Bordeaux Bound

On September 15, 2013December 9, 2013 By Bob WattIn FranceLeave a comment

Next week, my wife and I head to Bordeaux, sans children – for a highly-anticipated trip of wine tasting (a big thank you to my in-laws for staying with our kids!).

Although those in the industry would call our tour a “death march,” we’re quite excited by the itinerary we have lined up. The extraordinary team at Bordeaux Saveurs has helped us put together this remarkable tour, complete with a few cooking classes on estates, as well as numerous great meals.

Over roughly two weeks, we will visit:

Chateau Phelan Segur
Chateau Cos d’Estournel
Chateau Pontet Canet
Chateau Leoville Barton
Chateau Lascombes
Chateau Mouton Rothschild
Chateau Lynch Bages
Chateau Haut Brion
Chateau Pape Clement
Domaine de Chevalier
Chateau Pichon Longueville Baron
Chateau Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande
Chateau Palmer
Chateau Suduiraut
Chateau Y’Qeum
Chateau Guiraud
Chateau Haut Bailly
Chateau Smith Haut Lafite
Chateau Troplong Mondot
Chateau Angelus
Chateau Figeac
Chateau Soutard

We will stay at the Cordeillan Bages hotel for the first part of the trip, then in a private apartment in Bordeaux proper over the weekend, and finish out our stay at les Sources de Caudalie, which friends tell us is heavenly. A big thanks to dear friend and awesome travel agent Kelly Bonewitz at Woodside Travel for her assistance pulling things together – we can’t wait to give a full report on our adventure!

Speaking of which, we have never blogged remotely before, so we’ll have to see how it goes. Given how much we’ve packed in, the updates will probably happen once we return, jet-lagged and happy…and dreaming of our return!

Daily Drinkers: Good Whites

On September 15, 2013February 4, 2014 By Bob WattIn FranceLeave a comment

From time to time we’ll review low cost wines in search of the ultimate value bottles. Here are reviews of a few recent wines:

The 2011 Les Hospices Sancerre white wine from Sancerre, France was purchased from Costco for $14. It was a very nice floral white wine, aged in stainless and with crisp acidity for summer drinking. It went perfectly with our lemon chicken pasta that had capers, pine nuts and olive oil (88pts.)

I purchased another $15 bottle of summer white from Costco, the 2010 Olivier Leflaive Bourgogne Blanc – Les Setilles. This wine was 100% Chardonnay from the Burgundy region of France. Even though this wine was a low end village wine, Olivier Leflaive is one of the best producers of white Burgundy and it showed in this $15 bottle of wine. This wine had nice clean Chardonnay fruit, with good body and a hint of spices and acid coming through on the medium finish (89pts.).

Cellar Gems: 1982 Mouton Rothschild

On September 15, 2013October 22, 2013 By Bob WattIn FranceLeave a comment

I’m just catching up on some back posts now. A few months ago, we had a bottle of 1982 Chateau Mouton Rothschild from our cellar (Bordeaux – Pauillac, France). The bottle was uncorked at 9am and poured at 6pm. Great fill, into the neck. Very dark reddish black color, very slight lightening at the rim. Complex nose of dark fruit and some forest floor, but it was all very subtle. In the mouth, again subtle sweet dark fruit with a great balance of tannin and acid. It ended with a medium-long finish. Towards the end of the bottle (1.5 hours later), the nose was still subtle but more sweet fruit was coming through, with some forestry secondary characteristics and the smooth finish was getting longer. The wine seemed like it was still just trying to wake up from a long hibernation period and could have used more air time to show it’s stuff. Nice wine, but a little disappointing on the showing of this monumental legend of a wine. Next time, I will let it have more air time. (92pts.)

Cellar Gems are reviews of bottles aged in our cellar.

Dinner with Friends

On September 15, 2013February 4, 2014 By Bob WattIn Argentina, California, France, WashingtonLeave a comment

We had a very nice evening with two couples over a salmon dinner a few weeks back. It was a great time to share some nice wines and catch up from what had turned into a busy summer.

We started the evening with two refreshing summer wines, a 2012 Round Pond Sauvignon Blanc from Napa Valley and a 2012 Miraval Rose from Provence, France. The Sauvignon Blanc was a nice light and crisp wine with decent fruit (86pts.).

I was curious to try the Miraval Rose – I kept hearing about it, but admit to being a little skeptical. The wine is being produced from Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s property in Provence and this was their first release. I wouldn’t generally think about buying a wine that some celebrity endorsed, but in this case the wine was made in partnership with the Perrin family, who are good long time producers in the southern Rhone region. The wine was nice and dry and had a good body of fruit and acid (88pts.)

Now on to the reds. Our friends Jeanne & Will brought a nice aged bottle of 2003 Woodward Canyon Merlot. The wine had some great mature fruit and was drinking very well, with a lot of secondary nuances(spices) coming through on the long smooth finish (94pts.). Woodward Canyon’s wines will age very well over a decade or even two for the cabs.

Next up from Brian and Laurie, was the first release of the 2010 Hand of God red wine from Mendoza, Argentina. This wine was a blend of 55% Malbec, 35% Syrah and 10% Petit Verdot. The winemaker is Santiago Achaval, who also produces the wines for the award winning Achaval Ferrer winery in Mendoza, Argentina. The 2010 Hand of God is a nice wine with good dark red fruit, good structure and a medium-long finish (92pts.).

Next, I pulled a bottle of 1996 Leonetti Cellar Reserve Seven Hills Cabernet, from Walla Walla, Washington. I have not had this particular wine in a long time, but I bought this wine on release and this was my last bottle of it. The wine was a very dark red color and surprisingly youthful. The fruit was really singing, but it also still had some decent structure and good acidity. The fruit with a little bit of spice and chocolate followed through to a nice long finish. Blind, I would have never guessed the wine was 17 years old, it tasted more like 5-7. This wine could have aged another decade or more without trying and possibly still improve. But what the heck? Why wait? It’s drinking beautifully now (95pts.).

Everyone was have such a great time catching up, so we needed one more bottle to taste. I pulled a bottle of 2001 Cadence – Tapteil Vineyard red wine from Red Mountain, Washington. The wine was a deep red color and drinking very well. The dark red/black fruit combined with subtle baking spices really came through on the medium-long smooth finish. This wine is still youthful with another 10 years ahead of it (93pts.)

We are grateful to our friends for sharing our love of wine – and sharing their great wines with us!

Cellar Gems: 2004 William Fevre

On August 14, 2013February 4, 2014 By Bob WattIn FranceLeave a comment

2004 William Fevre – Bougros Cote Bouguerots (Chablis, France) – I believe William Fevre is one of the best producers in Chablis for the money. It’s a favorite in our household!

The 2004 had a nice light straw yellow color. The nose smelled of granny smith apples, wet limestone and sea air. In the mouth, the sweet high acid green apple fruit combined with lemon, wet stone, oyster shell and just a touch of spices like nutmeg. The dense sweet fruit carries through the very long mineraly finish, with an electric acid snap that makes you take notice. This was my first foray, since release, into our collection of 2004 Chablis wines. The 2004 vintage is a very “classic” and wonderful vintage for Chablis. They say “Good things come to those that wait.” and this wine has a long life ahead of it. (96pts.)

Cellar Gems are reviews of bottles aged in our cellar.

Cellar Gem: 1999 E. Guigal

On August 14, 2013February 4, 2014 By Bob WattIn FranceLeave a comment

1999 E. Guigal – Cote-Rotie Brune et Blonde (Northern Rhone, France) – I got this bottle on release in roughly 2002, and we opened it about a month ago. It was dark ruby red in color with a little bricking at the rim. The nose smelled of sweet red fruit, subtle baking spices, beef blood, and forest floor. In the mouth, sweet red cherries are combined with cured meat, baking spices, pepper and dried leaves. The cherries and beef continued through to the nice medium-long finish. This wine appears to be on its plateau of maturity, where it should stay for another 10 years. (93pts.)

Cellar gems are reviews of bottles aged in our cellar.

Cellar Gem: 2001 Chateau D’Issan

On August 14, 2013February 4, 2014 By Bob WattIn FranceLeave a comment

2001 Chateau D’Issan (Bordeaux – Margaux, France) – When our twins were born back in 2004, my wife gave me a case of wine to celebrate, with the idea that we would drink one bottle every year around their birthday, and hopefully toast ourselves to a job well done. I look forward to this tradition each year, and cooked a good steak dinner to enjoy this bottle with. Now that the kids have turned 9, we only have a few more years before we’ll need to buy more “birthday” wine!

The wine had a deep red color, and there was nice spicy red fruit on the nose. In the mouth, the combination of red/black fruits and subtle baking spices came through, with good acid keeping everything alive. The sweet red fruit followed through to a nice medium to medium-long finish. This was a better showing than the previous bottle 2-3 years ago, which was still somewhat closed in on itself. This bottle was open for business and will have a great future over the next 10+ years. (93pts.)

Cellar Gems are reviews of bottles aged in our cellar.

Cellar Gems: 1989 Cordeillan Bages

On August 5, 2013August 5, 2013 By Bob WattIn FranceLeave a comment

In anticipation of our upcoming trip to Bordeaux, I pulled an ’89 Cordeillan Bages out of the cellar last week. I remember buying this bottle when I first started getting into Bordeaux wine in about ’92. We are actually staying at the Cordeillan Bages estate in Pauillac on our trip, so we thought this would be an interesting bottle to taste now.

This ’89 Cordeillan Bages was a dark ruby red color, with just a slight bit of bricking at the rim. The nose smelled of forest floor with dried leaves and damp earth and a little sweet red fruit coming through. In the mouth, the taste of the moderately sweet red fruit was complicated with the earthy flavors (leaves, moss and dirt). The wine had a slight rustic medium length finish and a little bit of dryness on the end. After several hours of air, the fruit was a little more dominant over the forest flavors and the finish was smoothing out, while still maintaining a little bit of its rustic character. (89 pts.)

We look forward to trying the more current vintages of this wine in just a few short weeks.

Cellar Gems are reviews of bottles aged in our cellar.

Fete de Bordeaux 2013 – Year Five

On February 19, 2013February 6, 2014 By Bob WattIn FranceLeave a comment

This was the year to put the 2010’s to the test. 2009 vs. 2010 – the raging debate – the only thing standing between me and the final verdict was the fact that we couldn’t taste the vintages side by side.

The guests of honor this year were Jean-Charles Cazes of Chateaux Lynch-Bages and Ormes de Pez and Anthony Barton of Chateaux Leoville-Barton and Langoa Barton. We were sad to miss Nicolas Glumineau, who represented Chateau Montrose in years past, because he had moved on to a roll as head of Roederer’s Bordeaux Properties including Chateau Pichon LaLande. Herve Berland, now representing Chateau Montrose and Tronquoy Lalande had a last minute conflict and could not make the dinner, we hope to meet him next year.

The wines served were:

2011 Blanc de Lynch-Bages
2010 Chateau Tronquoy Lalande
2010 Chateau Ormes de Pez
2010 Chateau Langoa-Barton
2010 Chateau Lynch-Bages
2010 Chateau Leoville-Barton
2010 Chateau Montrose
2005 Chateau Langoa-Barton
2003 Chateau Lynch-Bages
2000 Chateau Montrose
1999 Chateau Leoville-Barton
1995 Chateau Lynch-Bages
1995 Chateau Montrose
1997 Chateau Suduiraut

So now, the big reveal. 2009, or 2010? Honestly, I have to be as cagey as the critics and say the proof is in the aging. I have happily begun putting down both vintages in the anticipation of a future vintage taste-off. My wife, however, is firmly in the 2010 camp, having declared the 2010 Montrose her Wine of the Night in an unusual twist (normally, the older the better as far as she is concerned). She described the 2010’s as more round and approachable and having darker fruit than the 2009’s, but to be clear, she’s not saying the ’09’s are any less complex than the ’10’s – it’s just a style she prefers. They say that the 2009’s are more of an American vintage with a little more plush fruit and the 2010’s are more of a European vintage, being slightly more tannic with blacker fruit. If that’s the case, I’m definitely okay with her assessment – but only time will tell.

I leaned towards the Montrose as my top pick of the 2010’s, followed closely by the Leoville-Barton and the Lynch-Bages. My Wine of the Night was the 2000 Montrose, though I have to agree with my wife – the 2010’s were very compelling that night.

The surprise of the night was the impressive 2011 Blanc de Lynch-Bages, with strong minerality and great acid energy. Jean-Charles said a customer once described it as a real “porch pounder.” (He was quite pleased with that description!) It’s not exactly how I would put it, but I admit, I’d happily drink more of it!

Fete de Bordeaux 2012 – Year Four

On February 19, 2013February 4, 2014 By Bob WattIn FranceLeave a comment

We were very much looking forward to this year given all of the hype and press around the 2009 Bordeaux vintage and the subsequent 2010 vintage. The 2009 wines did live up to their reputation, though I do remember wishing we could try the 2009’s and 2010’s side by side at that time.

On hand representing the estates were Jean-Charles Cazes of Chateaux Lynch-Bages and Ormes de Pez; Anthony Barton of Chateaux Leoville-Barton and Langoa Barton; and Nicolas Glumineau of Chateaux Montrose and Tronquoy Lalande.

Here are the 2009’s we tasted:

2009 Blanc de Lynch-Bages
2009 Chateau Tronquoy Lalande
2009 Chateau Ormes de Pez
2009 Chateau Langoa-Barton
2009 Chateau Lynch-Bages
2009 Chateau Leoville-Barton
2009 Chateau Montrose
2001 Chateau Lynch-Bages
2001 Chateau Leoville-Barton
2001 Chateau Montrose
1996 Chateau Langoa-Barton
1996 Chateau Lynch-Bages
1996 Chateau Montrose
2007 Chateau Suduiraut Sauternes

The 2009’s definitely lived up to the hype. The 2009 Chateau Montrose was my first pick of the ’09’s, followed by the Lynch-Bages. My Wine of the Night was the 2001 Montrose followed by the 1996 Langoa-Barton – both were both drinking incredibly well. My wife was very happy to hear that we have some more of the 2001 Montrose in our cellar at home. I hope she’ll be equally glad to hear that we’ve acquired many of the 2009 vintage releases as well! I know it’s been said before, but I believe it’s true – the ’09 vintage is a must-purchase for any Bordeaux wine lover. I look forward to seeing how this vintage matures.