1995 and 2000 Bordeaux: Vintage Wines Ltd, Monthly Thursday Tasting

Great Bordeaux
September 22nd. 6:30PM

Eighth Third Thursday Tasting for 2005 at Vintage Wines of San Diego. This one written up as: If you would like to see what age will do for a great wine, come by and try 8 wines with some age on them. We will taste these wines and compare how each is evolving with the years.

The wines were opened at 4PM and the young wines poured at 4:30PM and the older wines at 5:00PM. All wines were served single blind, and as is my usual practice I did not look at the list. The wines are listed in the order they were tasted. Identities were revealed at the end of the tasting.

1998 Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte (Pessac-Leognan) $64.99USD
Dark cherry red with bricking. Quite closed, giving up notes of smoked meats, earth and charcoal. Medium weight with excellent structure supported by bright acidity and firm tannins. 2, 2, 3.9, 10.1 = 18.0/20, 90/100. 94 WS. 12.5% alcohol.

1995 Chateau Leoville Poyferre (St Julien) $59.99USD
Dark cherry red with bricking. Cedar, camphor and earth. Medium weight with flavors carrying well onto the palate. Good balance but lacking a little in depth across the palate. Firm tannins on the finish with some biting acidity. I wouldn’t wait on this any longer. 2, 2, 4.0, 9.8 = 17.8/20, 89/100. 94 WS. 13% alcohol.

1995 Chateau Pichon Lalande (Pauillac) $139.99USD
Dense cherry red with bricking. Barnyard and earth with a little cedar and ink. Medium weight with acidity across the palate and firm tannins rounding out a well balanced wine. Well structured with mouth pleasing depth to the palate and an excellent finish. 2, 2, 3.9, 10.0 = 17.9/20, 90/100. 96 RP. 13% alcohol.

1995 Chateau Ducru Beaucaillou (St. Julien) $124.99USD
Dark cherry red with bricking. Did someone fart into this glass? Fortunately this blew off like we were sitting in a fan factory to reveal licorice, charcoal, cedar and pepper. Medium weight with gripping tannins, good depth to the palate, and a lengthy finish. 2, 2, 3.8, 10.0 = 17.8/20, 89/100. 97 WS, 94 RP. 13% alcohol.

1995 Chateau Leoville Las Cases (St. Julien) $139.99USD
Dark cherry red with bricking. Very attractive bouquet of caramel, anise and pepper. Very firm tannins and bright acidity provide balance and will support this wine for years more. Flavors carry well onto the palate. Nice wine. 2, 2, 4.1, 9.9 = 18/20, 90/100. 95 RP. 13% alcohol.

2000 Chateau de Chambrun (Lalande de Pomerol) $54.99USD
95% Merlot/5% Cabernet Franc. Dark cherry red with a red edge. Very perfumed and spicy with licorice and cassis predominant. Great complexity. A tannic monster with nice depth to the palate, and length to the finish. Very nice! Needs a little time to settle. 2, 2, 4.4, 10.2 = 18.6/20, 93/100. (90-92) RP. 13.5% alcohol.

2000 Chateau Lynch Bages (Pauillac) $109.99USD
Dark cherry red. Very open with vanilla, burnt oak, and dark fruits. Flavors carry very well onto the palate and are complemented by the juicy acidity. Great length to the finish. 2, 2, 4.1, 10.0 = 18.1/20, 91/100. Will live for decades. 96 WS, 95 RP. 13% alcohol.

1990 Chateau Suduiraut (Sauternes)
Golden brown. Beautiful and luscious with honey, raisins, orange peel, spices and toffee. Full bodied with outstanding carry of flavors onto the palate and a finish that lingers and lingers. 2, 2, 4.5, 10.6 = 19.1/20, 96/100. 95 WS, 88 RP. 15% alcohol.

To me the 1995 wines rated well with some having nicely developed flavors. Most appeared youthful, although I have doubts on the longevity of the Leoville Poyferre. The 2000 de Chambrun was clearly my favorite. It’s a powerful wine that is still too young and I would not want to drink it again for at least 5-7 years.

The group also liked the de Chambrun voting it the top red. The only vote that was taken was for first placed wine and the scores totaled to decide the lesser places. The Leoville Las Cases filled second place while the Leoville Poyferre and the Pichon Lalande shared third.

My wine of the night was the Suduiraut, simply wonderful. Its interesting that Parker originally questioned the longevity of the Suduiraut in 1994 saying, “The evolved, medium gold color of the 1990 is prematurely advanced, raising questions about future longevity.” Bordeaux Book, 3rd Edition (1998) Robert Parker. I thought it fresh and lively. What a difference 11 years can make?