TN: 1996 Château Pichon-Longueville Baron (France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac)

[JimHow]

• 1996 Château Pichon-Longueville Baron - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac (4/8/2009)
  This was the first time I've been impressed by this wine. Drank it last night from half bottle, the fruit seemed to break through the 1996 tannins to reveal classic Pauillac traits of cedar and black fruit. The lead pencil nose was impressive right from the start, and the ripe fruit satisfied from beginning to end. The bottles I've had to date have been muted and disappointing, but not this one! (91 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker

[Michael Malinoski]

Good to hear!

[William P]

Thanks for the note JIm, I think I have one of these buried somewhere. I think I'll let it rest for a few years.

[JimHow]

Yes it has a long life ahead without doubt.

[Blanquito]

This showed really very well at the 2006 NYC BWE Paulliac horizontal, but I recall it had had lots of air time in advance. Definitely a BWE style of wine, IMHO.

[stefan]

So it is finally coming around...

I hope I am still around when the '96s are fully mature.

stefan

[JimHow]

Yeah, you would think that that wine combined with that vintage would produce a good result, that's why I've been surprised by the disappointments heretofore.

[Houndsong]

I passed on this oh about 6 years ago @ about $30 a bottle. Tanzer then said "ultimately this is a good, but not great, wine." At that time I picked up a few 96 Lagrange and Leo P. at about that price from the same source. At that price these bottles were intended to be kept, you know, in case royalty happened to drop in, and I could not afford "good, but not great," wines for that purpose. Now $30 will get you a cru bourgeois, and $70 a Pontet Canet from a disregarded vintage.

[dstgolf]

Just catching up on the two weeks of notes. Looks like another great convention under your belts and nice to read about some fabulous wines. Not surprised about the muted Burg review as many have shut down and still think Jim overstated the glory of the Village wines. At least someone came clean about the number of 1re cru wines being potrayed as Village wines by Jim! Oh well I understand the point Jim was making as a protest.

As for the 96 Purple Baron we had a bottle on our cruise. Picked up a case and a half of wine at Total Wines just up the street from the pier before sailing out of Fort Lauderdale. Had some pretty good drink with the Baron being one of many highlights. 2002 Monbousquet drinking very well at this time as well. Had to have a few token Bordeaux at sea remind us of what we were missing in DC. Will try and post some notes on some of the other winners and losers.

Hopefully we'll make Chicago 2010 and/or Maine 09. Last Fall when we were in Boston/Maine/NH second week in October and the weather was glorious! Keep our fingers crossed for a glorious early September.

Danny

[JimHow]

Looking forward to your notes Danny. How was the cruise?

[dstgolf]

Jim,

The cruise was outstanding for many reasons. The food might not have been the best but the service was great on all fronts. At our regular dining table our waiters and sommolier were second to none. It's interesting how wine friendly some of the cruise lines have become. They won't let you bring your own liquor on board but there are no limits to the amount of wine. We brought 18 bottles on for the week and drank very well. There was a $15 corkage of which the sommolier over the week waived more than half the time. Riedl stemware provided along with beautiful decanters. No the 18 bottles weren't just for the two of us I had my old best buddy and his wife join us who we hadn't seen for 16 years. It's just great with good friends how you can't start up where you left off like time stood still. We had a lot to catch up on but it's nice to see that great friends just don't change. We had a blast, enjoyed some good wines and best of all smooth seas. I usually get a little sea sick on these cruises but maybe it's the new technology on board,quiet seas or just getting used to it after 15 cruises. My wife just loves these things and I've usually gone along for the ride to please her. There is no vacation that I've seen her happier than on a cruise and if she's happy then I'm VERY happy!

For future consideration a BWE convention on board a 3-7 day cruise may be a great idea. You get pampered. Can bring the wine on board and certainly they are open to providing reception rooms,cocktail parties with hors d'oeuvres and maybe we could even get a private dining room rather than an area in the main dining room which wouldn't be so bad either. I just put it out there for thought for future considerations.

Danny

Danny

[JimHow]

Not a bad idea at all Danny.

[Claret]

Glad to hear that it is coming around. I have a few bottles that have yet to be tapped.

[DavidG]

Sounds like a great trip! What line did you travel? I'm not a fan of cruising (n=1). I tend to get bored on the ship (I can read a book anyqhere) and like to spend a few days in a place to get to know it. Service was great, but the food, while abundant, was just OK, and the entertainment was less than third rate. Even worse, our carrier (Princess) only allowed 2 bottles of wine per adult to be brought on board. Overall it was a positive experience because I loved the day trips (we did Alaska) and it was the most efficient way to get there.

I'd go cruising again if my wife wanted to, or if it was a smaller ship with a foodie bent, or if it was the only practical way to get somewhere I really wanted to see, but otherwise cruising for cruising's sake just isn't my thing. Now a BWE cruise might be interesting...

[dstgolf]

David,

My sentiments exactly for years. But after so many cruises we've seen such a wide variance in service,food and wine friendliness. Holland America was great with the wine. No limits posted. Celebrity also no limits and food was a step above. Entertainment I think is getting watered down by the shear number of ships at sea along with the hotels in Vegas etc. Along with the major venues in cities throughout the world where do you get the talent to be inspiring. We've seen the same thing with Cirque de Soliel. When they started every act was mesmorizing. Now in each show you are awed by one or two acts but the rest is same old same old.

As for fine dining there are ships that specialize like Silverseas that has Relais et Chateau chefs on board with exquisite fine dining. Not sure about their wine policies.,but they have cruises that are directed to food and wine hounds.Upper end of the price scale though.

Would be nice to keep something like this in mind for future referrance.

Danny