Oh my Devil, the catastrophic St Émilion tasting
Posted: Wed Mar 06, 2024 11:01 pm
The catastrophic Saint Émilion tasting
Last Thursday, group tasting where we opened a few Saint Émilion... drank over a period of 3-4 hours.
2000 Château la Serre: one of the better wine of the group. Nice nose of brown sugar, creamy blackberries, blueberries and dead leaves. In mouth, aged fruits, tree bark, tobacco, good tannins, good length on brown sugar. Unfortunately, fade quickly. Tn: 90-91.
2006 Château Larcis Ducasse : huge deception. Dark wine, but nose of earth, mushrooms but very closed, and never really opened. In mouth, dull, powerful concentrated dark red berries, austere, astringent. No fun. Tn: 80.
2005 Château Bélair : dark red color. Nose is nice, with blueberries, red cherries, strawberry fields, but very concentrated and a bit spirity, what i was not expecting from Bélair (was it still Delbeck the wine maker.). In mouth, very 2005, concentrated, with kind of heavy ripe red fruit flavors, some calcareous minerals, final is heavy with tannins but a green side too. Tn : 89. Far away from the nice 1998 or 2000...
2008 Château la Dominique : dark red with a very closed and muted nose, i could only smell smoke. Concentrated spicy blackcurrants and blackberries, severe and oaky. Almost undrinkable to me. Tn: 80.
2009 Clos Badon: that was good but a bit atypical, looking more like a generous ripe Médoc than Right bank. Dark color, concentrated nose on black prunes fruit, smoky oak, black cherries, spices, blackcurrants. Mouth is also dense, and serious for a 2009, black fruit flavors, cherries, light austere oak, sirupous, ripe tannins and good length. No real finesse. Tn : 90.
2010 Château de Fonbel : from the Vauthier family. Medium red color, with light animal aromas to start, but changed quickly to austere black fruit, rasberries, some sweet fruit later on, and rhubarb. Mouth is ok, with flavors of red berry jam, smoke, light oak, blackcurrants. Drink well with nice perfumed final that is medium long. Ripe tannins. A drinkable 2010. Tn: 91.
2014 Château de Fonbel : a younger and less concentrated wine than the 2010. Nose of bitter blackberries, light animal, licorice, old strawberries, and some peppermint. Mouth is light, on red berries and cherries, and rhubarb. Light. Tn : 85-86.
Well what to say? Of course no big names, but i was expecting something better. I guess some of these have been influenced by the " garagiste " style, or over extraction " à la Parker" ?
I have been a bit upset by that tasting, and have a bit lose faith on Saint Émilion wines from that era...
Last Thursday, group tasting where we opened a few Saint Émilion... drank over a period of 3-4 hours.
2000 Château la Serre: one of the better wine of the group. Nice nose of brown sugar, creamy blackberries, blueberries and dead leaves. In mouth, aged fruits, tree bark, tobacco, good tannins, good length on brown sugar. Unfortunately, fade quickly. Tn: 90-91.
2006 Château Larcis Ducasse : huge deception. Dark wine, but nose of earth, mushrooms but very closed, and never really opened. In mouth, dull, powerful concentrated dark red berries, austere, astringent. No fun. Tn: 80.
2005 Château Bélair : dark red color. Nose is nice, with blueberries, red cherries, strawberry fields, but very concentrated and a bit spirity, what i was not expecting from Bélair (was it still Delbeck the wine maker.). In mouth, very 2005, concentrated, with kind of heavy ripe red fruit flavors, some calcareous minerals, final is heavy with tannins but a green side too. Tn : 89. Far away from the nice 1998 or 2000...
2008 Château la Dominique : dark red with a very closed and muted nose, i could only smell smoke. Concentrated spicy blackcurrants and blackberries, severe and oaky. Almost undrinkable to me. Tn: 80.
2009 Clos Badon: that was good but a bit atypical, looking more like a generous ripe Médoc than Right bank. Dark color, concentrated nose on black prunes fruit, smoky oak, black cherries, spices, blackcurrants. Mouth is also dense, and serious for a 2009, black fruit flavors, cherries, light austere oak, sirupous, ripe tannins and good length. No real finesse. Tn : 90.
2010 Château de Fonbel : from the Vauthier family. Medium red color, with light animal aromas to start, but changed quickly to austere black fruit, rasberries, some sweet fruit later on, and rhubarb. Mouth is ok, with flavors of red berry jam, smoke, light oak, blackcurrants. Drink well with nice perfumed final that is medium long. Ripe tannins. A drinkable 2010. Tn: 91.
2014 Château de Fonbel : a younger and less concentrated wine than the 2010. Nose of bitter blackberries, light animal, licorice, old strawberries, and some peppermint. Mouth is light, on red berries and cherries, and rhubarb. Light. Tn : 85-86.
Well what to say? Of course no big names, but i was expecting something better. I guess some of these have been influenced by the " garagiste " style, or over extraction " à la Parker" ?
I have been a bit upset by that tasting, and have a bit lose faith on Saint Émilion wines from that era...