So Patrick was planning a NYC trip to visit his brother and a group of the usuals (Dale, Ramon, Jayson, Jay and Victor) decided upon a commemorative 40th anniversary of 1982 Bdx tasting but as some of us didn’t have any (me) we opened up the theme a little. We settled on an Argentinian steakhouse Balvanera on the LES that allows for BYOB on Mondays something that in this post COVID world seems harder and harder to come by.
We started with a trio of whites including a 2003 Stony Hill Chardonnay that had clearly seen better days, a 2017 Francois Carillon Puligny Montrachet ‘Les Combottes’ 1er that was drinking fine and a 2010 Domaine Rollin Pernand-Vergelesses ‘Sous Fretille’ 1er that was a lovely mature white burg. I took short pours as to limit my consumption as I knew what was coming on next
1985 Magdelaine (Victor) - dark red fruited, forest floor and cedar but still tight on the dark mineral driven palate. 92 I should also mention that I went back to the Magdelaine at the end of the night and it had blossomed, so this bottle which was already double decanted demands extended aeration 1986 Pape Clement (Ramon) - wonderful, fully mature nose of sweet dark fruit, earth, smoke, and cedar that leads to a rich, sappy, crushed blackberry palate. 93
1982 Beychevelle (Patrick for Brandon) - gorgeous nose of dark fruit, earth, leather and cedar that is perfectly integrated and leads to a fresh, smooth palate that was saline and savory. Great bottle. 95 1982 Lagrange (Ramon) - a little mustiness that eventually blew off to reveal lovely blackberry, earth and tobacco tones, was lighter styled and pleasant. 90
1982 L’Arrosee (Patrick) - mature red fruited aromatics and a lighter, leaner styled palate. 87 1982 L’Evangile (Dale) - wonderfully expressive nose of black fruit, truffle, leather and some forest floor that gave way to lighter styled, lush palate that was close to perfect. 98
1970 Magdelaine (JC) - let me preface this by saying that I bought this bottle for Jayson’s 50th Birthday Bash which ended becoming a COVID casualty but as Jayson was present and Patrick loves Magdelaine, I thought this was as good an occasion as any. Good fill and turned out to be a great bottle with lovely aromas of red fruit, earth, tobacco and truffle and a similarly styled palate that was seamless, elegant and long. 95 1970 Pape Clement (Jayson) - inviting dark red fruited, earthy, cedary aromas and it seems like I did not finish writing this note. 91
Yes, overall the wines showed very well and proved (for me at least) that perfectly stored bottles of 82 Bordeaux are still sensational.
We did the traditional 3-2-1 points for one's top 3 wines. Here's the tally (someone voted more than their fair share):
1982 l’Evangile 14 pts
1970 Magdelaine 11 pts
1985 Magdelaine 11 pts
1982 Beychevelle 7 pts
1986 Pape Clement 3 pts
1970 Pape Clement 4 pts
My top wines in order were:
1970 Magdelaine
1982 l'Evangile
1982 Beychevelle
...but the 85 Magdelaine was coming on strong by the end of the evening.
Seems this is yet another example that provenance is pretty much everything, and also frequently difficult to evaluate. Sounds like a great evening with some BWE names from the early days.
Another great night with the NYC gang. We've been getting together once or twice a year since 2007, when family and work bring me back to the NE. The food (tons of steak and savory fare like anchovies, lamb and blood sausages, and wild mushrooms sautéed in a decadent amount of truffle butter, nothing green on the table other than the delicious salad) and ambience at Balvanera were great, but it was not the ideal venue for deep, introspective focus on the wines (too dark, too cramped, mediocre stems at best)
2017 F. Carillon “Combettes” Puligny-Montrachet 1er
Rich for a '17, but nice, tight. B+
2010 Rollin “Sous Fretille” Pernand-Vergelesses 1er
This was wonderful, still fresh and tense but in a great place, terrific length, classic. A-
2003 Stony Hill Chardonnay
Mature, but holding in a subdued, subtle style. Lots of lemon with a distinct note of earl grey tea, excellent acids but not shrill with some honeyed fruits, and just a touch of walnuts (showing the age). B+
2001 Jaboulet La Chapelle Hermitage
Pleasant, correct, a little light for a Syrah from great vineyard and got lost in the shuffle. B
1986 Pape Clement
Beautifully expressive aromas, complex and savory, one of evening's the best bouquets. Softer and suaver for an 86, the palate is lovely with tobacco and dark earth but can’t replicate the bouquet. A-
1985 Magdelaine
Beautiful, quite fresh, mint, red fruited. Elegant and cool-fruited but with depth, wonderful purity. Got better and better with air, was en fuego by the end of the night. A-
1982 Beychevelle
A glorious showing, wonderfully mature 40 year old claret with layers of rich dark fruit laid over herbs and sous bois. Aromatic with cedar and some wood smoke. A
1982 Lagrange (St. Julien)
Someone thought it was corked and at the first sniff I agreed, but this blew off and never came back. Lean and weedy, some plummy fruit with a musty edge and a muddy texture. C+
1982 La Dominque
Corked and the backup bottle opened at the table was corked too.
1982 l’Arrosee
Aromatic with red fruits, a bit of spice and a distinct note of sour orange. Sveltve and very mature, this has a Burgundian texture. B+
1982 l’Evangile
Black cherry and cigarbox. A textbook example of a top, mature Pomerol at the top of its game. Layered, resolved, rich and long. A
1970 Pape Clement
Smoky, earthy, still has nice dark fruit, delightful. B+/A-
1970 Magdelaine
I've had this wine 8-9 times, and this was great example. Dark cherry and truffle fruit, perfect balance, great brightness without any hard or shrill edges. Shows in spades (pun intended) the house signature of mint and fresh tilled soil. Terrific tangy, spicy finish. A
Last edited by Blanquito on Wed Dec 07, 2022 10:51 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Great pictures of a great evening. A night with the blanquito brothers is always a nice thing. I will get back to NYC one day, to meet Ramon and J.c. And it has been a long since i had a glass with Dale...
Very nice selection of wines, and let say the 82 Beychevelle is having me thinking...never had it, but look gorgeous.
Lovely tasting. I still need to post my 1982 notes. We had that Beychevelle and it was one of the consensus top 2-3 wines of the night. Those Magdelaine and the L'Evangile sound amazing. We also had the 1990 and 1995 L'Evangile recently and they were seriously on point. I'm getting good at drinking great wines. Clearly I need to work on my posting/writing skills though.
