Lose comments on some of the wines from the 2023 London convention

[Nicklasss]

Well, more than 4 weeks after the 2023 BWE convention in London, i don't think anyone discussed too much about the wines yet...

Now back down on Earth, i will go with some statements about the wines, after the first important post i did on the people.

[Nicklasss]

2001 – I Clivi – Clivi Brazan Bianco

Surely the best dry white wine i had from Italy. Remind me how Friuli and Trentin Haut Adige can produce impressive white.

[Nicklasss]

The pre-dinner 2019 Bordeaux blind tasting.

A tough exercice, but with the wines in presence, easy to feel it is between an excellent and great vintage.

The 2 Margaux (Giscours and Issan) opened a bit more quickly to take the 2 lead positions, but i kept the Lynch Bages and Montrose longer and they are solid Northerm Médoc wines.

The very bold statement : i had many different vintages of Lynch Bages in my life, and i really thought the 2019 is the only one that i think have that 1989 Lynch Bages impression, just with a notch more ripeness and alcohol, but what a blackcurrant severe lead pen and awesome tannic long beast...

I wish i kept the Montrose longer in my glass, but less decanting time and the wine a bit warmer than others, did not help. But complex and serious Saint Estèphe.

[Nicklasss]

The 1995 Tinto Pesquera Gran Reserva was shinning on Friday, even in company with many Grands Crus from Bourgogne. The nose was complex, fruity, leather, pink peppercorns, spices... balsam, light infused vanillin... Great midweight mouth, as complex as the nose and long.

[Nicklasss]

I had 3 Bruno Giacosa wines, all in London, all with Comte Flaneur in attendance, and all were distinctive great Piedmont wines. The 1996 Barolo Falletto at the 2023 conventive was my favorite red wine of the Thursday night dinner. Ethereal fruit, inspiring medium weight mouth with length. I understamd a bit better the myth now.

[Nicklasss]

A very precise question for comte flaneur and other Lynch Bages defenders : does the 2019, and the 1983-1985-1986-1988-1989 of the vertical tasting, demonstrate to you potential Secong Growth status? Hum, a very tricky one...

[JimHow]

Not tricky for me.

No.

[Nicklasss]

The 1937 Pichon Lalande of Saturday night, is definitely one of the best old wine i ever had! 86 years old, an such freshness, still some power, no old notes, good length, this was clearly like winning a jackpot! Thanks michaelP.

[Nicklasss]

Not tricky for me.

No.

I also have a tough time saying 2nd Growth...

But we're becoming very picky Jim. Too picky?

[JimHow]

Nope. sorry, I've been saying this for years.
Lynch doesn't hold a candle to Montrose, Ducru, Baron, Lalande, Cos, Barton, etc., etc.
It has been left in the dust by Calon Segur.
Heck, in my opinion it doesn't hold a candle to Giscours and the other Margauxs like d'Issan, Brane, etc.
Lafon Rochet or Lynch? I'll take Lafon. I'll take Sociando these days.
I mean, you're talking about putting Lynch at the same level as Palmer?
Puh-leez.

[Nicklasss]

What does 1974 and 2013 have in common?

Shitty in Bordeaux, glorious in California. I'm born in 1974, my second daughter Béatrice is born in 2013...

At the Friday night dinner, it was the third time in my life i had a taste at the 1974 Robert Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve, courtesy of Tom in DC this time, and again it was a great showing. Still lot of fruits, earth, eucalyptus, with great pace in mouth. A little touch of forrest floor, and wet tobacco too. Be careful: the wine was very reduced at first, but blooming after 30-40 min. Different from Bordeaux, but showing that Napa can produce very serious Cab.

[Nicklasss]

The 2012 Dom Perignon in the Hilton lobby was clearly a more accessible style than the 2008, and drinking wonderfully while still young. Complex, balanced, probably my favorite Champagne in London.

The Jacquesson dégorgement tardif was a nice surprise, tasting and full of joy and spritz.

2008 Dom Pérignon and Cristal on Saturday night felt very young promising splendid things in 10 years. I liked very much the light salty minerality and fruit of tbe Cristal. Both are very concentrated serious Champagne.

[Nicklasss]

After the blind tasting of 2019 on Saturday night, and the vertical tasting of Lynch, there was a blind tasting of 4 Right Bank wines. When Comte Flaneur told us there was a Petrus in the lot, most of the poeple on my side of the table thought it was a joke...

These 4 wines were in one of the most impressive 4 wines flight i ever had. The first wine was, how can i say it, immense. It was a dense iron, dark red berries, earthy, concentrated old rasberries and truffle. Perfumed, tasty, still young, but with ages too. I rated it 96. When it was revealed as a 3 liters of 1975 Petrus, everybody stopped breathing... in a way, it was showing the great uniqueness of the top Pomerol. I thought it would develop or open more within the next hour, but it stayed the concentrated soil/truffle/fruit potion all night. A wine for meditation.

Second wine was firing on all cylinders. Racy, controlled exotism, concentrated confit blackcurrants, all the complexity of integrated spicy vanilla oak. Exploding out of the glass, superb nose, and punchy classical mouth flavors. One bottle split between 15 guests was a small pour, but that 1983 Château Cheval Blanc was ready for it moment. Glorious. Rating of 98. Denies.

The two other wines, the 1989 and 1998 Vieux Château Certan were of course not as demonstrative or tasty as the 2 first wines. But they were not pushed behind by the 2 other wines. The 1989 was dense, conçentrated black fruits, earth, blackcurrants, very tannic. There was also a very very light vegetal edge and black tea taste. Long, austere, classical in a great way. I thought it was a bit shorter length, but still long enough compare to many other wines. A bit of coal note too. Rating of 94. The 1998 is like most of the 1998 Right Bank wines, already glorious. The richness, sheer class, and length of that ripe tannic wine is impressive. Drinks nicely, convincing but will be even better in 5-10 years. I felt the fruit was a bit like in the 1983 Cheval Blanc, concentrated, slightly confit, but very black at the same time. Good tannins, lot of merlot earthy berries. What a nice Pomerol. Rating of 95.

[Comte Flaneur]

A very precise question for comte flaneur and other Lynch Bages defenders : does the 2019, and the 1983-1985-1986-1988-1989 of the vertical tasting, demonstrate to you potential Secong Growth status? Hum, a very tricky one...

I think so Nic yes. Of course I would say that. Though the only Lynch that showed at its best from the 1980s vertical was the 1983 which was my favourite. I have had (much) better bottles of the other three.

[Comte Flaneur]

“When Comte Flaneur told us there was a Petrus in the lot”

I didn’t and I was trying to keep that a secret until the very last minute. The information got leaked. Only one person at that table was originally privy to that information and I implored him to keep shtum...

[Nicklasss]

I think so Nic yes. Of course I would say that.

He persists and signs!

[Nicklasss]

On Friday night, the 1983 Chambertin from Joseph Drouhin was very special. When you imagine a wine on it's perfect spot, this was really it! The nose was very Bourgogne, and Grand Cru, by the intensity and complexity. The perfumes were just a mixture of complex berries, flowers (mainly old roses), aerial, insane, with just that spicy something. Mouth was voluptuous, but so balanced... fruits, minerals, with long dense finish, but caressing. Just hard to describe, but easy to love. Tn: 95-96.

It was the best wine that night, and before the dinner, i made a deal with HM$: everybody know Howard is not a fan of pinot, but the deal was that he would taste the best pinot of the night. On that night, he rated the 1983 Chambertin from Joseph Drouhin his favorite. But for the little story, he preferred all the red Bordeaux wines of Saturday, than the 1983 Chambertin... even the damage wines. what a Bordeaux lover!

Finally, all other 2002 or 2005 or 2010 Grand Cru Bourgogne were tasting very young compared to the 1983. The Côte Rôtie were tough to taste after the Bourgogne.

[Wineevents]

I wanted to let you know about our Bordeaux Fireside Chat, taking place on Wednesday 3rd May 2023 on Zoom/online. The panel event will be hosted by Tom ‘Wine Chap’ Harrow, who will be joined by: Gavin Quinney, Augustin Belloy and Fabien Teitgen to discuss the 2022 vintage in-depth and get first-hand accounts of the growing season as well as insightful tips of the trade.

Join us for free: https://www.honestgrapes.co.uk/events/b ... eside-chat

Register your details to receive the Zoom link, and when Wednesday comes around, be ready with your favourite glass of Bordeaux!

Panel profiles:
Gavin Quinney
Gavin is a winegrower at Château Bauduc and his in-depth Bordeaux harvest reports are published by Jancis Robinson and Liv-ex. He tastes the leading wines for his en primeur article for Harpers Wine & Spirit, the UK trade magazine.

Fabien Teitgen
Fabien is the Managing director of Château Smith Haut Lafitte, one of the most sought-after estates of the Graves Region. He is also an agricultural engineer and enologist. Fabien was awarded Winemaker of the year by the Guide Hachette 2021.

Augustin Belloy
Augustin Vincent has been in charge of Château Beauregard and Château Petit-Village for the last 30 years; today he is now the Managing Director of the three wine estates owned by the Moulin Family. He is also the General Secretary of Motier Holding, Executive Chairman of Citynove and Motier Domaines Galeries Lafayette Group Supervisory Board Member.

PS sorry if this is in the wrong section, I am new to the group! nice to meet everyone!

[stefan]

Wow, if HM$ liked a red Burgundy, the wine must have been really good!

[Nicklasss]

I love the 1999 – San Giusto a Rentennano – Percarlo on Thursday night. The only wine with Sangiovese that night, this was concentrated, a bit chocolatey, but strongly fruity with that wild raspberry cherry stuff. Some wood, dry tobacco, tasty, still tannic and long. Yes, the density was impressive for Sangiovese wine, but the natural acidity was there. Tn: 94.

[Hm$(still)]

Clive Coates used to rate wines using a 20-point scale that translated like this:

•19.0-20.0: Excellent, the best
•16.5-18.5: Very good to very fine indeed
•15.0-16.0: Good to very good
•13.5-14.5: Quite good
•12.0-13.0: Not bad, average
•10.0-11.5: Disappointing, if not poor
•Less than 10.0: Somewhat disagreeable, if not faulty

For me, Pinot tops out at “Quite Good” which is where I would have put the 1983 Chambertin, for my palate. It was enjoyable, not something I would seek out, but I’d happily consume it. The Saturday night wines were all Good to Very Good (or better). The top of the scale does not do justice to the 1937 PLL or 1975 Petrus.

[DavidG]

I guess it’s a difference between American English and the King’s English, but it always seemed odd that Clive’s “quite good” ranked below his “good to very good.” As if “quite good” really meant “not quite good.” Bless his heart…

[Nicklasss]

Thé 1990 Haut Bailly was one of my WOTN on Saturday. Yes, it brought me back the emotion of the first convention, as this is the first one I brought to BWE convention in Chicago in 2001…

Believe it or not, the wine did age very slowly in the last… 22 years! It was still that great Graves character wine, with that complex rocky fruit, tobacco, blackcurrants, classical style, even for the warm 1990 vintage. Of of the best drinking wine that night… like in 2001! Make you realize how great is Haut Bailly terroir. Hope the new vintages will be the same. Tn: 94.

Thank you Joel for bringing that nice Graves.