2001 Bordeaux at 10 years served blind
La Fonda del Sol, NYC
Tasted May 31, 2011 by MRichman with 1,157 views
Introduction
Served single blind in paper bags. We served the right bank in 2 flights then revealed them. The left bank we didn't reveal until after voting for WOTN.
Overall I thought the wines were very good. They tend to show modern and sweet when tasted in vertical, but didn't come off that way in the horizontal setting. A few still need time in bottle, but many of them are in their early drinking window.
My top 4 wines were very close.
I was initially hesitant to do this blind. I like double blind tasting, but the last time we did a horizontal double blind the group got caught up in guessing and I thought it took away from the rest of the experience. I ended up being glad we tasted them blind and will look to do more blind tastings in the future.
Flight 1 (1 note)
Flight 2 (4 notes)
Red
2001 Château Trotanoy
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Pomerol
Warm, soft but strong. Lots of black olive, herb, burnt oak. Long bitter espresso finish. Dense black tannins. Young but drinking fine. Very nice. My #3 of the night.
A-
Red
2001 Château Pavie
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
Bright, high toned, smooth, sweet. Somewhat lush with light black notes and some blueberry. Some acidic tannins and a cola finish. Modern. Easily identifiable as the Pavie.
B+
Red
2001 Château Valandraud
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
Stiff, acidic, hard tannins. Bright and high toned. Some black olive and herb. Long tight drying finish. Way too young. Score reserved.
Flight 3 (3 notes)
Red
2001 Château Pichon-Longueville Baron
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
Lovely nose. Rich smooth, a bit sweet. Well packaged. Some tobacco, herb. Very nice. Complex. Although I wasn't playing the guessing game, this immediately struck me as the Pichon Baron. My #2 of the night.
A-
Red
2001 Château Montrose
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe
Bright with some tight acidic tannins. Some tar. Hard, young. Needs a lot of time. Score reserved.
Flight 4 (3 notes)
Red
2001 Château Cos d'Estournel
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe
Smooth, strong. A little hard and closed. Dark profile with espresso notes. A little awkward and angular. This is young. Hold.
B/B+
Red
2001 Plumpjack Cabernet Sauvignon Estate
USA, California, Napa Valley, Oakville
I threw this in as a ringer to test the limits of the modern profile of the 2001 Bordeaux. Indeed it showed very modern next to the Bordeaux. Soft, lush, sweetish, jammy with baking spices. Lacks structure next to the Bordeaux. Suffered by the comparison, but I think it served its purpose--even modern leaning Bordeaux are not really Californian.
B/B+
Red
2001 Château Gruaud Larose
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
Minty, herbal Burnt oak. Complex, broad. Lacking in muscle, but very nice, even delicate. Like it.
B+/A-
Flight 6 (3 notes)
Red
2001 Château Léoville Las Cases
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
Strong, complete, well packaged. Dense, round with good complexity. A bit young. Just barely edged out and ended up my #4 of the night.
A-
Red
2001 Château Pape Clément
France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
Lovely mint and herb. Well packaged. Dense, broad, balanced. Really nice. My WOTN.
A-
Flight 7 (2 notes)
Closing
WOTN voting results:
Trotanoy (18)
Pape Clement (15)
Pichon Baron (15)
Cos D'Estournel (3)
Valandraud (2)
Gruaud Larose (2)
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