I attended the San Francisco UGC and am just getting around to adding a few notes now.
I had a really fun time. As others have said, this wasn't any great vintage, but what a thrilling event all the same for any Bordeaux lover - I can't think of many better ways to spend an afternoon than drinking dozens of Bordeaux from the same vintage
I attended the '10 UGC too (my only other UGC). Vs. last year, this one was less busy and had an hour extra window to taste the wines. There was some random demonstration going on in 'the city' though, so I was an hour late to the tasting after finding parking.
My wine of the night was the FIgeac. It was beautiful, composed, dry, with an amazing lift, and with a kind of unami - a taste profile unlike anything else at the event. I guess sometimes you get what you pay for. I confess I didn't think much of it last year. Maybe it just showed so well this time in comparison to others. A
My value wine of the night was likely the Larrivet Haut-Brion Rouge - at about $35. It was a standout at that price.
The Sauternes were pretty great. I've always trouble discerning significant enough quality differences between Sauternes producers to justify the associated price differences, but La Tour Blance stood out for me - massive, generous and full. Suduiraut was nice as always but pricey as always.
The whites were also very good, as expected. Strangely though, last year my wine of the night was Domaine de Chevallier, and I had been somewhat unimpressed by the Pape Clement, but this year, it was reversed. Pape Clement was quite stunning - multifaceted and dynamic, though not worth the $150 or so asking price. Domaine de Chevallier felt short, compact and a bit austere.
St. Emilion: Canon was pretty nice - very floral and soft - traditional style. I found the Canon la Gaffeliere to be quite rustic, spicy and almost zin-like. I know others like this wine - I guess it's just a style that doesn't work well for me. i found the Larcis Ducasse to be quite thin, dry and uninvolving. Troplong Mondot was flashy and flamboyant as always - not for everyone, but I find it pretty compelling and have bought a few vintages to forget about in the cellar.
Margaux: Probably my favorite of the appellations, and I was most impressed with Lascombes - it felt concentrated, lush and rich; this was the one tasting where I was tempted to ask for another pour. I generally like Lascombes, but it has seemed to drift higher in price over the years, and am not that tempted at current pricing. Similarly, Rauzan Segla was pretty lively, but again too expensive. Du Tertre seemed pretty solid, especially for the price.
St. Julien: Lagrange was quite nice, and tasting well already somehow. I much preferred it to Langoa Barton next to it. Leoville Poyferre was surely the best of the bunch - really vivid and sumptuous - I jotted down one or two expletives actually. Talbot was soft, gentle and composed.
Pauillac: I quite preferred the Pichon Lalande to the Pichon Longueville - more dramatic and somehow approachable now. Lynch Bages had a lovely floral nose but was super dry and unyielding.
Not much else to note. Overall, a fun event but I didn't come away desperate to buy '11 vintage. Somehow I still have amassed 57 bottles in futures from this vintage - I caved in on some deals here and there, but am definitely not keen to get more and if anything I bought too much from this vintage, despite the good pricing. Like others have said, I think picking up some 'back-catalog' wines may be the better way to go.
). The environment is very cordial and civilized. Personally though, I tend to breeze through each table to move to the next one as I'm keen to taste as much wine as possible. I tasted alone this time, which gave me more flexibility, but last year I was with a good friend who's also a Bordeaux enthusiast - the more people in your party, the slower things move 