Lesfleurs+: A slightly affected bottle, not flawed but a bit volatile and suffering from some astringency that masked the fruit. Two prior bottles enjoyed in the past set a reasonable baseline that this failed to attain. It could have been mildly corked, but I didn't detect any tell-tale taint, so who knows. In any case, there was plenty to enjoy, with gentle black fruit alongside earthy and mineral notes, with a lengthy finish.
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From magnum, and perfect provenance. A lovely wine, if understated. There were no fireworks. Just a welcoming, softer presentation of Merlot and Cab Franc. Similar to many well stored 1988 Bordeaux, a nice lunch accompaniment.
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Nose: licorice, fruit jam, menthol, dried rose, drak chocolate Notes: tasted in a Lafleur vertical of 88, 89, 90, 93, 94, 99. Started drinking after breathing in the bottle for 3 hours. The 88 seems to demonstrate a slightly more masculine style. Although this style has softened with breathing but generally speaking I feel the 88 is more inferior to the 89 90 due to the quality of the vintage while it is unable to show the readiness of 93 and 94 so I would say the 88 has been a disappointment for me. I think this can be resampled again in 5 years time and I am guessing by that time I can draw a conclusion on the wine. Drink: 2028+ Rating: 90
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SLDS Decadence 2021: Raspberry, graphite and cherry on the nose. Medium bodied, with good fruit weight up front but trailing away ever so slightly on the finish. This bottle seemed to be drinking well now.
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1988 v 1989 Bordeaux. Interesting rather than great; restrained and initially seemed to lack fruit & be a little raw but opened up to improve significantly though still not one of the stars of the night.
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Some Special Bottles with a (Mostly) New Crew (Los Angeles): Sheer class, elegant and pure. Black fruit with earthy and mineral notes, some tobacco and tea. Not quite as powerful or refined as a bottle I had last December, but a fine showing. Took on weight with air, but we were not that patient TBH.
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A Thank-You Cellar Raid to Help Nudge 2020 Out of Here (Los Olivos, CA): My WOTN despite the pop and pour treatment, with everything I look for from a Lafleur on display. Concentrated fruit, mostly black, with earthy and mineral notes interwoven seamlessly. Some tobacco and tea notes as well. Tremendous density despite being medium-bodied. No signs of aging at all. Oh do I ever love Lafleur!
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medium red color just starting to brick, peppery nose, pine needles, underbrush- all from the influence of an excess of oak relative to the structure of an otherwise lovely 1988, on the palate a genteel cherry fruit throughout with tertiary notes, chalk and dark underbrush, however here the presence of undeveloped oak also remains, all in a very nice wine and for those who like oak probably a very good one.
***, drink soon, the fruit is nowhere near falling apart but the oak is not going anywhere and will become more relatively dominant in time
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It started very muted. Only in about 15mins it starts with mushroom, mint, tea and slight hint of vanilla. In about 40 mins it opens up more with fruits, mostly raspberry. On the palate it is quite consistent with the nose with evidential chocolate notes. Acidity is quite high bit balanced with fruits. Medium body. Finish is not impressive given the producer.
I think this wine is over the peak in its slow declining yet beautiful drinking window. Its fruit and acidity still there supporting it. I'd look to drink all my bottles in the next 5-6 years.
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A beautiful wine with great richness and intensity and classic Lafleur notes of earthy exotic black cherry and black truffle. I still think this will be better in a few more years given the slight shrillness on the finish. 94+
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Open nose with white pepper notes. Tightly packed palate with fruit, black and white, pepper, and dark soil notes. Not particularly tannic, but still somewhat tight and unyielding. 93+
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Just gorgeous Lafleur aromatics. On the palate, this has just a bit of the hardness of the vintage with its firm tannins but there is plenty of delicious wild cherry and smoky blackberry fruit underneath. The texture is pure cashmere and the finish is stunning with notes of exotic spices and minerals. A great '88 and it should still improve from here. Wow! 95+
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Delicious, but it is still very young. Dark robe, muted nose at first (despite bottle being opened hours before pouring), lovely concentration. It is full bodied, with velvety tanins, a lot of freshness and tension, a pretty high acidity and a gorgeous texture. The wine is excellent at this stage, but I can feel it is still far from giving 100% of its potential and I think it will deliver a lot more in 10/15 years. Hold and pray, this could turn out to be one of the finest Lafleur in the past decades. Enormous potential, it possesses everything and need some time to fully express its attributes in the most beautiful way.
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Occasional dinner group; TOP Bordeaux 1988: Although the bouquet is not extremely expressive there are roses, perfume and luxurious oak. On the palate dark forest fruits, graphite and some bell pepper. The acidity is a bit overwhelming and the tannin is good with still a good bite. The wine seems to be a little bit out of balance now. Does it require more ageing? Not sure. For tonight 91+?
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Minerality, black raspberries, earth, truffle, flowers and fresh cherry notes make up the perfume. Full bodied, concentrated, masculine but refined, the wine ends with a long, exotic blast of sweet kirsch sensations. Air really helped the wine develop. It got better with 2 hours in the decanter. 1988 Lafleur could be the wine of the vintage!
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Spectacular - a great pomerol with the essence of what you would want to find. We decanted and it was still 4 hours until it had opened to share all it's beauty. Lafleur is amazing. Loved this bottle!
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Cassis, blackberry, floral, dark cherry, forest floor, herbs, 5 spice and mocha scents were easy to find in this Bordeaux wine. Full bodied and powerful, this soft, supple and round wine ends with sweet plum and chocolate flavors
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Inky fruit saturates whatever structure is here, then behaves very dynamically in the mouth in terms of how it somersaults before insinuating itself on the palate, but maybe because of the richness of fruit the flavors are primary and monolithic. Certainly not a demo of what is now reputed to contend for the best wine in Pomerol, if I owned any I'd wait.
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South Florida does Lafleur (Cafe Maxx, Pompano Beach, Florida): This to me was the surprise over-performer of the Lafleur vertical, second only to the 1982 in the '76 - '96 two decade sample. Lots of red and black licorice pour out of the glass with terrific density and weight. Even two hours later it held up brilliantly. Really delicious now and seems younger than its 19 years from a middling vintage for Pomerol.
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Dinner at Jeff and Marya Samuelson's: It was great to taste this alongside the 1985. The two wines were very similar. On a normal night the 88 would be the star of the show, but served next to the 85 it was a small step down in intensity and concentration. The flavor profiles were very similar with dark fruit, espresso/cocoa, and a slight smokiness. An elegant and thoroughly enjoyable wine.
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I don't know if this was an off bottle but it seemed lacking in concentration. Not much fruit or tannins or anything else. A dud. Big price. Small quality. Consumed at a tourist trap called Per Se. New York City
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Dark red. Scents of pudding. Delicious sweet attack on the palate with a nice, round core of fruit. Medium concentration and power with good balance and focus. Fleshy, chunky, and managing to combine the chunkiness with elegance and style. Quite minerally on the aftertaste. 90 points
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Surprisingly open. Oaky black cherry nose. Good but not great concentration. Strong tannins. Seems slightly under-ripe. Not a great vintage for Lafleur.
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1/25/2024 - JonnyG Likes this wine: 92 Points
Lesfleurs+: A slightly affected bottle, not flawed but a bit volatile and suffering from some astringency that masked the fruit. Two prior bottles enjoyed in the past set a reasonable baseline that this failed to attain. It could have been mildly corked, but I didn't detect any tell-tale taint, so who knows. In any case, there was plenty to enjoy, with gentle black fruit alongside earthy and mineral notes, with a lengthy finish.
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12/9/2023 - BradE wrote:
From magnum, and perfect provenance. A lovely wine, if understated. There were no fireworks. Just a welcoming, softer presentation of Merlot and Cab Franc. Similar to many well stored 1988 Bordeaux, a nice lunch accompaniment.
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3/6/2023 - TWSA wrote: 90 Points
Nose: licorice, fruit jam, menthol, dried rose, drak chocolate
Notes: tasted in a Lafleur vertical of 88, 89, 90, 93, 94, 99. Started drinking after breathing in the bottle for 3 hours. The 88 seems to demonstrate a slightly more masculine style. Although this style has softened with breathing but generally speaking I feel the 88 is more inferior to the 89 90 due to the quality of the vintage while it is unable to show the readiness of 93 and 94 so I would say the 88 has been a disappointment for me. I think this can be resampled again in 5 years time and I am guessing by that time I can draw a conclusion on the wine.
Drink: 2028+
Rating: 90
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12/5/2021 - CamWheeler wrote: 90 Points
SLDS Decadence 2021: Raspberry, graphite and cherry on the nose. Medium bodied, with good fruit weight up front but trailing away ever so slightly on the finish. This bottle seemed to be drinking well now.
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5/1/2021 - burlingtonm Likes this wine: 92 Points
1988 v 1989 Bordeaux. Interesting rather than great; restrained and initially seemed to lack fruit & be a little raw but opened up to improve significantly though still not one of the stars of the night.
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1/21/2021 - JonnyG Likes this wine: 95 Points
Some Special Bottles with a (Mostly) New Crew (Los Angeles): Sheer class, elegant and pure. Black fruit with earthy and mineral notes, some tobacco and tea. Not quite as powerful or refined as a bottle I had last December, but a fine showing. Took on weight with air, but we were not that patient TBH.
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11/23/2020 - JonnyG Likes this wine: 97 Points
A Thank-You Cellar Raid to Help Nudge 2020 Out of Here (Los Olivos, CA): My WOTN despite the pop and pour treatment, with everything I look for from a Lafleur on display. Concentrated fruit, mostly black, with earthy and mineral notes interwoven seamlessly. Some tobacco and tea notes as well. Tremendous density despite being medium-bodied. No signs of aging at all. Oh do I ever love Lafleur!
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2/21/2020 - ricknat1 wrote: 88 Points
This was quite unexceptional although mature
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12/10/2019 - Elpaninaro wrote:
medium red color just starting to brick, peppery nose, pine needles, underbrush- all from the influence of an excess of oak relative to the structure of an otherwise lovely 1988, on the palate a genteel cherry fruit throughout with tertiary notes, chalk and dark underbrush, however here the presence of undeveloped oak also remains, all in a very nice wine and for those who like oak probably a very good one.
***, drink soon, the fruit is nowhere near falling apart but the oak is not going anywhere and will become more relatively dominant in time
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12/10/2019 - hprphf wrote: 93 Points
Acker BYO 2019 (Tribecal Grill): On the darker/plastic side, and perhaps goes with one’s favorable cuisine. Prominent oak. 93
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11/21/2019 - hprphf wrote: 93 Points
Acker 2019/11 (Valcluse): Complete mature roundness and fruitful body. 93
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8/17/2019 - overkloud Likes this wine: 94 Points
The wine has brick hue.
It started very muted. Only in about 15mins it starts with mushroom, mint, tea and slight hint of vanilla. In about 40 mins it opens up more with fruits, mostly raspberry. On the palate it is quite consistent with the nose with evidential chocolate notes. Acidity is quite high bit balanced with fruits. Medium body. Finish is not impressive given the producer.
I think this wine is over the peak in its slow declining yet beautiful drinking window. Its fruit and acidity still there supporting it.
I'd look to drink all my bottles in the next 5-6 years.
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12/30/2018 - Farmstayva wrote: flawed
Cork dried not popped wine was dead
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10/20/2018 - Ralph_ wrote: flawed
Semesterprobe Bordeaux 1988; 10/19/2018-10/21/2018 (Lamm Hebsack Remshalden): Magnum, Wine was dead
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6/1/2017 - dream Likes this wine: 94 Points
A beautiful wine with great richness and intensity and classic Lafleur notes of earthy exotic black cherry and black truffle. I still think this will be better in a few more years given the slight shrillness on the finish. 94+
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5/30/2017 - tinybubbles Likes this wine: 93 Points
Open nose with white pepper notes. Tightly packed palate with fruit, black and white, pepper, and dark soil notes. Not particularly tannic, but still somewhat tight and unyielding. 93+
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1/8/2017 - dream Likes this wine: 95 Points
Just gorgeous Lafleur aromatics. On the palate, this has just a bit of the hardness of the vintage with its firm tannins but there is plenty of delicious wild cherry and smoky blackberry fruit underneath. The texture is pure cashmere and the finish is stunning with notes of exotic spices and minerals. A great '88 and it should still improve from here. Wow! 95+
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12/15/2016 - aquacongas Likes this wine: 96 Points
Achim's Magnum Tasting 2016 (Berens am Kai 1 star Restaurant): From magnum
fresher and younger Masseto 1989 in the same flight, ripe tannins, nice extract sweetness, no hurry to drink it nowadays
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8/1/2016 - Vinum Deorum wrote: 96 Points
Delicious, but it is still very young. Dark robe, muted nose at first (despite bottle being opened hours before pouring), lovely concentration. It is full bodied, with velvety tanins, a lot of freshness and tension, a pretty high acidity and a gorgeous texture. The wine is excellent at this stage, but I can feel it is still far from giving 100% of its potential and I think it will deliver a lot more in 10/15 years. Hold and pray, this could turn out to be one of the finest Lafleur in the past decades. Enormous potential, it possesses everything and need some time to fully express its attributes in the most beautiful way.
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12/16/2015 - aquacongas Likes this wine: 96 Points
Achim's Magnum Tasting 2015 (Behrens am Kai in Düsseldorf 1 star restaurant): Very special in the nose: flowers and spice market, maybe comparable to the Petrus 1971, a good concentration. The wine impresses with his elegance and balance
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10/23/2015 - Zweder wrote: 91 Points
Occasional dinner group; TOP Bordeaux 1988: Although the bouquet is not extremely expressive there are roses, perfume and luxurious oak. On the palate dark forest fruits, graphite and some bell pepper. The acidity is a bit overwhelming and the tannin is good with still a good bite. The wine seems to be a little bit out of balance now. Does it require more ageing? Not sure. For tonight 91+?
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12/9/2013 - Jeff Leve wrote: 95 Points
Minerality, black raspberries, earth, truffle, flowers and fresh cherry notes make up the perfume. Full bodied, concentrated, masculine but refined, the wine ends with a long, exotic blast of sweet kirsch sensations. Air really helped the wine develop. It got better with 2 hours in the decanter. 1988 Lafleur could be the wine of the vintage!
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5/21/2013 - dpeters99 wrote: 95 Points
Spectacular - a great pomerol with the essence of what you would want to find. We decanted and it was still 4 hours until it had opened to share all it's beauty. Lafleur is amazing. Loved this bottle!
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9/3/2011 - reichken wrote: flawed
Bottle had a musty smell from Old closet, never blew off
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8/12/2010 - Jeff Leve wrote: 95 Points
Cassis, blackberry, floral, dark cherry, forest floor, herbs, 5 spice and mocha scents were easy to find in this Bordeaux wine. Full bodied and powerful, this soft, supple and round wine ends with sweet plum and chocolate flavors
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3/12/2008 - Keith Levenberg wrote: 89 Points
Inky fruit saturates whatever structure is here, then behaves very dynamically in the mouth in terms of how it somersaults before insinuating itself on the palate, but maybe because of the richness of fruit the flavors are primary and monolithic. Certainly not a demo of what is now reputed to contend for the best wine in Pomerol, if I owned any I'd wait.
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9/7/2007 - sdr wrote: 93 Points
South Florida does Lafleur (Cafe Maxx, Pompano Beach, Florida): This to me was the surprise over-performer of the Lafleur vertical, second only to the 1982 in the '76 - '96 two decade sample. Lots of red and black licorice pour out of the glass with terrific density and weight. Even two hours later it held up brilliantly. Really delicious now and seems younger than its 19 years from a middling vintage for Pomerol.
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7/7/2006 - Dave Dalluge wrote:
Dinner at Jeff and Marya Samuelson's: It was great to taste this alongside the 1985. The two wines were very similar. On a normal night the 88 would be the star of the show, but served next to the 85 it was a small step down in intensity and concentration. The flavor profiles were very similar with dark fruit, espresso/cocoa, and a slight smokiness. An elegant and thoroughly enjoyable wine.
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2/15/2006 - Ispendtoomuchmoneyonwine Does not like this wine: 85 Points
I don't know if this was an off bottle but it seemed lacking in concentration. Not much fruit or tannins or anything else. A dud. Big price. Small quality. Consumed at a tourist trap called Per Se. New York City
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10/17/2004 - Joe Belmaati wrote: 90 Points
Dark red. Scents of pudding. Delicious sweet attack on the palate with a nice, round core of fruit. Medium concentration and power with good balance and focus. Fleshy, chunky, and managing to combine the chunkiness with elegance and style. Quite minerally on the aftertaste.
90 points
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3/1/1992 - sdr Likes this wine: 88 Points
Surprisingly open. Oaky black cherry nose. Good but not great concentration. Strong tannins. Seems slightly under-ripe. Not a great vintage for Lafleur.
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