2003 Pontet Canet

[William P]

In honor of this inevitable moment, I opened a 03 Pontent Canet on Saturday. I am please to state that wine is developing nicely. This was positively the best bottle that I've had so far and I've tasted it on five different occassions.

The wine still is full bodied, and deeply concentrated. It still is a low acid wine. The favors of Cassis and earth (and a kiss of oak) are still in their primary form. The change I noted was in the tannins. The aggressive tannins had moderated just a bit and the fruit shone a little more. A very rich and powerful wine presented itself on the second night. A little more muscular. The finish tickled my tastebuds for a good minute. No I am not saying that the tannins are resolved, but tannin tolerant will notice the subtle difference. Of course there is the ever present bottle variation so your experience my vary.

No, this is not ready. In ten years it might not be ready but the potential clearly showed itself on Saturday. It's time to bury the case for nine or ten years and let time work it's magic.

[Claudius]

I agree.
One of my fav 03s - and my case will sit tight for some time yet.

[JimHow]

Yes my stash is sitting at the very bottom of a large stack of cases.

[PatrickDL]

Bill, does this resemble the P-C's of the mid 90's or is it more...um...modern for want of a better term? I think from what you wrote that it is still typical but curious. FWIW, we've been devouring the 94 recently, the case is almost gone. 95 and 96 aren't yet ready for prime time. P

[William P]

Patrick, it is modern but it's not a bloated or nebulous mass. The body and the fruit concentration may have as much to do with the vintage as with the winemaker and consultant.

[PatrickDL]

Thanks Bill! Both 03 and 05 have confused me somewhat. Some had been what I consider traditional (in a good 1990 kinda way) and some had been very "Napa." I'm not a purist, I like Napa cabs sometimes too but I like to know what I'm getting! P

[Rick]

Jim
you just do not have enough 03 PC if it is at the bottom of your stack!!!

[JimHow]

It was awkward at that Tesseron dinner last year Rick. It's a freakish beast, but I agree with Bill, I think it is going to end up evolving positively over the longterm, two decades or more.

[JScott]

This, for me, is another in a line of wines I will always associate with BWE, along with '96 Sociando, '89 Lynch and a host of others.....

[JimHow]

Yes, Scott, Jackdaw actually posted a tasting note on the '96 Pontet-Canet in the first 48 hours of the existence of BWE in February 2000.
It is fitting that we met with Alfred Tesseron a couple years ago, it is a classic BWE wine from the appellation of Pauillac.