Bordeaux 2005's - a little look...

Last Wednesday a small collection of friendly wine traders got together, thanks to Alistair's organisation, to drink some 2005 Bordeaux. This followed on from two previous sessions with different themes Tuscan 2004's & Barolo 2004's.

The brief was to bring a bottle that released at under £50 a bottle. The venue was the Portland Restaurant. They did a good job in the private room. All the bottles had been double decanted in late afternoon.

My notes below are not as in depth as they might have been as frankly it was a fun crowd and we did a wonderful job of distracting each other. It was though very useful as an exercise:

Pavillon Blanc de Château Margaux - Our only white, and apparently the 5th or 6th bottle of this that had to be opened to get a "good one". There was a warm vintage Sauvignon feel and a slightly sweaty edge, a character I quite like in these wines. Lanolin and cheesecloth too but the finish is not quite what I should be. 15/20

Lafon Rochet 2005, Saint Estephe - Soft and pretty supple but not lacking in a bit of grip and a slightly rustic edge, no criticism. Ready from now on for sure. 16.5/20

Clerc Milon 2005, Pauillac - Quite polished but not in a disjointed way. This was classy and a little glossy, another 2 years or so the oak on the nose should integrate. Good fruit there. 17/20

Grand Puy Lacoste 2005, Pauillac - More berried fruit and sweeter, more intense with a savoury and iron like side to it, more energy, very good, a step up and whilst good now this has more to give, really nice. 17.5-18.5/20

Lagrange 2005, Saint Julien - Smokey, quite sexy and easy to appreciate. Dark fruits. A good hedonistic glass of claret, will age but I am not convinced there is more complexity to come. 17/20

Malescot Saint Exupéry 2005, Margaux - Always just "Malescot", It struck me that there was a little more extraction, a little more inkiness. There was a real youth to it, high acidity and high tannin too. Served blind I would have thought this a 2010 not a 2005. For that reason alone I wonder if it is totally balanced. 16.5/20 (this may be harsh).

Rauzan Ségla 2005, Margaux - I thought this was good, my notes just have a tick which is good news if rather unhelpful. Supple with good balance and not over-worked. 17/20

Domaine de Chevalier 2005, Pessac-Léognan - This really impressed me and along with the GPL might just have been the top two wines. There was a good combination of red and black fruits. This is serious with a good savoury edge and a very proper feel about it. Long and balanced. 17.5-18.5/20

Roc de Cambes 2005, Cotes de Bourg - A wine I know really well, mostly because I keep drinking it. Good freshness and not too much volume then that trademark "Mitjavile Mocha" note. Ready now but no rush. 17-17.5/20

Latour à Pomerol 2005, Pomerol - This was less good bottle than the really good one I had here. A real shame. Very muted. No score

Canon 2005, Saint Emilion - Very ripe, good richness too, nose very encouraging the palate was a little extracted and possibly a little drier than you might want. Time will tell, a keeper? 16.5-17.5(?)/20

We then had two "imposters" - Le Dome 2000 which had been opened but not drunk the previous night. I wondered it is might be an 2003 but I think that might have been more down to the air it would have seen. Colleagues were much closer. A wine with a long life ahead I think and a more savoury character. The second was Volnay 1er cru Champans 2012 from d'Angerville which I had brought on from a press Lunch for the d'Angerville's 2014's (blog to follow soon). I was a little unfair after so many richer reds because a lighter, arguably more elegant, wine will always show well and so it did.

So conclusions from the 2005's - proper vintage, good balance in general, no overriding impression on tannin, acidity and alcohol. It was not a waste to have opened any of these but I would certainly say that 2005s need a good decant at this stage.

Good stuff...what next chaps?

Mostly Magnums at Hawksmoor...

An end-of-year gathering organised by Jordi at Hawksmoor in Basinghall Street. The price of admission was a magnum. The food was what you would expect, well executed, filling and meaty!

Dom Perignon 1990 - This was on great form, quite bold on the nose and then both refreshingly and fresh fruited on the palate, far more citrus than bread or biscuit, ripe and quite full, it got the appetite going.

Riesling Smaragd 2010, R.Pichler - Dry and following the DP may be too dry to be fair on it, it was not young or mature and was a wine of texture over extrovert aromas and flavours. would be great with oily fish.

Meursault Charmes 1996, Roulot - Possibly wine of the day for me. If all mid 1990's Burgundy was in this sort of shape then the fine wine world would be a happier place. The nose had a little reduction on the attack (a thing I love) and then the wine was all waxy mellow citrus and frankly so delicious that I struggle to add many many adjectives- complete and as good as you could ever expect - wonderful!

Chambolle-Musigny 2007, de Vogue (2 bottles)
Fresh and pure red fruit, this is very Chambolle and very pretty, not overly serious and whilst it will age why would you when it tastes so lovely now.

Corton Renardes 1971, M.Gaunoux

Soft powdery, slightly bruised red fruit with an fresh acidic lift. There was then some white pepper spice. The wine held together well in the glass for 45 minutes or so and then got a little fragmented into it's parts and became a little medicinal. The high-toned sweetness of the fruit was remarkable, fascinating wine.

Ermitage Le Pavillon 1989, M.Chapoutier
If it is possible to be medium weight and a bit of a bruiser at the same time then this is that very thing. Quite primary with black fruit and some black pepper, not "too much" but certainly with more complexity to come. Promising and balanced.

Magdelaine 1985

My red of the day. Now before people shout that I am being biased (not that it was my bottle) I need to point out that this Chateau does not even exist anymore in terms of production as one estate. It has been "rolled" into Belair-Monange . The wine had a real charm and perfect balance between sweet and savoury with a lovely elegant medium weight and no hard edges at all. I would imagine that in magnum this will remain delicious for many decades. This is stunningly understated and all the better for it.

Domaine de Chevalier 1961

Savoury and deep in colour, this had good initial fruit and then became more "stocky" and deeper and more saline with time. For Pessac of this age it had amazing texture and weight.

Leoville Barton 2000

To me this was the only real disappointment of the lunch, it was just far too much on the savoury side, even a little metallic, ferrous and blood-like, it just needed some sweetness and lift. I might be being harsh...

Stag’s Leap “Cask 23” 1991

I thought this was really lovely and had a slightly sweet fruit finish, this worked well in contrast to the slightly dry finish of the Barton and the Chevalier. I would not have been near the 23 years of age if served blind, there was evolution but in a very sedate and steady way. Really lovely.

Percarlo 1990

Good sweetness to the ever so slightly bruised fruit, a good bit of spice that was balanced by a dash of minty freshness, really good, better even that when I had it during this tasting, the sort of wine I'd love to have spent a while with.

Tenuta di Trinoro 1997

Rich and pretty opulent, ripe without being over the top, nice balance and the slight sweetness worked well at the end of the meal...this is a wine I've had a couple of really in-depth looks at, the first of which was here and the second I need to write up!

Then there was one more wine that came around during the meal...

Mystery Chambolle-Musigny Amoureuses

This was absent of either producer, although Negoce was the thought, and vintage. I agreed with our organiser that it may well be 1966 but that can be no more than an educated guess. I wish I had taken a pic so I could do some research. It had a lovely mature Pinot sweetness without a hint of stink or farmyard, feminine for sure...