1995 Bordeaux

Beautiful Solvang, CA
Tasted Monday, March 25, 2019 by JonnyG with 202 views

Introduction

A wonderful chance to peruse this youthful, often backwards vintage, which I submit straddles older and newer winemaking styles in the region and hence becomes a wonderful reference point for both past and subsequent vintages.

Flight 1 - Some Whites (2 Notes)

Flight 2 - A Pair of Allegedly Parkerized Specimens (2 Notes)

Not the best specimens, in terms of having hoped to demonstrate what some more extreme, extracted and ripe wines might look like from the era, but really enjoyable nonetheless.

  • 1995 Château Monbousquet 90 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru

    Slow-ox'ed for 6 hours. An instance where the nose set expectations which the palate could not meet. Beautiful aromatics of spice, violets and black fruit. Less ripe than expected, with loads of dusty tannins. Not sure this budges for many years, if ever.

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  • 1995 Château Troplong Mondot 92 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru

    Slow-ox'ed for six hours. Not the best bottle, but still fascinating to me. Signs of seepage, and a brittle cork which broke on extraction. It took a while for some bretty funk to blow off. I found the aromatics fascinating: layered black fruit with some mocha. More of the same on the palate, plus some evident minerality. More restrained than extracted, so maybe the poor storage muted the wine's reputed excesses?

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Flight 3 - Two Brothers From Different Mothers (2 Notes)

I love to pair Ausone and Lafleur given the similar grape composition, though the backwardness of the Ausone made it hard to discern these typical similarities. The Lafleur really complemented a delicious Cacio Pepe spaghetti.

  • 1995 Château Ausone 92 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru

    Slow-ox'ed for four hours then decanted for three. I can't say this wine budged much. The nose was enticing, a complex mélange of floral, earthy and black fruit notes. Medium bodied and drinking in fine balance, but not a very generous showing. Eventually, some black cherry notes emerged along with a dominant green aspect (tomato vines?) and some tobacco. Very firm tannins. Honestly, this needed a 24-hour decant (or at least a decade more, or both).

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  • 1995 Château Lafleur 95 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Pomerol

    Slow-ox'ed for four hours then decanted for three. Undeniably primary, would benefit from a good decade or so of additional cellar time. Nonetheless a fascinating and highly enjoyable Lafleur, with the Cab. Franc dominating, especially on the nose. Over time, its green pepper and coffee grounds bouquet gave way to full-on jalapeno notes. A creamy mouthfeel, seamless, with more green pepper, bitter mocha and some black fruit. The signature gravel was there, but no truffled elements. Fine tannins, pretty well integrated, balancing the wine's acidity very nicely. A much appreciated introduction to Lafleur for my friends, and I expect the wine they'll think about most often from the evening's line-up.

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Flight 4 - Classic Cab.-Driven Examples (2 Notes)

Paired splendidly with the mains, either Tuscan style NY Strips and Veal Osso Buco. Mission accomplished :)

  • 1995 Château Lafon-Rochet 92 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe

    Slow-ox'ed for four hours then decanted for three. Even then, another 6 hours would have served the wine well. Tightly structured, with fine balance and concentration. Notes of black cherry, currants, vanilla and pencil shavings. Moderate tannins. A precise wine that showed well, even if it paled in comparison to the 1995 Latour alongside which it was served.

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  • 1995 Château Latour Grand Vin 97 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    Slow-ox'ed for four hours then decanted for three. An outstanding showing, exceeding the fine performance of a bottle I had popped and poured a few weeks back. Classic Pauillac aromatics of dark berries, leather and forest floor, along with some orange rind. Well-integrated tannins, black fruit, licorice and leather on the palate. Concentrated and pure. Very long, expansive finish. Such a classy, memorable wine.

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Flight 5 - A Quick One Before We Left (1 Note)

No room for dessert, but always room for Sauternes...

  • 1975 Château de Rayne-Vigneau 90 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

    An interesting style of Sauternes, more elegant than many, with a very thick, glycerined texture and similarly dense flavor profile. Muted marzipan and almonds. Plenty of acid. A touch herbal on the finish, with just a hint of astringency.

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Closing

The Latour was the class of the night's wines, though I can't get the Lafleur out of my head. While the Latour offered everything one would expect, sometimes the less expected can be welcomed too.

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