Croix de Labrie Saint-Emilion Grand Cru Bordeaux

A bit young and tight, but overall pleasant. It needs some food to compensate the tannins that are touch dry.

2004 Clos Badon Thunevin Saint-Emilion Grand Cru Bordeaux

A bigger, fuller wine that the previous one, more complex with more character and oak notes. A light decanting will benefit this wine.

1998 Chateau Leoville Poyferre Saint-Julien Bordeaux (2nd growth)

Nice and easy with good fruit, although a bit light and not too long in the finish, but good acidity and texture overall. A classic in Medoc for the vintage but a light weight in character and style compare to what Leoville Poyferre has produced since the vintage 2000.

After this nice, convivial dinner, Jean-Luc sent us to bed early in order to be prepared for the next day

to be continued.....

LeDom du Vin

www.ledomduvin.com