Bordeaux Wine Enthusiasts

Dinner with my friend Jean-Frédéric tonight, to figure out what we would do and bring at the BWE convention in SF.

The 2015 Domaine de St-Just Coulée de St-Cyr Saumur was very nice for the price. Fresh, good acidity, honey, flowers, lemon, with light mineral in mouth, went well with the green haricot, bacon, goat cheese appetizer. I will buy some more. Tn: 89.

With the main meal, rack of lamb with mustard and almonds, first wine was medium dark red, with that easy to recognize lead pencil nose, blackcurrants, grape, leather, leaf, more blackcurrants, soap aromas, coming from that very nice place called Pauillac. In mouth, thick, resolved, long, medium tanins, with the strong blackcurrant flavors, blackberries, minerals, pencil feeling. Very long finish, with lots of elegance. What not to like in that 2001 Chateau Pichon Comtesse de Lalande? Tn: 93.

The second wine was different, but screaming it aoc as well. Darker (younger) with a strong smell of powder cocoa, cherries, smoke. Developped more tobacco tones, red berries and other merlot berries and flowers. In mouth, still that strong dark cocoa flavor, but mellowed with the dark red berries, tobacco, roasted nuts, refined tanins. Less dense than the Pauillac, but with the gravel extra elegance, and with a decent length. The 2005 Domaine de Chevalier is very good, but behind the convincing lady tonight. Tn: 91.

With dessert, i opened a Pedro Ximenez sweet wine, but the load of sugar, dattes and cola flavors, were too strong so will keep for cooking.

A fun night.

Nic

Nice notes, Nic. Try the Pedro Ximenez over vanilla ice cream or pancakes. Not kidding. It should keep a long time after opening.

I wonder what is the better second wine, Comtesse de Lalande or Dame de Montrose?

Thanks for the proposal David. I will try it for sure. I don't know why I didn't think about it myself, as I'm used to vanilla ice cream with small quantity of all kind of sugar on top (brown sugar, molasse, maple syrup and even thick balsamic vinegar).

Jim, I guess that the second wines of these two Chateaux probably worth each other. I guess you will prefer one over the other, depending if you prefer Pauillac or Saint-Estèphe style. I guess the blend can also be different in different vintage, way more than for the first wine.

Nic

Nice notes. I actually just ordered a bottle 14 Reserve de Comtesse. Haven't had any of that vat in a long time, and 14 seems to be a year when the combination of price and reviews have finally entered my purchasing quadrant; K&L has it for $30. I remember drinking a lot of the excellent 1996 for the same price upon release.

I am glad to hear that the 2001 Pichon Lalande is coming around. It was pretty tight when I drank it 2-3 years ago.

Comtesse for me is a better 2nd....2004 comtesse was an absolute delight, pauillac heaven....the last dame I tasted was 2010 and I found it good but fairly boring.
Notes on 2012 comtesse look fairly solid
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I had a 2001 Pichon Lalande a couple months ago and pretty much agree with Nic's take on it. I like it a lot, just entering its drinking window. "What's not to like?" - Exactly!

Chris Bublitz