"Does price matter?" Blind Tasting

Roberts House, Philadelphia PA
Tasted Saturday, November 12, 2011 by ews3 with 910 views

Introduction

We put this tasting together with a few flights of blind wines from a given region -- the goal was to put a lower price (~<$30), a mid price (~$30 - $100), and a higher price (~$100+) wine blind up against one another to see -- does price matter?

Flight 1 - Non-blind starters (2 Notes)

A few wines to enjoy with sushi, tasted non-blind

Flight 2 - Blind Beaune Whites (3 Notes)

This was the shocker and the biggest disappointment. The Chevalier-Montrachet disappointed greatly, while the Leflaive Villages not only hung with these higher priced wines, but was the class of the group, in my and the group's opinion.

  • 2005 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Chevalier-Montrachet 89 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chevalier-Montrachet Grand Cru

    Tasted blind in flight of 3 Beaune whites. This was extremely acid driven and it was tough to get much off of it. Nice minerality, but lacking in fruit or any sort of flavor. a bit thin. pleasant, but not special. I expected this to be a decent villages level wine and was shocked on the reveal. Disappointing. Returned to this after it was revealed, and still preferred the Leflaive and did not see hidden signs of class.

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  • 2007 Domaine Leflaive Bourgogne Blanc 93 Points

    France, Burgundy, Bourgogne Blanc

    tasted blind in flight of 3 beaune whites. extremely impressive. more depth to it than the others. ripe apple. acid-driven finish keeps this fresh. a really lovely white burg and an amazing value.

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  • 2007 Domaine / Maison Vincent Girardin Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatières 92 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru

    tasted blind in flight of 3 beaune whites. a nice showing for this value priced 1er. more similar to the villages wine than the grand cru, but we enjoyed that one more. ripe orchard fruit, with a finish that builds. some nice sweet spice on the midpalate. correctly identified as the mid-range wine and a 1er.

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Flight 3 - Blind CA Syrah (3 Notes)

These were easy to identify, and the Lillian and Carlisle mopped the floor with the Burgess. I think the Lillian was the better wine for the long term, but would prefer to drink the Carlisle today.

  • 2007 Lillian Winery Syrah Blue Label 94 Points

    USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Barbara County

    tasted blind in flight of 3 CA Syrahs. 6 hour decant. really nice -- extremely youthful and you can tell at this stage, even with a long decant. still, the quality shone through, with dark fruit, meat, spice/black pepper, and a acidic long finish. i am glad to have quite a few more of these. correctly identified as the lillian.

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  • 2005 Burgess Syrah Napa Valley 85 Points

    USA, California, Napa Valley

    tasted blind in flight of 3 CA Syrahs. muted nose. sour fruit profile. past its prime, if it had one. correctly identified as the low-end syrah.

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  • 2008 Carlisle Syrah Papa's Block 94 Points

    USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley

    tasted blind in flight of 3 CA syrahs. decanted ~6 hrs. carlisle syrahs continue to impress me, especially papa's block. really nice plum and sweet spice. nice black pepper notes linger on the medium (+) finish, which unfortunately shows some heat. correctly identified as the mid-range (and carlisle since i was single blind on this). We finished this on day 3 and it was still holding up well with very primary fruit. Will last.

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Flight 4 - Blind Left Bank Bordeaux (3 Notes)

There was a clear divide between the low end and the two higher end. Again, i think I would definitely prefer the Casntenac Brown today, but the Pontet Canet was built for the longer term.

  • 2005 Château Haut-Beauséjour 82 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe

    tasted blind in flight of 3 LB bordeaux. not very appealing. black fruit liqueur . very simple. disjointed acid. pleasant short finish has pepper characteristics. might hold up better with a little food. correctly identified as the low end.

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  • 2005 Château Cantenac Brown 93 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux

    tasted blind in flight of 3 LB bordeaux. really nice. light caramel and vanilla notes on top of black cherry. i continue to enjoy this more than most and will have to try back vintages. lighter tannin profile. misidentified as the high end, but the lack of stuffing and developing palate should have clued me in.

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  • 2005 Château Pontet-Canet 92 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    tasted blind in flight of 3 LB bordeaux. black pepper, smoke, dark berry fruit. nice tannic profile. this was tough to taste blind at the moment -- there are signs of the wine's quality, but i preferred the cantenac brown. misidentified as the mid-range.

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Flight 5 - Blind Vintage Ports (2 Notes)

This was a rout. The Noval mopped the floor with the Osborne, which was one of the least favorite VPs I have ever had.

  • 1997 Osborne Porto Vintage 86 Points

    Portugal, Douro, Porto

    tasted blind in flight of 2 vintage ports. dark fruit, spice. alcohol is prominent on this and it lacks in complexity. correctly picked as the low-end VP.

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  • 1994 Quinta do Noval Porto Vintage 94 Points

    Portugal, Douro, Porto

    tasted blind in flight of 2 VPs. loads of fruit on this extremely youthful port. plum, blackberry. alcohol is there, but well integrated. long finish. this will continue to evolve for ages. a great wine. correctly identified as the high-end.

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Closing

Does price matter? Yes. Are there great values available? Yes. Are there amazing disappointments at high price points? Certainly. I think we knew all these things, but always good to put it to the test and I think it reinforced the values available in the $30-$50 range.

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