Vinous weekend with Tim Mc Craken in Bordeaux

[AlexR]

Tim has lived in France for the past 3 years, but it wasn’t until this past weekend when he came to Bordeaux that we finally had a chance to sit down and enjoy some good juice together. We were joined by Simon Beatty, from Newcastle, a regular contributor to the UK Wine Pages forum whom I had met once before.

On Friday night we enjoyed 3 wines.

2008 Larrivet Haut Brion was a very good, very classic white Graves (OK, Pessac-Léognan if one must) with the lemony, grassy bouquet typical of its origins. This was a real pleasure and it’s no wonder that for years I’ve preferred this estate’s white to their red. It was not at all infanticide to drink now, although it’ll be fine for years to come, just good in a different way.
We followed up with two “minor” Bordeaux of the type that I make a point of bringing out when wine lovers come to town. The first one, 2000 Ch. de Carignan, Cuvée Prima, was not quite up to my expectations, but it wasn’t by any means a thumbs down either… This had an unfocused bouquet and was a little disjointed on the palate. I’ve had much better luck with this wine in other vintages. The estate was acquired not long ago by Englishman Andy Lench.
The second wine however was a treat: 2000 Ch. La Sergue, Lalande de Pomerol, a prestige cuvee made at Ch. Haut Chaigneau by Pascal Chatonnet. This was complex and well-structured, boxing way above its weight. A fine example of what Bordeaux can do in the affordable category. No hurry to drink this up at all.

Saturday lunch mostly consisted of oysters, cold cuts, and cheese. I brought out Jean-Luc Thunevin’s “Vin Blanc no. 1”, which is, in fact, a white St. Emilion grown at Valandraud. This was clean and irreproachable, but lacked personality and anything smacking of terroir. A disappointment to me. Simon had picked up the next wine in town and shared it with us. This was a 2006 Sancerre, La Grande Côte from François Cotat. Simon has warned me that the style was very particular. I did not especially warm to it, but then it is outside my experience and I probably should come back to it.

Saturday dinner featured a wonderful line-up. I feel at easr saying that even if the wines were served at my table since each and every one was donated by Tim and Simon! We kicked off with a decades-old non-vintage Laurent Perrier. This was subtle with very under-control oxidized notes. Understated and delicious. We went on with 1969 Riesling d’Alsace from Gustave Lorentz. This négociant wine had weathered 42 years very well. While not exactly fresh, it was in no way tired or oxidised. The next wine was 1978 Clos Vougeot from Faively. This, on the other hand, was showing its age, although it had no flaws. The bouquet had very subtle rose petal overtones and the wine was soft and completely resolved on the palate. At this point, we taste a wine blind. It turned out to be 1980 Georges de Latour Private Reserve from BV Vineyards. This was enjoyed by all, although we were not very adept at guessing what it was! The 21 year-old California wine was in fine fettle and while not of legendary stature, was unquestionably fine. Then it was time for the 1989 Côte Rôtie from René Rostaing. The bouquet here was to die for. The pepper of Syrah, yes, but in an ethereal way, and, above all a tremendously sweet, feminine perfume. Sublime nose. The palate may have been a tad less impressive, but it was very good too. Then it was time for another mystery bottle. The assembled wine lovers enjoyed this immensely but were not particularly gifted at guessing its origin and, especially, its age… It turned out to be a bottle of 1964 Cheval Blanc that Tim had brought. This seemed very much younger, with a beautiful dark, vigorous color. The nose had obvious class and gravitas. The palate is what confounded me. It showed such strength and even a small hot streak that I was puzzled as to what in the world it was. We didn’t play the blind tasting game too seriously, so people had enough time to know what the rare wine in their glass was, and to savor it slowly. The Cheval Blanc nudged out the Côte Rôtie in my book, but not by a great deal. A splendid bunch of wines and I hope Tim makes it back again soon!

At one point, Tim raised a toast to BWE, pointing out that there were get-togethers that weekend in New York, San Francisco, and Bordeaux.

All the best,
Alex R.

[tim]

A big thanks to Alex for his hospitality this past weekend! It was a real treat to visit him and his family and share a fantastic meal with a very varied lineup of wines.

The Cote Rotie was a real standout for me. I've never been a huge Rhone fan, but it really was a magnificent wine. The 64 Cheval Blanc really was amazing, and I would never have guessed it was a 64 without knowing. Among the top five wines I've tasted this year, and perhaps in the top 10 ever.

The NV Champagne was also a delight, and a surprise also. Aged, but a delightful start to dinner.

All in all, a wonderful weekend. And we did indeed say a toast to all the other BWE dinners around the world!

Tim

[dstgolf]

Tim & Alex,

Sounds like a fun reunion of old BWE'ers. Nice to read about the get togethers and shared notes online. That 64 Cheval Blanc sounded great. A little envious of missed activities this past year but have been exceedingly busy between travels. Currently on a Jim H wine fast and diet so a little wine depleted these days. The waistline has been growing faster than the bank account and that's not healthy!! Down 10lbs so it's a start.

Hope all is well with both of you.

Danny