2004 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande
Community Tasting Note
AAF2012 Does not like this wine:
Wednesday, June 23, 2021 - Decided on 4 hour decant after reading notes here. Cassis and extreme tannins upon opening; totally unbalanced, I figure great glad I read the reviews, let’s do the decant and it will round out. Wrong. Drinking ~4.5 hours later with ox burgers I got some dull and unexciting stewed fruits I associate with the not-pleasant ageing process of expensive American merlots meant to drink young, hints of black currant / cassis on lucky swirls, only occasional flashes of pauillac dirt and pencil shavings. Not unpleasant but unbecoming for this wine. I’d have a bad/boring sip, then a decent sip with hints of regality, and back to a bad one like it pulsed.
Weird showing. I think it’s possible I decanted too long, and/or this wine is just a little finicky. Probably doesn’t help I drank a 1989 Pichon Baron a week earlier with ox burgers than was singing and a perfect pairing, might’ve been mentally building this dinner up too much.
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6 comments have been posted
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Comment posted by Mark1npt:
6/24/2021 6:34:00 AM - It's all relative, ain't it? Hard to compare an '84 Lalande with an '89 Baron....but this does sound like a bit of a weird bottle....I may have to try one of mine soon. Thanks for your indepth note!
Comment posted by AAF2012:
6/24/2021 4:34:00 PM - yea it was a weird bottle, and I do think it's possible I decanted too long. But I would think a bottle like this should be able to hold up that long in the decanter. It was overpowering and tannins everywhere when I opened it, but not overly complex.
Comment posted by Mark1npt:
6/24/2021 4:59:00 PM - Just sounds like a really weird bottle! I really want to try one of mine, now. Will keep you posted!
Comment posted by Mark1npt:
10/4/2022 6:19:00 AM - Well, it took me more than a year....and a big hurricane here in FL, but I finally opened one of these. Not spectacular, but a solid bottle quite indicative of BDX. I found it a pleasant 92 with only 30 min of decant.
Comment posted by AAF2012:
11/2/2022 1:43:00 AM - thanks for coming back and posting yours....sounds like i indeed decanted too long.
Comment posted by Mark1npt:
11/2/2022 5:57:00 AM - Yeah....some of these 'off year' wines can be tough to peg just right. I have missed a few bottles here and there, too. Then again, you might just have had a weird bottle. That 'pulsing' thing was def weird!