By: AJ McClellan
We tasted a great lineup of Bordeaux last night, there was one bottle of Cali in the mix but unfortunately it was not drinking very well. In fact despite all the great wines that we opened they were not showing as well as I would have liked… Maybe we can chalk it up to it being a root day…?
1995 La Mission Haut Brion
This wine started off with a worrying nose of old cardboard and color pencils. After an hour or so in the glass the wine blossomed showing graphite, tar, leather, smoke, and black cherries. Strong on the palate with a great funk of old forest floor and moist earth. The finish was not as long as I would have liked but the notes of soft earth still held on for 20 seconds or so.
2000 Pichon Lalande
This bottle was by far the best of the lineup. The 00 Pichon’s have really come out of their shell in the last year showing big mint with blackberries and jam. A signature Pichon funk was all over the palate with lavender, bramble, and dried leaves. A excellent bottle.
1996 Montrose
The classic Bordeaux characteristics were there but I think the bottle saw some heat somewhere in its life. The fruit, while ripe, had a slight stewed character on the end and the back end was not showing the way I had hoped. We allowed for plenty of time for the wine to open up but it never reached its full potential.