Decanted for an hour and classic 1988 Bordeaux with excellent nose and somewhat still sharp tannins. Fruit still there and still good for several years.
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In the heart of Bordeaux, where the vines whisper tales of centuries past and the air carries the scent of history, there resides a wine that transcends the boundaries of time and space—the 1988 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande. To call this nectar of the gods a mere wine would be a grave injustice; it is an odyssey, a symphony, an elixir that weaves together the threads of passion, nostalgia, and the spirit of adventure, and for me a decent memory of a time lost.
As a denizen of upper society, a gifted songwriter, a hopeless romantic, and a dreamer of grand adventures, my encounter with this vintage masterpiece was nothing short of a divine revelation.
Picture this: a chilly April night in Bordeaux, where the warmth of a crackling fire embraces the room. In the flickering glow, an old man, his eyes twinkling with wisdom and mischief, uncorks the very bottle that would become the vessel of our shared odyssey. His English, broken and imperfect, resonates with the charm of ages past. Over the course of two enchanted nights, amidst drunken babble and laughter, he imparts to me not only the secrets of this exquisite wine but also the melody of life.
The notes of "La vie en rose" danced through the air, echoing the very essence of our surroundings—a song of love, of dreams, and of the timeless beauty that lies within the heart of Bordeaux. With an old classical guitar once caressed by the hands of Antoine de Lhoyer, I learned to strum the chords that encapsulated the soul of this magical place.
As I took my first sip of the 1988 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande, I was transported back to that warm fire, to the music that intertwined our spirits, and to the history that permeated the very air we breathed. The wine, a deep, velvety red, embraced my senses like a lover’s tender touch. Its aroma, a bouquet of ripe berries, cedarwood, and a hint of vanilla, awakened my senses and beckoned me into a world where time stood still.
In the amber depths of the wine, I found the echo of that fateful night in 1991 when frost, like an unwelcome guest, descended upon the vineyards of Bordeaux. The air crackled with tension as wine workers fluttered towels over hundreds of small fires, their collective breaths visible in the frigid night. Their efforts were a desperate dance to protect the precious vines from the icy fingers of winter. But nature, indifferent to human endeavors, had her way, leaving behind a scene of devastation that mirrored the shattered dreams of those who toiled in the vineyards.
Its effect became famous.
Amidst the aftermath, I recalled the arrival of the Baroness Rothschild, her regal presence juxtaposed against the desolation of the vineyard. In her Rolls Royce, she traversed the path lined with frost-kissed vines, a tableau of heartbreak and resilience. With every step she took, the crunch of frozen earth beneath her heels seemed to echo the collective sigh of a community mourning the loss of its labor and love.
I'll never forget that April morning when the Baroness, her eyes glistening with unshed tears, approached me and made a simple request: "Jouez pour nous, jouez pour guérir nos cœurs." I knew not then what I never understood until now that the old man's son was indeed more to her than a friend hence she knew I could even play the tune.
And so, with trembling hands, I strummed the chords that had once resonated through the happy hallowed halls of Pichon Longgueville just a night before. The melancholic yet hopeful notes filled the air, intertwining with the collective sorrow of the workers, the determination of the owners, and the empathy of the Baroness.
As the final chords of "La vie en rose" lingered in the air, I witnessed tears streaming down weathered faces, mingling with the remnants of frost. In that moment, amidst the ruins of nature's wrath, music became a bridge connecting disparate souls, a testament to the resilience of the human spirit.
In the glass, the 1988 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande mirrored this resilience. As I savored the last drop of the 1988 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande, I was reminded of the beauty of shared moments, of the power of music to heal, and of the unyielding spirit that binds us all.
NOTES TO SELF: May need another 10 years. Decanted at 5pm, still smelled of distant farm at 7pm, yet legs forming. Finessed more but an hour later entered a good nose/bouquet. 4 hour decant next time
Side by side with an ‘89 Pichon Baron. This is our daughter in laws birthyear. Wine was PnP vs a decanted ‘89 Baron. Wine was light on the palate, some sweetness, green pepper and a good finish. Fun comparison. Masculine for the Baron and feminine for the Lalande.
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Haven't had Pichon Lalande in a while and I'm now realizing why that's a big mistake.
Extraordinary, complex nose. Too much to list. Beautiful candied red fruits, loads of cocoa, rosemary, even a tinge of wasabi. Floral, but orange blossom and jasmine rather than violets. Exotic and sensual. In the glass the aroma dissipates a fraction, so I'd recommend using a small glass if you can, because you won't want to miss any of it.
Very concentrated and nicely balanced. Let down a bit by the finish- those 1988 tannins are just a little too rough. Tame them with a slab of red meat though, and you'll be golden.
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While we mourned my dad, it was the first time in a long time that we had my sister, brother in law and nieces together. My mom was in the mood to cook, it kept her busy. We decided to honor my dad by drinking some of the amazing wines he had cellared. Prior night we did open a 1978 Chateau Margaux and I didn't take formal notes but will post something. My brother in law chose a couple of verticals as options from wines we have a number of. We chose '85 vs '88 Pichon instead of '82 vs '85 Rauzan. Both '85 and '88 Pichon showed beautifully as they have the last few years. I give the edge slightly to the '88 as did most of us but my sister said she preferred the '85. The characteristics are very similar for both from my most recent notes so I won't elaborate. But, I think the '88 drinks a bit younger and is likely to go a bit longer. It is more concentrated and a bit darker in color. Both are outstanding. At least for me, it was clear that we were drinking two wines that were very similar but just slightly different vintages and for what I've tasted, both pretty representative of the two vintages. 95 for the '85, 96+ for the '88.
Almost the same impression as the detailed notes from the bottle I posted here drunk Nov 2020 but even better. Another from dad’s cellar with dad and mom. Grilled lamb. Low neck fill. Cork broke even with Durand but minimal cork escaped. Youthful color. Incredibly complex nose and flavor as I described previously. Just an incredible wine which is in a beautiful place. No reason to hesitate to drink and this bottle was almost perfect with only enough decant to be sure of no cork and get the sediment off and it just keep getting better for 3 hours with last sips after dessert at which point it was gone. Exceptional but I think this wine may actually still improve. Classic aged pauillac. Could not get enough- 96 easy for me. Fortunately the provenance of the bottles we have left is promising.
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Lovely aromas of dark fruit and lead pencil. The wine showed younger on the nose than in the mouth, where I found dried herbs, lead pencil, and fleeting fruit. Just what I hoped for.
The cork fell in the bottle as I was trying to remove it with a bilame corkscrew. Surprisingly youthful color and a very attractive old Bordeaux nose. On the palate typical aromas of leather and pencil lead and a relatively short finish with no noticeable tanins. As others have noted, this wine is at the end of its drinking window and should be drunk in the next few years.
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From 375ml bottle. Cork was perfect. PnP. Drank over two hours; faded during last 30 minutes. Beautiful on the nose and in the mouth, but better in the mouth than the nose. Still some quality life left. Drank this same bottle from a 750ml almost 2.5 years ago and I rated it a 94, so my opinion is to drink sooner rather than later.
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This was an unexpected gem, which totally outperformed my expectations. After reading reviews from fellow members I decided to decant this for 3 hours, and it transformed the wine from a clumsy rough drinker into a wonderful silky smooth mature Bordeaux. As with the vintage as whole, the wine is fully developed, and indeed could be mistaken for being a decade older. The nose and palate are classic aged Paulliac with smoky notes and aromas of old leather, redcurrant, plum, and tobacco. The depth and balance are excellent, but the finish does display the harshness of the 1988 vintage. This was a great surprise in the middle of the so called wilderness years of the late 1980s and early 1990s for the estate, and also great value for a good mature Bordeaux. 94+
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Kleur: Licht donkerrood met een brede oranjebruine rand. Aroma / bouquet: Subtiel - om niet te zeggen: fragiel - bouquet. Gedroogd fruit, zacht-zoetige kruidigheid. Smaak / Afdronk: Wow. Wat een geweldig mooie 'waardige grijsaard'. Ruim drie decennia oud en nog onberispelijk. Verfijnd en met een briljante balans… Zachte zuurgraad, verfijnde tannines en met een - voor de huidige tijd - opvallend beperkt alcoholgehalte (12,5%). Daardoor wellicht minder 'afgerond' en, ook na 34 jaar, nog steeds een stoere wijn. Lange en aangename afdronk. Algemeen / potentieel: Mijn eerste 'late release' - op de kurk: 'rebouché au Chateau en 2021' - van een van mijn absolute lieverlings-Pauillacs. Prachtige belegen wijn, nu in een optimale maar zeer gerijpte staat. 50 + Kleur: 5 + Aroma / bouquet: 12 + Smaak / Afdronk: 17 + Algemeen / potentieel: 9 = 93/100
Colour: Light dark red with a broad orange-brown rim. Aroma / bouquet: Subtle - not to say: fragile - bouquet. Dried fruit, soft-sweet spiciness. Taste / Aftertaste: Wow. What a wonderfully beautiful 'dignified old man'. Over three decades old and still immaculate. Refined and with a brilliant balance... Soft acidity, refined tannins and - for the present time - remarkably limited alcohol content (12.5%). As a result, perhaps less 'rounded' and, even after 34 years, still a sturdy wine. Long and pleasant finish. General / potential: My first 'late release' - on the cork: 'rebouché au Chateau en 2021' - of one of my absolute favorite Pauillacs. Beautiful matured wine, now in an optimal but very matured condition. 50 + Colour: 5 + Aroma / Bouquet: 12 + Taste / Aftertaste: 17 + General / Potential: 9 = 93/100
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Opened up over 2 hours in the glass. Started to fade slowly at 2 hours. Drinking well at the later part of the drinking plateau. Will not improve, however, should drink now to 2025.
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Quite firm and structured with excellent depth and plenty of aged Pauillac notes of smoky graphite and grilled nuts. However, the hardness of the vintage ultimately stamps this wine as good but not great.
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This was pretty beautiful with some time in the decanter. The cork was in pretty bad shape, depressed and split in two despite a monopol. It was strained and really unfolded over a couple hours with an excellent meal at the Joel Palmer house in Dundee, OR.
Medium garnet with a brightened edge, this appeared way more youthful than it was to the eye. Musty library, with redcurrant, tobacco, and fresh acidity. Good length too, this overperformed, and is the 2nd 88 Pauillac I've had this year with a lot left in the tank.
Decanted for one hour. Very classic bordeaux. Lots of lead pencil on the nose. The wine is medium to full bodied with flavors of black currant, cigar box, pencil shavings and earth. A bit rustic and somewhat four square but still enjoyable.
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Decanted for one hour. Lead pencil on the nose. The wine is medium to full bodied, a little rustic but still very robust. Black currant, smoke and licorice come through on the palate. Still vigorous but a bit four square. Very good classic bordeaux but lacking fireworks.
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Decanted one hour before serving. Durand extraction of nearly fully saturated cork. Deep ruby color with minor bricking at rim. Dried red fruit on the nose along with a fungal aroma. Medium body, medium-to-medium-plus acid, fully integrated tannins. This was initially awful -- thin, acidic, some bitter coffee notes. But with more air time this really filled in offering some dark fruits, blood orange, around an earthy, savory core. Not a standout for this level, but very nice nonetheless.
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The silky elegance of a well-aged Bordeaux. Lithe and supple, with earthy notes of tobacco, white pepper and dried herbs around a tightly wound core of mature black fruit. At a wonderful stage, likely with more to show over next 5-10 years.
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Moderate seepage and mineralization on the cork, but otherwise excellent condition. Decanted for about 1.5 hours before first approach. Color was brick red with only slight variation from center to rim. Leather and tobacco on the nose, with some slight barnyard also (which my wife called “pee diaper”). On first approach, this wine was very finely balanced, but one note was out of place with a slightly bitter minerality. Drank a glass and waited a couple more hours. Wow! Highly integrated tannins with near perfect balance. Like drinking a bottle of terroir. This is drinking extremely well now and should for many years to come.
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Spring Celebration-2006 Roederer Estate L'Ermitage, 1988 Pichon Baron and Pichon Lalande (Yan's China Bistro, Walnut Creek, Ca.): Nose of cigar box, black berry, and hints of forest floor, slightly closed nose, hint of bret, same on the palate, medium/big body, mouth filling fruit, rich fruit, very tasty, slightly tired compared to the Chateau Pichon Baron today, think time to drink this up if it's in your cellar, open immediately but slightly muted nose throughout the lunch today, held up well during the three hour lunch, and a long finish, photo uploaded.
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Dark ruby to garnet red at the rim. Expressive nose of graphite, cedar, and earth. With time, some black currant fruit emerges on the nose, but it's decidedly not fruit that's central to the aromatics. The palate is medium bodied and elegantly textured, silky almost. There is still a frame of grippy tannin on the back end, suggesting that there's plenty of life in this, if not necessarily a lot of evolution. The finish is long and savory. This is really delightful mature Pauillac.
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He fill was base neck; cork was soaked through, but was able to remove with the Durand. Medium-deep garnet with bricking. Classic bouquet, with notes of dried black fruits, roasted herbs, black truffle, earth; hints of cigar box and and leather. Medium bodied, some velvet, a bit classic / austere, savory, tannins completely integrated, long and precise on the finish. This bottle was at (or just slightly past) peak maturity, so would recommend to drink over the next 10 years.
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24 Vintages of Pichon Lalande: All wines tasted blind. A few general observations: 1) Most wines showed the typical Pichon Lalande elegance. This is certainly one of the more delicate and elegant Paulliacs. 2) The relatively high Merlot content (often 20-30%) showed in many wines with fine, fresh rhubarb, rosehip and floral aromas I wouldn’t necessarily associate with a Medoc - all adding to the sensuous quality of the wines. 3) A few vintages showed the very sexy burnt sugar/coffee notes you associate with the 1982 Lalande or a Mouton or a Cheval Blanc - unfortunately, not to an extent and with an intensity to truly excite. 4) Following the legendary 1982 and until the most recent vintages (starting with 2014 but especially with 2016) there are three decades of pleasant Pichon Lalandes but hardly any vintage has the depth and length of truly great wines. The best wine tonight was the 2009 (rated 95+ points) with many more in the 92-94 point category.
TN: This was the best of the 80s Lalandes - to my surprise. The nose was fairly closed and never fully came through but on the palate this was very good, sensual and sexy, completely round and harmonious, creamy and light with lots of red and dark berries, tobacco, earthy notes, wet forest floor and minerality. It could have had more precision and depth but it was still a great wine.
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Medium deep ruby color. Punchy nose of stewed red cherry, red currant with stable. Dry, bright acidity, structured tannins, palate follows through. Medium body. Good balance. Medium finish. GUESS BURGUNDY 90s. 95. (RANKED 2) / RESULT PICHON LONGUEVILLE 88 (RANKED 2)
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Pale tawny, medium red cherry, dried fruit, wet leaves, forest floor, dry, medium + acidity, medium body, smooth medium- tannin, low alcohol, medium- body, medium finish, very good wine, not suitable for bottle ageing.
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Opened for Vinous Virtual Seminar in flight with 1988 Calon Segur. This was ok, but muted and showed spicy dried black fruit essence. Good balance, but flat on flavors and coming across more mature that the Calon Segur. The cork came out intact, but was nearly fully soaked and clearly seemed old. Maybe there are better bottles?
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Deep ruby still. Looks fairly young still. Nose gives the age away a bit, quite a bit of forest floor but still a nice cedar/fruit balance on the palate. Nose of white flowers (lily and jasmine) which I feel is the essence of Pichon's nose. Good freshness as always with the 1988s and the acidity has kept the wines fresh and refreshing as any good beverage should do. Pichon Lalande in the 80s was on fire and what a great expression of this great estate and hopefully it will undergo a new renaissance under its current management.
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This is wonderful. Paired with pan roasted wagyu tenderloin. Several hour decant required. Deep red fruit is still present, but subtle. The spice and cigar box are perfectly balanced. The tannins are almost imperceptible on the palate, but are the essential structure of the wine. The finish is long a extraordinary. Wow.
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Classic savory and slight salty nose of red cassis, smoke, tobacco, spices violet and green bay leaf. Still very fresh acidity for a 32 year old displaying red currant, cassis fruits of medium bodied flavors, spices, leather and earth. Very good length with melting tannins. Very well made and drinking at peak.
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From Dad's Cellar, stored perfectly for decades. Mid-neck fill. Decanted 1.5 hours before dinner of Bouef Bourgignon. Small piece of bottom of cork broke but I was able to get it out without it going in the bottle. The nose jumped out of the bottle on decant. Very youthful deep violet crimson color. Not much sediment, actually. Took very little time to come around after just a very mild mustiness but it was clear this is big and bold from the beginning and the nose kept getting more complex with dark red fruits, cigarbox, cedar, faint tobacco and leaves. The mouthfeel is beautiful with the food. The palate flavor is just delightful and again dark fruits, cassis, perhaps a bit of sour cherry and cranberry coming through, cedar, tobacco and a bit of what I think is likely best termed graphite on the finish. Long finish, well over 30 seconds. The wine has a more youthful color than the 85 we drank three nights earlier and may well have a longer life ahead and considering the vintage, I’m not sure but this one might still be improving with time, but it isn’t quite a much of a knockout right now as the 82 Beychevelle nor the 85 Pichon Lalande drank the same long weekend. But, a good way to describe this is what my dad said… SO SMOOTH and yes. So smooth indeed and delicious. This one was a big suprise in the right direction. We have quite a few more of these which is nice. 95++
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Flannery Night (Jordan's, Northbrook IL): Nose: The nose is deep and perfumed with sour red cherries, cranberries, raspberries, cedar, cassis, leather, tobacco, violets, and some earth notes. This is a nose that just screams mature bordeaux while also showing excellent balance and elegance.
Taste: The feel is Medium/full bodied with medium acidity and silky, medium tannins. The feel is deep and elegant with sour red cherries, cranberries, cedar, cassis, leather, tobacco, and violets.
Overall: This is just perfect right now. This exactly what I want out of mature bordeaux as it shows great depth, balance, and elegance.
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At home, with steak au poivre, recipe from the Left Bank in Vail, went perfectly! I have owned this since release. 1988 was not a great year in Bordeaux, but this was amazing. The color is medium garnet, slightly translucent, with slight amber at the edges. The aromas are immediately powerful, even just decanting it. Cedar predominates, with some tobacco, and cassis with slight herbal notes. The flavors are medium-full, minimal tannin, mostly cassis and blackberries, with cedar and French oak notes, elegant and complex. Very long aftertaste. Remarkable that a wine 32 years old from an undistinguished year would be this great. Too bad it's my last bottle! Ric
Medium ruby core, with significant edge fading. Pronounced aromas of cloves, fern leaves, and slight blackberry and florals. Slight bit of tannic bite, with underripe blackberry, cloves, rocket leaves, grey smokes, and some bright minerals and pencil shavings at the back. Finish was long of mainly the florals and graphite. Nice!
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Blind Bordeaux tasting: Strong notes of barnyard and meat on the nose; much more delicate on the palate, clearly some age to it, very fresh with excellent acidity, vanilla, coffee flavors, amazingly silky tannins, still very nice sweet and ripe fruit, a bit clipped on the finish maybe. But overall very impressive and elegant old school Bordeaux. - 93 points
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Nicely evolved in colour. On the nose expressive, layered and pretty showing notes of cedar, tobacco, graphite, spices, red and dark fruit. On the palate not overly generous, bright but well integrated acidity with good structure and depth. Vibrant finish, very long. A great bottle and no rush drinking up. 92-94
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Majestic wine. Complety with tobacco, blackberry in a vertical, very classical structure. Give me that old time religion, this is a wine from a better time than this ... WOTN for me. #nytårskur
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Chateau Pichon Lalande-1986, 1988, 1989, and1990 (Yan's China Bistro, Walnut Creek, Ca.): With Aniko, Virgie, Joe, Derrald, and Alex, nose of cigar box, barnyard, black berry, and hints of forest floor, same on the palate, medium/big body, mouth filling fruit, very tasty, has peaked and time to enjoy is now, open from the start and held up well during the 3 hour lunch, and a long finish.
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On inspection fill was down to bottom of neck. Removal of cap showed leakage. Cork saturated but intact. First smell and sip good color no nose, smooth soft flavor. The wine began opening almost immediately and proved to be excellent with great fruit, soft tannin. It was a great accompaniment to a soft French cheese, lamb chops and a chocolate dessert. The wine continued to open for four hours when I gassed and stoppered to last two glasses worth. We shall see tomorrow. I think it is done improving but should be wonderful for a couple more years if you are lucky enough to have some!
48hours later we finished the last 6 ounces of the wine. It was definitely more open and still fabulous. I now think it has a much longer life, that is if you have any left.
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Colour starting to turn bricky. Beautiful cedar box and spice nose. Fruit is fading but everything is in place and balanced. One to sip slowly and savour.
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Bordeaux night (Indianapolis, IN): Normally love this wine, but this wasn't the best showing I've experienced. The fruit is somewhat muddled without the clarity and brightness I've found in the past, and the green/earthy/other savoury elements are not as complex as I've found in other bottles of this.
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The fifth wine of 14 vintages of PL back to ‘61 courtesy of Mark Golodetz. One of the surprises of the night as this was just a beautifully delineated wine with excellent freshness and delicious dark red fruits. Still structured and crisp in the style of the vintage but it shows plenty of fruit and has a wonderfully satisfying finish with notes of truffles and minerals. Ready now but will last.
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Nice mature claret that held well over time still providing much pleasure. I'd recommend drinking it in tulip shaped glasses and not very wide ones since it may fade quicker.
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From a 375ml. I am absolutely awe struck. The aromatics are just amazing, ripe strawberries, peaches, cocoa, cola, tobacco, wintergreen, no trace of alcohol. Incredibly smooth, what a great little bottle!!!!!
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Champagne, Riesling, and Bordeaux with Skippy (Chicago, IL): Compared to the Haut-Brion alongside, this showed a little more on the nose. There's not as much elegance as the 1983, and this feels still bound up with respect to its structure. The secondary characteristics are not as fully developed, even at 31 years, and this seems like it's just on the cusp of emerging into a mature Bordeaux.
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Deep brick/maroon in glass. Fading fruit but still smooth and elegant on palate. Second pour after 60 minutes actually better than first. Continued drinking well over the following hour.
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Another great bottle from the same case. Amazing nose of black tea, pepper, lily, forest floor with some uplifting cassis notes. At its peak, amazing drinking for a slight less ripe vintage, acidity well handled against the medium bodied fruit structure. All tannin resolved and simply delicious, elegant aged Bordeaux at a great price compared to more recent and modern vintages. They don’t make wines like this anymore and to be honest the lack of variety at the top end of Bordeaux is our loss! If every wine is nearly perfect ever year, doesn’t perfection become lass attractive?
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Attended a head to head blind tasting of Pichon-Baron VS. Pichon-Lalande. Vintages were as follows for the Pichon-Baron: 1988, 1989, 1990 & 1998, Pichon-Lalande offerings were 1985, 1986, 1988 & 1996. The fifth blind wine happened to be the 1988 Pichon-Lalande. OK, this is serious stuff, with that gamy, barn yard animal fur aged Bordeaux nose which I wish could be bottled as perfume. The most aromatic wine of the bunch, I couldn’t t stop sniffing this glass it was that memorable. Medium bodied, great balance and a long finish, I thought the 1990 was in my glass but I was wrong. Only Bordeaux offers such complexity and youth after 30 years. No, I’m not crazy, this wine will hold for another 10-15 years easily. Dink up by 2035.
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Pichon Lalande with Filet Mignon and Aniko, Derrald, and Alex (Yan's China Bistro, Walnut Creek, Ca.): With Aniko, Derrald, and Alex, nose of cedar, sandalwood, tobacco, hints of forest floor, same on the palate, not as rich as the 1989, lacks the nose, but more complex, more interesting, and showing well but has peaked and time to enjoy is now, ash component on the mid palate, and a long, long finish.
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Red grapes, earthy and slight herbal bouquet. The age comes through well, as reflected by the mature yet light curranty flavours underpinned by soil, forest floor and gravel. Soft tannins and spices. Long warm finish with a slight eucalyptus and smoky aftertaste. After 1 hour, tobacco and bitterness ensued. Overall, balanced and elegant. A fine example of Pichon Lalande. Very enjoyable; should drink asap
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Nez de cèdre, sous-bois, un peu fumé. À maturité, bien sûr, élégant, fin. Selon cette bouteille, il commence tranquillement son déclin, mais non sans livrer encore beaucoup de plaisir, avec cette finesse typique du crû. Délicieux. 92 pts
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Still dark ruby but you can see through it in the glass. Immediate blast of leafy, peppery Cabernet Franc. Still some cassis as well and seems incredibly well preserved. On the palate, mid-weight, clean and heathy fruit with good acidic uplift. No blockbuster but lovely fresh, heathy fruit with just enough ripeness to make it enjoyable. You have to love that almost St. Julian touch of forest floor and bell pepper to really enjoy this which I find speaks to Pichon ‘s terroir and its higher percentage of Cabernet Franc in its blend. A fine lunch claret indeed!
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We had this along with the 2009 2008 2003 1996 and 1988 vintages the same night. 1988 was my favourite Vintage of the night, compare to 2003, 2008 and 2009 vintages, which showed some vanilla and oak on the nose and less complex, more polish/ modern on the palate, 1998 was nice, with smoke, tobacco, spices, blue and black berries on the nose, on the palate, it showed good structure, deepness, complexity, with nice and gentle tannin and acidity on the finish.
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Unbelievably consistent across time, superb wine making. Freshness, balance, complexity, the roasted herbs, the menthol, the beef blood and oodles of delicate, ripe, red berry fruit. Time has added library books to the flavor profile which integrate seamlessly. To be sure, this is dry as a bone, but it showcases all these flavors so well without any sweetness. Spectacular Pauillac, spectacular wine. A serious QPR for BDX. I am starting to view Lalande in the same light as the Haut Brions, somewhat awesome no matter what the vintage, is its their shared reliance on Merlot?
The nose is wild, heavy cream, candied orange peels, milk chocolate. So different than the drink. Wonderful stuff.
It should keep much longer, plenty of polished tannins that don't dry you out, but this seems to be at its apex in 750 format.
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Fully soaked cork except for the last quarter inch. First sniff from the bottle shows it is in fine shape. Red fruits, tobacco and mild VA predominates with slight funky undertone. Colour looks good through the bottle as it is decanted at the last minute before serving. Lots of sludge left in the bottom of the bottle around the punt. Colour is good. Full garnet red almost right to the thin rim with a black ruby core. Still quite opaque. Nose is full of sweet red fruit, rosehip, buckskin, floral, tobacco, and dried strawberry paste. Taste is full and sweet, with dried red fruits (strawberry, currant, rosehip), more tobacco, damp loam. Still some darker fruits flavours present. Slight leafiness at the edges that adds to the complexity. Some tartness from the acidity and a clean dry finish. Still some tannins hanging around. Good length to the finish. Nicely balanced. Quite a lovely wine in fact! Probably still at least 5 or more years left in well stored bottles.
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Had from Magnum. Muted nose at first but eventually began to strut. Flint, leather, tobacco all began to show. After three hours the finish began to tighten up. Very pleased with the wine.
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Fabulous, ready now but will keep - the cork was very fragile on this one, almost soaked to the top, be careful when opening...opened up nicely in the glass but I did not decant and don't think it needs it unless you break the cork.
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From a bottle generously provided by K.J., this medium garnet wine still has a core of black and red fruit, now flanked with tobacco, damp earth, dried herbs, black olives and a hint of truffles. Medium-bodied and tartly acidic, it has residual tannins which still carry some grip. The middle palate remains solid and the finish fairly long, although the latter is somewhat acerbic. While this '88 still has life, there are better left bank offerings from this structured vintage. Drink now-2022.
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I hate to bad mouth this wine as I adore it, but this bottle had way too much brett bordering on being overpowering. It came and went, but it wasn't a patch on the bottle I had a month or so ago. Two bottles left. Let's hope they are better. Only bottle I have had of this vintage that wasn't superb.
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Where does one start? I first had this vintage 20 years ago and at that time I rated it and the 1986 as two of my favourite wines of all time. I haven't, sadly, been fortunate enough to drink the 1982 - I can only guess as to how good it is. Splash decant after a bit of delicate cork work. The nose is just sublime. Huge aromas of cedar, cigar box and vintage leather. Gorgeous ochre hue to the rim. The balance is stunning. The dark fruit is still there are the tannins are like velvet. Maybe it's in its late drinking window as the finish isn't profound? All in all - if I could take a bottle to my desert island I reckon a Pichon Lalande would be a strong contender.
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This was a birth year wine for me to celebrate my 29th. A friend was able to help me track down a solid birth year Bordeaux and when I finally got to see it in person, I was astounded at how it seemed to have been stored. The bottle looked pristine...unbelievable. Once poured in to the decanter, there was hardly any brown color to this wine. Still displayed a beautiful purple with slight ruby hues. At first whiff, it was still sleeping quite a bit. First Taste affirmed that, though I could already tell I had nothing to worry about in terms of how it would end up tasting due to how it was stored. Earthy and fig notes up front. After about 15mins, some cranberry notes came around and the finish started improving. At about the 30min mark, this hit stride and brought some black tea and very faint hints of blackberry to the palate, with a beautiful lingering finish. Still amazing to me how wine can sleep for 29yrs, and within 30mins, show you it's still got it. If you have one of these and it's been stored properly, there is easily another 7yrs or so left of decent fruit.
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Great birthday wine (not my birthday) shared by a friend tonight. Amazing how, at almost 30 years old this wine was still not a pop and pour. The cork still had rather good seal, with about 1mm of cork bleed all the way around. Using an ahso, the cork was knocked into the bottle. Based on some of the reviews here, didn't know whether or not to decant this or not but given the cork was IN the bottle, decanting was necessary and the top was covered. AMAZING how this wine actually improved (quite dramatically) over 30 minutes. Every 10 minutes it was like this wine was brand new. The wine poured with a purple/maroon. Very little signs of browning. The nose was fig, plum, and earth right off the bat. Poured a dark color. Immediately the wine was plum and fig, with a big hole in the middle, and a finish that was pretty subdued. Within 10 minutes, lighter red fruit emerged, and the middle gained a lot of weight. The finish lengthened, and showed a little bit of herbaceousness. About 15 minutes after that, this wine started to rock and roll. Full out front of red fruit, dirty herbal black cherry, black tea. Middle of this wine was where fig and plum dominated. Finished with a nice elegant spice, but core of cigar box and darker fruit. This wine really surprised me at 30 years of age. Beautiful birthday bottle! As this one is a pop and pour, and didn't lose fruit at all over the hour it developed and was consumed, I would certainly say that this wine is going to be there for at least another 10-15 years. 2002 - 2035
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Cork was moist most of the way through, but in good shape. Decanted and then poured. Fair bit of sediment. Deep crimson, almost opaque. No bricking. Beef, glycerine, nutmeg, a touch of wet cardboard (but that blew off), leaving distinct notes of lavender on the nose. Graphite, game meats, plums and forest floor, with some baking spices. Tannins are round and well integrated. Still drinking well.
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Fantastic. Perfect condition at almost 30 years. Rich dark chocolate and cigar overlay cherry, quince and smooth tannins. Really gorgeous. No sign of decline. Underrated vintage.
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Drank at Fierstein dinner party. Pale, brownish in glass--color is as expected. Funky bordeaux nose of dirty socks. Definitely showing its age in that it's mostly tertiary at this point, with diminished remnants of black fruit. But, wine exhibits plenty of lead pencil & cigar box elements, along with some cedar, some green pepper and some animal characteristics. Just wish it had some more fruit remaining...Fascinating bottle though
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Very interesting at this age. Tannins almost gone, so that silky-richness is gone. Bordeaux funk on opening, then it alternated between smelling corked and smelling wonderful. Definitely not corked, maybe a little oxidization? Glad this was the last bottle.
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serious left bank wine here right on its plateau. wonderful complex, ethereal palate. Cigar box, leather, animal fur, delightful sweet merlot fruit contributing to the overall picture. Should stay for another decade.
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Getrunken bei Sebastians Geburtstag. Nase schön voll und "warm" , typ. Bordeaux. Im Mund bereits leichte Auszehrungen, aber noch schön trinkbar. Nicht mehr länger lagern!
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A regal wine, shows its class. Elegant but structured. Cedar, currants, and tobacco notes. Velvet texture, Fine finish. I got maybe a hint of green herb at times, but this bottle was really harmonious and enjoyable. Very good Pauillac, almost great.
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Not nearly as good as my last bottle 2yrs ago, but this bottle while from a known good source, was high shoulder fill with some light seepage (soaked cork) under the capsule. Great nose of cigar, leather, and mint. The type of nose you can smell all day. Palate was less thrilling and a bit shrill. Black current fruit and mint, quite mature but also narrowly focused due to acid and a bit thin. Only short to moderate length finish. Shows the great mature Lalande profile but without the power and concentration of the great years. Last bottle was better but even then felt this should be drunk up.
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@Peter with T (Charlottenlund): Mature, but not declining; very elegant and well balanced, real, live fruit, tobacco, cigarbox et al; 1988 remains a classic vintage, overlooked, but just a point, if you love the Bordeaux of old.
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Heavy mould on cork but came out clean. Instant sweet, baked fruit nose jumped out. Light. Evolved to berry fruit. Elegant fruit flavours all the way. Light. Sweet. Certainly Lalande.
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Black fruit with fully resolved structure in very good balance right now. I like how the fruit, spice, structure and earth all work together. Moderate length and concentration.
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From a half bottle and enjoyed with steak at Charlie Palmer for Valentine's Day dinner with the wife. Aroma of jammy fruit, cedar, earth, and lead pencil bursts from the glass. The palate is smooth as proverbial silk and densely pitched with cassis fruit, tobacco, and earthy savory goodness. Both the nose and the palate are complex, layered, and deep while the wine maintains an elegance characteristic of the vintage. The tannin is fine and pleasant. This bottle was perfect.
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A classic Pichon in every way. Followed a Ducru Beaucaillou 82 and held her own. Everything you like about a Lalande is here. The wine is peaking now. A great bottle.
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Vertikal provning Pichon Kallar 12 årgångar 66-90. 1988: rökig, chark, ung, cassis, stram, hård och lite bråkig, aggressiv, vill ha mer luft, kunde dekanterats mer, kräver protein, bör lagras mer.
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Occasional dinner group; TOP Bordeaux 1988: Beautiful and mature bouquet with dark forest fruits, some tea, flowers and luxurious oaky flavors. On the palate still a meaty wine with beautiful dark forest fruits, a pleasant touch of bell pepper, some chocolate, good acidity and mild, slightly drying tannin. This probably was the most harmonious wine of the night. Really beautiful and no real hurry drinking it.
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A great showing of this wine with a big Pauillac nose turning horsey and farmy but with solid red fruit and good tannin on the palate. Bold red and black cherry, some currant, leather, and notes of spicy tobacco. Red cedar note is spot-on. A way better bottle than an '88 Lalande enjoyed about a month ago.
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Nice nose, Michael M. gets beet. The palate shows a bit of cedar and funk, but there is still vibrant red fruit to balance the funk. I think the Brett here is just a touch too high and distracting. Sweet cedar and herbal notes. Long finish. Many '88s are hard-edged and firm, still, but this is showing good warmth and user-friendliness. Acker auction, Marea.
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This wine is drinking beautifully right now. Still holds a considerable amount of fruit blended in with that wonderful aged Pauilliac nose. Very well balanced, yet nearing the end of it's life. You'll likely get another couple years out of it, but I'd drink up now if you've got it.
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6th and second to last in 9 wine blind tasting in Chicago. Best to worst: 1) '73 Heitz Martha's V; 2) 2010 Thorn-Clarke Barossa shiraz 3) tied '92 B&G ChNeufduP (mystery wine) & '74 Inglenook D-3; 4) tied '73 Mastroberardino Taurasi Riserva aglianico & '78 BV George de la Tour; 5) '76 Louis Jadot Les Combettes; 6) '88 Ch Pichon Longueville (kept in South Bend, IN, garage from Jan-June); 7) '87 Bernard Heresztyn Gev-Cham. My notes: dark-brown, bad bouquet, old pinot?, don't like, old CNduP? This bottle was stoppered and left in garage from Jan-June in South Bend, Indiana. Interesting I didn't rate it the worst ('87 Gev-Cham was my worst). Rating would be 70.
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Gorgeous, classic Paulliac nose showing refined red fruit, old leather, tobacco, cedar and dust. Lush dark fruit is prefaced by a distinguishing herbal overtone on entry. Dark fruit and secondary notes of leather, earth and graphite come through in the middle and carry into the finish, which is good but slightly clipped. This shows great elegance and finesse, with resolved tannins and youthful fruit. Drinking beautifully now; the youthful fruit being complimented by good integration. Excellent - Drink Now
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Probably the best showing I've had from the '88 PLL so far. This has it all. The fruit's still quite deep and rich, yet surrounded by layers of classic Pauillac lead pencil and cedar notes, mature dusty earthy and truffled flavours, and that signature PLL forestal/herbal green topnote, with the whole array of flavours conveyed with remarkable finesse and polish on a medium weight frame. This bottle still feels quite youthful with a little fine grained tannin still lingering on the back end, but wow, this is outstanding.
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Nice dark earthy appeal. Green pepper, lead pencil and black berries. Nice medium weight with good life and nicely integrated structure. Good finish. Still good life here, but in the window now.
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Stored in a cold cellar since release. High neck fill. Cork broke. Perfect condition. Full bodied maybe a little dense. Adequate length. Fully ready. Good example of Pauillac but lacks complexity. Typical of 1988. If properly stored drink to 2020.
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With a thick elk chop at Fig Tree. Medium garnet with slight browning at the edges, translucent. Pronounced complex aroma of cedar, tobacco, leather, meat, balanced with French oak. Quite viscous, slow "legs". Full but incredibly smooth on the palate, still with plenty of fruit, also showing black fruits with cedar and leather, a touch of licorice. The finish is slightly hot, surprisingly, but just keeps going on. This is about as good as Bordeaux can get, a very memorable wine. It's at its peak, so enjoy if you have some! Ric
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Appealing nose largely comprised of white pepper, tobacco and light creosote aromas. Palate has attractive elements with residual dark fruit and berries, dark earth, and light spices, but those flavors do not work entirely in concert with the remaining tannins and acid. Back palate has a distracting bitterness that can only partially be attributed to age. Drink now.
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Scored 4th of 7 wines. I scored it 5th. However, re-tasting that same evening, the fruit began to return and my re-assessment puts this wine near the top (1st '86 Phelps Napa cab, 2nd '90 Heitz Bella Oaks). Ranked 4th of 7 in 2014 NYEve blind tasting.
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Souper de Noël chez Adam et Oana: Joli nez de cèdre, de Havane, avec un peu de poivron rouge. La bouche est suave, encore jeune et d'une belle énergie, avec des tanins assouplis. Il a cette belle texture aérienne du cru, presque Margalaise, une finale d'une magnifique complexité. C'est fin, tout le cliché du Médocain aristocrate, austère et charmeur à la fois. Superbe! J'ai peine à comprendre le manque d'enthousiasme des critiques envers ce millésime de Pichon Lalande. Superbe et en pleine forme. 92-93 pts
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This needed an hour or so of air to wake up and show well and did not fade over 4hrs. Not decanted. Expressive typical Pauillac nose of black currants, spice, and a little pipe tobacco. Palate is soft and mature, with minimal tannins. Mature tertiary dark fruit and tobacco notes. Moderate finish with repeating flavor profile and sweet pipe tobacco. Rather laisssez-faire and lacking the power of the bigger vintages, but has the typical elegance of Lalande. Mature--I don't see further improvement with age but won't get tired for at least another 5yrs.
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Certainly still full of tannin and not a rush to drink. Great ruby color and satiny feel. Nose was a mix of floral and oak. Loved it - did not decant it as it was a last minute decision to open but after about 15min in the glass it was wonderful. Glad that i have more in the cellar
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Great 1980s Bordeaux Tasting and Dinner (Michael Restaurant - Winnetka IL): Tasting. Far superior to another bottle tried last year. This bottle showed a good balance of fruit and evolved flavors and aromas. Lots of tannin partly obstruct more pleasure here, with just moderate length and intensity on the finish.
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While this lacks the complexity and depth of great vintages of Pichon Lalande, it is nonetheless a beautiful mature Bordeaux with classic Pauillac notes. Supple and smooth texture. Really enjoyable.
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Classic Pauillac; that pecil/ cedar; beatuful deep colour, still a lot of spark. Could have lasted longer in the Cave, but was a great drink with grilled venison
My sole bottle donated in the name of science delivered a stern, austere, traditional wine that was more interesting due to its cigar box, tobacco, truffle, earth, blackberry, olive and herbal nose, than its medium bodied, cassis, cranberry and herb palate. There is no reason to age this wine any longer. Drink up.
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Nose: Classic pencil, cigar wrapper, cherries and a raspberry creme note. Palate: Somewhat lighter and more feminine than I might have expected, but showed the tell tale coconut, pencil and smooth berry notes that I associate with Pichon. Finish: Long and delivers the lingering smoke and beautiful red fruit notes I love in this wine.
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A classic. Pencil, cassis, earth. Perfect balance (of course, this is a Lalande). What more is there to say? Perhaps not the definition or density of better vintages, but still a lot to like here. Very Pauillac.
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1988 Red Bordeaux, with Richard Brazier (Handford Wines, London): Along with the Lynch Bages the only other exciting wine in our 88 line up. Again very dark in colour. Nice and developed nose, classic in many ways. Well round and supple on the palate, well balanced fruit and tannic structure. Had a charmless side on the midpalate but we will forgive it as across the board this behaved very well and given time this will only get better. Good life ahead. 94-92
Again surprisingly dark. Quite expressive nose, sweet fruit, a little austere again and tannic, but well balanced, great acidity, round, long finish - very nice.
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Amazed at the color on this bottle, still dark purple not a hint of aging. The nose is tabacco and tar. Palate is deep and broad with a great finish. Don't think this will improve much but still will hold for several years.
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Ordered by the glass at the Wine View Bar at Helsinki airport. The wine was kept under inert gas. It was medium to dark ruby in colour, turning brickish towards the edges. On the palate the wine showed dried fruits, black olive, cucumber, liquorice, vegetal notes, leather and cigar box (and a Rioja Gran Reserva oakiness if that makes any sense to you). On the palate the medium-bodied wine showed dried fruits, vegetal notes, leather and leafy tobacco, paired with medium-level acidity, mostly integrated tannin and very good length of the slightly chewy finish. As some other 1988 Bordeaux the wine still seemed to have some rough edges and I doubt that time will grind these off. The greenness and slight leafiness of the wine also made me wonder if the Cabernet reached optimum ripeness.
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Dark brickish color. Very aromatic with cedar, leather and tobacco notes. Consistent flavors with subtle dark fruit and coco. Very smooth and balanced with medium body and no tannin. Lengthy finish.
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Brick red with slight browning at the edges. Translucent. Complex aromas of cassis, cedar, tobacco, anise, French oak. Medium body, with excellent balance of fruit, acidity, almost no noticeable tannin. Very long aftertaste, similar elements. This was a very good but not as great a year in Bordeaux as '89 or '90, but Pichon-Lalande produced a winner which is going strong after 25 years. I don't think it will get any better, so it's time to enjoy it! Ric
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Wine was good in color and aroma typical of Pichon Lalande. Earthy and just super wine. Needed an hour or more in decanter to really open. No specific notes and certainly not their best effort but a superb wine once again for Pichon.
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Decanted for 30 min. Classic PLL bouquet and but missing this typical melting taste. Shows signs of Age. A slight bitter note. Not as good as the 1986. Likely over the top, still a wine good to drink. Wouldn't keep this vintage any longer.
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Old Bordeaux at La Fonda del Sol (NYC): There's a vivid forestal green character here that brings Clos Rougeard to mind, very fragrant and nicely developed with the fruit quite restrained and gentler tobacco, leathery, and savoury earthy elements emerging around the green herbal/forestal elements. It's not a powerful wine, but a leaner, more polished expression of Bordeaux that I like a great deal.
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This was tighter and more structured compared to the bottle I drank with Sebastien in Chicago a few weeks ago. Took several hours to fully open up to flavors of dried, red fruit, tobacco, cedar and some herbal tones. Seemed to change constantly in the glass but my thoughts kept on wandering towards Cab Franc from the Loire, that's how light bodied this wine was. Lovely wine, complex and fascinating and in the lighter style I like so much.
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La Commanderie de Bordeaux à Vancouver - 1988 Horizontal (Boneta): Perfumey nose with pepper, cedar, maturing dark red fruits and a touch of bell pepper. Decent weight on the palate with good acidity and firm but finer tannins. Most complicated and well balanced of the flight. Excellent.
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La Commanderie de Bordeaux: 1988 Horizontal (Boneta Restaurant - Vancouver, BC): Fantastic nose, showing generous amounts of cedar and spicy black pepper, along with some leather, black cherry, asphalt, earth, graphite, and mint. A bit lighter than the nose promised on the palate, exhibiting plenty of black pepper, graphite, and cedar, as well as a hint of leafy mint. Softer acid than the Palmer and Lynch Bages, with a medium- length finish ending on notes of rich black cherry and leafy mint. Great balance here with tons of lead pencil combined with rich dark fruits. My favorite of the flight. Very good+
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Have had the 88 Pichon Lalande from two different cases and the cork seems always to be a problem. Very soft and 3/4 soaked it broke into two pieces and had to push the rest into the bottle. The wine does not seem affected by this poor cork quality. Slightly browning garnet. A nose with sous bois, menthol, spices and some barnyard. Still generous fruit on the palate which is very soft, some cedar, tannins barely noticeable. Medium finish. No need to hold this very good 88 Bdx longer.
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A textbook Pauillac, but alas, showing little of that PLL character. I've had a few bottles from this case recently with quite a bit of variation (what's that line again; great bottles but never great wines?) and this sadly is not one of the better bottles. Graphite, cedar wood, earth and dusty red and dark fruit all coming together on the nose and palate, still showing some tannin beneath with a slightly austere feel, but never showing the depth of flavour or those herbal/forestal/green elements I expect from PLL and consequentially it's not all that interesting to sit down with.
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Blind Tasting 1988 Bordeaux & Cabernets (Tom's House, Palo Alto, CA): Nice nose of cherry, spice and leather. Lovely red fruited palate with lots of savory goodness including dried tobacco notes. Nice grip and a long finish. This may be near peak but it has many years of good drinking ahead. (my 1st, group's 1st)
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clear, orange, red in the color. pepper, spice, dark fruit, oak, on the nose. leather, tobacco, cedar, vegetative, on the palate. medium acid, low tannins, on this short finish.
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Rheingau Gourmet Festival "Weinraritätenlunch Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande" (12 PLC vintages), late Feb 2013: rubin color; started with a strong, cork-like lack flavor that luckily disappeared; then horse and leather, later some cassis; light acid; light/medium body.
1st flight: 1986 - 1988 - 1989 - 1990
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Another great bottle. Perfumed, polished, so elegant and layered with dark fruits, graphite, cedar and that distinctive PLL green herbal/forestal seasoning all coming together seamlessly. Just a tremendous wine.
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The fills ranged from top shoulder to base neck; opened about an hour before service, but not decanted. Some bricking on the rim. An engaging and complex bouquet, with notes of plum, roasted herbs, lilly, and hints of white truffle. Medium bodied, with a silky texture, layers of flavor, good grip and focus, and a long finish. Titanic first class dinner at Franklin Institute, DV Chaine.
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We decanted the wine at a restaurant and began to drink it within a half hour. The color was fine, with relatively little evidence of browning. The nose was fruity and clean. Although there were no off notes, the wine had less body than I expect from this vineyard. I considered it might have been because I'd paired it with venison with a fruity sauce, so we re-bottled the remainder and had it again tonight with rack of lamb, with the same impression. A number of previous reviewers have commented that this wine is losing some of its body. In short, we liked this wine but weren't as enthusiastic about it as usual. We won't be inclined to leave our remaining bottles cellared for very long if this trend continues.
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$27.88. That's what the white retail tag said on the bottle. Obtained on what must have been day 1 of retail availability. Served tonight with its perfect partners, rare roast beef and Yorkshire pudding. My history with '88 is somewhat mixed, heavy tannins running well ahead of the pack. Here everything is subdued by age, nose all tertiary and whatnot, leaking graphite, cedar, mint and tobacco. Thinned out in the mouth, tannins have receded, some shrinking plummy fruit, but if anything that makes it more receptive to the blood red beef and gravy-soaked pudding. It's extreme mud wrestling at its finest: they all wallow in the mire together and emerge with their arms around each other, coated in the same pool of blood, sweat and sediment. Reminds there will always be an England.
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Leo Turns 60! (It's Greek To Me): Pleasing nose of dark fruit and menthol. Nice burst of fruit on the palate with just enough structure. Decent length on the finish. Most enjoyable.
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Bordeaux dinner (Trestle on Tenth, NYC): A core of rich dark fruited flavours augmented by leather, tobacco, graphite and that classic PLL green herbal/forestal character. Very pure, elegant and long with wonderful balance and depth.
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Opened for Howard's birthday. The cork was almost totally black upon opening which concerned me at first. The wine was a medium to pale red garnet color, shows some bricking at the edges of course. However, the wine looked surprisingly youthful for such an old bottle (I also don't recall where I obtained it or when). The nose was fairly aromatic with lots of tobacco there. On the palate, very earthy, excellent minerality and a surprising amount of fruit, tending towards the black fruit side rather than red. Tannins basically nonexistent, a very silky smooth, velvety pour and clearly a very mature bordeaux with lots of tar, smokiness and cedar notes. Not a particularly long finish but a lovely, charming, elegant taste of plums and dark cherries with a surprising level of acidity. Frankly, I did not expect this sort of showing from this 88; thoroughly enjoyable and I'm looking forward to drinking my last 88 soon. A real winner!
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Pichon Baron & Lalande (The Medlar, London): A bit lighter and more mellow and expressive on the nose. Cedar, quite mellow, more 88. Blackcurrant leaf, minerally palate. 88 Lalande. Lots of depth and interest here, and a little more gloss than the Baron. So far, my wine for drinking now. ****
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Rather funky - almost a little moldy - at first, but this blew off with some time in the decanter. After some time it's very fragrant and appealing, showing some of that PLL greenness (though not as much as I recall from another bottle last year), earth, leather, iodine and dark fruits; very polished and silken textured on the palate with lovely length. This is really good and I'm glad I have more.
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The full was base neck and the cork was soaked through to the top; popped, poured and consumed over the course of 3 hours. Extroverted bouquet, offering up scents of cedary black fruits, white truffle, roasted fennel and a hint of tobacco. Medium-bodied, elegant, with a silky mouthfeel, a good sense of expansiveness and depth, with a well-delineated finish. While not quite up to the level of previous bottles, still an excellent wine.
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Despite an iffy cork and a sourness that quickly blew away, this is an outstanding wine with lots of fruit and typical earthiness of the great claret. Drunk with the first braise of the season (beef and vegetables). The fruit and depth of the wine complemented very well. It even worked with the vinaigrette and bean salad. We gassed and stoppered then drank the second half two nights later. It held up very well and continued to be fruity and delicious. I plan to drink the last few bottles over the next six months or so.
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There seems to be a good wine hiding here, but the overlay of brett - on the nose and palate - is just overwhelming. Not fading away with 1+ hr in the glass.
From other reviews, it looks like this may be a case of bottle variation. Let's hope so. Other notes here don't seem to mention brett.
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Very fine the first 10 minutes showing the Pauillac attributes I expected, but it all fell apart after some time. Could have been a bottle variation but bottles from 88 have stopped to make me happy over the last couple of years.
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After a first corked bottle this cork was also not very good: completely soaked and broke into two pieces. Poured half of botlle into decanter and drank over 2h. A surprisingly dark garnet, nice nose with some barnyard, mostly dark fruit, herbs, and some cedar. An impressive amount of fruit gives a plush, luxurious but relatively straight-forward palate. Fine tannins after some time in decanter. Some more cedar on the finish, which could be longer.. Clearly the best left bank '88 I have had as there is still plenty of fruit to keep the cedar in check. 91-92
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Dark garnet colour; quite youthful-looking for its age. Surprisingly fresh and youthful on the nose and palate, too, but also fully evolved and mature. A classic, classy, austere, aristocratic claret, with all the hallmarks of mature left-bank red Bordeaux, albeit in a minor key. Bouquet of blackcurrant and cedar, lifted by pencil lead and attractive leaf and bell pepper notes; plus tobacco aromas that develop into the scent of fragrant spicy humidor over time. Flavours of searing pure cassis, with some plum and dark cherry too, as well as licorice, smoke and spice. Texture is velvety and sophisticated, with good acidity and gentle but persistent tannins that are pitched precisely right. This is not an ostentatious or flashy wine in any way. Instead, it is a slightly buttoned-up and very old-fashioned, elegant and pure statement of its genre. A quietly self-assured and profound Pauillac.
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Had been looking forward to this but unfortunately my first clearly corked bottle in a long time. Besides this defect, I am surprised how much fruit there is left in this 88 Bdx, a truly luscious palate here with only very little fine tannins left. Should last for several more years. Looking forward to trying my second bottle.
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First bottle from an OWC; the fill was base neck and the cork was sound. Popped, poured and consumed over the course of dinner. A darky ruby core, turning towards blood red at the rim. A generous, expressive, and complex bouquet, offering up notes of cedary black fruits, white truffle, lilly, and hints of roasted herbs. Medium-bodied, velvety, with great balance, good focus and a long finish. Outside of the '82, this is the best of the decade for Pichon Lalande.
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what a treat! decanted 5 hours. this is holding up quite nicely and is well resolved. so much going on, only sad i had to split this bottle up 14 ways!
tons of pencil lead, and whoever mentioned "freshness": yes!
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Garnet and bright ruby reflections with medium viscosity in the glass. Complex nose of plum, forest floor, stewed raspberry, pipe smoke, olive, green pepper, graphite and cocoa. Medium body and complex with plum, earth, reductive raspberry and cranberry, round black fruit, green pepper, mushroom, tobacco, dark chocolate and mint on the palate. Pleasing balance and vegetal nuance. Superbly integrated and svelte tannin. Decent structure. Long finish. A real pleasure.
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3 1/2 hour double decant. Lots, and I mean lots, of fruit and floral on the nose. Smooth on the palate, tannins were very soft. Long finish, made you want to drink it all night.
Outstanding Lalande.
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Opened, decanted and drank over two hours. The nose jumped right out with earth, green pepper, iron and meat. The palate was very Pichon. Very silky, expansive and just wonderful. Quite a bit of sweetness developed over time. Really enjoyable bottle and it's in a great place (as are many 1988s) right now. Medium finish with moderate tannin.
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Decanted for 30 minutes from a half bottle, served at room temperature. Color: Medium Red with Browning rim. Nose: Barnyard, Manure, Rust, Wild Strawberry, Cinnamon. Palate: see nose. Finish: Medium. Tannins: Low to Medium. Alcohol: 12.5 % well integrated. Medium bodied mouthfeel with initial red fruit. Mid-palate turns spicy transitioning into an earthy finish with exceptional freshness. One of the most old world style wines I have tasted so far. It's amazing how well this Pauillac has been preserved considering it has been stored in a half bottle. A red wine with considerable character and freshness. 91-92 points.
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Pre-Chinese New Year Get-Together (Chez Patrick Restaurant, 26 Peel Street, Central, Hong Kong): Decanted 3 hours before serving at cool room temperature. Lovely enticing ruby red bright and transparent colour. Nose is light, lifted classic Pauillac with lots of sharpened lead pencil and cedar woods with damp loam underfoot. Palate is absolutely gorgeously lean, taut, austere, linear black fruit. Gorgeous classic claret for an Englishman. Medium length and resonance but more than compensated for by the deftness of winemaker's touch. Gosh....I loved this and so did everyone else, who voted it their near-WOTN behind the Ch. Montelena 1978.
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The fill was base neck and the cork was sound; popped, poured and consumed over the course of two hours. An outgoing and expressive bouquet, offering up notes of cedary black fruits, black truffle, leather, and a hint of roasted herbs. Medium-bodied, with a velvety texture, incredible depth and balance, and a long, focused and complex finish.
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A really great showing - incredibly aromatic, combining forestal greennery, tobacco, fresh dark fruits and savoury earthy and graphite elements into a seamless, complex whole. There's amazing depth and balance here with the tannins and fruit suggesting there's still plenty of time ahead for this, but it's truly outstanding right now.
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The fill was into the neck and the cork (which I managed to break) was sound. A ruby core with hints of garnet. A lovely, engaging, and complex bouquet, offering up notes of crushed blackberry, plum, violet, roasted herbs, and hints of truffle. Medium-bodied, with good grip, ripe and velvety tannins, a gorgeous mouthfeel, great balance and depth, and a long, complex and well delineated finish. In my opinion, this is a great Pichon Lalande, and in this decade, trumped only by the 1982.
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This is in such a fabulous place right now - superb mature Pauillac. At its peak I think and good for another five years at this level (though my cellar is on the cool side)
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The jewel of the tasting, IMHO. Best, most complex nose of the bunch. Seamless, balanced, heady, complex, mature and still a lot of volatile acidity on the palate. Rich plum, cherry and enough horsiness to make it even more interesting.
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Wedding Anniversary Dinner (The Library, Crown Wine Cellars, Hong Kong): Two bottles opened but for several hours then decanted an hour or so before serving. Sadly these were my last two bottles and even more sadly my cold had got the better of me by this stage and I had stopped taking notes. However, the overall lasting impression was of an really elegant wine at its full maturity and ready to be bade adieu in the company of some great friends.....who all seemed to enjoy it a lot.
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Dinner at Greg & Sayo's (Hong Kong): Cloudy, opaque plum-red colour with slight transparency at the meniscus. Nose is OMG!...earthy, loamy, ooh....aaah....pencil lead, cedar forests and the smell of summer rain on dry lawns. Palate is precise acidity, tons of fresh red currant fruits....good soft but firm tannic frame. The fruit is very persistent even with extended time in the glass....evolving into deep red and black cherries. Big soft rolling resonance and reverberance on the finish. Everything is resolved here....quintessential mature claret and quintessential Pauillac. Just lovely....and for me it marginally beat the 1985 Leoville Las Cases we drank alongside it (although it went monotone right at the end of the night and I wouldn't hold onto it for much longer).
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From 375ml. Mature robe. Classic Bordeaux nose; nice cassis jam, oak, barnyard - just a bit of violets and chocolate as well. Not as complex on the palate, the oak and sous bois remain but the fruit isn't as present. A little bit of iodine, mineral. Coarse-grained tannin. Certainly old style; certainly an Englishman's claret! Another wonderful Pichon.
With an hour in the decanter, really picks up the Pichon Lalande violet, lavendar and dark chocolate notes. Classic Lalande and reminiscent of the 82, actually.
Drink in the near-term.
4.5 for the nose, 4/5 overall
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SIGHT: Clear, bright, Reddish brown fading to layers of rust, brick, dark orange, and copper. NOSE: expressive, barnyard, shoe polish, leather, dusty, green bell pepper, dried cherry, sweaty socks, dried mushroom, truffle, forest floor; PALATE: dried cherry, green bell pepper, mushroom, raspberry; ASSESSMENT: medium minus alcohol, medium plus acidity, medium to medium minus tannins. Medium plus complexity and medium plus finish. Very enjoyable nose and very complex. This has aged well. Wine was not very expressive on the palate. Appears to be just starting its decline. Enjoyed a lot.
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Drank with my friend on both our birthday. The wine had gone down to the shoulder, but the nose is still very good. After decanted for half an hour the wine showed medium-body. Riched with hints of berries, long and complex finishing. Just right time to drink.
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Garnet to dark garnet color in the glass, fairly clear looking. Beautiful nose of cedar, rose petals, leather, dust and mixed dark fruit. Good flavors of berries, cherries, cranberries and minerals. Medium to bright acidity, medium tannins, medium to full bodied. Drink or hold.
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The fill was into the neck and the cork was in great shape; popped and poured. Another fantastic showing! As always, the aromatics are striking, offering up note of roasted herbs, plums, briar patch and a hint of truffle. Medium-bodied, with a round texture, great balance, and a long and complex finish. Drink soon.
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Another fabulous bottle, and for my taste, the most under-rated mature vintage of Pichon Lalande. The extroverted and complex bouquet, along with the incredible texture, are hallmarks of this wine.
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Fill was base neck and the cork was pristine; popped, poured and consumed over 1.5 hours. Intriguing bouquet, with notes of ripe plum, roasted herbs, truffle and tree bark. Medium-bodied, round mouthfeel, excellent focus, and a long finish. Seems to be at the absolute peak of maturity, and is drinking great at present!
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wonderful nose from the start until the wine was consumed. cork soaked all the way through and cracked at the bottom.
wine is well past prime, or at least this bottle was. while the nose was typical of an older bordeaux, the taste was getting rather thin. drink up. and probably drink up your remaining 88 s as they seem to be fading.
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The fill was well into the neck, and the cork -- although soaked through to the top -- was solid; popped and poured. A lovely purple-ruby core, turning to garnet at the rim. A wonderfully outgoing bouquet, offering up notes of roasted herbs, tapenade, black fruits and a hint of truffle. Medium-bodied, with a velvety texture, impressive banlance and depth, and a long and nicely focues finish. A lovely Pichon Lalande that is drinking perfectly at present!
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Misc CA tasting at Kenneth: Nose: old cabbage, gun powder, sewer. Quite intense and some raspberry. Shows goods signs of age. Palate: Both strawberry and raspberry with both iron and blood. Classical and solid Bdx with a medium aftertaste a an okay acidity. Tertiary aromas of gun powder and horse with hints of wet dog fur :-) After a little while in the glass some nice pine and pencil lead is coming through. Drinking nicely now and will not improve.
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Cork soaked through, fill within 1/4" of cork, which remains intact on opening. Red core with bricking at rim. Complex mature nose of cassis, cherry, leather, cigar box, tar, and some green vegetal notes that add complexity for my taste but might be offputting to the very green-averse. Medium body, good balance, complexity on palate remains but is less than the last bottle opened over a year ago, sweet mature fruit and hints of green, tannins resolved, thins a bit on mid/back palate, medium finish. Fully mature, has lost half a step since a year ago, but still excellent.
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A bit disappointing. I think this wine is a bit over the hill. It has a nice classic Bordeaux nose, but the palate is thin and kind of simple. Nice wine, but not worth $140. I decanted for about 45 min, perhaps that was a mistake. probably should have popped and poured. The cork was pretty well soaked, but the fill was good. Not sure what to think, but i just dont see what most of the reviewers are saying. 90 points.
Think i was a bit hard on this wine. Just not as good as I expected, but still very nice wine. I think I am learning that I prefer my Bordeaux with less age.
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Terrific Pichon Lalande. Opened and poured. Very distinctive green, vegetable notes that would be unpleasant if not wrapped in velvet mature bordeaux fruit. The tannins are resolved and somehow it comes together and works. Rich, long finish, enicing nose and complex notes of cedar, grass, mint and berry. Drinking great now, but not fading. I liked it better than the 96 Latour that followed, although I think that was a very young wine.
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Paired with LLC 1988. The Pauillac is more like a Saint-Julien and vice versa. Perfect bouquet, very sexual, blackcurrant and sweet cherries, peppery, fantastic notes of gravel, decadent and expressive, ovely depth; on the palate slender, slightly attenuated perhaps but creamy too, very refined velvety tannins. Perfect expression of vintage and terroir but living dangerously.
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Wow this is classic Pauillac nose, yummy. Intense peppers. Rich on the palate, a point now (½bt), complex notes and a nice long finish. What bordeaux is all about.
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Mature Bordeaux tasting (Le Papilion): Dark red color with a slightly browning hue. Complex and intense nose with intriguing notes of blackcurrant, prunes, pencil shavings, tomato plant and marzipan. Intense on the palate with a complex taste profile that keeps opening up for more, pure blackcurrant, licorice, tobacco, shoe polish and a bit of rust. The sweetness and acidity is perfectly balanced all the way through, and the intensity lasts for the strong finish. Drinking really well with great complexity and overpowering deliciousness.
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Purchased this from a wine store with very well kept cellar. This bottle was in perfect condition and didn't appear to be moved from the cellar since purchased @ 20 years or so ago. PNP, immediate bouquet of funk, wet forest, greeness which didn't take long to blow off and transition to more classic old world aroma's. Started drinking about 30 minutes later. Strong pure flavors black cherry, chocolate, leather, currant, still has great acidity, softened tannins but still gripping and leaves a nice lingering finish. Came back @ 2hours later, opened up a bit more, very smooth. Drink now or hold. I don't know if it will get any better than now.
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tasted by de14 on 9/18/2009. This was everything we expected. decanted and tasted at 30, 60 and 90 minutes after opening . . . then consumed after a two hour decant. It tasted and smelled like it should and I can't wait to share the balance of this 88 collection.
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The fill was into the neck, and the cork was soaked a little over halfway through. Opened about 30 minutes prior to consumption. A youthful purple-ruby core, turning to ruby-garnet at the rim. An open and extroverted bouquqet, with scents of plums, black cherry, lilly, tree bark and earth; just lovely. Medium-bodied, with a velvety mouthfeel, lively acidity, and a long and complex finish. Drinking perfectly, but will surely last for another 10 years or so.
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Another weekend of Excess; 8/21/2009-8/24/2009 (Chicagoland): Very perfumed aromatics of dried red currant, cherry, and cranberry. Cedar and tobacco as well. Fairly lean on the palate, but there is still some ripe fruit left. A good deal of acidity finish. A good wine.
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The vegetal and bell pepper nose was such a sharp contrast to the density, plummy-ness and depth it displayed on the palate. Its a finely balanced claret from a rather sturdy vintage.
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Pichon Lalande Vertical ('75, '78, '82, '88): Popped and poured. Awesome nose of straw, bell pepper and bright fruit. Of the four in the vertical this was the raciest and was the only that will improve with more cellar time. Taste it again in 2015.
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Exactly what you think it would be at this age. Structured and austere, but the tannins are just so beautifully ripe. The epitome of left bank 1988. Classic claret, I loved it. A crowd-pleaser.
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This was a pleasant surprise; a glorious and fully mature Bordeaux. Fill was into the neck and the cork was sound; opened about 1 hour prior to service -- no decant. A ruby core turning to garnet at the rim. Lovely bouquet, revealing vigorous and confident aromas of saddle leather, tree bark, black truffle and dark fruit; just wonderful -- I could have sat there with my nose in the glass all evening. Medium-bodied, with layers of depth, a velvety mouthfeel, good concentration, and impressive purity and focus on the complex finish. This is everything that I look for in a wine!
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The cork started to crumble on me so had to do some filtering. Warm red colour with a clear brown edge on the rim. Vegetation and sweetness on the nose. Very soft fruit approach but some tannins still there - raisin sweet with complex flavours abounding - some dryness on the length with a long slow fade. Might have another year or two but I don't think it will improve much, it's reached it's zenith already and further softening will stop the enjoyment of having it with food as the acidity that cuts into food fats will have departed. Gorgeous really.
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Cork soaked through, but fill within 1/2" of cork. Dark red with bricking at rim. Complex mature nose of cassis, cherry, leather, cigar box, tar, forest floor. Medium body, good balance, complexity follows through to palate, sweet mature fruit, tannins resolved, thins a bit on mid/back palate but finishes nicely. Fully mature. Classic Bordeaux. Excellent.
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Very dry, surprisingly full-bodied, cherry fruit with lots of leather and pencil lead flavors, tannins amply softened, finish a little short, terrific wine value
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Ugh. The nose is dominated and spoiled by brett. A real nasty stinkiness. You can feel the bretty stink on the palate too and it's completely killed the wine.
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Just classic claret. The color is stillp pretty dark for 20 years on. The nose is all cassis, cigar box, old leather with a little bit of dead vegitation to boot. Pretty lush on the palate. As Howie X said "this is first growth quality" and I have to agree. My wine of the night.
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I would endorse CDunn's tasting note, an almost identical tasting experience for me. I would say no real hurry to drink up, though. This is the best experience I have had with the 88 Pichon, seems to be ageing fairly gracefully.
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Lovely nose of tobacco, wet forest. Medium-bodied, lively, somewhat lean, but more elegant than austere. Earth flavors, some cedar and pipe tobacco, mild cassis. Medium, refined finish. I don't envision further development and would drink up.
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cork wet on one side to top but fill within 1/4" of cork, still ruby red to rim without bricking, nose a bit shy with fruit, hint of veggies, mid-bodied with nice balance, secondary characteristics but still not yet fully mature - will fruit last? I thin
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Drunk along side the '88 Pichon-Baron. Decanted 45 minutes. Cork was soaked to the top. Medium garnet-red color. At first the nost was rather closed, offering up only restarined whiffs of classic Pauillac cedar, cassis and pencil. With another hour of air though the frangrance was a magnificent melange of cedar, tea, earth, cassis and spice. The wine was a tad dry and somewhat astringent on the palate but still quite nice and impeccably elegant and balanced, with fading fruit, tobacco and tea present. The finish was still surprisingly long and rich. This bottle was past its prime but lovely none the less. The fragrance beat the Baron hands down and, with time in the decanter, this wine retained its grace while the Baron became clunky.
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Color: Hazy red, with hints of brick on edges. Was not throwing much sediment at all for a 20 year old bottle. Nose: This wine screamed bell peppers (both red and green), hints of band-aids, green olives, tea and dried tobacco. Palate: Smooth and seductive. Tobacco, dried cherries, mushrooms, forest floor. Nice structure. Still quite young. Could probably age for quite some time. This one seemed to be a baby compared to the '69 I had this past summer, which was drinking great!
If I had a bottle in my cellar I would sit on it for quite some time before I consumed, or open now and decant and enjoy over 6-8 hour period.
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Color was right, ruby with hints of brick on the rim; nose was earth and currants; silky mouth feel; on the palate, red fruit with integrated tannins, but one-layered and short in the finish. Enjoyable but nothing special.
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This is as good as any mature Pichon Lalande I've had in some years. It was earthy, well integrated, had a long finish with typical lead pencil, chocolate, fruit and a long smooth finish...as testament to proper cellaring.
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NobleRottersSydney - First Growth Night (Guillaume at Bennelong): Here’s a modest interloper second growth come along to play with the big boys. And, it must be said, making a pretty good fist of it. The nose is of developed cigar and leather, some violets, a dash of cassis; powerfully intense correct Paulliac. The palate is impressive too; acidity, dusty tannin and overall body all at mid-to-high levels. There are developed red fruit flavours, drying furry tannins, and an almost slippery-glycerol feel to the texture; upholstered and rich. A long, even and weighty finish caps off a super tasting experience; richer still with food, this wine should have plenty of time left before any lessening occurs. Bravo! (And, crudely perhaps, the bargain of the night!)
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Older Bords at Taste: Greg's Blind Bordeaux - Pretty nose showing hickory - which was not something I noticed when I nosed it for cork twenty minutes earlier. More structured. Red fruit candy. This is pretty good, but I think I liked it better when it was first opened. Grew a little more closed with time?
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Pauillac's two gravel plateaus reach greater depths than found anywhere else in the Medoc. As such, Pauillac is home to 3 of the 5 first growths. Pichon Lalande sits just south of first growth Latour and east of Pichon Baron in the southeastern quadrant of Pauillac straddling the border with St Julien. Pichon was split in 1850 with Lalande becoming the larger of the two. Pichon Lalande is known for its silky and seductive style, perhaps due to its higher proportion of merlot than Pichon Baron. Along with Chateau Palmer, it is one of the most famous Medoc estates to use a large proportion of merlot.
1988 was known for its well colored but tannic wines. Many are characterized by a lack of depth, short finish, and green/astringent tannins. Rain during the harvest season had ruined the 1987 vintage, so many producers harvested their cabernet sauvignon too early in 1988 for fear of avoiding another disaster in 1988.
I thought this characteristic came through in my tasting of the 1988 Pichon Lalande. It had a dark ruby color and a ripe, green herbal nose. The wine was a little thin and seemed like it must have been well short on any ripe fruit intensity earlier in its life. After several hours of decanting, the wine gained a little flesh but never really lost its green bitter finish. I almost felt like the wine had suffered some heat damage. Three of us tasted this wine, and the clear consensus was a feeling of disappointment.
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Lynch Bage vs Pichon Lalande 1986, 1988, 1989, 1995 plus 3 Ringers: Group rated this as 11th place of 11 wines. It was my number 10 wine. Nose: nice green leafy nuance with lots of smoky and mineral - very traditional, classic mature Bordeaux aromas. Palate: Somewhat bitter stemmy green component with dry flavors of oak with some cherry hints. A flat finish needing more acid and fruit. Seemed almost over the hill. Others felt it soft and simple. I guessed 1988 Lalande. Yeah!
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Lynch Bages v. Pichon Lalande Shootout - Group #11, My #11 - Red crimson. Medium aroma of complex secondary red fruit and a hint of barnyard. Thinner black fruit. Still some tannin and strcutre, but not endough mid palate fruit to pull it off. 4/05
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Slightly browning, pretty consistent to edges. Full hot nose, pencil, box.
Round, rich & mature. Oaky fruit. Full but not that concentrated. A little light on mid-palate. Nice, mature, but not spectacular. Thick, full, a little band-aid. B
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Dark red in the glass. Jammy on the nose. Cassis and vanilla notes too. Also some cranberry. Great density and width. Structured and tannic, with lots of power and definition. Elegant and seductive despite all the muscle. Superb.
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Hollywood Wine Seminar. Medium color. Hard oaky spicy nose. More cool and classic than the ‘89. Firm and tannic. Doesn’t have enough fruit for the structure. Clive Coates: “high acidity at first, elegant, lush and complex, super”
Darkest color of the ‘88/‘89/‘90 trio. Cool, classic, lean, reserved. Very Cabernet Sauvignon and oaky. Good backbone and length. Not too inky like some ‘88s. A winner.
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4/24/2024 - kwarning8@gmail.com wrote: 94 Points
Decanted for an hour and classic 1988 Bordeaux with excellent nose and somewhat still sharp tannins. Fruit still there and still good for several years.
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1/17/2024 - olioli wrote: 94 Points
D'une grande complexité N + B. WOTN.
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10/27/2023 - BellevuePhil Likes this wine: 94 Points
In the heart of Bordeaux, where the vines whisper tales of centuries past and the air carries the scent of history, there resides a wine that transcends the boundaries of time and space—the 1988 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande. To call this nectar of the gods a mere wine would be a grave injustice; it is an odyssey, a symphony, an elixir that weaves together the threads of passion, nostalgia, and the spirit of adventure, and for me a decent memory of a time lost.
As a denizen of upper society, a gifted songwriter, a hopeless romantic, and a dreamer of grand adventures, my encounter with this vintage masterpiece was nothing short of a divine revelation.
Picture this: a chilly April night in Bordeaux, where the warmth of a crackling fire embraces the room. In the flickering glow, an old man, his eyes twinkling with wisdom and mischief, uncorks the very bottle that would become the vessel of our shared odyssey. His English, broken and imperfect, resonates with the charm of ages past. Over the course of two enchanted nights, amidst drunken babble and laughter, he imparts to me not only the secrets of this exquisite wine but also the melody of life.
The notes of "La vie en rose" danced through the air, echoing the very essence of our surroundings—a song of love, of dreams, and of the timeless beauty that lies within the heart of Bordeaux. With an old classical guitar once caressed by the hands of Antoine de Lhoyer, I learned to strum the chords that encapsulated the soul of this magical place.
As I took my first sip of the 1988 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande, I was transported back to that warm fire, to the music that intertwined our spirits, and to the history that permeated the very air we breathed. The wine, a deep, velvety red, embraced my senses like a lover’s tender touch. Its aroma, a bouquet of ripe berries, cedarwood, and a hint of vanilla, awakened my senses and beckoned me into a world where time stood still.
In the amber depths of the wine, I found the echo of that fateful night in 1991 when frost, like an unwelcome guest, descended upon the vineyards of Bordeaux. The air crackled with tension as wine workers fluttered towels over hundreds of small fires, their collective breaths visible in the frigid night. Their efforts were a desperate dance to protect the precious vines from the icy fingers of winter. But nature, indifferent to human endeavors, had her way, leaving behind a scene of devastation that mirrored the shattered dreams of those who toiled in the vineyards.
Its effect became famous.
Amidst the aftermath, I recalled the arrival of the Baroness Rothschild, her regal presence juxtaposed against the desolation of the vineyard. In her Rolls Royce, she traversed the path lined with frost-kissed vines, a tableau of heartbreak and resilience. With every step she took, the crunch of frozen earth beneath her heels seemed to echo the collective sigh of a community mourning the loss of its labor and love.
I'll never forget that April morning when the Baroness, her eyes glistening with unshed tears, approached me and made a simple request: "Jouez pour nous, jouez pour guérir nos cœurs." I knew not then what I never understood until now that the old man's son was indeed more to her than a friend hence she knew I could even play the tune.
And so, with trembling hands, I strummed the chords that had once resonated through the happy hallowed halls of Pichon Longgueville just a night before. The melancholic yet hopeful notes filled the air, intertwining with the collective sorrow of the workers, the determination of the owners, and the empathy of the Baroness.
As the final chords of "La vie en rose" lingered in the air, I witnessed tears streaming down weathered faces, mingling with the remnants of frost. In that moment, amidst the ruins of nature's wrath, music became a bridge connecting disparate souls, a testament to the resilience of the human spirit.
In the glass, the 1988 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande mirrored this resilience. As I savored the last drop of the 1988 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande, I was reminded of the beauty of shared moments, of the power of music to heal, and of the unyielding spirit that binds us all.
NOTES TO SELF: May need another 10 years. Decanted at 5pm, still smelled of distant farm at 7pm, yet legs forming. Finessed more but an hour later entered a good nose/bouquet. 4 hour decant next time
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8/12/2023 - jlgnml Likes this wine: 93 Points
Side by side with an ‘89 Pichon Baron. This is our daughter in laws birthyear. Wine was PnP vs a decanted ‘89 Baron. Wine was light on the palate, some sweetness, green pepper and a good finish. Fun comparison. Masculine for the Baron and feminine for the Lalande.
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7/12/2023 - NewFrenchClaret Likes this wine: 94 Points
Haven't had Pichon Lalande in a while and I'm now realizing why that's a big mistake.
Extraordinary, complex nose. Too much to list. Beautiful candied red fruits, loads of cocoa, rosemary, even a tinge of wasabi. Floral, but orange blossom and jasmine rather than violets. Exotic and sensual. In the glass the aroma dissipates a fraction, so I'd recommend using a small glass if you can, because you won't want to miss any of it.
Very concentrated and nicely balanced. Let down a bit by the finish- those 1988 tannins are just a little too rough. Tame them with a slab of red meat though, and you'll be golden.
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7/6/2023 - Triforwine Likes this wine: 96 Points
While we mourned my dad, it was the first time in a long time that we had my sister, brother in law and nieces together. My mom was in the mood to cook, it kept her busy. We decided to honor my dad by drinking some of the amazing wines he had cellared. Prior night we did open a 1978 Chateau Margaux and I didn't take formal notes but will post something. My brother in law chose a couple of verticals as options from wines we have a number of. We chose '85 vs '88 Pichon instead of '82 vs '85 Rauzan. Both '85 and '88 Pichon showed beautifully as they have the last few years. I give the edge slightly to the '88 as did most of us but my sister said she preferred the '85. The characteristics are very similar for both from my most recent notes so I won't elaborate. But, I think the '88 drinks a bit younger and is likely to go a bit longer. It is more concentrated and a bit darker in color. Both are outstanding. At least for me, it was clear that we were drinking two wines that were very similar but just slightly different vintages and for what I've tasted, both pretty representative of the two vintages. 95 for the '85, 96+ for the '88.
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5/16/2023 - Triforwine Likes this wine: 96 Points
Almost the same impression as the detailed notes from the bottle I posted here drunk Nov 2020 but even better. Another from dad’s cellar with dad and mom. Grilled lamb. Low neck fill. Cork broke even with Durand but minimal cork escaped. Youthful color. Incredibly complex nose and flavor as I described previously. Just an incredible wine which is in a beautiful place. No reason to hesitate to drink and this bottle was almost perfect with only enough decant to be sure of no cork and get the sediment off and it just keep getting better for 3 hours with last sips after dessert at which point it was gone. Exceptional but I think this wine may actually still improve. Classic aged pauillac. Could not get enough- 96 easy for me. Fortunately the provenance of the bottles we have left is promising.
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1/9/2023 - Diane (LI) wrote:
Lovely aromas of dark fruit and lead pencil. The wine showed younger on the nose than in the mouth, where I found dried herbs, lead pencil, and fleeting fruit. Just what I hoped for.
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1/6/2023 - boillatm Likes this wine: 91 Points
The cork fell in the bottle as I was trying to remove it with a bilame corkscrew. Surprisingly youthful color and a very attractive old Bordeaux nose.
On the palate typical aromas of leather and pencil lead and a relatively short finish with no noticeable tanins.
As others have noted, this wine is at the end of its drinking window and should be drunk in the next few years.
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12/31/2022 - ETW77 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Losing fruit taste, VG but not exceptional.
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12/22/2022 - Mdubnik Likes this wine: 93 Points
From 375ml bottle. Cork was perfect. PnP. Drank over two hours; faded during last 30 minutes. Beautiful on the nose and in the mouth, but better in the mouth than the nose. Still some quality life left. Drank this same bottle from a 750ml almost 2.5 years ago and I rated it a 94, so my opinion is to drink sooner rather than later.
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12/14/2022 - djhammond Likes this wine: 94 Points
This was an unexpected gem, which totally outperformed my expectations. After reading reviews from fellow members I decided to decant this for 3 hours, and it transformed the wine from a clumsy rough drinker into a wonderful silky smooth mature Bordeaux. As with the vintage as whole, the wine is fully developed, and indeed could be mistaken for being a decade older. The nose and palate are classic aged Paulliac with smoky notes and aromas of old leather, redcurrant, plum, and tobacco. The depth and balance are excellent, but the finish does display the harshness of the 1988 vintage. This was a great surprise in the middle of the so called wilderness years of the late 1980s and early 1990s for the estate, and also great value for a good mature Bordeaux. 94+
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11/29/2022 - sean20waldo Likes this wine: 91 Points
Great acidity but lacking depth. (Pichon Lalande Tasting @ Maison Estelle)
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11/5/2022 - WildeMeeuw Likes this wine: 93 Points
Kleur: Licht donkerrood met een brede oranjebruine rand. Aroma / bouquet: Subtiel - om niet te zeggen: fragiel - bouquet. Gedroogd fruit, zacht-zoetige kruidigheid. Smaak / Afdronk: Wow. Wat een geweldig mooie 'waardige grijsaard'. Ruim drie decennia oud en nog onberispelijk. Verfijnd en met een briljante balans… Zachte zuurgraad, verfijnde tannines en met een - voor de huidige tijd - opvallend beperkt alcoholgehalte (12,5%). Daardoor wellicht minder 'afgerond' en, ook na 34 jaar, nog steeds een stoere wijn. Lange en aangename afdronk. Algemeen / potentieel: Mijn eerste 'late release' - op de kurk: 'rebouché au Chateau en 2021' - van een van mijn absolute lieverlings-Pauillacs. Prachtige belegen wijn, nu in een optimale maar zeer gerijpte staat. 50 + Kleur: 5 + Aroma / bouquet: 12 + Smaak / Afdronk: 17 + Algemeen / potentieel: 9 = 93/100
Colour: Light dark red with a broad orange-brown rim. Aroma / bouquet: Subtle - not to say: fragile - bouquet. Dried fruit, soft-sweet spiciness. Taste / Aftertaste: Wow. What a wonderfully beautiful 'dignified old man'. Over three decades old and still immaculate. Refined and with a brilliant balance... Soft acidity, refined tannins and - for the present time - remarkably limited alcohol content (12.5%). As a result, perhaps less 'rounded' and, even after 34 years, still a sturdy wine. Long and pleasant finish. General / potential: My first 'late release' - on the cork: 'rebouché au Chateau en 2021' - of one of my absolute favorite Pauillacs. Beautiful matured wine, now in an optimal but very matured condition. 50 + Colour: 5 + Aroma / Bouquet: 12 + Taste / Aftertaste: 17 + General / Potential: 9 = 93/100
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6/18/2022 - curtr Likes this wine: 91 Points
Opened up over 2 hours in the glass. Started to fade slowly at 2 hours. Drinking well at the later part of the drinking plateau. Will not improve, however, should drink now to 2025.
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6/10/2022 - dream wrote: 89 Points
Quite firm and structured with excellent depth and plenty of aged Pauillac notes of smoky graphite and grilled nuts. However, the hardness of the vintage ultimately stamps this wine as good but not great.
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5/3/2022 - jviz Likes this wine: 94 Points
This was pretty beautiful with some time in the decanter. The cork was in pretty bad shape, depressed and split in two despite a monopol. It was strained and really unfolded over a couple hours with an excellent meal at the Joel Palmer house in Dundee, OR.
Medium garnet with a brightened edge, this appeared way more youthful than it was to the eye. Musty library, with redcurrant, tobacco, and fresh acidity. Good length too, this overperformed, and is the 2nd 88 Pauillac I've had this year with a lot left in the tank.
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4/23/2022 - mclanew wrote: 91 Points
Decanted for one hour. Very classic bordeaux. Lots of lead pencil on the nose. The wine is medium to full bodied with flavors of black currant, cigar box, pencil shavings and earth. A bit rustic and somewhat four square but still enjoyable.
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4/23/2022 - mclanew Likes this wine: 91 Points
Decanted for one hour. Lead pencil on the nose. The wine is medium to full bodied, a little rustic but still very robust. Black currant, smoke and licorice come through on the palate. Still vigorous but a bit four square. Very good classic bordeaux but lacking fireworks.
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4/21/2022 - timothynbond Likes this wine: 91 Points
Decanted one hour before serving. Durand extraction of nearly fully saturated cork. Deep ruby color with minor bricking at rim. Dried red fruit on the nose along with a fungal aroma. Medium body, medium-to-medium-plus acid, fully integrated tannins. This was initially awful -- thin, acidic, some bitter coffee notes. But with more air time this really filled in offering some dark fruits, blood orange, around an earthy, savory core. Not a standout for this level, but very nice nonetheless.
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3/13/2022 - Winedad53 wrote: 96 Points
The silky elegance of a well-aged Bordeaux. Lithe and supple, with earthy notes of tobacco, white pepper and dried herbs around a tightly wound core of mature black fruit. At a wonderful stage, likely with more to show over next 5-10 years.
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2/25/2022 - KMohr2019 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Moderate seepage and mineralization on the cork, but otherwise excellent condition. Decanted for about 1.5 hours before first approach. Color was brick red with only slight variation from center to rim. Leather and tobacco on the nose, with some slight barnyard also (which my wife called “pee diaper”). On first approach, this wine was very finely balanced, but one note was out of place with a slightly bitter minerality. Drank a glass and waited a couple more hours. Wow! Highly integrated tannins with near perfect balance. Like drinking a bottle of terroir. This is drinking extremely well now and should for many years to come.
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2/22/2022 - bestdamncab Likes this wine: 94 Points
Spring Celebration-2006 Roederer Estate L'Ermitage, 1988 Pichon Baron and Pichon Lalande (Yan's China Bistro, Walnut Creek, Ca.): Nose of cigar box, black berry, and hints of forest floor, slightly closed nose, hint of bret, same on the palate, medium/big body, mouth filling fruit, rich fruit, very tasty, slightly tired compared to the Chateau Pichon Baron today, think time to drink this up if it's in your cellar, open immediately but slightly muted nose throughout the lunch today, held up well during the three hour lunch, and a long finish, photo uploaded.
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2/17/2022 - Guido L. wrote:
Cork dropped into the bottle. The wine was oxidized. What a disappointment for normally such a great wine.
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1/8/2022 - jlm wrote:
Dark ruby to garnet red at the rim. Expressive nose of graphite, cedar, and earth. With time, some black currant fruit emerges on the nose, but it's decidedly not fruit that's central to the aromatics. The palate is medium bodied and elegantly textured, silky almost. There is still a frame of grippy tannin on the back end, suggesting that there's plenty of life in this, if not necessarily a lot of evolution. The finish is long and savory. This is really delightful mature Pauillac.
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12/24/2021 - dlduchon Likes this wine: 97 Points
Fantastic,earthy, altogether Bordeaux. Truly an amazing wine.
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11/14/2021 - paulst Likes this wine: 94 Points
Coffee nose; silky; round and soft; little tanin; sweet coffee blackberry finish.
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6/24/2021 - tbabes wrote: 93 Points
He fill was base neck; cork was soaked through, but was able to remove with the Durand. Medium-deep garnet with bricking. Classic bouquet, with notes of dried black fruits, roasted herbs, black truffle, earth; hints of cigar box and and leather. Medium bodied, some velvet, a bit classic / austere, savory, tannins completely integrated, long and precise on the finish. This bottle was at (or just slightly past) peak maturity, so would recommend to drink over the next 10 years.
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6/23/2021 - Cailles wrote: 94 Points
24 Vintages of Pichon Lalande: All wines tasted blind. A few general observations: 1) Most wines showed the typical Pichon Lalande elegance. This is certainly one of the more delicate and elegant Paulliacs. 2) The relatively high Merlot content (often 20-30%) showed in many wines with fine, fresh rhubarb, rosehip and floral aromas I wouldn’t necessarily associate with a Medoc - all adding to the sensuous quality of the wines. 3) A few vintages showed the very sexy burnt sugar/coffee notes you associate with the 1982 Lalande or a Mouton or a Cheval Blanc - unfortunately, not to an extent and with an intensity to truly excite. 4) Following the legendary 1982 and until the most recent vintages (starting with 2014 but especially with 2016) there are three decades of pleasant Pichon Lalandes but hardly any vintage has the depth and length of truly great wines. The best wine tonight was the 2009 (rated 95+ points) with many more in the 92-94 point category.
TN: This was the best of the 80s Lalandes - to my surprise. The nose was fairly closed and never fully came through but on the palate this was very good, sensual and sexy, completely round and harmonious, creamy and light with lots of red and dark berries, tobacco, earthy notes, wet forest floor and minerality. It could have had more precision and depth but it was still a great wine.
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6/20/2021 - Costes76 Likes this wine: 95 Points
Medium deep ruby color. Punchy nose of stewed red cherry, red currant with stable. Dry, bright acidity, structured tannins, palate follows through. Medium body. Good balance. Medium finish. GUESS BURGUNDY 90s. 95. (RANKED 2) / RESULT PICHON LONGUEVILLE 88 (RANKED 2)
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6/16/2021 - MarshallLi Likes this wine: 92 Points
Pale tawny, medium red cherry, dried fruit, wet leaves, forest floor, dry, medium + acidity, medium body, smooth medium- tannin, low alcohol, medium- body, medium finish, very good wine, not suitable for bottle ageing.
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6/6/2021 - KenK wrote: 88 Points
Opened for Vinous Virtual Seminar in flight with 1988 Calon Segur. This was ok, but muted and showed spicy dried black fruit essence. Good balance, but flat on flavors and coming across more mature that the Calon Segur. The cork came out intact, but was nearly fully soaked and clearly seemed old. Maybe there are better bottles?
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5/4/2021 - ran.shoham wrote: 93 Points
Loved it. Typical Pauillac.
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2/19/2021 - dchain Likes this wine: 93 Points
Deep ruby still. Looks fairly young still. Nose gives the age away a bit, quite a bit of forest floor but still a nice cedar/fruit balance on the palate. Nose of white flowers (lily and jasmine) which I feel is the essence of Pichon's nose. Good freshness as always with the 1988s and the acidity has kept the wines fresh and refreshing as any good beverage should do. Pichon Lalande in the 80s was on fire and what a great expression of this great estate and hopefully it will undergo a new renaissance under its current management.
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1/31/2021 - mwellington wrote: 95 Points
This is wonderful. Paired with pan roasted wagyu tenderloin. Several hour decant required. Deep red fruit is still present, but subtle. The spice and cigar box are perfectly balanced. The tannins are almost imperceptible on the palate, but are the essential structure of the wine. The finish is long a extraordinary. Wow.
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1/9/2021 - Wardyn Likes this wine: 93 Points
Classic savory and slight salty nose of red cassis, smoke, tobacco, spices violet and green bay leaf. Still very fresh acidity for a 32 year old displaying red currant, cassis fruits of medium bodied flavors, spices, leather and earth. Very good length with melting tannins. Very well made and drinking at peak.
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11/21/2020 - Triforwine Likes this wine: 95 Points
From Dad's Cellar, stored perfectly for decades. Mid-neck fill. Decanted 1.5 hours before dinner of Bouef Bourgignon. Small piece of bottom of cork broke but I was able to get it out without it going in the bottle. The nose jumped out of the bottle on decant. Very youthful deep violet crimson color. Not much sediment, actually. Took very little time to come around after just a very mild mustiness but it was clear this is big and bold from the beginning and the nose kept getting more complex with dark red fruits, cigarbox, cedar, faint tobacco and leaves. The mouthfeel is beautiful with the food. The palate flavor is just delightful and again dark fruits, cassis, perhaps a bit of sour cherry and cranberry coming through, cedar, tobacco and a bit of what I think is likely best termed graphite on the finish. Long finish, well over 30 seconds. The wine has a more youthful color than the 85 we drank three nights earlier and may well have a longer life ahead and considering the vintage, I’m not sure but this one might still be improving with time, but it isn’t quite a much of a knockout right now as the 82 Beychevelle nor the 85 Pichon Lalande drank the same long weekend. But, a good way to describe this is what my dad said… SO SMOOTH and yes. So smooth indeed and delicious. This one was a big suprise in the right direction. We have quite a few more of these which is nice. 95++
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9/27/2020 - RayOB wrote: 92 Points
Drank in London
Fully mature with a beautiful nose
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9/23/2020 - KeithAkers wrote: 93 Points
Flannery Night (Jordan's, Northbrook IL): Nose: The nose is deep and perfumed with sour red cherries, cranberries, raspberries, cedar, cassis, leather, tobacco, violets, and some earth notes. This is a nose that just screams mature bordeaux while also showing excellent balance and elegance.
Taste: The feel is Medium/full bodied with medium acidity and silky, medium tannins. The feel is deep and elegant with sour red cherries, cranberries, cedar, cassis, leather, tobacco, and violets.
Overall: This is just perfect right now. This exactly what I want out of mature bordeaux as it shows great depth, balance, and elegance.
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9/10/2020 - Ex-Ray wrote: 98 Points
At home, with steak au poivre, recipe from the Left Bank in Vail, went perfectly! I have owned this since release. 1988 was not a great year in Bordeaux, but this was amazing. The color is medium garnet, slightly translucent, with slight amber at the edges. The aromas are immediately powerful, even just decanting it. Cedar predominates, with some tobacco, and cassis with slight herbal notes. The flavors are medium-full, minimal tannin, mostly cassis and blackberries, with cedar and French oak notes, elegant and complex. Very long aftertaste. Remarkable that a wine 32 years old from an undistinguished year would be this great. Too bad it's my last bottle!
Ric
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8/13/2020 - JHSP Likes this wine: 94 Points
Beautifully balanced - sweet spot - forrest floor, black berries, mushrooms, liquorice and fine elegant sweet finish - superb wine
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7/4/2020 - vinhonotte Likes this wine: 93 Points
Medium ruby core, with significant edge fading. Pronounced aromas of cloves, fern leaves, and slight blackberry and florals. Slight bit of tannic bite, with underripe blackberry, cloves, rocket leaves, grey smokes, and some bright minerals and pencil shavings at the back. Finish was long of mainly the florals and graphite. Nice!
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6/26/2020 - isbjoern wrote: 93 Points
Blind Bordeaux tasting: Strong notes of barnyard and meat on the nose; much more delicate on the palate, clearly some age to it, very fresh with excellent acidity, vanilla, coffee flavors, amazingly silky tannins, still very nice sweet and ripe fruit, a bit clipped on the finish maybe. But overall very impressive and elegant old school Bordeaux. - 93 points
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3/9/2020 - rossi.wine wrote: 93 Points
Nicely evolved in colour. On the nose expressive, layered and pretty showing notes of cedar, tobacco, graphite, spices, red and dark fruit. On the palate not overly generous, bright but well integrated acidity with good structure and depth. Vibrant finish, very long. A great bottle and no rush drinking up. 92-94
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1/4/2020 - beatles wrote: 94 Points
Majestic wine. Complety with tobacco, blackberry in a vertical, very classical structure. Give me that old time religion, this is a wine from a better time than this ... WOTN for me.
#nytårskur
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12/25/2019 - raiachat Likes this wine: 92 Points
simply fantastic. opened it for Christmas 2019. decanted for an hour. Cork was a little bit wet and I thought that it might be off. Amazing.
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11/22/2019 - bestdamncab Likes this wine: 93 Points
Chateau Pichon Lalande-1986, 1988, 1989, and1990 (Yan's China Bistro, Walnut Creek, Ca.): With Aniko, Virgie, Joe, Derrald, and Alex, nose of cigar box, barnyard, black berry, and hints of forest floor, same on the palate, medium/big body, mouth filling fruit, very tasty, has peaked and time to enjoy is now, open from the start and held up well during the 3 hour lunch, and a long finish.
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11/1/2019 - PhN Likes this wine: 93 Points
On inspection fill was down to bottom of neck. Removal of cap showed leakage. Cork saturated but intact. First smell and sip good color no nose, smooth soft flavor. The wine began opening almost immediately and proved to be excellent with great fruit, soft tannin. It was a great accompaniment to a soft French cheese, lamb chops and a chocolate dessert. The wine continued to open for four hours when I gassed and stoppered to last two glasses worth. We shall see tomorrow. I think it is done improving but should be wonderful for a couple more years if you are lucky enough to have some!
48hours later we finished the last 6 ounces of the wine. It was definitely more open and still fabulous. I now think it has a much longer life, that is if you have any left.
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10/29/2019 - Hanibal Likes this wine: 94 Points
this was ethereal...delicious
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9/29/2019 - empire80 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Colour starting to turn bricky. Beautiful cedar box and spice nose. Fruit is fading but everything is in place and balanced. One to sip slowly and savour.
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9/18/2019 - salil wrote: 87 Points
Bordeaux night (Indianapolis, IN): Normally love this wine, but this wasn't the best showing I've experienced. The fruit is somewhat muddled without the clarity and brightness I've found in the past, and the green/earthy/other savoury elements are not as complex as I've found in other bottles of this.
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9/15/2019 - dream Likes this wine: 93 Points
The fifth wine of 14 vintages of PL back to ‘61 courtesy of Mark Golodetz. One of the surprises of the night as this was just a beautifully delineated wine with excellent freshness and delicious dark red fruits. Still structured and crisp in the style of the vintage but it shows plenty of fruit and has a wonderfully satisfying finish with notes of truffles and minerals. Ready now but will last.
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8/20/2019 - jee27 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Nice mature claret that held well over time still providing much pleasure. I'd recommend drinking it in tulip shaped glasses and not very wide ones since it may fade quicker.
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8/20/2019 - Purple Grillz Likes this wine: 98 Points
From a 375ml. I am absolutely awe struck. The aromatics are just amazing, ripe strawberries, peaches, cocoa, cola, tobacco, wintergreen, no trace of alcohol. Incredibly smooth, what a great little bottle!!!!!
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6/24/2019 - acyso wrote: 90 Points
Champagne, Riesling, and Bordeaux with Skippy (Chicago, IL): Compared to the Haut-Brion alongside, this showed a little more on the nose. There's not as much elegance as the 1983, and this feels still bound up with respect to its structure. The secondary characteristics are not as fully developed, even at 31 years, and this seems like it's just on the cusp of emerging into a mature Bordeaux.
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6/16/2019 - ArtF Likes this wine: 92 Points
Deep brick/maroon in glass. Fading fruit but still smooth and elegant on palate. Second pour after 60 minutes actually better than first. Continued drinking well over the following hour.
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4/1/2019 - dchain Likes this wine: 93 Points
Another great bottle from the same case. Amazing nose of black tea, pepper, lily, forest floor with some uplifting cassis notes. At its peak, amazing drinking for a slight less ripe vintage, acidity well handled against the medium bodied fruit structure. All tannin resolved and simply delicious, elegant aged Bordeaux at a great price compared to more recent and modern vintages. They don’t make wines like this anymore and to be honest the lack of variety at the top end of Bordeaux is our loss! If every wine is nearly perfect ever year, doesn’t perfection become lass attractive?
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3/31/2019 - Ara Kafafian Likes this wine: 93 Points
Attended a head to head blind tasting of Pichon-Baron VS. Pichon-Lalande. Vintages were as follows for the Pichon-Baron: 1988, 1989, 1990 & 1998, Pichon-Lalande offerings were 1985, 1986, 1988 & 1996. The fifth blind wine happened to be the 1988 Pichon-Lalande. OK, this is serious stuff, with that gamy, barn yard animal fur aged Bordeaux nose which I wish could be bottled as perfume. The most aromatic wine of the bunch, I couldn’t t stop sniffing this glass it was that memorable. Medium bodied, great balance and a long finish, I thought the 1990 was in my glass but I was wrong. Only Bordeaux offers such complexity and youth after 30 years. No, I’m not crazy, this wine will hold for another 10-15 years easily. Dink up by 2035.
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3/29/2019 - bestdamncab Likes this wine: 93 Points
Pichon Lalande with Filet Mignon and Aniko, Derrald, and Alex (Yan's China Bistro, Walnut Creek, Ca.): With Aniko, Derrald, and Alex, nose of cedar, sandalwood, tobacco, hints of forest floor, same on the palate, not as rich as the 1989, lacks the nose, but more complex, more interesting, and showing well but has peaked and time to enjoy is now, ash component on the mid palate, and a long, long finish.
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3/28/2019 - RunDMC wrote: 92 Points
Nose: Earth and cedar notes
Tobacco, leather, pepper and faded fruit. This is probably past it’s prime but still elegant and enjoyable.
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1/12/2019 - dnnk88 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Red grapes, earthy and slight herbal bouquet. The age comes through well, as reflected by the mature yet light curranty flavours underpinned by soil, forest floor and gravel. Soft tannins and spices. Long warm finish with a slight eucalyptus and smoky aftertaste. After 1 hour, tobacco and bitterness ensued. Overall, balanced and elegant. A fine example of Pichon Lalande. Very enjoyable; should drink asap
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12/28/2018 - vinhslee wrote: 92 Points
It's more mature than expected. Lots of tertiary leathery and earthy notes. It's a bit light on Lalande's pencil notes. Very enjoyable now.
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11/10/2018 - d'Artagnan wrote: 92 Points
Nez de cèdre, sous-bois, un peu fumé. À maturité, bien sûr, élégant, fin. Selon cette bouteille, il commence tranquillement son déclin, mais non sans livrer encore beaucoup de plaisir, avec cette finesse typique du crû. Délicieux. 92 pts
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10/26/2018 - FullPolicyLimits wrote:
corked
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9/9/2018 - dchain wrote: 92 Points
Still dark ruby but you can see through it in the glass. Immediate blast of leafy, peppery Cabernet Franc. Still some cassis as well and seems incredibly well preserved. On the palate, mid-weight, clean and heathy fruit with good acidic uplift. No blockbuster but lovely fresh, heathy fruit with just enough ripeness to make it enjoyable. You have to love that almost St. Julian touch of forest floor and bell pepper to really enjoy this which I find speaks to Pichon ‘s terroir and its higher percentage of Cabernet Franc in its blend. A fine lunch claret indeed!
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9/8/2018 - Ms. Bubblehead Likes this wine:
We had this along with the 2009 2008 2003 1996 and 1988 vintages the same night. 1988 was my favourite Vintage of the night, compare to 2003, 2008 and 2009 vintages, which showed some vanilla and oak on the nose and less complex, more polish/ modern on the palate, 1998 was nice, with smoke, tobacco, spices, blue and black berries on the nose, on the palate, it showed good structure, deepness, complexity, with nice and gentle tannin and acidity on the finish.
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8/27/2018 - Cofxc Likes this wine: 91 Points
Lovely nose. A little dusty, old books this time. Still opens out into juicy blackberry.
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7/31/2018 - Purple Grillz wrote: 95 Points
Unbelievably consistent across time, superb wine making. Freshness, balance, complexity, the roasted herbs, the menthol, the beef blood and oodles of delicate, ripe, red berry fruit. Time has added library books to the flavor profile which integrate seamlessly. To be sure, this is dry as a bone, but it showcases all these flavors so well without any sweetness. Spectacular Pauillac, spectacular wine. A serious QPR for BDX. I am starting to view Lalande in the same light as the Haut Brions, somewhat awesome no matter what the vintage, is its their shared reliance on Merlot?
The nose is wild, heavy cream, candied orange peels, milk chocolate. So different than the drink. Wonderful stuff.
It should keep much longer, plenty of polished tannins that don't dry you out, but this seems to be at its apex in 750 format.
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6/13/2018 - Diane (LI) wrote:
Exactly as expected. Leathery, herbal, with sweet fruit. Quite lovely.
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6/7/2018 - SimonG wrote: flawed
88 Bordeaux @ La T (La Trompette, London): Corked.
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5/27/2018 - kfrench150 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Fully soaked cork except for the last quarter inch. First sniff from the bottle shows it is in fine shape. Red fruits, tobacco and mild VA predominates with slight funky undertone. Colour looks good through the bottle as it is decanted at the last minute before serving. Lots of sludge left in the bottom of the bottle around the punt. Colour is good. Full garnet red almost right to the thin rim with a black ruby core. Still quite opaque. Nose is full of sweet red fruit, rosehip, buckskin, floral, tobacco, and dried strawberry paste. Taste is full and sweet, with dried red fruits (strawberry, currant, rosehip), more tobacco, damp loam. Still some darker fruits flavours present. Slight leafiness at the edges that adds to the complexity. Some tartness from the acidity and a clean dry finish. Still some tannins hanging around. Good length to the finish. Nicely balanced. Quite a lovely wine in fact! Probably still at least 5 or more years left in well stored bottles.
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4/13/2018 - WMWG wrote: flawed
Corked Damnit! Damage was mild, from what was in the glass I'd say this is in a perfect spot right now. A shame.
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3/30/2018 - GA Old World Guy Likes this wine: 93 Points
Had from Magnum. Muted nose at first but eventually began to strut. Flint, leather, tobacco all began to show. After three hours the finish began to tighten up. Very pleased with the wine.
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11/19/2017 - johnnyrichardson Likes this wine: 94 Points
Fabulous, ready now but will keep - the cork was very fragile on this one, almost soaked to the top, be careful when opening...opened up nicely in the glass but I did not decant and don't think it needs it unless you break the cork.
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10/29/2017 - La Cave d'Argent wrote: 88 Points
From a bottle generously provided by K.J., this medium garnet wine still has a core of black and red fruit, now flanked with tobacco, damp earth, dried herbs, black olives and a hint of truffles. Medium-bodied and tartly acidic, it has residual tannins which still carry some grip. The middle palate remains solid and the finish fairly long, although the latter is somewhat acerbic. While this '88 still has life, there are better left bank offerings from this structured vintage. Drink now-2022.
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10/21/2017 - Ianthemac wrote: 89 Points
I hate to bad mouth this wine as I adore it, but this bottle had way too much brett bordering on being overpowering. It came and went, but it wasn't a patch on the bottle I had a month or so ago. Two bottles left. Let's hope they are better. Only bottle I have had of this vintage that wasn't superb.
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9/2/2017 - Ianthemac Likes this wine: 96 Points
Where does one start?
I first had this vintage 20 years ago and at that time I rated it and the 1986 as two of my favourite wines of all time. I haven't, sadly, been fortunate enough to drink the 1982 - I can only guess as to how good it is. Splash decant after a bit of delicate cork work. The nose is just sublime. Huge aromas of cedar, cigar box and vintage leather. Gorgeous ochre hue to the rim. The balance is stunning. The dark fruit is still there are the tannins are like velvet. Maybe it's in its late drinking window as the finish isn't profound? All in all - if I could take a bottle to my desert island I reckon a Pichon Lalande would be a strong contender.
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4/12/2017 - Shay.Aldriedge Likes this wine: 93 Points
This was a birth year wine for me to celebrate my 29th. A friend was able to help me track down a solid birth year Bordeaux and when I finally got to see it in person, I was astounded at how it seemed to have been stored. The bottle looked pristine...unbelievable. Once poured in to the decanter, there was hardly any brown color to this wine. Still displayed a beautiful purple with slight ruby hues. At first whiff, it was still sleeping quite a bit. First Taste affirmed that, though I could already tell I had nothing to worry about in terms of how it would end up tasting due to how it was stored. Earthy and fig notes up front. After about 15mins, some cranberry notes came around and the finish started improving. At about the 30min mark, this hit stride and brought some black tea and very faint hints of blackberry to the palate, with a beautiful lingering finish. Still amazing to me how wine can sleep for 29yrs, and within 30mins, show you it's still got it. If you have one of these and it's been stored properly, there is easily another 7yrs or so left of decent fruit.
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4/11/2017 - mflesh wrote: 93 Points
Great birthday wine (not my birthday) shared by a friend tonight. Amazing how, at almost 30 years old this wine was still not a pop and pour. The cork still had rather good seal, with about 1mm of cork bleed all the way around. Using an ahso, the cork was knocked into the bottle. Based on some of the reviews here, didn't know whether or not to decant this or not but given the cork was IN the bottle, decanting was necessary and the top was covered. AMAZING how this wine actually improved (quite dramatically) over 30 minutes. Every 10 minutes it was like this wine was brand new. The wine poured with a purple/maroon. Very little signs of browning. The nose was fig, plum, and earth right off the bat. Poured a dark color. Immediately the wine was plum and fig, with a big hole in the middle, and a finish that was pretty subdued. Within 10 minutes, lighter red fruit emerged, and the middle gained a lot of weight. The finish lengthened, and showed a little bit of herbaceousness. About 15 minutes after that, this wine started to rock and roll. Full out front of red fruit, dirty herbal black cherry, black tea. Middle of this wine was where fig and plum dominated. Finished with a nice elegant spice, but core of cigar box and darker fruit. This wine really surprised me at 30 years of age. Beautiful birthday bottle! As this one is a pop and pour, and didn't lose fruit at all over the hour it developed and was consumed, I would certainly say that this wine is going to be there for at least another 10-15 years. 2002 - 2035
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3/24/2017 - PDavisMarble wrote: 91 Points
Cork was moist most of the way through, but in good shape. Decanted and then poured. Fair bit of sediment. Deep crimson, almost opaque. No bricking. Beef, glycerine, nutmeg, a touch of wet cardboard (but that blew off), leaving distinct notes of lavender on the nose. Graphite, game meats, plums and forest floor, with some baking spices. Tannins are round and well integrated. Still drinking well.
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3/16/2017 - bdxrunner Likes this wine: 93 Points
Birthday dinner at abagails
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2/25/2017 - SteelerFan wrote: 95 Points
Fantastic. Perfect condition at almost 30 years. Rich dark chocolate and cigar overlay cherry, quince and smooth tannins. Really gorgeous. No sign of decline. Underrated vintage.
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1/29/2017 - cephomer Likes this wine: 90 Points
Drank at Fierstein dinner party. Pale, brownish in glass--color is as expected. Funky bordeaux nose of dirty socks. Definitely showing its age in that it's mostly tertiary at this point, with diminished remnants of black fruit. But, wine exhibits plenty of lead pencil & cigar box elements, along with some cedar, some green pepper and some animal characteristics. Just wish it had some more fruit remaining...Fascinating bottle though
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1/28/2017 - Two Winos Likes this wine:
Very interesting at this age. Tannins almost gone, so that silky-richness is gone. Bordeaux funk on opening, then it alternated between smelling corked and smelling wonderful. Definitely not corked, maybe a little oxidization? Glad this was the last bottle.
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12/23/2016 - wineguru57@yahoo.com.au wrote: 94 Points
serious left bank wine here right on its plateau. wonderful complex, ethereal palate. Cigar box, leather, animal fur, delightful sweet merlot fruit contributing to the overall picture. Should stay for another decade.
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12/23/2016 - enofilene wrote: 92 Points
Gravel, red fruit and flowers on nose, great tannins, nice soft red fruit on finish with some typical herbaceous elements at the finish.
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12/20/2016 - Burgnick Likes this wine: 92 Points
Pnp. Classic claret with blood, iron, black fruit, green pepper, earth and tobacco. The palate has softened tannins. It is drinking very well now.
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12/4/2016 - Burgnick Likes this wine: 92 Points
Pnp. Classic bordeaux with tobacco, black fruit, cedar and truffle. The sweetness on the palate is very pleasing. Drinking very well, at its peak
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11/27/2016 - engelwein Likes this wine: 91 Points
Getrunken bei Sebastians Geburtstag. Nase schön voll und "warm" , typ. Bordeaux. Im Mund bereits leichte Auszehrungen, aber noch schön trinkbar. Nicht mehr länger lagern!
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11/5/2016 - davergny Likes this wine: 94 Points
A regal wine, shows its class. Elegant but structured. Cedar, currants, and tobacco notes. Velvet texture, Fine finish. I got maybe a hint of green herb at times, but this bottle was really harmonious and enjoyable. Very good Pauillac, almost great.
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11/2/2016 - Nutty08 Likes this wine: 89 Points
Not nearly as good as my last bottle 2yrs ago, but this bottle while from a known good source, was high shoulder fill with some light seepage (soaked cork) under the capsule. Great nose of cigar, leather, and mint. The type of nose you can smell all day. Palate was less thrilling and a bit shrill. Black current fruit and mint, quite mature but also narrowly focused due to acid and a bit thin. Only short to moderate length finish. Shows the great mature Lalande profile but without the power and concentration of the great years. Last bottle was better but even then felt this should be drunk up.
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8/31/2016 - beatles wrote: 93 Points
@Peter with T (Charlottenlund): Mature, but not declining; very elegant and well balanced, real, live fruit, tobacco, cigarbox et al; 1988 remains a classic vintage, overlooked, but just a point, if you love the Bordeaux of old.
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5/21/2016 - Cofxc Likes this wine: 91 Points
Heavy mould on cork but came out clean. Instant sweet, baked fruit nose jumped out. Light. Evolved to berry fruit. Elegant fruit flavours all the way. Light. Sweet. Certainly Lalande.
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5/8/2016 - brh_wine wrote: 90 Points
classic Paullac - good nose some tobacco, pauillac perfume. not showing much age and went well with spring lamb.
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4/19/2016 - LWI wrote: 89 Points
Pichon Lalande Tasting: Bretty, minerals, tough, green tea, bony. Very –88, needs a good steak.
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4/6/2016 - Burgundy Al wrote: 91 Points
Black fruit with fully resolved structure in very good balance right now. I like how the fruit, spice, structure and earth all work together. Moderate length and concentration.
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2/27/2016 - I am Diggler wrote:
Let breath for a couple hours then amazing
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2/13/2016 - EhrlichDY Likes this wine: 95 Points
From a half bottle and enjoyed with steak at Charlie Palmer for Valentine's Day dinner with the wife. Aroma of jammy fruit, cedar, earth, and lead pencil bursts from the glass. The palate is smooth as proverbial silk and densely pitched with cassis fruit, tobacco, and earthy savory goodness. Both the nose and the palate are complex, layered, and deep while the wine maintains an elegance characteristic of the vintage. The tannin is fine and pleasant. This bottle was perfect.
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12/25/2015 - Silveroakkid wrote: 94 Points
A classic Pichon in every way. Followed a Ducru Beaucaillou 82 and held her own. Everything you like about a Lalande is here. The wine is peaking now. A great bottle.
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12/20/2015 - raiachat Likes this wine: 98 Points
amazing right from the bottle - decanted and it even got better. Soft tannins with earthy nose and delicious flavor
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11/9/2015 - Markus IWC wrote: 87 Points
Vertikal provning Pichon Kallar 12 årgångar 66-90. 1988: rökig, chark, ung, cassis, stram, hård och lite bråkig, aggressiv, vill ha mer luft, kunde dekanterats mer, kräver protein, bör lagras mer.
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10/23/2015 - Zweder wrote: 95 Points
Occasional dinner group; TOP Bordeaux 1988: Beautiful and mature bouquet with dark forest fruits, some tea, flowers and luxurious oaky flavors. On the palate still a meaty wine with beautiful dark forest fruits, a pleasant touch of bell pepper, some chocolate, good acidity and mild, slightly drying tannin. This probably was the most harmonious wine of the night. Really beautiful and no real hurry drinking it.
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10/17/2015 - The Vines That Bind wrote: 93 Points
A great showing of this wine with a big Pauillac nose turning horsey and farmy but with solid red fruit and good tannin on the palate. Bold red and black cherry, some currant, leather, and notes of spicy tobacco. Red cedar note is spot-on. A way better bottle than an '88 Lalande enjoyed about a month ago.
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10/17/2015 - Pknut wrote:
Nice nose, Michael M. gets beet. The palate shows a bit of cedar and funk, but there is still vibrant red fruit to balance the funk. I think the Brett here is just a touch too high and distracting. Sweet cedar and herbal notes. Long finish. Many '88s are hard-edged and firm, still, but this is showing good warmth and user-friendliness. Acker auction, Marea.
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9/17/2015 - kerv22 Likes this wine: 94 Points
This wine is drinking beautifully right now. Still holds a considerable amount of fruit blended in with that wonderful aged Pauilliac nose. Very well balanced, yet nearing the end of it's life. You'll likely get another couple years out of it, but I'd drink up now if you've got it.
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6/20/2015 - mplsbruin wrote:
6th and second to last in 9 wine blind tasting in Chicago. Best to worst: 1) '73 Heitz Martha's V; 2) 2010 Thorn-Clarke Barossa shiraz 3) tied '92 B&G ChNeufduP (mystery wine) & '74 Inglenook D-3; 4) tied '73 Mastroberardino Taurasi Riserva aglianico & '78 BV George de la Tour; 5) '76 Louis Jadot Les Combettes; 6) '88 Ch Pichon Longueville (kept in South Bend, IN, garage from Jan-June); 7) '87 Bernard Heresztyn Gev-Cham.
My notes: dark-brown, bad bouquet, old pinot?, don't like, old CNduP?
This bottle was stoppered and left in garage from Jan-June in South Bend, Indiana. Interesting I didn't rate it the worst ('87 Gev-Cham was my worst). Rating would be 70.
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4/13/2015 - WMWG Likes this wine: 95 Points
Gorgeous, classic Paulliac nose showing refined red fruit, old leather, tobacco, cedar and dust. Lush dark fruit is prefaced by a distinguishing herbal overtone on entry. Dark fruit and secondary notes of leather, earth and graphite come through in the middle and carry into the finish, which is good but slightly clipped. This shows great elegance and finesse, with resolved tannins and youthful fruit. Drinking beautifully now; the youthful fruit being complimented by good integration. Excellent - Drink Now
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4/13/2015 - salil wrote: 94 Points
Probably the best showing I've had from the '88 PLL so far. This has it all. The fruit's still quite deep and rich, yet surrounded by layers of classic Pauillac lead pencil and cedar notes, mature dusty earthy and truffled flavours, and that signature PLL forestal/herbal green topnote, with the whole array of flavours conveyed with remarkable finesse and polish on a medium weight frame. This bottle still feels quite youthful with a little fine grained tannin still lingering on the back end, but wow, this is outstanding.
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4/12/2015 - KenK Likes this wine: 92 Points
Nice dark earthy appeal. Green pepper, lead pencil and black berries. Nice medium weight with good life and nicely integrated structure. Good finish. Still good life here, but in the window now.
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3/22/2015 - Thoughtful Likes this wine: 90 Points
Stored in a cold cellar since release. High neck fill. Cork broke. Perfect condition. Full bodied maybe a little dense. Adequate length. Fully ready.
Good example of Pauillac but lacks complexity. Typical of 1988. If properly stored drink to 2020.
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2/20/2015 - Ex-Ray Likes this wine: 98 Points
With a thick elk chop at Fig Tree. Medium garnet with slight browning at the edges, translucent. Pronounced complex aroma of cedar, tobacco, leather, meat, balanced with French oak. Quite viscous, slow "legs". Full but incredibly smooth on the palate, still with plenty of fruit, also showing black fruits with cedar and leather, a touch of licorice. The finish is slightly hot, surprisingly, but just keeps going on. This is about as good as Bordeaux can get, a very memorable wine. It's at its peak, so enjoy if you have some!
Ric
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1/23/2015 - tinybubbles wrote: 89 Points
Appealing nose largely comprised of white pepper, tobacco and light creosote aromas. Palate has attractive elements with residual dark fruit and berries, dark earth, and light spices, but those flavors do not work entirely in concert with the remaining tannins and acid. Back palate has a distracting bitterness that can only partially be attributed to age. Drink now.
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12/31/2014 - mplsbruin Likes this wine: 90 Points
Scored 4th of 7 wines. I scored it 5th. However, re-tasting that same evening, the fruit began to return and my re-assessment puts this wine near the top (1st '86 Phelps Napa cab, 2nd '90 Heitz Bella Oaks).
Ranked 4th of 7 in 2014 NYEve blind tasting.
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12/25/2014 - d'Artagnan wrote: 89 Points
Beau vin mais bien en dessous de l'autre bouteille prise il y a trois jours, provenant de la même source.
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12/21/2014 - d'Artagnan wrote: 92 Points
Souper de Noël chez Adam et Oana: Joli nez de cèdre, de Havane, avec un peu de poivron rouge.
La bouche est suave, encore jeune et d'une belle énergie, avec des tanins assouplis. Il a cette belle texture aérienne du cru, presque Margalaise, une finale d'une magnifique complexité. C'est fin, tout le cliché du Médocain aristocrate, austère et charmeur à la fois. Superbe! J'ai peine à comprendre le manque d'enthousiasme des critiques envers ce millésime de Pichon Lalande. Superbe et en pleine forme. 92-93 pts
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12/6/2014 - Nutty08 Likes this wine: 93 Points
This needed an hour or so of air to wake up and show well and did not fade over 4hrs. Not decanted. Expressive typical Pauillac nose of black currants, spice, and a little pipe tobacco. Palate is soft and mature, with minimal tannins. Mature tertiary dark fruit and tobacco notes. Moderate finish with repeating flavor profile and sweet pipe tobacco. Rather laisssez-faire and lacking the power of the bigger vintages, but has the typical elegance of Lalande. Mature--I don't see further improvement with age but won't get tired for at least another 5yrs.
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10/23/2014 - raiachat Likes this wine: 95 Points
Certainly still full of tannin and not a rush to drink. Great ruby color and satiny feel. Nose was a mix of floral and oak. Loved it - did not decant it as it was a last minute decision to open but after about 15min in the glass it was wonderful. Glad that i have more in the cellar
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9/22/2014 - Alexjr1 wrote: 93 Points
Drink as part of a verticle. Nice deep tones and still hanging on quite well.
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7/2/2014 - M DU VIN Likes this wine: 93 Points
Nice fruit and evolved tannins. No signs of bricking or decline.
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6/22/2014 - Burgundy Al wrote: 89 Points
Great 1980s Bordeaux Tasting and Dinner (Michael Restaurant - Winnetka IL): Tasting. Far superior to another bottle tried last year. This bottle showed a good balance of fruit and evolved flavors and aromas. Lots of tannin partly obstruct more pleasure here, with just moderate length and intensity on the finish.
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6/7/2014 - Wine_lvr wrote: 91 Points
Bordeaux 1988 Horizontal Tasting: Tasting note to follow
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5/31/2014 - bill00 wrote: 92 Points
While this lacks the complexity and depth of great vintages of Pichon Lalande, it is nonetheless a beautiful mature Bordeaux with classic Pauillac notes. Supple and smooth texture. Really enjoyable.
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5/4/2014 - Norb Likes this wine: 92 Points
Classic Pauillac; that pecil/ cedar; beatuful deep colour, still a lot of spark. Could have lasted longer in the Cave, but was a great drink with grilled venison
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2/10/2014 - Jeff Leve wrote: 89 Points
My sole bottle donated in the name of science delivered a stern, austere, traditional wine that was more interesting due to its cigar box, tobacco, truffle, earth, blackberry, olive and herbal nose, than its medium bodied, cassis, cranberry and herb palate. There is no reason to age this wine any longer. Drink up.
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1/18/2014 - RockinCabs wrote: 93 Points
Nose: Classic pencil, cigar wrapper, cherries and a raspberry creme note. Palate: Somewhat lighter and more feminine than I might have expected, but showed the tell tale coconut, pencil and smooth berry notes that I associate with Pichon. Finish: Long and delivers the lingering smoke and beautiful red fruit notes I love in this wine.
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1/18/2014 - englishman's claret wrote: 93 Points
A classic. Pencil, cassis, earth. Perfect balance (of course, this is a Lalande). What more is there to say? Perhaps not the definition or density of better vintages, but still a lot to like here. Very Pauillac.
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12/30/2013 - europat55 wrote: 92 Points
Gorgeous nose, smooth palate. Felt younger than expected for a 1988!
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11/19/2013 - Papies wrote: 93 Points
1988 Red Bordeaux, with Richard Brazier (Handford Wines, London): Along with the Lynch Bages the only other exciting wine in our 88 line up. Again very dark in colour. Nice and developed nose, classic in many ways. Well round and supple on the palate, well balanced fruit and tannic structure. Had a charmless side on the midpalate but we will forgive it as across the board this behaved very well and given time this will only get better. Good life ahead. 94-92
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11/19/2013 - rossi.wine wrote: 92 Points
Again surprisingly dark. Quite expressive nose, sweet fruit, a little austere again and tannic, but well balanced, great acidity, round, long finish - very nice.
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11/10/2013 - Sennma wrote: 93 Points
Amazed at the color on this bottle, still dark purple not a hint of aging. The nose is tabacco and tar. Palate is deep and broad with a great finish. Don't think this will improve much but still will hold for several years.
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7/21/2013 - PSPatrick wrote: 89 Points
Ordered by the glass at the Wine View Bar at Helsinki airport. The wine was kept under inert gas. It was medium to dark ruby in colour, turning brickish towards the edges. On the palate the wine showed dried fruits, black olive, cucumber, liquorice, vegetal notes, leather and cigar box (and a Rioja Gran Reserva oakiness if that makes any sense to you). On the palate the medium-bodied wine showed dried fruits, vegetal notes, leather and leafy tobacco, paired with medium-level acidity, mostly integrated tannin and very good length of the slightly chewy finish. As some other 1988 Bordeaux the wine still seemed to have some rough edges and I doubt that time will grind these off. The greenness and slight leafiness of the wine also made me wonder if the Cabernet reached optimum ripeness.
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7/21/2013 - davidspieker wrote: 92 Points
Dark brickish color. Very aromatic with cedar, leather and tobacco notes. Consistent flavors with subtle dark fruit and coco. Very smooth and balanced with medium body and no tannin. Lengthy finish.
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6/19/2013 - Ex-Ray Likes this wine: 96 Points
Brick red with slight browning at the edges. Translucent. Complex aromas of cassis, cedar, tobacco, anise, French oak. Medium body, with excellent balance of fruit, acidity, almost no noticeable tannin. Very long aftertaste, similar elements. This was a very good but not as great a year in Bordeaux as '89 or '90, but Pichon-Lalande produced a winner which is going strong after 25 years. I don't think it will get any better, so it's time to enjoy it!
Ric
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6/16/2013 - BillyT wrote: 92 Points
Wine was good in color and aroma typical of Pichon Lalande. Earthy and just super wine. Needed an hour or more in decanter to really open. No specific notes and certainly not their best effort but a superb wine once again for Pichon.
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6/2/2013 - Paui wrote: 91 Points
Decanted for 30 min. Classic PLL bouquet and but missing this typical melting taste. Shows signs of Age. A slight bitter note. Not as good as the 1986. Likely over the top, still a wine good to drink. Wouldn't keep this vintage any longer.
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5/18/2013 - shormi wrote: 94 Points
Decanted for 2 hours. Flat at first, but then opened. Near the end of its life but still lovely. Nose of pepper and black currants.
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5/11/2013 - blanquito wrote: 93 Points
Bordeaux (mostly 80s) at La Fonda del Sol (NYC): I loved the complexity, minty herbs, plummy fruit, class and elegance.
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5/11/2013 - salil wrote: 92 Points
Old Bordeaux at La Fonda del Sol (NYC): There's a vivid forestal green character here that brings Clos Rougeard to mind, very fragrant and nicely developed with the fruit quite restrained and gentler tobacco, leathery, and savoury earthy elements emerging around the green herbal/forestal elements. It's not a powerful wine, but a leaner, more polished expression of Bordeaux that I like a great deal.
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5/5/2013 - pbaek wrote:
This was tighter and more structured compared to the bottle I drank with Sebastien in Chicago a few weeks ago. Took several hours to fully open up to flavors of dried, red fruit, tobacco, cedar and some herbal tones. Seemed to change constantly in the glass but my thoughts kept on wandering towards Cab Franc from the Loire, that's how light bodied this wine was. Lovely wine, complex and fascinating and in the lighter style I like so much.
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4/20/2013 - Burgundy Al wrote:
Another Saturday at Knightsbridge - mostly blind (Northbrook, IL): Tasted double blind alongside its 1997 counterpart. Black fruit with slightly more earth than fruit, not much spice and a slightly dirty element. Going south? Tired bottle? 83 points today.
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4/8/2013 - godx wrote: 90 Points
La Commanderie de Bordeaux à Vancouver - 1988 Horizontal (Boneta): Perfumey nose with pepper, cedar, maturing dark red fruits and a touch of bell pepper. Decent weight on the palate with good acidity and firm but finer tannins. Most complicated and well balanced of the flight. Excellent.
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4/8/2013 - MattTM wrote:
La Commanderie de Bordeaux: 1988 Horizontal (Boneta Restaurant - Vancouver, BC): Fantastic nose, showing generous amounts of cedar and spicy black pepper, along with some leather, black cherry, asphalt, earth, graphite, and mint. A bit lighter than the nose promised on the palate, exhibiting plenty of black pepper, graphite, and cedar, as well as a hint of leafy mint. Softer acid than the Palmer and Lynch Bages, with a medium- length finish ending on notes of rich black cherry and leafy mint. Great balance here with tons of lead pencil combined with rich dark fruits. My favorite of the flight. Very good+
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4/6/2013 - pavel_p wrote: 91 Points
Have had the 88 Pichon Lalande from two different cases and the cork seems always to be a problem. Very soft and 3/4 soaked it broke into two pieces and had to push the rest into the bottle. The wine does not seem affected by this poor cork quality. Slightly browning garnet. A nose with sous bois, menthol, spices and some barnyard. Still generous fruit on the palate which is very soft, some cedar, tannins barely noticeable. Medium finish. No need to hold this very good 88 Bdx longer.
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3/15/2013 - salil wrote: 87 Points
A textbook Pauillac, but alas, showing little of that PLL character. I've had a few bottles from this case recently with quite a bit of variation (what's that line again; great bottles but never great wines?) and this sadly is not one of the better bottles. Graphite, cedar wood, earth and dusty red and dark fruit all coming together on the nose and palate, still showing some tannin beneath with a slightly austere feel, but never showing the depth of flavour or those herbal/forestal/green elements I expect from PLL and consequentially it's not all that interesting to sit down with.
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2/28/2013 - europat55 wrote: 92 Points
1988 Cabernet Retrospective, Part 1 (Tom's house in Palo Alto, California): Slightly darker than the other wines in this flight. Gorgeous nose. Some heat. Excellent palate. Leather. Still a little bit tannic.
My #2, Group's #1 (61 pts). Tasted blind.
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2/28/2013 - zscheiner Likes this wine: 91 Points
Blind Tasting 1988 Bordeaux & Cabernets (Tom's House, Palo Alto, CA): Nice nose of cherry, spice and leather. Lovely red fruited palate with lots of savory goodness including dried tobacco notes. Nice grip and a long finish. This may be near peak but it has many years of good drinking ahead. (my 1st, group's 1st)
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2/28/2013 - affordableCollector wrote: 90 Points
clear, orange, red in the color. pepper, spice, dark fruit, oak, on the nose. leather, tobacco, cedar, vegetative, on the palate. medium acid, low tannins, on this short finish.
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2/24/2013 - Fatty Cat wrote: 91 Points
Rheingau Gourmet Festival "Weinraritätenlunch Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande" (12 PLC vintages), late Feb 2013: rubin color; started with a strong, cork-like lack flavor that luckily disappeared; then horse and leather, later some cassis; light acid; light/medium body.
1st flight: 1986 - 1988 - 1989 - 1990
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2/23/2013 - vinole wrote: 92 Points
S FL WS Group tastes 1988 Bordeaux (and others) (Jupiter, FL): Some earth on the nose and entry that leads in to a spicy, zesty mid palate. A bit different from the other 88's tonight, but still in a nice way.
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2/10/2013 - salil wrote: 93 Points
Another great bottle. Perfumed, polished, so elegant and layered with dark fruits, graphite, cedar and that distinctive PLL green herbal/forestal seasoning all coming together seamlessly. Just a tremendous wine.
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2/9/2013 - tbabes wrote: 94 Points
The fills ranged from top shoulder to base neck; opened about an hour before service, but not decanted. Some bricking on the rim. An engaging and complex bouquet, with notes of plum, roasted herbs, lilly, and hints of white truffle. Medium bodied, with a silky texture, layers of flavor, good grip and focus, and a long finish. Titanic first class dinner at Franklin Institute, DV Chaine.
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1/13/2013 - adanacsim Likes this wine: 88 Points
We decanted the wine at a restaurant and began to drink it within a half hour. The color was fine, with relatively little evidence of browning. The nose was fruity and clean. Although there were no off notes, the wine had less body than I expect from this vineyard. I considered it might have been because I'd paired it with venison with a fruity sauce, so we re-bottled the remainder and had it again tonight with rack of lamb, with the same impression. A number of previous reviewers have commented that this wine is losing some of its body. In short, we liked this wine but weren't as enthusiastic about it as usual. We won't be inclined to leave our remaining bottles cellared for very long if this trend continues.
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12/25/2012 - bevetroppo Likes this wine: 90 Points
$27.88. That's what the white retail tag said on the bottle. Obtained on what must have been day 1 of retail availability. Served tonight with its perfect partners, rare roast beef and Yorkshire pudding. My history with '88 is somewhat mixed, heavy tannins running well ahead of the pack. Here everything is subdued by age, nose all tertiary and whatnot, leaking graphite, cedar, mint and tobacco. Thinned out in the mouth, tannins have receded, some shrinking plummy fruit, but if anything that makes it more receptive to the blood red beef and gravy-soaked pudding. It's extreme mud wrestling at its finest: they all wallow in the mire together and emerge with their arms around each other, coated in the same pool of blood, sweat and sediment. Reminds there will always be an England.
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12/20/2012 - Dave Dalluge wrote: 91 Points
Leo Turns 60! (It's Greek To Me): Pleasing nose of dark fruit and menthol. Nice burst of fruit on the palate with just enough structure. Decent length on the finish. Most enjoyable.
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12/14/2012 - Zweder wrote: 94 Points
Battle between Pichon Baron, Pichon Comtesse and Lynch Bages. 11 TOP Vintages from 1982 - 2009 (@ Bottles; Sas van Gent, Netherlands): A beautiful, luxurious and classical bouquet with smoke, still a lot of dark fruits, graphite, cigar box etc. On the palate a touch of pleasant sweetness, dark fruits, firm but good bitterness and silky soft tannin. A luxurious and elegant wine. Completely ready now.
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12/11/2012 - salil wrote: 93 Points
Bordeaux dinner (Trestle on Tenth, NYC): A core of rich dark fruited flavours augmented by leather, tobacco, graphite and that classic PLL green herbal/forestal character. Very pure, elegant and long with wonderful balance and depth.
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11/10/2012 - cephomer wrote: 93 Points
Opened for Howard's birthday. The cork was almost totally black upon opening which concerned me at first. The wine was a medium to pale red garnet color, shows some bricking at the edges of course. However, the wine looked surprisingly youthful for such an old bottle (I also don't recall where I obtained it or when). The nose was fairly aromatic with lots of tobacco there. On the palate, very earthy, excellent minerality and a surprising amount of fruit, tending towards the black fruit side rather than red. Tannins basically nonexistent, a very silky smooth, velvety pour and clearly a very mature bordeaux with lots of tar, smokiness and cedar notes. Not a particularly long finish but a lovely, charming, elegant taste of plums and dark cherries with a surprising level of acidity. Frankly, I did not expect this sort of showing from this 88; thoroughly enjoyable and I'm looking forward to drinking my last 88 soon. A real winner!
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11/1/2012 - SimonG wrote: 92 Points
Pichon Baron & Lalande (The Medlar, London): A bit lighter and more mellow and expressive on the nose. Cedar, quite mellow, more 88. Blackcurrant leaf, minerally palate. 88 Lalande. Lots of depth and interest here, and a little more gloss than the Baron. So far, my wine for drinking now. ****
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10/28/2012 - salil wrote: 90 Points
Rather funky - almost a little moldy - at first, but this blew off with some time in the decanter. After some time it's very fragrant and appealing, showing some of that PLL greenness (though not as much as I recall from another bottle last year), earth, leather, iodine and dark fruits; very polished and silken textured on the palate with lovely length. This is really good and I'm glad I have more.
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10/26/2012 - tbabes wrote: 93 Points
The full was base neck and the cork was soaked through to the top; popped, poured and consumed over the course of 3 hours. Extroverted bouquet, offering up scents of cedary black fruits, white truffle, roasted fennel and a hint of tobacco. Medium-bodied, elegant, with a silky mouthfeel, a good sense of expansiveness and depth, with a well-delineated finish. While not quite up to the level of previous bottles, still an excellent wine.
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10/19/2012 - PhN wrote: 90 Points
Despite an iffy cork and a sourness that quickly blew away, this is an outstanding wine with lots of fruit and typical earthiness of the great claret. Drunk with the first braise of the season (beef and vegetables). The fruit and depth of the wine complemented very well. It even worked with the vinaigrette and bean salad. We gassed and stoppered then drank the second half two nights later. It held up very well and continued to be fruity and delicious. I plan to drink the last few bottles over the next six months or so.
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10/14/2012 - kahoowong wrote: 91 Points
Right drinking window, a very tidy traditional claret with all the qualities. Not the best vintage but a very enjoyable drink.
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9/27/2012 - kkazaks wrote: 77 Points
There seems to be a good wine hiding here, but the overlay of brett - on the nose and palate - is just overwhelming. Not fading away with 1+ hr in the glass.
From other reviews, it looks like this may be a case of bottle variation. Let's hope so. Other notes here don't seem to mention brett.
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9/10/2012 - St Paul wrote: 90 Points
Very fine the first 10 minutes showing the Pauillac attributes I expected, but it all fell apart after some time. Could have been a bottle variation but bottles from 88 have stopped to make me happy over the last couple of years.
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8/16/2012 - pavel_p wrote: 92 Points
After a first corked bottle this cork was also not very good: completely soaked and broke into two pieces. Poured half of botlle into decanter and drank over 2h. A surprisingly dark garnet, nice nose with some barnyard, mostly dark fruit, herbs, and some cedar. An impressive amount of fruit gives a plush, luxurious but relatively straight-forward palate. Fine tannins after some time in decanter. Some more cedar on the finish, which could be longer.. Clearly the best left bank '88 I have had as there is still plenty of fruit to keep the cedar in check. 91-92
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7/15/2012 - Dr AJ Likes this wine: 91 Points
Dark garnet colour; quite youthful-looking for its age. Surprisingly fresh and youthful on the nose and palate, too, but also fully evolved and mature. A classic, classy, austere, aristocratic claret, with all the hallmarks of mature left-bank red Bordeaux, albeit in a minor key. Bouquet of blackcurrant and cedar, lifted by pencil lead and attractive leaf and bell pepper notes; plus tobacco aromas that develop into the scent of fragrant spicy humidor over time. Flavours of searing pure cassis, with some plum and dark cherry too, as well as licorice, smoke and spice. Texture is velvety and sophisticated, with good acidity and gentle but persistent tannins that are pitched precisely right. This is not an ostentatious or flashy wine in any way. Instead, it is a slightly buttoned-up and very old-fashioned, elegant and pure statement of its genre. A quietly self-assured and profound Pauillac.
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7/13/2012 - pavel_p wrote: flawed
Had been looking forward to this but unfortunately my first clearly corked bottle in a long time. Besides this defect, I am surprised how much fruit there is left in this 88 Bdx, a truly luscious palate here with only very little fine tannins left. Should last for several more years. Looking forward to trying my second bottle.
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7/10/2012 - tbabes wrote: 95 Points
First bottle from an OWC; the fill was base neck and the cork was sound. Popped, poured and consumed over the course of dinner. A darky ruby core, turning towards blood red at the rim. A generous, expressive, and complex bouquet, offering up notes of cedary black fruits, white truffle, lilly, and hints of roasted herbs. Medium-bodied, velvety, with great balance, good focus and a long finish. Outside of the '82, this is the best of the decade for Pichon Lalande.
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7/1/2012 - phansen wrote: 93 Points
Very Nice bottle.
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6/15/2012 - Two Winos wrote: 93 Points
Still drinking very well. After a decent it drinks like pure silk. It is just smooth and fine.
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6/1/2012 - Mari wrote:
With Jack, Suzanne and Bo
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5/20/2012 - mike l. wrote: 95 Points
what a treat! decanted 5 hours. this is holding up quite nicely and is well resolved. so much going on, only sad i had to split this bottle up 14 ways!
tons of pencil lead, and whoever mentioned "freshness": yes!
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5/19/2012 - christophee Likes this wine: 93 Points
Garnet and bright ruby reflections with medium viscosity in the glass. Complex nose of plum, forest floor, stewed raspberry, pipe smoke, olive, green pepper, graphite and cocoa. Medium body and complex with plum, earth, reductive raspberry and cranberry, round black fruit, green pepper, mushroom, tobacco, dark chocolate and mint on the palate. Pleasing balance and vegetal nuance. Superbly integrated and svelte tannin. Decent structure. Long finish. A real pleasure.
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5/13/2012 - EGunderson wrote: 95 Points
Mother's Day Wine.
3 1/2 hour double decant. Lots, and I mean lots, of fruit and floral on the nose. Smooth on the palate, tannins were very soft. Long finish, made you want to drink it all night.
Outstanding Lalande.
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4/6/2012 - johnh1001 wrote: 93 Points
Opened, decanted and drank over two hours. The nose jumped right out with earth, green pepper, iron and meat. The palate was very Pichon. Very silky, expansive and just wonderful. Quite a bit of sweetness developed over time. Really enjoyable bottle and it's in a great place (as are many 1988s) right now. Medium finish with moderate tannin.
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4/5/2012 - lator wrote: 92 Points
Decanted for 30 minutes from a half bottle, served at room temperature. Color: Medium Red with Browning rim. Nose: Barnyard, Manure, Rust, Wild Strawberry, Cinnamon. Palate: see nose. Finish: Medium. Tannins: Low to Medium. Alcohol: 12.5 % well integrated. Medium bodied mouthfeel with initial red fruit. Mid-palate turns spicy transitioning into an earthy finish with exceptional freshness. One of the most old world style wines I have tasted so far. It's amazing how well this Pauillac has been preserved considering it has been stored in a half bottle. A red wine with considerable character and freshness. 91-92 points.
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1/20/2012 - Goldstone wrote: 93 Points
Pre-Chinese New Year Get-Together (Chez Patrick Restaurant, 26 Peel Street, Central, Hong Kong): Decanted 3 hours before serving at cool room temperature. Lovely enticing ruby red bright and transparent colour. Nose is light, lifted classic Pauillac with lots of sharpened lead pencil and cedar woods with damp loam underfoot. Palate is absolutely gorgeously lean, taut, austere, linear black fruit. Gorgeous classic claret for an Englishman. Medium length and resonance but more than compensated for by the deftness of winemaker's touch. Gosh....I loved this and so did everyone else, who voted it their near-WOTN behind the Ch. Montelena 1978.
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11/25/2011 - tbabes wrote: 96 Points
The fill was base neck and the cork was sound; popped, poured and consumed over the course of two hours. An outgoing and expressive bouquet, offering up notes of cedary black fruits, black truffle, leather, and a hint of roasted herbs. Medium-bodied, with a velvety texture, incredible depth and balance, and a long, focused and complex finish.
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10/15/2011 - salil wrote: 94 Points
A really great showing - incredibly aromatic, combining forestal greennery, tobacco, fresh dark fruits and savoury earthy and graphite elements into a seamless, complex whole. There's amazing depth and balance here with the tannins and fruit suggesting there's still plenty of time ahead for this, but it's truly outstanding right now.
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10/1/2011 - tbabes wrote: 95 Points
The fill was into the neck and the cork (which I managed to break) was sound. A ruby core with hints of garnet. A lovely, engaging, and complex bouquet, offering up notes of crushed blackberry, plum, violet, roasted herbs, and hints of truffle. Medium-bodied, with good grip, ripe and velvety tannins, a gorgeous mouthfeel, great balance and depth, and a long, complex and well delineated finish. In my opinion, this is a great Pichon Lalande, and in this decade, trumped only by the 1982.
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8/14/2011 - Amerique wrote: 95 Points
Delicious, round, black cherry fruit with leathery, cigar box, and vanillin oak flavors, excellent structure, medium finish, absolutely at it's peak
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7/24/2011 - johnnyrichardson wrote: 94 Points
This is in such a fabulous place right now - superb mature Pauillac. At its peak I think and good for another five years at this level (though my cellar is on the cool side)
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7/23/2011 - WineAggregate Likes this wine: 95 Points
The jewel of the tasting, IMHO. Best, most complex nose of the bunch. Seamless, balanced, heady, complex, mature and still a lot of volatile acidity on the palate. Rich plum, cherry and enough horsiness to make it even more interesting.
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6/26/2011 - Goldstone wrote:
Wedding Anniversary Dinner (The Library, Crown Wine Cellars, Hong Kong): Two bottles opened but for several hours then decanted an hour or so before serving. Sadly these were my last two bottles and even more sadly my cold had got the better of me by this stage and I had stopped taking notes. However, the overall lasting impression was of an really elegant wine at its full maturity and ready to be bade adieu in the company of some great friends.....who all seemed to enjoy it a lot.
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5/20/2011 - Goldstone wrote: 94 Points
Dinner at Greg & Sayo's (Hong Kong): Cloudy, opaque plum-red colour with slight transparency at the meniscus. Nose is OMG!...earthy, loamy, ooh....aaah....pencil lead, cedar forests and the smell of summer rain on dry lawns. Palate is precise acidity, tons of fresh red currant fruits....good soft but firm tannic frame. The fruit is very persistent even with extended time in the glass....evolving into deep red and black cherries. Big soft rolling resonance and reverberance on the finish. Everything is resolved here....quintessential mature claret and quintessential Pauillac. Just lovely....and for me it marginally beat the 1985 Leoville Las Cases we drank alongside it (although it went monotone right at the end of the night and I wouldn't hold onto it for much longer).
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5/13/2011 - englishman's claret wrote:
From 375ml. Mature robe. Classic Bordeaux nose; nice cassis jam, oak, barnyard - just a bit of violets and chocolate as well. Not as complex on the palate, the oak and sous bois remain but the fruit isn't as present. A little bit of iodine, mineral. Coarse-grained tannin. Certainly old style; certainly an Englishman's claret! Another wonderful Pichon.
With an hour in the decanter, really picks up the Pichon Lalande violet, lavendar and dark chocolate notes. Classic Lalande and reminiscent of the 82, actually.
Drink in the near-term.
4.5 for the nose, 4/5 overall
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4/27/2011 - jlgnml wrote: 94 Points
Les Degustateurs (SPROUT Chicago IL): Bordeaux nose, great color, very developed, great nose, lasting on the palate, drinking now.
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3/30/2011 - jlimberg wrote: 92 Points
SIGHT: Clear, bright, Reddish brown fading to layers of rust, brick, dark orange, and copper. NOSE: expressive, barnyard, shoe polish, leather, dusty, green bell pepper, dried cherry, sweaty socks, dried mushroom, truffle, forest floor; PALATE: dried cherry, green bell pepper, mushroom, raspberry; ASSESSMENT: medium minus alcohol, medium plus acidity, medium to medium minus tannins. Medium plus complexity and medium plus finish. Very enjoyable nose and very complex. This has aged well. Wine was not very expressive on the palate. Appears to be just starting its decline. Enjoyed a lot.
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3/11/2011 - kplwu wrote: 90 Points
Drank with my friend on both our birthday. The wine had gone down to the shoulder, but the nose is still very good. After decanted for half an hour the wine showed medium-body. Riched with hints of berries, long and complex finishing. Just right time to drink.
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2/14/2011 - wineismylife wrote: 94 Points
Dallas 2nd Wednesday Group - Valentine Day Special (Urbano Cafe, Dallas, Texas): WIML94+
Tasted non blind. Opened and served immediately.
Garnet to dark garnet color in the glass, fairly clear looking. Beautiful nose of cedar, rose petals, leather, dust and mixed dark fruit. Good flavors of berries, cherries, cranberries and minerals. Medium to bright acidity, medium tannins, medium to full bodied. Drink or hold.
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1/2/2011 - tbabes wrote: 95 Points
The fill was into the neck and the cork was in great shape; popped and poured. Another fantastic showing! As always, the aromatics are striking, offering up note of roasted herbs, plums, briar patch and a hint of truffle. Medium-bodied, with a round texture, great balance, and a long and complex finish. Drink soon.
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12/25/2010 - tbabes wrote: 94 Points
Another fabulous bottle, and for my taste, the most under-rated mature vintage of Pichon Lalande. The extroverted and complex bouquet, along with the incredible texture, are hallmarks of this wine.
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12/17/2010 - europat55 wrote: 91 Points
18-bottle Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande Vertical (1976-2007) (Jeff & Chuck's, Mountain View, California): Classic Lalande.
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12/5/2010 - tbabes wrote: 94 Points
Fill was base neck and the cork was pristine; popped, poured and consumed over 1.5 hours. Intriguing bouquet, with notes of ripe plum, roasted herbs, truffle and tree bark. Medium-bodied, round mouthfeel, excellent focus, and a long finish. Seems to be at the absolute peak of maturity, and is drinking great at present!
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10/14/2010 - IAMVLAD wrote: 84 Points
wonderful nose from the start until the wine was consumed. cork soaked all the way through and cracked at the bottom.
wine is well past prime, or at least this bottle was. while the nose was typical of an older bordeaux, the taste was getting rather thin. drink up. and probably drink up your remaining 88 s as they seem to be fading.
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8/12/2010 - tbabes wrote: 95 Points
The fill was well into the neck, and the cork -- although soaked through to the top -- was solid; popped and poured. A lovely purple-ruby core, turning to garnet at the rim. A wonderfully outgoing bouquet, offering up notes of roasted herbs, tapenade, black fruits and a hint of truffle. Medium-bodied, with a velvety texture, impressive banlance and depth, and a long and nicely focues finish. A lovely Pichon Lalande that is drinking perfectly at present!
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6/18/2010 - canan wrote: 94 Points
Misc CA tasting at Kenneth: Nose: old cabbage, gun powder, sewer. Quite intense and some raspberry. Shows goods signs of age.
Palate: Both strawberry and raspberry with both iron and blood. Classical and solid Bdx with a medium aftertaste a an okay acidity. Tertiary aromas of gun powder and horse with hints of wet dog fur :-) After a little while in the glass some nice pine and pencil lead is coming through.
Drinking nicely now and will not improve.
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5/30/2010 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 93 Points
Paired with the LLC 1988 (again). Delicious sweet fruit, smoky, smooth and elegant even in 1988, great terroir, depth and length. Drink now.
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5/15/2010 - dbg wrote:
Cork soaked through, fill within 1/4" of cork, which remains intact on opening. Red core with bricking at rim. Complex mature nose of cassis, cherry, leather, cigar box, tar, and some green vegetal notes that add complexity for my taste but might be offputting to the very green-averse. Medium body, good balance, complexity on palate remains but is less than the last bottle opened over a year ago, sweet mature fruit and hints of green, tannins resolved, thins a bit on mid/back palate, medium finish. Fully mature, has lost half a step since a year ago, but still excellent.
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4/2/2010 - IAMVLAD wrote: 90 Points
nose rather reluctant at first. wine a bit tight but opened in the glass. past prime but still a good bit of fruit left.
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3/18/2010 - pian0_player wrote: 92 Points
A bit disappointing. I think this wine is a bit over the hill. It has a nice classic Bordeaux nose, but the palate is thin and kind of simple. Nice wine, but not worth $140. I decanted for about 45 min, perhaps that was a mistake. probably should have popped and poured. The cork was pretty well soaked, but the fill was good. Not sure what to think, but i just dont see what most of the reviewers are saying. 90 points.
Think i was a bit hard on this wine. Just not as good as I expected, but still very nice wine. I think I am learning that I prefer my Bordeaux with less age.
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3/17/2010 - Ciderman Does not like this wine: 88 Points
Perhaps not stored well. Was received as a gift. But was well past its peak - drinkable still but a bit musty.
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2/19/2010 - SteelerFan wrote: 93 Points
Terrific Pichon Lalande. Opened and poured. Very distinctive green, vegetable notes that would be unpleasant if not wrapped in velvet mature bordeaux fruit. The tannins are resolved and somehow it comes together and works. Rich, long finish, enicing nose and complex notes of cedar, grass, mint and berry. Drinking great now, but not fading. I liked it better than the 96 Latour that followed, although I think that was a very young wine.
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12/31/2009 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 92 Points
Paired with LLC 1988. The Pauillac is more like a Saint-Julien and vice versa. Perfect bouquet, very sexual, blackcurrant and sweet cherries, peppery, fantastic notes of gravel, decadent and expressive, ovely depth; on the palate slender, slightly attenuated perhaps but creamy too, very refined velvety tannins. Perfect expression of vintage and terroir but living dangerously.
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12/31/2009 - Asger wrote: 95 Points
Wow this is classic Pauillac nose, yummy. Intense peppers. Rich on the palate, a point now (½bt), complex notes and a nice long finish. What bordeaux is all about.
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10/10/2009 - Terkel wrote: 95 Points
Mature Bordeaux tasting (Le Papilion): Dark red color with a slightly browning hue. Complex and intense nose with intriguing notes of blackcurrant, prunes, pencil shavings, tomato plant and marzipan. Intense on the palate with a complex taste profile that keeps opening up for more, pure blackcurrant, licorice, tobacco, shoe polish and a bit of rust. The sweetness and acidity is perfectly balanced all the way through, and the intensity lasts for the strong finish. Drinking really well with great complexity and overpowering deliciousness.
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10/10/2009 - J2K wrote: 96 Points
Purchased this from a wine store with very well kept cellar. This bottle was in perfect condition and didn't appear to be moved from the cellar since purchased @ 20 years or so ago.
PNP, immediate bouquet of funk, wet forest, greeness which didn't take long to blow off and transition to more classic old world aroma's. Started drinking about 30 minutes later. Strong pure flavors black cherry, chocolate, leather, currant, still has great acidity, softened tannins but still gripping and leaves a nice lingering finish. Came back @ 2hours later, opened up a bit more, very smooth. Drink now or hold. I don't know if it will get any better than now.
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10/3/2009 - petitblanc wrote: flawed
Green, tannic, bretty, thin. This sadly showed tantalizing hints of great class, but was generally undrinkable. Considerable old seepage.
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9/20/2009 - de14 wrote: 97 Points
tasted by de14 on 9/18/2009. This was everything we expected. decanted and tasted at 30, 60 and 90 minutes after opening . . . then consumed after a two hour decant. It tasted and smelled like it should and I can't wait to share the balance of this 88 collection.
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9/4/2009 - tbabes wrote: 95 Points
The fill was into the neck, and the cork was soaked a little over halfway through. Opened about 30 minutes prior to consumption. A youthful purple-ruby core, turning to ruby-garnet at the rim. An open and extroverted bouquqet, with scents of plums, black cherry, lilly, tree bark and earth; just lovely. Medium-bodied, with a velvety mouthfeel, lively acidity, and a long and complex finish. Drinking perfectly, but will surely last for another 10 years or so.
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8/24/2009 - MatthewF wrote:
Another weekend of Excess; 8/21/2009-8/24/2009 (Chicagoland): Very perfumed aromatics of dried red currant, cherry, and cranberry. Cedar and tobacco as well. Fairly lean on the palate, but there is still some ripe fruit left. A good deal of acidity finish. A good wine.
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8/17/2009 - aof wrote: 93 Points
The vegetal and bell pepper nose was such a sharp contrast to the density, plummy-ness and depth it displayed on the palate. Its a finely balanced claret from a rather sturdy vintage.
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7/25/2009 - PDavisMarble wrote: 87 Points
Highly perfumed, floral. Lots of red fruits, fairly light, elegant, delicate.
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7/17/2009 - plitton wrote: 94 Points
Pichon Lalande Vertical ('75, '78, '82, '88): Popped and poured. Awesome nose of straw, bell pepper and bright fruit. Of the four in the vertical this was the raciest and was the only that will improve with more cellar time. Taste it again in 2015.
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6/22/2009 - JimHow wrote: 94 Points
Exactly what you think it would be at this age. Structured and austere, but the tannins are just so beautifully ripe. The epitome of left bank 1988. Classic claret, I loved it. A crowd-pleaser.
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5/26/2009 - tbabes wrote: 96 Points
This was a pleasant surprise; a glorious and fully mature Bordeaux. Fill was into the neck and the cork was sound; opened about 1 hour prior to service -- no decant. A ruby core turning to garnet at the rim. Lovely bouquet, revealing vigorous and confident aromas of saddle leather, tree bark, black truffle and dark fruit; just wonderful -- I could have sat there with my nose in the glass all evening. Medium-bodied, with layers of depth, a velvety mouthfeel, good concentration, and impressive purity and focus on the complex finish. This is everything that I look for in a wine!
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5/2/2009 - shormi wrote: 94 Points
Very tight and smokey at first, but opened up nicely after a halff-hour in the decanter.
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5/1/2009 - jfm wrote: 89 Points
A bit underwhelmed with this. Very good but my expectations were higher
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4/24/2009 - Old Claret wrote: 92 Points
SN and AN drank this at WD-50 in NYC, with our molecular gastronomic meal.
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4/18/2009 - PDavisMarble wrote: 91 Points
Primary flavors were of cedar, chocolate, currant, earth, some cherry. Soft finish -- tannins are mellow. WIne is delicate and nuanced. Time to drink.
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4/16/2009 - JNHBSF wrote: 93 Points
Wonderfully balanced wine
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4/11/2009 - andrew@carvedras.co.uk wrote: 94 Points
The cork started to crumble on me so had to do some filtering. Warm red colour with a clear brown edge on the rim. Vegetation and sweetness on the nose. Very soft fruit approach but some tannins still there - raisin sweet with complex flavours abounding - some dryness on the length with a long slow fade. Might have another year or two but I don't think it will improve much, it's reached it's zenith already and further softening will stop the enjoyment of having it with food as the acidity that cuts into food fats will have departed. Gorgeous really.
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1/29/2009 - dbg wrote:
Cork soaked through, but fill within 1/2" of cork. Dark red with bricking at rim. Complex mature nose of cassis, cherry, leather, cigar box, tar, forest floor. Medium body, good balance, complexity follows through to palate, sweet mature fruit, tannins resolved, thins a bit on mid/back palate but finishes nicely. Fully mature. Classic Bordeaux. Excellent.
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1/28/2009 - Amerique wrote: 91 Points
Very dry, surprisingly full-bodied, cherry fruit with lots of leather and pencil lead flavors, tannins amply softened, finish a little short, terrific wine value
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12/17/2008 - Rupert wrote: 93 Points
31 Vintages of Pichon Lalande 1928-2005; 12/16/2008-12/17/2008 (IOD, London): Strong, youthful, animal nose, on the palate rich exotic fruit, lots of coffee and leather - this is substantial and really super
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12/5/2008 - andrewstevenson.com wrote: flawed
Ugh. The nose is dominated and spoiled by brett. A real nasty stinkiness. You can feel the bretty stink on the palate too and it's completely killed the wine.
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12/3/2008 - jfm wrote: 90 Points
Great nose, fully mature Bordeaux. Not as much depth as the 82, 83 or 89 but very solid
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10/18/2008 - JBVino wrote:
really solid bordeaux from a middle of the road vintage...fruit, secondary flavors, acidity all worked in this wine
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9/1/2008 - Johann Von Mastiff wrote: 94 Points
Just classic claret. The color is stillp pretty dark for 20 years on. The nose is all cassis, cigar box, old leather with a little bit of dead vegitation to boot. Pretty lush on the palate. As Howie X said "this is first growth quality" and I have to agree. My wine of the night.
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8/27/2008 - petitblanc wrote: flawed
Considerable seepage under the capsule. Drinkable, but oxidized enough to be unpleasant.
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8/25/2008 - johnnyrichardson wrote: 90 Points
I would endorse CDunn's tasting note, an almost identical tasting experience for me. I would say no real hurry to drink up, though. This is the best experience I have had with the 88 Pichon, seems to be ageing fairly gracefully.
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8/24/2008 - cdunn wrote: 89 Points
Lovely nose of tobacco, wet forest. Medium-bodied, lively, somewhat lean, but more elegant than austere. Earth flavors, some cedar and pipe tobacco, mild cassis. Medium, refined finish. I don't envision further development and would drink up.
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7/5/2008 - dbg wrote:
cork wet on one side to top but fill within 1/4" of cork, still ruby
red to rim without bricking, nose a bit shy with fruit, hint of
veggies, mid-bodied with nice balance, secondary characteristics but
still not yet fully mature - will fruit last? I thin
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6/14/2008 - tomandlu wrote: 90 Points
Drunk along side the '88 Pichon-Baron. Decanted 45 minutes. Cork was soaked to the top. Medium garnet-red color. At first the nost was rather closed, offering up only restarined whiffs of classic Pauillac cedar, cassis and pencil. With another hour of air though the frangrance was a magnificent melange of cedar, tea, earth, cassis and spice. The wine was a tad dry and somewhat astringent on the palate but still quite nice and impeccably elegant and balanced, with fading fruit, tobacco and tea present. The finish was still surprisingly long and rich. This bottle was past its prime but lovely none the less. The fragrance beat the Baron hands down and, with time in the decanter, this wine retained its grace while the Baron became clunky.
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4/9/2008 - NapaJustin wrote:
Color: Hazy red, with hints of brick on edges.
Was not throwing much sediment at all for a 20 year old bottle.
Nose: This wine screamed bell peppers (both red and green), hints of band-aids, green olives, tea and dried tobacco.
Palate: Smooth and seductive. Tobacco, dried cherries, mushrooms, forest floor.
Nice structure. Still quite young. Could probably age for quite some time. This one seemed to be a baby compared to the '69 I had this past summer, which was drinking great!
If I had a bottle in my cellar I would sit on it for quite some time before I consumed, or open now and decant and enjoy over 6-8 hour period.
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12/25/2007 - BURG-ARESCO wrote: 90 Points
Color was right, ruby with hints of brick on the rim; nose was earth and currants; silky mouth feel; on the palate, red fruit with integrated tannins, but one-layered and short in the finish. Enjoyable but nothing special.
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12/13/2007 - KeithAkers wrote: 90 Points
HDH bordeaux tasting (evanston IL): real nice dark claret color. little bricking on this even at the year 19 of it
nose: real powerful on teh nose. Tobbacco and cedar with hints of cranberry
taste: real nice smooth mouth with tobbacco, leather, cedar, and some cranberry
overall: real nice wine. big and bold on teh nose and then goes more silky on the mouth. It leaves a really nice cranberry finish
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9/1/2007 - Danny Joe wrote: flawed
Cooked. bad, bitter. Very sad.
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6/12/2007 - tsnb wrote:
Drank at March Madness Dinner at Cross' house. Very good.
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2/23/2007 - Eric wrote: 86 Points
Seattle Tasting Group does Pauillac (Seattle, WA): A nice nose, much like the 1985, stalk and tobacco. The palate is much less interesting though, limp, short, a bit tired.
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12/24/2006 - torourke wrote: 94 Points
This is as good as any mature Pichon Lalande I've had in some years. It was earthy, well integrated, had a long finish with typical lead pencil, chocolate, fruit and a long smooth finish...as testament to proper cellaring.
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9/4/2006 - graemeg wrote:
NobleRottersSydney - First Growth Night (Guillaume at Bennelong): Here’s a modest interloper second growth come along to play with the big boys. And, it must be said, making a pretty good fist of it. The nose is of developed cigar and leather, some violets, a dash of cassis; powerfully intense correct Paulliac. The palate is impressive too; acidity, dusty tannin and overall body all at mid-to-high levels. There are developed red fruit flavours, drying furry tannins, and an almost slippery-glycerol feel to the texture; upholstered and rich. A long, even and weighty finish caps off a super tasting experience; richer still with food, this wine should have plenty of time left before any lessening occurs. Bravo! (And, crudely perhaps, the bargain of the night!)
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8/5/2005 - OneLastSyrah wrote:
Older Bords at Taste: Greg's Blind Bordeaux - Pretty nose showing hickory - which was not something I noticed when I nosed it for cork twenty minutes earlier. More structured. Red fruit candy. This is pretty good, but I think I liked it better when it was first opened. Grew a little more closed with time?
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6/11/2005 - buckeye76 wrote: 91 Points
DEEP FRUIT IN THE NOSE AND FLAVOR WITH BLACK CHERRIES, CURRANTS, AND A TOUCH OF EARTHINESS. MEDIUM TO LONG FINISH.
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6/8/2005 - JDallas wrote:
Pauillac's two gravel plateaus reach greater depths than found anywhere else in the Medoc. As such, Pauillac is home to 3 of the 5 first growths. Pichon Lalande sits just south of first growth Latour and east of Pichon Baron in the southeastern quadrant of Pauillac straddling the border with St Julien. Pichon was split in 1850 with Lalande becoming the larger of the two. Pichon Lalande is known for its silky and seductive style, perhaps due to its higher proportion of merlot than Pichon Baron. Along with Chateau Palmer, it is one of the most famous Medoc estates to use a large proportion of merlot.
1988 was known for its well colored but tannic wines. Many are characterized by a lack of depth, short finish, and green/astringent tannins. Rain during the harvest season had ruined the 1987 vintage, so many producers harvested their cabernet sauvignon too early in 1988 for fear of avoiding another disaster in 1988.
I thought this characteristic came through in my tasting of the 1988 Pichon Lalande. It had a dark ruby color and a ripe, green herbal nose. The wine was a little thin and seemed like it must have been well short on any ripe fruit intensity earlier in its life. After several hours of decanting, the wine gained a little flesh but never really lost its green bitter finish. I almost felt like the wine had suffered some heat damage. Three of us tasted this wine, and the clear consensus was a feeling of disappointment.
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4/28/2005 - KenK wrote: 88 Points
Lynch Bage vs Pichon Lalande 1986, 1988, 1989, 1995 plus 3 Ringers: Group rated this as 11th place of 11 wines. It was my number 10 wine.
Nose: nice green leafy nuance with lots of smoky and mineral - very traditional, classic mature Bordeaux aromas.
Palate: Somewhat bitter stemmy green component with dry flavors of oak with some cherry hints.
A flat finish needing more acid and fruit. Seemed almost over the hill. Others felt it soft and simple. I guessed 1988 Lalande. Yeah!
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4/1/2005 - winefool wrote: 88 Points
Lynch Bages v. Pichon Lalande Shootout - Group #11, My #11 - Red crimson. Medium aroma of complex secondary red fruit and a hint of barnyard. Thinner black fruit. Still some tannin and strcutre, but not endough mid palate fruit to pull it off. 4/05
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9/17/2004 - MRichman wrote:
Slightly browning, pretty consistent to edges. Full hot nose, pencil, box.
Round, rich & mature. Oaky fruit. Full but not that concentrated. A little light on mid-palate. Nice, mature, but not spectacular. Thick, full, a little band-aid.
B
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6/7/2003 - Joe Belmaati wrote: 95 Points
Dark red in the glass. Jammy on the nose. Cassis and vanilla notes too. Also some cranberry. Great density and width. Structured and tannic, with lots of power and definition. Elegant and seductive despite all the muscle. Superb.
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9/29/2002 - Henman wrote:
N: light fruit,cassis,cedar.
P: light bodied,balanced,elegant,cedar,pencil,not much fruit.
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12/1/2001 - OneLastSyrah wrote:
($100) The Mann's '88 Blowout: Neat nose of pepper, Asian spices and cigar box. Ripe, full bodied, balanced. Interesting wine.
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11/9/1997 - dbg wrote:
great, will get better
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3/1/1997 - sdr Does not like this wine: 84 Points
Hollywood Wine Seminar. Medium color. Hard oaky spicy nose. More cool and classic than the ‘89. Firm and tannic. Doesn’t have enough fruit for the structure.
Clive Coates: “high acidity at first, elegant, lush and complex, super”
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2/1/1996 - sdr Likes this wine: 89 Points
Darkest color of the ‘88/‘89/‘90 trio. Cool, classic, lean, reserved. Very Cabernet Sauvignon and oaky. Good backbone and length. Not too inky like some ‘88s. A winner.
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