TN 1996 Ch. Lagrange, St. Julien
TN 1996 Ch. Lagrange, St. Julien
Nice wine with one caveat. Lots of mature/secondary characteristics but also a lot of size, power and structure. Color a bit more red than black. I got a fair amount of herby, minty, basily notes in this bottle. Good sweetness and fine balance. The caveat is that for some reason the tannins seemed like a ridge right down the middle of the palate, both geographically and temporally between the fore and after tastes. Kind of weird in that regard, and just maybe in need of some more time to resolve this. So quite nice overall and I've frozen the other half for later in the week.
Re: TN 1996 Ch. Lagrange, St. Julien
My recent experience with the puppy suggested another 3-5 years in the cellar would be beneficial.
- Comte Flaneur
- Posts: 4894
- Joined: Mon Jan 26, 2009 9:05 pm
- Contact:
Re: TN 1996 Ch. Lagrange, St. Julien
Paddy brought along a great example a few years back with Ramon, Chris and Jim...I bought some on the back of that and they were quite weird as you described Hound. One of my friends with a more cultured palate thought the one we tried was actually mildly corked. I ended up sending them back because they were unenjoyable That was the second batch of Lagrange I have sent back...the other was the spasmogorical 2003.
Re: TN 1996 Ch. Lagrange, St. Julien
I've had the '96 Lagrange five-six years ago and recently, and I agree with Blanquito -- a few more years should help smooth the tannins in this bordeaux. I doubt if it will ever be as rewarding as the 1990 Lagrange, but I think the '96 is very well made, and was quite a bargain as well.
Gary R.
Gary R.
Re: TN 1996 Ch. Lagrange, St. Julien
Guys
the 95 is showing quite well now though will keep, and surprisingly, the 94 has developed much better than I ever imagined (in fact the last time I had it it was a' point).
the 95 is showing quite well now though will keep, and surprisingly, the 94 has developed much better than I ever imagined (in fact the last time I had it it was a' point).
Re: TN 1996 Ch. Lagrange, St. Julien
I had a bottle of the 1996 a few months ago and it closed up after about an hour. Seems kind of unusual for a 14 year old wine.
Glenn
Glenn
Glenn
Re: TN 1996 Ch. Lagrange, St. Julien
Claudius, are you starting to warm up to some of your remaining 1994's?
Glenn
Glenn
Glenn
Re: TN 1996 Ch. Lagrange, St. Julien
Claret,
Well, 94s have been rather trying - a bit like 1975 though maybe not to that extent.
The issue with 94 was that so many wines (and I think the left bank in particular) had those tough, dry, greenish tannins that said "unripe".
Further, the fruit was submerged under it.
The 94s I drank in the late nineties and early 00's were just that. Not very interesting I'm afraid with few exceptions.
The right bankers were better without being great.
Anyway, the Lagrange - I bought the case en primeur and locked it away for several years.
The first few I drank were rather boring - one dimensional, dry, old fashioned but not very interesting.
So after wasting the first 4 from the case, the fifth (after a break of 3-4 years) was much better.
Not rich or heavy but almost Burgundy weight and the tannins had resolved leaving a very pleasant wine.
Typical St Julien flavour. The few I've tried since have also been good - and I know think it is ready and needs s/t consuming.
It still remains a food wine though with French or Italian food it goes down very nicely.
I am also having some difficulty with 95s.
They are not developing as well as I hoped (the 94 Lagrange tastes better to me than the 95).
So many have been rather disappointing.
I think 95 and 96 are long term agers - but 96 generally shows more complexity and interest to me.
Well, 94s have been rather trying - a bit like 1975 though maybe not to that extent.
The issue with 94 was that so many wines (and I think the left bank in particular) had those tough, dry, greenish tannins that said "unripe".
Further, the fruit was submerged under it.
The 94s I drank in the late nineties and early 00's were just that. Not very interesting I'm afraid with few exceptions.
The right bankers were better without being great.
Anyway, the Lagrange - I bought the case en primeur and locked it away for several years.
The first few I drank were rather boring - one dimensional, dry, old fashioned but not very interesting.
So after wasting the first 4 from the case, the fifth (after a break of 3-4 years) was much better.
Not rich or heavy but almost Burgundy weight and the tannins had resolved leaving a very pleasant wine.
Typical St Julien flavour. The few I've tried since have also been good - and I know think it is ready and needs s/t consuming.
It still remains a food wine though with French or Italian food it goes down very nicely.
I am also having some difficulty with 95s.
They are not developing as well as I hoped (the 94 Lagrange tastes better to me than the 95).
So many have been rather disappointing.
I think 95 and 96 are long term agers - but 96 generally shows more complexity and interest to me.
Re: TN 1996 Ch. Lagrange, St. Julien
Comte Flaneur has noted the mercurial nature of this wine/vintage, and I would concur from my experience. Luckily, the well behaved version showed up in my Nachtmann tonite.
Last edited by AKR on Sat Mar 26, 2022 3:36 am, edited 2 times in total.
Re: TN 1996 Ch. Lagrange, St. Julien
I always liked the 1996 Lagrange in the past, but i guess that you're having it on it's best time Arv, 26 years after the vintage.
- hautbrionlover
- Posts: 200
- Joined: Wed Jan 28, 2009 8:08 pm
- Contact:
Re: TN 1996 Ch. Lagrange, St. Julien
I’ve long been a fan of the ‘96 Lagrange. Sadly, I’m down to my last bottle.
Re: TN 1996 Ch. Lagrange, St. Julien
A worthy follow up to Lagrange 1990 and a bit better than Talbot 1996 wich offers also a strong performance.
- JimHow
- Posts: 20250
- Joined: Thu Nov 20, 2008 10:49 pm
- Location: Lewiston, Maine, United States
- Contact:
Re: TN 1996 Ch. Lagrange, St. Julien
Indeed, 1996 Lagrange was an early BWE favorite.
We liked the 2000 as well in its youth, but Lagrange the estate hasn't seemed to have generated much excitement for the past 20 years.
I got a bottle of the 2018, may have to give it a try in the name of science.
We liked the 2000 as well in its youth, but Lagrange the estate hasn't seemed to have generated much excitement for the past 20 years.
I got a bottle of the 2018, may have to give it a try in the name of science.
Re: TN 1996 Ch. Lagrange, St. Julien
I agree Jim, I literally bought exactly those same 2 vintages up until a case of the 2016. Hopefully it turns out as good as the ratings in another 5 years.
- Comte Flaneur
- Posts: 4894
- Joined: Mon Jan 26, 2009 9:05 pm
- Contact:
Re: TN 1996 Ch. Lagrange, St. Julien
The 2016 Lagrange was fantastic when I tried it a few years ago. I immediately secured six.
The 2019 by some accounts is as good. It is still cheap here, so am tempted.
But I have enough 2019 Bordeaux to sink a battleship.
The 2019 by some accounts is as good. It is still cheap here, so am tempted.
But I have enough 2019 Bordeaux to sink a battleship.
Who is online
Users browsing this forum: Bing [Bot], Google [Bot] and 11 guests