The 2014 Gruaud Larose has been uncorked.

[JimHow]

It has been an insanely busy summer, but nonetheless some time to try out a recently delivered 2014...

Kind of a funky taste at the start, lots of oak.

[stefan]

You could have written that without tasting the wine.

[JimHow]

True. An interesting wine. Extremely young, obviously. The oak calmed down after the small first glass. It was a beauty for most of the bottle, the big question is whether it may have faded a bit towards the end. I don't know. Overall, it seems to have been a healthy, modern Gruaud Larose. But a little troubling in the shortness at the end. Is that the vintage or a weakness in the estate, or is it even a problem at all? For now I'll score it 90, but it could go either up or down, probably up, by a point or two.

[jckba]

I liked this wine at the UGC enough to bite on a case purchase which reminds me that I should probably shoot the Wine Library an email about the orders I placed earlier this year to see if the wines are in or not.

[AKR]

Did this show any of that old school Cordier barnyard funk?

[JimHow]

No, but it was definitely Gruaud-Larose-like. I liked it, I think it is going to be a 92-93 point wine with a little age under its belt.
Which leads to the existential question. Is a wine either a 92 point wine or not a 92 point wine, despite its age?

[Comte Flaneur]

The 2014s must be v tough to evaluate now. I remember the 2012s went through a - very short-lived - awkward phase. Alex R had pretty mixed impressions when he tasted a bunch of fourteens recently

[marcs]

No, but it was definitely Gruaud-Larose-like. I liked it, I think it is going to be a 92-93 point wine with a little age under its belt.
Which leads to the existential question. Is a wine either a 92 point wine or not a 92 point wine, despite its age?

I saw a CT review the other day which stated that the wine was 92 points but was "the best 92 point wine he had ever had".

So point scores are clearly part of the wine's Platonic essence.

[dstgolf]

Jim,

Sounds like this will turn in to a delicious wine given time. We all sampled this in 2015 and the impression was positive across the board. No Cordier funk but also had changed from a classic drinker to more Parkerized modern style if I recall. I bought a few bottles on futures when we returned and if I recall the new female winemaker was supposed to take control of the 2015 vintage. Looking forward to comparing the differences down the road.