TNs: 89 PLL, 90 Talbot, 02 Brane-Cantenac

[Michael Malinoski]

A little while back, our golf foursome was thwarted by decidedly inhospitable weather and so we opted instead to retire to the sanctuary of the clubhouse to play some poker and drink some wines we had brought along initally for the 19th hole. Later, we ambled over to a fun little BYO joint for dinner and an opportunity to polish off the wines. The day did not pan out as planned, but we certainly made the most of it!

1989 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande Pauillac. This wine has a wonderfully layered bouquet featuring fine scents or baked cherries, spiced red currants, suede leather and little twists of hickory smoke and ground pepper. In the mouth, it leads right out with leather and green tobacco notes before blossoming out beautifully in the warmly red-fruited mid-palate. It’s medium-weighted and perhaps a bit less deeply-concentrated than I remember from previous bottles, but it stays strong all afternoon long and keeps pumping out the giving and delicious red fruit.

1990 Château Talbot St. Julien. On the nose, this is a sexy beast—with a huge bouquet redolent of fruitcake, incense, black currants, blackberries, charred campfire remains and a delightful streak of mild funkiness. It’s an absolute delight. In the mouth, it has greater richness, depth and body than its flight-mate, but also bigger tannins and more obvious structure to contend with. The Pichon Lalande feels more resolved, but this just seems to have a great presence about it. It features dark plum and black currant fruit that’s sweet and ripe at the core, with a welcoming shot of tangy acidity for solid balance and drive that make for an excellent drink. For me, it was the wine of the day, just besting the Pichon Lalande.

2002 Château Brane-Cantenac Margaux. This wine exceeded everyone’s expectations, I’d have to say. It delivers a very appealing set of aromas ranging from dark berries and cherry paste to carob nut, coffee, spicebox and toasted oak that are fruity, fun and inviting, if still a bit youthfully taut at times. In the mouth, it’s certainly more direct and strident than the previous two beauties, but it does have a nice sense of elegance married to slinky, understated power. It has nice dark berry and sour cherry fruit flavors allied to bits of menthol, tobacco and leather that strike a finely balanced chord with me and bode well for future development. This is a really nice 2002 that I think should be even better in a few years.

1994 Laurel Glen Cabernet Sauvignon Sonoma Mountain. Although this still seems like a pretty young wine, it’s showing a lot of different facets on the complex and deep nose, including scents of blackberries, wild blueberries, scorched earth, menthol leaf and dark tilled earth. In the mouth, its luscious and juicy-good all the way through—full of boisterous mountain berry fruit flavors accented by fine herbs and clean earth. It’s a full-throated effort but not in any way bloated or overblown. Indeed, it’s a classic, big-boned, old-fashioned style of California Cabernet that I find very appealing. It has plenty of life ahead, too.

2001 Justin Vineyards & Winery Isosceles Paso Robles. 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Cabernet Franc and 10% Merlot is the blend of this considerably sweeter-toned wine. On the nose, it is outgoing and full-bore with its popping aromas of raspberries, blueberries, sweet oak and warm spices. In the mouth, it’s a bit one-dimensional but very pure and almost bodacious with its warm, red, sweet-toothed fruit flowing easily from start to finish. There’s no alcoholic burn or offensive blowsiness, just pure red modern-styled fruit pumping through. It took me a while to adjust my palate to it, but in the end I definitely did enjoy it.

1996 E. Fuligni Brunello di Montalcino Vigneti dei Cottimelli. This was opened later in the day at the restaurant. It shows off aromas of red flowers, dried cherries, spiced leather and gentle bits of porcini and dusty earth. In the mouth, it has a nicely-resolved feel right from the start—with flavors of dried cherries, strawberries, iron and herbs. It has a nice easy balance and fine mid-weight flavors. If I have a complaint, it’s that it never seems to find an “extra gear” or break through with anything particularly characterful. It’s just pleasant, resolved and easy to drink.

2007 Copain Syrah Hawks Butte Vineyard Yorkville Highlands. This was opened much earlier but I didn’t get around to drinking it until we were at the restaurant. It’s a deep purple color, but with a bright edge to it. The bouquet is vibrant, deep, dark and manly—with plum sauce, blueberry, toasted bread, smoked sausage and hung meat aromas. It delivers a big burst of black olive, black Necco wafer and dark berry fruit flavors on the palate, accented by big but rounded tannins, though I don’t find it to be particularly dialed-up or anything. For me, it’s delivering a pretty nice drinking experience, actually.


-Michael

[JimHow]

I think the southern Medoc did especially well in 2002L, the greatest vintage of the new century.

[Gerry M.]

I was really looking forward to playing golf that day but, as the old saying goes, when your left with lemons make lemonade. I agree, the 1990 Ch Talbot was the wine of the day. the balance and consistancy from the nose thru the finish was really amazing. The 89 PLL was outstanding as usual. The 2002 Brane Cantenac is a sleeper and can probably be had relatively cheaply.