Bordeaux Wine Enthusiasts

I'm readying the estate for a historic visit from the BWE mid-Atlantic sub-chapter this weekend here in The Great State of Maine!
We will be dining here at Chateau How on Friday night and I suspect will be uncorking a fine northern Medoc or two or many more from the cellar to go along with the grilled steaks, fine champagnes, white Burgundies, Sauternes, delectable cheeses, fresh vegetables, and a certain popular chocolate cake dessert indigenous to central Maine that matches perfectly with the finest wines of the northern Medoc!
You'll note I didn't mention lobster. That comes on Saturday and Sunday, as we advance to the spectacular mid-summer Maine coast, more specifically, Boothbay Harbor, whereupon we will undoubtedly consume many pounds of lobster as fresh as lobster can be, i.e., literally minutes off of the boats.
On Sunday, it is off to Cabbage Island for the lobster and clam bake!
We will see you tomorrow late afternoon, David and Peggy, Tom and Gail, and Chris Winona Chief!
Safe travels!
BD

BWE knows no boundaries. Very cool.

Have a great time. I wish i could have go, but too much work right now. Looking forward the summer holidays soon!

Nic

Maybe later in the summer Nicola?
Michael P was talking about making a trip over.

You will have a great weekend. Best to all from Lucie & me.

Enjoy! Sorry we couldn't make it this time!

Enjoy, great time of year to go!

Lucky dogs............

Sounds like a great time. One of my early memories was the going to Cabbage Island for their famous clambake.

A few wines from last night:

1989 Lynch Bages
2001 Donhoff Kabinet
2002 Bollinger Grand Cuvee
1996 Lafite
1997 d"Yquem
1982 Gruaud Larose
1988 Dal Forno Romano Amarone
2002 Haut Brion

Crazy.

That is quite an impressive line up!

This is what I call "A good start".

This that 1989 Château Lynch Bages helped to forget the visit at the Château?

What a nice lineup. Who did well?

Nic

The wines were all spectacular Nic but damn if the 89 Lynch didn't steal the show.

Impressive lineup.

An epic weekend.
The Cabbage Island lobster bake was spectacular!

Great look! But seem a chilly summer.

Nic

The weather ended up being perfect.
It was 70ish, no humidity, and the rain held off.
We had a little rain this morning but it was clear for the trip out to Cabbage Island.
It was a tremendous weekend, and we continued the BWE tradition of special BWE wines out on the island….

One time we were making lobsters, and let them roam around on the patio, so the pets could investigate.

https://goo.gl/photos/4dJbEF2nWdyTJhnU7

The dog took an exploratory lick and watched them suspiciously. The cats feigned indifference.

The humans drank a lot of Chablis.

Susan and I love Maine and BWE!

We missed you and Susan RDD!
The lobster tails were sooooo sweet!

Miss y'all. We spent a lot last summer going to Newfoundland. But Maine is next for sure.

2002 Haut Brion: Stellar nose right from the uncorking. This is a great Haut Brion. It has never disappointed. He Who Shall Remain Nameless gave it 89 points I believe. He is crazy. Not a sharp edge, classic, at the beginning of a very long plateau. 95 points.

1997 d'Yquem: Deeply colored, very rich, long finish, all the classic d'Yquem notes except magnified. A big wine that will last many years. 97 points.

1982 Gruaud Larose: This wine is mind-boggling in its complexity. It has a million things going on and shows no signs of slowing down. The color was still fresh right to the rim. An epic wine. 100 points.

2001 Donnhoff Oberhauser Leistenberg Reisling Kabinet: Chris and I drink this on the back deck while waiting for Tom and Gail to arrive. It seemed very fresh and vital to me, it seemed like something that had a good ways to go. But I don't drink much German stuff. 90 points.

1989 Lynch Bages: This was one of "those" bottles. Absolutely spectacular, among the best bottles of Lynch I've ever had, and I've ad many. We drank it with the whoopee pies, in true BWE tradition. The lead pencil and absolute essence of Pauillac was like few other wines I have ever tasted. Absolutely classic Medoc, the ultimate in combination of elegance and power. And it's STILL young! The greatest wine ever made? 100+ points.

1996 Lafite: This wine is a monster. It is a 100 year wine. It is soooo 1996, with that classic, classic cedar and ripe, fine tannins of the vintage. A breathtaking wine, my wine of the night, until we uncorked the Lynch…. 100 points.

1988 Dal Forno Romano Amarone: As many of you know, I have written here that the 1988 Dal Forno Amarone that we had in the north end of Boston back around 1998 or so was my greatest wine experience ever, it literally brought tears t our eyes. Imagine my amazement, then, when Tom pulls out not only a Dal Forno, but a Dal Forno Amarone. And not only a Dal Forno Amarone, but a 1988 Dal Forno Amarone. Oh…My…God… I nearly fell out of my chair. We were speculating that that must have been just about the las bottle of the '88 in existence. It had changed so much since 1998, much more aged, port-like now, we decanted it, it was absolutely breathtaking with the perfectly grilled tenderloins. I'm not worthy! 99+ points.

2002 Bollinger La Grande Annee: Perhaps 've been drinking too much Pol Roger, this seemed harsh and acidic to me. I mean, still very delicious, but Chris's 2002 pol Roger Blanc de Blancs that he uncorked later in the weekend blew it away. 89 points.

And that was just Friday night!

JimHow wrote:2002 Haut Brion: Stellar nose right from the uncorking. This is a great Haut Brion. It has never disappointed. He Who Shall Remain Nameless gave it 89 points I believe. He is crazy. Not a sharp edge, classic, at the beginning of a very long plateau. 95 points.

1997 d'Yquem: Deeply colored, very rich, long finish, all the classic d'Yquem notes except magnified. A big wine that will last many years. 97 points.

1982 Gruaud Larose: This wine is mind-boggling in its complexity. It has a million things going on and shows no signs of slowing down. The color was still fresh right to the rim. An epic wine. 100 points.

2001 Donnhoff Oberhauser Leistenberg Reisling Kabinet: Chris and I drink this on the back deck while waiting for Tom and Gail to arrive. It seemed very fresh and vital to me, it seemed like something that had a good ways to go. But I don't drink much German stuff. 90 points.

1989 Lynch Bages: This was one of "those" bottles. Absolutely spectacular, among the best bottles of Lynch I've ever had, and I've ad many. We drank it with the whoopee pies, in true BWE tradition. The lead pencil and absolute essence of Pauillac was like few other wines I have ever tasted. Absolutely classic Medoc, the ultimate in combination of elegance and power. And it's STILL young! The greatest wine ever made? 100+ points.

1996 Lafite: This wine is a monster. It is a 100 year wine. It is soooo 1996, with that classic, classic cedar and ripe, fine tannins of the vintage. A breathtaking wine, my wine of the night, until we uncorked the Lynch…. 100 points.

1988 Dal Forno Romano Amarone: As many of you know, I have written here that the 1988 Dal Forno Amarone that we had in the north end of Boston back around 1998 or so was my greatest wine experience ever, it literally brought tears t our eyes. Imagine my amazement, then, when Tom pulls out not only a Dal Forno, but a Dal Forno Amarone. And not only a Dal Forno Amarone, but a 1988 Dal Forno Amarone. Oh…My…God… I nearly fell out of my chair. We were speculating that that must have been just about the las bottle of the '88 in existence. It had changed so much since 1998, much more aged, port-like now, we decanted it, it was absolutely breathtaking with the perfectly grilled tenderloins. I'm not worthy! 99+ points.

2002 Bollinger La Grande Annee: Perhaps 've been drinking too much Pol Roger, this seemed harsh and acidic to me. I mean, still very delicious, but Chris's 2002 pol Roger Blanc de Blancs that he uncorked later in the weekend blew it away. 89 points.

And that was just Friday night!

Holy. Cow.

I'm not sure I'm even worthy to read about these wines. Wow.

Thanks for the write up.

We had amazing wines this weekend Patrick, combined with the arrival of the BWEers, nice weather, the Maine coast, and lobster galore. It was Heaven!

Jeez, you guys sure did reach for the stars.

Please: in your opinion where were the Lafite and the Lynch on their aging curve?

Alex R.

I'm the wrong guy to ask because I love my wines so young, but that youthful Lynch seemed in such a great place, why wait even though it'll be fresh at least another 20 years.

The Lafite, on the other hand, is a 100 year wine. It's 19 years old now but it is going to evolve very slowly.

But both were 100 point experiences in my book.

Many, many thanks for your hospitality this weekend, JIm - the pilgrimage to Lewiston should be on BWE's annual calendar!

After Friday night, our wine choices were toned down a bit but that didn't cut into the enjoyment at all. We didn't smuggle any wine into the one-hour-in-line wait for the Red's Eats loster roll, but what a treat. They're not kidding when they say it's more than a whole lobster on each roll - I found one and half lobters worth of tail and claws as I worked my way through that monster. After that late lunch, we decided to skip dinner and sit outside on the balcony with some snacks and, you guessed it, some more wine. Nothing as far up the food chain as the previous evening, but a 2002 Pol Roger (Blanc de Blancs?) was beautiful and a 1979 La Lagune (this is BWE, right?) developed with air into a real treat, while a 1966 Urz Wurz Riesling (never caught the producer) was badly faded.

The Cabbage Island Clambake on Sundaywas excellent. A spectacular boat ride along the Maine coast to start, followed by a huge lobster and clam feast, well accompanied by a 2012 Meursault 1er, Aubert 2013 Ritchie Vineyard Chard, an OTH 1983 Chablis Les Clos, and a D'Angerville 2006(?) Volnay Champans that surprised me with how well it matched the food.

All in all, just a great weekend.

Fabulous hospitality Jim. Another wanna be there read. Wines were over the top for one night but I'm sure the wines were secondary to evryone getting together again. I like the idea of a Lewiston annual.

We had a great time Danny. The lobster was so damned fresh.
That 1982 Gruaud Larose was immense, it clearly had great provenance.

It sounds like A Good Time Was Had by All.

Well except for the crustaceans.

What's the maturity status on the 02 Pol Roger BdB? I have a 5 or 6, but a bottle I tried in 10/13 seemed pretty mute.

We had it on Saturday night out on the deck overlooking Boothbay Harbor.
It may be that it was just such a big contrast to the tannic and acidic Bollinger from the night before, but it was very smooth and delicious drinking.

Fantastic weekend ya'll had!

Strange about the Bollinger. The bottles Jacques opened in NYC were outstanding. The '02 Pol Roger BdB is also wonderful even if some years away from its peak.

1990 Brut Chardonnay (Blanc de Blanc) lasted a long long time.

Wow, what a great time! So sorry we had to bail out at the last minute. There's always next year...