Valandrau vertical (1991-2020) (Fribourg): Selected tasting notes from a complete Valandraud vertical (1991-2020) hosted by a collector with an estate representative. Main observation was that both the work the estate did during the transition phase 2000-2012 is clearly bearing fruit in more recent vintages, further helped by warmer growing seasons that are favorable for this cool site in St Emillon. Additional comments included in the tasting story.
Tasting note: This was decanted prior to serving. a spicy peppery element, fresh herbs, a ripe and pretty extracted fruit of cherry, earthy base notes but rather faint. a fresh palate, good presence and adding leather to the decent length finish. the amount of oak adds a rustic and plump element, but otherwise enjoyable and still in check.
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Bordeaux 2003 – 20 Years On – 33 Reds: All wines tasted blind, not decanted (some wines would have needed it). Observations: 1) 2003 is not a good vintage. The wines don’t have the depth and elegance of good years. But I was positively surprised, that while it’s clearly a hot year, there are less overripe, over-extracted and prematurely dying wines than in 09/10. Still, there is no comparison to how Chateauxs handle hot years today. 2) Compared to five other vintage retrospectives, the 2003 came in last place (lower average score than 2011), with just Chateau Margaux reaching a group score above 95pts. 3) Margaux wines showed best, with the typical immediate charm, while St. Estephe and Pauillac have potential but will need more time (and/or would have needed more air). 4) Right bank wines did not show as good with some alcohol showing and a few wines being on a downhill path. I would not chase 2003 right banks.
TN: Very ripe dark berries, dark red berries. Too ripe on the nose. Animalistic. On the palate ripe dark and dark red berries. Less over the top than the nose would suggest. Ripe fruit and minerality but not much more. Quite elegant, even though the tannins are a bit drying. With a bit of air this took a turn for the bad and dried out. At first 90pts, later 84pts.
Decanting: It didn’t develop well with air.
Group average: 87.5 pts Group rank: Shared 27th out of 29 reds
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Grand Bordeaux 2003 horizontal tasting (Fribourg): Bordeaux 2003 vintage horizontal hosted by a private collector and moderated by Jean-Marc Quarin. Main observations: 1/ Average quality is acceptable, but weighted down by various low-lights, esp. on the right bank. 2/ In general a tannic vintage, lacking balance. 3/ Top 3 wines were Lafite, Mouton and Margaux (all 95). See the tasting story for a complete overview and additional vintage comments.
Tasting note: Slightly cooked fruit and beef juice like notes. There are some nicer, sweet features, but not enough to save this. Same on the palate. Too cooked and acidity is taking overhand. Very end of life from a drinking window perspective I found and a disappointing Valandraud.
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Decanted for 3 hours before serving. Plum fruit, cassis, dried prunes and earth on the nose. Palate is fresh but pruney. While I absolutely adore the 95,97,98 vintage of the more classic Valandraud, the 03 is not my preference stylistically as it it too modern.
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Tight to start, not a lot then at about 90 minutes it was fruity and bright red. Great with a steak! Still a a lot of acid. Will age but not an amazing wine.
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Souper avec Gaël et plusieurs autres à l'Os Un nez chocolaté, épicé, avec aussi de lapâte de tomates (cab franc!) Une bouche puissante, avec une droiture bordelaise, beaucoup de matière, de la mâche. Il est puissant et de bonne fraicheur, un peu asséchant. Il a un coté austère et complexe fascinant. 92
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Dark, opaque, bright in appearance. This is a well made 2003 right bank Bordeaux, without any cooked sensation. Rather it's very balanced, dark fruits, liquorice, coffee, cut wood, earth and some menthol. The wine is still developing it seems and better time is to further down the road. Solid structure, masculine yet creamy texture, with good acidity. Good length, with tobacco and red fruits lingering. Well done.
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From magnum. Closed at first but then opening up with surprising freshness and minerality (for the vintage). Tobacco, chocolate, cassis, brambles. Quite nice.
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Appearance: Bright and clear, it is of deep intensity ruby color, with garnet rims and legs. Nose: Clean, with medium intensity aromas showing black fruit of bramble, dark plum and blackberry, pungent spice of licorice, maturity notes of forest floor, some dried fruit of prune, kernel notes of dark chocolate, oak notes of cedar. The wine is developing. Palate: Dry with medium acidity, medium (+) tannin of ripe and velvety texture, the wine has medium (+) alcohol but did not feel warming, balancing with medium body and medium (+) intensity flavors of black fruit such as blackberry, dark cherries and plum, kernel notes of cocoa, maturity notes of tobacco, sweet spice of nutmeg. The wine has a long finish. Conclusion: Very good quality St-Emilion garage wine, with highly complex aromas though not showing overt intensity, a delicate and elegant wine on the nose, but on the palate it is quite different, with good concentration and ripeness jumping out, with equally impressive range of flavors. Despite fairly high on alcohol level, it did not show any warming, complemented by the body and flavors, to give a long finish. It is ready to drink now though can benefit from further ageing of another 3-5 years.
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Occasional dinner group; Bordeaux 2003 plus some extras.: Beautiful bouquet with ripe cassis, luxurious oak, cedar, smoke and tobacco. On the palate lush and ripe, but also classical with beautiful cassis, licorice, beautiful acidity and round tannin. Great length. Still youthful. Will probably improve with more ageing. 2018+? 94 - 95 for this evening.
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Nose - Initially very tannic and closed. Opened abit over the evening. 92. Might improve to a 93 with bottle age.
Palette - Tannic and closed throughout the evening. This bottle needs serious time. But not sure the fruit will be there (or any nose left) when the current wall of tannin eventually recedes. 90.
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A wine that too me is very hard to define. Certainly it has a lot of fruit - bramble and dark fruit. Underlying oak and a good well defined structure. Quite cool and defined for the vintage. Good purity, but I found it hard to put my finger on anything that should indicate that this was right and not left Bordeaux. To me it could be both, very good but without clear definition. I would drink it again though, but not buy it for my cellar.
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with the only RB represented in the flights of 2003 Bdx, this had a good nose of cassis liqueur and black plums, and some dark cherry. Bright acidity married well with tannins that were quite refined. A touch of cedar and typical Bdx damp earth and some vegetal rosemary. This had a nice long finish and hid its higher ABV well. Of all the 2003 class we had, this was the most fully developed and was clearly in its prime drinking window. It did show any signs of fading. This was the group top wine, when coming to being ready, but it wasn't my favorite of the 2003. Still a lovely wine that went well with bison strip loin with chunks of thick bacon.
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Served double blind. Plum and cassis aromas, similar on palate with a backward start. At first I thought this a Super Tuscan with good energy, with Bordeaux as my Plan B. This opened up and developed more power and balance with a couple of hours in glass, so I'd expect this still needs another 5+ years in the cellar.
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Deep garnet and crimson with aromas of spicy red berries, black currant, a bit of wet tree bark, coffee grinds and a pinch of cocoa. Full body with well integrated tannins that are like velvet on the tongue. Acid is mild to moderate so this is more lush with plenty of red and black fruit, throw in some dried Cuban tobacco leaf and crushed lava and call it a night. The finish lingers. Overall this is pretty straight forward yet has a bold intensity of fruit and tannin that keeps me coming back for more.
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Horizontale Bordeaux 2003: Horizontale 2003 Nez discret sur la réglisse noire, peut-être un peu porto comme l’affirme le radio AM à ma droite. La bouche est dense, assez moderne, riche et compacte. Il fait presque nouveau Monde sauf pour sa finale droite. Bien fait, très mûr mais plutôt unidimensionnel et somme toute, un peu lourd. L’effet millésime se fait ici sentir. 90-91 pts
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Surprisingly clean for the 2003, 2-3 layers as well, mineral and more classic typical St.Emilion than the 2001. Hints a little bit scent of milk sometime. Very good in structure and well made. The finish is very long lasting. Big Surprise Indeed !!!
Drink now - 2020..................96+/100......................The real petit Petrus.......................
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This opens with coffee, jammy dark fruit, licorice, mineral and roasted berries. Already open for business, this round, supple wine delivers ample pleasure.
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Layers of ripe, sexy, chocolate covered dark fruit caress your palate. Very silky and sexy. Licorice, jammy berry and sweet plums are found in the finish.
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12/4/2023 - sirpat00 wrote: 93 Points
Valandrau vertical (1991-2020) (Fribourg): Selected tasting notes from a complete Valandraud vertical (1991-2020) hosted by a collector with an estate representative. Main observation was that both the work the estate did during the transition phase 2000-2012 is clearly bearing fruit in more recent vintages, further helped by warmer growing seasons that are favorable for this cool site in St Emillon. Additional comments included in the tasting story.
Tasting note:
This was decanted prior to serving. a spicy peppery element, fresh herbs, a ripe and pretty extracted fruit of cherry, earthy base notes but rather faint. a fresh palate, good presence and adding leather to the decent length finish. the amount of oak adds a rustic and plump element, but otherwise enjoyable and still in check.
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5/7/2023 - Cailles wrote: 88 Points
Bordeaux 2003 – 20 Years On – 33 Reds: All wines tasted blind, not decanted (some wines would have needed it). Observations: 1) 2003 is not a good vintage. The wines don’t have the depth and elegance of good years. But I was positively surprised, that while it’s clearly a hot year, there are less overripe, over-extracted and prematurely dying wines than in 09/10. Still, there is no comparison to how Chateauxs handle hot years today. 2) Compared to five other vintage retrospectives, the 2003 came in last place (lower average score than 2011), with just Chateau Margaux reaching a group score above 95pts. 3) Margaux wines showed best, with the typical immediate charm, while St. Estephe and Pauillac have potential but will need more time (and/or would have needed more air). 4) Right bank wines did not show as good with some alcohol showing and a few wines being on a downhill path. I would not chase 2003 right banks.
TN: Very ripe dark berries, dark red berries. Too ripe on the nose. Animalistic. On the palate ripe dark and dark red berries. Less over the top than the nose would suggest. Ripe fruit and minerality but not much more. Quite elegant, even though the tannins are a bit drying. With a bit of air this took a turn for the bad and dried out. At first 90pts, later 84pts.
Decanting: It didn’t develop well with air.
Group average: 87.5 pts
Group rank: Shared 27th out of 29 reds
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3/20/2023 - sirpat00 wrote: 80 Points
Grand Bordeaux 2003 horizontal tasting (Fribourg): Bordeaux 2003 vintage horizontal hosted by a private collector and moderated by Jean-Marc Quarin. Main observations: 1/ Average quality is acceptable, but weighted down by various low-lights, esp. on the right bank. 2/ In general a tannic vintage, lacking balance. 3/ Top 3 wines were Lafite, Mouton and Margaux (all 95). See the tasting story for a complete overview and additional vintage comments.
Tasting note:
Slightly cooked fruit and beef juice like notes. There are some nicer, sweet features, but not enough to save this. Same on the palate. Too cooked and acidity is taking overhand. Very end of life from a drinking window perspective I found and a disappointing Valandraud.
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12/21/2022 - Burgnick wrote: 90 Points
Decanted for 3 hours before serving. Plum fruit, cassis, dried prunes and earth on the nose. Palate is fresh but pruney. While I absolutely adore the 95,97,98 vintage of the more classic Valandraud, the 03 is not my preference stylistically as it it too modern.
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4/12/2019 - stevenc.rees@gmail.com Likes this wine: 90 Points
Definitely a newer style; Very tasty but needed to open up over an hour or so. Ready now.
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2/23/2019 - AlphaMikeFoxtrot wrote: 93 Points
Ripe red fruits, tobacco, vanilla and baking spice. A very balanced wine despite being '03. Drinking very well!
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9/16/2017 - The Andrews Likes this wine: 93 Points
Tight to start, not a lot then at about 90 minutes it was fruity and bright red. Great with a steak! Still a a lot of acid. Will age but not an amazing wine.
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6/15/2017 - perry123456 Likes this wine: 95 Points
drank this for my birthday party along with a nice ornellaia... wow !
what a nice wine! drink or hold a couple more years! VERY nice wine
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4/18/2016 - Stefan75 wrote: 91 Points
Not a typical bordeaux for me; bold new world style, not sure how this will develop further...
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2/3/2015 - d'Artagnan wrote: 92 Points
Souper avec Gaël et plusieurs autres à l'Os
Un nez chocolaté, épicé, avec aussi de lapâte de tomates (cab franc!)
Une bouche puissante, avec une droiture bordelaise, beaucoup de matière, de la mâche. Il est puissant et de bonne fraicheur, un peu asséchant. Il a un coté austère et complexe fascinant. 92
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12/24/2014 - Cheungtp wrote: 94 Points
Dark, opaque, bright in appearance. This is a well made 2003 right bank Bordeaux, without any cooked sensation. Rather it's very balanced, dark fruits, liquorice, coffee, cut wood, earth and some menthol. The wine is still developing it seems and better time is to further down the road. Solid structure, masculine yet creamy texture, with good acidity. Good length, with tobacco and red fruits lingering. Well done.
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8/21/2014 - mwanasheria wrote: 94 Points
From magnum. Closed at first but then opening up with surprising freshness and minerality (for the vintage). Tobacco, chocolate, cassis, brambles. Quite nice.
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3/18/2014 - peterchoy wrote: 92 Points
Appearance: Bright and clear, it is of deep intensity ruby color, with garnet rims and legs.
Nose: Clean, with medium intensity aromas showing black fruit of bramble, dark plum and blackberry, pungent spice of licorice, maturity notes of forest floor, some dried fruit of prune, kernel notes of dark chocolate, oak notes of cedar. The wine is developing.
Palate: Dry with medium acidity, medium (+) tannin of ripe and velvety texture, the wine has medium (+) alcohol but did not feel warming, balancing with medium body and medium (+) intensity flavors of black fruit such as blackberry, dark cherries and plum, kernel notes of cocoa, maturity notes of tobacco, sweet spice of nutmeg. The wine has a long finish.
Conclusion: Very good quality St-Emilion garage wine, with highly complex aromas though not showing overt intensity, a delicate and elegant wine on the nose, but on the palate it is quite different, with good concentration and ripeness jumping out, with equally impressive range of flavors. Despite fairly high on alcohol level, it did not show any warming, complemented by the body and flavors, to give a long finish. It is ready to drink now though can benefit from further ageing of another 3-5 years.
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10/11/2013 - Zweder wrote: 95 Points
Occasional dinner group; Bordeaux 2003 plus some extras.: Beautiful bouquet with ripe cassis, luxurious oak, cedar, smoke and tobacco. On the palate lush and ripe, but also classical with beautiful cassis, licorice, beautiful acidity and round tannin. Great length. Still youthful. Will probably improve with more ageing. 2018+? 94 - 95 for this evening.
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10/11/2013 - Strikermax wrote: 96 Points
Romig, zwoel, chocolade, tabak. Zacht, lang aanhoudend.
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9/14/2013 - Jhcwine Likes this wine: 91 Points
Nose - Initially very tannic and closed. Opened abit over the evening. 92.
Might improve to a 93 with bottle age.
Palette - Tannic and closed throughout the evening. This bottle needs serious time. But not sure the fruit will be there (or any nose left) when the current wall of tannin eventually recedes. 90.
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7/31/2013 - Vintjener wrote:
A wine that too me is very hard to define.
Certainly it has a lot of fruit - bramble and dark fruit.
Underlying oak and a good well defined structure.
Quite cool and defined for the vintage. Good purity, but I found it hard to put my finger on anything that should indicate that this was right and not left Bordeaux. To me it could be both, very good but without clear definition.
I would drink it again though, but not buy it for my cellar.
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6/25/2013 - Champagneinhand Likes this wine: 92 Points
with the only RB represented in the flights of 2003 Bdx, this had a good nose of cassis liqueur and black plums, and some dark cherry. Bright acidity married well with tannins that were quite refined. A touch of cedar and typical Bdx damp earth and some vegetal rosemary. This had a nice long finish and hid its higher ABV well. Of all the 2003 class we had, this was the most fully developed and was clearly in its prime drinking window. It did show any signs of fading. This was the group top wine, when coming to being ready, but it wasn't my favorite of the 2003. Still a lovely wine that went well with bison strip loin with chunks of thick bacon.
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2/17/2013 - Burgundy Al wrote: 91 Points
Served double blind. Plum and cassis aromas, similar on palate with a backward start. At first I thought this a Super Tuscan with good energy, with Bordeaux as my Plan B. This opened up and developed more power and balance with a couple of hours in glass, so I'd expect this still needs another 5+ years in the cellar.
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5/17/2011 - GreatLibations wrote: 91 Points
Deep garnet and crimson with aromas of spicy red berries, black currant, a bit of wet tree bark, coffee grinds and a pinch of cocoa. Full body with well integrated tannins that are like velvet on the tongue. Acid is mild to moderate so this is more lush with plenty of red and black fruit, throw in some dried Cuban tobacco leaf and crushed lava and call it a night. The finish lingers. Overall this is pretty straight forward yet has a bold intensity of fruit and tannin that keeps me coming back for more.
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8/26/2010 - d'Artagnan wrote: 91 Points
Horizontale Bordeaux 2003: Horizontale 2003
Nez discret sur la réglisse noire, peut-être un peu porto comme l’affirme le radio AM à ma droite. La bouche est dense, assez moderne, riche et compacte. Il fait presque nouveau Monde sauf pour sa finale droite. Bien fait, très mûr mais plutôt unidimensionnel et somme toute, un peu lourd. L’effet millésime se fait ici sentir. 90-91 pts
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10/19/2009 - noppakit s. wrote: 96 Points
Big Name : A Night of St.Emilion 2003
Surprisingly clean for the 2003, 2-3 layers as well, mineral and more classic typical St.Emilion than the 2001. Hints a little bit scent of milk sometime. Very good in structure and well made. The finish is very long lasting. Big Surprise Indeed !!!
Drink now - 2020..................96+/100......................The real petit Petrus.......................
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7/3/2008 - Jeff Leve wrote: 92 Points
This opens with coffee, jammy dark fruit, licorice, mineral and roasted berries. Already open for business, this round, supple wine delivers ample pleasure.
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10/21/2007 - Jeff Leve wrote: 93 Points
Layers of ripe, sexy, chocolate covered dark fruit caress your palate. Very silky and sexy. Licorice, jammy berry and sweet plums are found in the finish.
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