2012 BWE WINE OF THE YEAR: 2009 CHATEAU GISCOURS

[JimHow]

Thank you to everyone for your nominations for the 2012 BWE Wine of the Year, and thank you to everyone for contributing to another great year here on BWE!

The 2009 vintage does indeed appear to be exceptional. The 2009 Giscours is stunning. It benefits obviously from modern winemaking techniques, but is true to Bordeaux. I had it several times, and found it to be a brilliant expression of Margaux:

What tremendous balance!
Quintessential Margaux.
This is what I love about Bordeaux, about Margaux.
An immense effort. Bravo!
No, I take that back. Feminine: Brava! Brava!
Stunning wine. Mouth filling but not heavy.
One of those sensual wines that mixes with the taste buds and saliva at the back of your mouth that brings you to a heightened level of emotion.
Light on its feet.
What a bouquet!
Will last 30 years, but drinking spectacularly right now!
I have 7 bottles left in my cellar, I am definitely on board for another case at $59 per bottle at PJs in NYC.
Wow!
97+ points.

I hope everyone gets to try a bottle, especially before it shuts down and becomes awkward!

And so, 2009 Giscours joins the pantheon of BWE greats over the past 13 years!

2000: 1996 Sociando-Mallet
2001: 1989 Lynch-Bages
2002: 1995 d'Yquem
2003: 1999 Haut Brion Blanc
2004: 2000 Pichon Baron and 2000 du Tertre
2005: 2000 Margaux
2006: 2003 Pontet-Canet
2007: 2002 Leoville Poyferre
2008: 2005 Burgundy vintage (protest vote)
2009: 1989 Lafite Rothschild
2010: 2005 Cantemerle
2011: 2008 Leoville Poyferre
2012: 2009 Giscours

[Comte Flaneur]

Not a surprise, but well deserved I'm sure. Looking forward to trying one soon.

[stefan]

Good choice because I don't have any and this gives me an excuse to exceed my quota of wine buying for the year 2034.

[DavidG]

Well done, Jim. Very well done, indeed.

[JonB]

Good choice. I dutifully ordered a case from Grand Vin Wine Merchants (it is yet to arrive) but it makes sense to select a wine from the 2009 vintage.

[JimHow]

Did you guys visit Giscours during France '05?
I think I'd like to go there when I get to France in 2013.
There seems to be a good buzz about what that property is doing.
I love those wines that come in light on their feet, like what we see Haut Bailly doing in Pessac.
And I don't know if there is a difference between "modern winemaking techniques" and "Parkerizatoon" or "internationalization," or if that is just semantics on my part, but the winemakers at Giscours do seem to have preserved a traditional Margaux character while also extracting the best out of their raw materials. Unlike, say, de Fieuzal or Larrivet Haut Brion, both of which I like a lot but both of which seem more modern to me.
Maybe I'm just over analyzing, but I thought the '09 Giscours was just beautiful, fragrant, feminine, elegant but with a great depth to it. Balance.
Wow!
I'll bring some to Dallas '13.

[DavidG]

Didn't visit Giscours but we did hit a few significant Margaux properties in '05: d'Issan, Palmer and Margaux..

[robertgoulet]

I never even chimed in on woty for two reasons....I'm still hurting from the defeat of my SHL!! The other reason is...I knew this would be the pick...congrats to Giscours, glad I have one in the cellar and two more pending

[JCNorthway]

I had a dream that this would be the BWE WOTY!

[Jay Winton]

mr vino approves of the BD's choice!

[Nicklasss]

Excellent choice Jim, way better than what you did in 2008...

Jim, Wish you all the best in 2013 and hope i can see you at some point in 2013.

Nic

[Claudius2]

Glad I have a case of this!

[JimHow]

Well done, men, well done indeed.

We'll get together in Quebec in 2013 Nicolas!

[OrlandoRobert]

Ok Bordeaux nuts, my friend (cannot believe I am admitting that), RobertGoulet - and trust me, he is neither an actor, crooner nor handsome - has raved about this site and '09 Giscours, and so here I am. Done. Registered. First post. '09 Giscours ordered.

So when is the next Orlando OL? I cannot promise to keep Goulet away from your wives, mistresses or concubines, or from drinking your good stuff, but I will promise to bring something better than 2009 Ch. Macard.

Cheers!

Robert

[JimHow]

Well done, OrlandoRobert, well done indeed. And welcome.
Any friend of Robert goulet's is a friend of ours!

[OrlandoRobert]

FWIW, if BWE had a sub-category for QPR of the year, I'd highly recommend 2009 Ch. Lanessan. A ridiculously good, classic, red-fruit Bordeaux that can be found for $20 still. A "by the case" purchase. Approachable now, but clearly one that will reward 7-8 years or more. As much as I love to read the praise for the big dogs, and even purchase and consume some within reason, the hallmark of a quality vintage to me is the depth of the quality, down to the basic crus. This is what made 2005 and 2000 such fantastic vintages for me. Looks like 2009 and 2010 may fall in that class.

[robertgoulet]

This 'orlandorobert' character has been quietly stalking my posts for years, procuring limitless amounts details on how to write quality tasting notes. Considering that he is an ivy leaguer who has at times edited speeches for some famous dignitaries, I take this as a great compliment. I am bragging about his past accomplishments because we here are dealing with a man of great modesty, so I must do his bidding. Please be aware he will probably be posting pics of my giant proboscis infiltrating some of his finest stemware. Please note that Roberts '09 halcon Syrah could never hold a candle to the '09 macards I was drinking!! On another note, Robert loves to travel and at times i wonder if he does live in Orlando, or if he leads a secret double life. Speaking of travel, he has even enjoyed some of Georgia's finest wines while wearing spandex.(ill let him explain it)

Joking aside, he will be a welcoming addition to the board, a great guy to hang out with and he's equipped with a hot wife

[Mrwinecabinet]

I just ordered four of the '09 Giscours myself. I did enjoy the'05 and '06 of this wine. Another bordeaux deal I got today was for '09 Fleur Cardinale for $37 - seemed like a steal of a price (at bestwinesonline.com) - I adored the '05 Fleur Cardinale. Seems like there are still nice deals to be had on some '09s..

[JimHow]

We've got some big Lanessan fans here OrlandoRobert. I haven't had the 2009 yet but I loved the 2005.

I agree, Mrwinecabinet, there are still lots of 2009 deals out there. From what I can see, the 2009 vintage is the real deal.

[robertgoulet]

Though the '09 lanessan did not show well for me...at $20 it's well worth another shot... I do trust Roberts palate.

[OrlandoRobert]

Please be aware he will probably be posting pics of my giant proboscis infiltrating some of his finest stemware.

Since you asked . . . .



It's his best asset.

As the Newbie here, I promise you all to keep trying to class Marc . . . eh, Robert Goulet . . . up. I told him repeatedly that night that the 1992 Dunn Howell is to be consumed through the skinny spout not by holding on to the skinny one. He admittedly still has a long way to go, but his love of Margaux shows promise.

BTW, that '92 was my favorite California wine all year. Unreal bottling. The '2005 Charles Joguet Les Varenne du Grand Clos Franc de Pied was my favorite wine of the year. Hope that does not DQ me from the Board, but bear in mind, there is Cab and Franc in them thar bottles!

My thoughts on the Joguet:

http://www.wineberserkers.com/forum/vie ... d#p1027628

[robertgoulet]

Lmao, now that's how u sniff a '92 Dunn through a Reidel Amadeo!!

Holy schnozzola!

I'm pretty sure Robert had the decanter quarantined after I had my way with it

And yes the Dunn is an amazingly freakish beast!! I to along with my Cuban friend Roberto love me some cab franc.

[DavidG]

Welcome aboard, Robert. We're not quite as wild as the Berserker crowd but we have our moments. Kids are grown so we don't get to Orlando much, but I have some family in Ft. Myers. Will give a heads up if there's a chance we could get together to pop a few corks.

I almost never buy anything by the case, but I do have 6 of the '09 Lanessan in the cellar. Agree that it's a great QPR.

Love the decanter by the way - I have the same one - it was a gift a year ago. I must admit I've never tried using it quite that way...

[robertgoulet]

True David, I think that decanter has issued a restraining order against me...as u see the Orlando crowd likes to cut loose! Most BWE'ers would be better off steering clear of our antics(I think I probably speak for myself) OrlandoRobert is considerably more mature.

[Bacchus]

Just wondering Mr. Goulet, if you were to drink out of the small end of that contraption, as pictured, if you could get a continuous circle of wine on the go?
Welcome on board Robert, friend of Robert!

[robertgoulet]

Bach... Absolutely, an instant continuously following wine neti pot... Great for the palate and sinuses!!! We should run the marketing dept. for Reidel!!

[pomilion]

Back to the Gisours... -- what a nice wine, very very promising! I tried it over the holidays and ordered a case the next day. Getting up there price-wise (I paid $75 in CA) but still worth it. As many have commented, although prices are creeping up there are many beautiful moderately-priced '09s. Almost all of my '09 futures purchases were high-end, and I've been slowly filling in mid-level '09s over the past year. For my purposes, moderately priced means roughly $40-75; some I bought early -- e.g., Gruaud Larose and Domaine de Chevalier rouge -- are now more expensive, but recently I've been really impressed with '09 Haut Bergey and Haut Bages Liberal (both around $40) -- both incredibly tasty. I'd be very interested in hearing what everyone's favorite mid-priced (and inexpensive) '09s are -- maybe we could start a separate thread summing up everyone's collective experience and recommendations? Looking forward to discovering more mid-priced ’09 gems.

PS – haven’t posted in a while, have been busy renovating a house my wife and I bought earlier this year. Have been visiting regularly though and reading everyone’s posts. Glad to finally have a little more free time to participate!

[Comte Flaneur]

I have succumbed.

J&B have a sale and it was 12% off a case; works out at £40 a bottle, about $65

Hard to say no when HWSRN says it has a 'skyscraper like mid palate and finish'