A surprising discovery: or after tasting Chilean wines earlier in the day it all tastes good

Towards the end of the work day, I headed into the tasting room at work and, well, put in some work. Tasting. Champagnes, some Bordeaux, an older (85, was it?) Viader Napa Cab. Yeah, lots of the champagnes were delicious as always. Even the PJ was palateable (sorry to be lazy and infer the commonplace narrative that grand marque = bad, boring or a combination of the two). 2000 Fleury Cuvee Robert Fleury was soft, rich, open knit and welcoming. Aspasie Blanc de Blancs struck a particular chord on this day too - I usually like their wines ok but today it seemed especially full of vigor and delicious, extract packed flavor. Tasty champagnes aside, this post isn't about what I have come to expect, rather it is about surprises.

2008 Chateau Olivier Pessac Leognan Blanc. White Bordeaux. Sauvignon Blanc and semillon. 1/3 aged in new barrel. What's the big deal, here? Well, the wine simply struck me as a mouthwateringly delicious, tightly coiled young white Bordeaux, as memorable as I've had in a while. Mineral, bracing and full of a specific strain of acidity in white wine or champagne that I rarely encounter. Let's just call it, um, you know what I don't even know what to call it. It brings to mind my one Edmond Vatan Sancerre experience, Tarlant cuvee Louis, Houillon Savagnin, an eclectic mix of seemingly unrelated French white wines which I know to varying degrees, all of which however I respect greatly, due in no small part to this particular brand of intense, illuminating, yet balanced acidity. So why did this Pessac Leognan, previously unknown to me, make such a strong impression? All I know about this property is that it may be one of the very oldest in Bordeaux, with a recorded history going back to the 13th century. Maybe it's the vintage, perhaps the chateau is making some terrific wines, or maybe I had just had a long day of tasting, and any decently balanced young white wine with high acidity would have made a similar impression.

I know that $30-$40 white Bordeaux is not what many folks are looking for these days, but I would be curious if anyone out there has some experience with this estate's white wines. Anyone?

Bordeaux can be interesting. Really, it can.

There are many out there who still consider Bordeaux to be the king of wines. The most serious, the most age-worthy and elegant. I would say that most people who say these things, though, are over 50. They might also drive a large luxury sedan, play golf regularly, and, I don't know, think that rock music peaked in 1969. In my generation, we don't drink much Bordeaux. Usually the cheap stuff is boring, and the classed growths are too expensive. I won't even get into the cellar trickery and toasty oak elevage which often obscures terroir, is mistaken as terroir and wipes away any reminder that the wine is actually made from GRAPES.

That having been said, there is good, interesting, food friendly Bordeaux out there. It can be tricky to locate, but it does exist. Usually it costs $15-$25. It may be a second label of a Chateau whose style you like but can't afford on an everyday basis. Or it may be a well regarded, traditional Haut- Medoc. And occasionally, I do run into that rare Bordeaux for $12.99 or so that really overdelivers. Here are a few examples of Bordeaux that, if you've been turned off by the region lately, or prefer firmer, more traditional wines, you might actually like.

2005 Chateau Lanessan Haut-Medoc

Always like this guy. The '96 is also worth seeking out. This '05 shows the red fruit, slight herbaceous cab family aromas and flavors, and taut structure that, in my mind anywyay, young Bordeaux should show. This should age well for well over a decade.

2005 Chateau Laubarit 'Vieilles Vignes' Bordeaux

Biodynamic Bordeaux! We all know that biodynamic does not necessarily mean it tastes natural, but in this case the wine does. Sure, it's a bit ripe, but the wine does not get too fruity or heavy in the mouth. No problems aging this wine 5 years, during which time it will undoubtedly improve.

2004 Salle de Poujeaux Moulis-en-Medoc

Poujeaux is based in Moulis-en-Medoc, almost due west of Margaux, placing it southwest of the five famous communes of the Medoc. Competitor Chasse-Spleen is also located in Moulis. These are both Bordeaux 'insider' wines. Traditional and tightly structured, they do not get heavily pointed, gushing press from the 100pt scale crowd, but they are terrific wines for aging. So, it follows that Poujeaux's second label is also well made, and half the price of the grand vin. You won't be able to drink it in 30 years, but aging another 5 is not outside the realm of possibility. Darker fruits on this wine, with a core of minerality, some licorice rope, and a dense structure.

A famous colleague of mine signs off his Bordeaux columns 'Tous jours Bordeaux." While I won't go that far, let's try it this way:

De temps en temps, Bordeaux.

Joe likes Bordeaux...Joe hates bordeaux!

I taste a whole lot of Bordeaux every month. Yesterday we tasted through a line-up of mainly Haut Medoc, with some St Emilion/Pomerol satellites and a few commune wines thrown in. The results were, umm...predictable. Some perfectly sound, technically well made wines, many boring wines, a few plain bad wines. There were some fruit forward $20 Bdx values, if that's your thing, an '05 Reserve de la Comtesse, which was textbook Pauillac with the black currant, lead pencil and in full effect (though is $50ish dollars for a well-made but otherwise fairly ho-hum 2nd label worth it?). Then there were the three wines from the Barton family: 2000 Langoa Barton, 1997 Langoa Barton, and 1994 Leoville Barton. As I anticipated, the Langoa Bartons showed much more nuanced, more interesting flavors, for a whole lot less money. The '97 in particular was great - all of that famed Bordeaux elegance which you read about in wine textbooks was on full display: cherries, roasted meaty savor, terrific velvety texture. While the '00 was good, it come with a 2000 bdx price tag, and is still showing a good bit more primary. The '97 is definitely the way to go for drinking now. And the '94 Leoville Barton? At first sniff, it was the most ripe, manipulated, simple, new worldy classified growth I have ever had the displeasure of tasting. As it opened up things got slightly more interesting, but there was still something really unagreeable and metallic on the finish. Just weird, heavily manipulated wine.

Further proof that the more ambitious the wine in Bordeaux (1st growths excepted?), the higher the pricing, the more often a chateaux increases its pricing, the worse wine you'll get. Hmmm, sound familiar? Do you see any correlation to other cab growing areas in the world?

Is it just me, or does it seem like Napa initially took the best of Bordeaux to inspire their winemaking, and Bordeaux has since taken the worst of Napa to inspire theirs?

Sort of reminds me of the relationship between hip-hop and reggae. I mean, would you rather listen to the Treacherous Three, or to Sean Paul?

Here's my vote.



UPDATE 11/23 - Speaking of poor quality, overrated red bordeaux wine, a bottle of 1990 Cos d'Estournel was opened in the store yesterday. Decanted for what I believe was an hour. Verdict? The wine was dead. Lifeless. Not closed, nor dumb, just not good. I'm not just being hard on Cos because I have disliked anything I've tried from them in the past. In fact, I really wanted to like this bottle, but did not enjoy it one bit. 1990 was a terrific year in Bordeaux, and at this point many of these wines should be showing pretty well. What's the problem here?

2006 Thevenet Morgon Vieilles Vignes, or Bringin' some flavor to Palo Alto

I recently had the pleasure of breaking bread at the house of good friends of one of my co-workers. Not to go into too many details, the food was very good, the hosts really generous and incredibly hospitable (and not to mention outstanding cooks), and the wines very Napa-centric. This had everything to do with a popular wine blogger who had some samples to taste and decided to bring them out to share with company. After discussing the dinner with my co-worker Jeff, I fully expected a table full of big, jammy wine-like beverages, and so I thought a nice cru Beaujolais would both add contrast and provide something for me to drink with dinner. From the selection of steak (yes, it was a comparative steak tasting, true food geek stuff here) to the epoisse, marcellin, gran cru, and other cheeses, the Morgon worked terrifically. It's got the structure and density to work with beef, but the acidity, savor, dryness and finesse to beautifully go with even the stinkiest of ripe cheeses. Between a crowd of 11 drinkers, Thevenet's Morgon and a mag of '97 Labegorce Margaux (a delicious wine brought by Jeff) were the only reds to be emptied. Who knew that such good taste existed in Palo Alto?

A trio of '99 Bdx

As you may recall from a few past posts (here's one), I am a fan of '99 bordeaux. They are soft, full of pure, juicy fruit, higher than usual acidity, and at this point in their development, a complete lack of the blocky, chewy, built for Napa cab and near exclusive red wine drinkers type of structure. These are wines for French comfort food, clarets for drinkers of cooler climate reds, elegant wines to linger over and enjoy with good company in a softly lit den or dining room. That having been said, I tasted these three within 5 minutes of each other, in the comparably sterile surroundings of the K&L tasting room in Redwood City, California, on a near 100 degree day. If I loved 'em this much given these conditions, I can't wait to drink them in Fall in the comfort of my apartment or a local restaurant.

1999 Haut Bailly Pessac-Leognan

Last time I tried this wine, I was really shocked by how dry and chewy the tannins were on the finish: not at all typical for this property or the vintage. Clearly I had tasted an unhappy bottle, as this time the wine was much, much better. Elegant, red fruited wine, with well integrated minerality and acidity. Smooth texture, great balance and just really elegant.

1999 Lynch Bages Pauillac

Young Lynch Bages is typically muscular black currants, with very savory green peppercorn and eucalypt notes playing supporting roles. I haven't had many mature Lynch Bages, though what I have had tastes like softened versions of the above descriptions. Distinctive but not to my taste. I'd have loved to try this wine when it was released, however, as I suspect it would have been quite different, even out of barrel. Terrific perfume, a medley of red and black fruits, coffee liqueur and a touch of damp earth. Very soft, layered and delicate on the palate - is this really Lynch Bages? Quite good.

1999 Pavie-Macquin St. Emilion
Plenty of black truffle, dark cherry, nutmeg and other assorted spice aromas you get with well made, not overdone right bank Bordeaux. Very fresh and bright, focused fruit on the palate, with terrific elegance and length. This was my favorite wine of 25 tasted today, and in the running for my favorite out of maybe 75 or so tasted this week.

On a somewhat related note, I also tasted two high profile 2001 vintage Bordeaux: Leoville-Barton and Cos d'Estournel. The former was agreeable, not world changing but I think fairly well made and surprising in that I actually liked it. The Cos, however was awful. Truly terrible, undrinkable, like nearly any other of their recent wines I have had the misfortune of trying. Jean Guillaume Prats, I believe, is robbing the masses, charging what he does for these unacceptable wines. With the recent change in ownership, I guess that we can look forward to Montelena churning out equally awful wines within the next several years.