Past its prime but still enjoyable. Aromas of chocolate, sage, bell pepper, leather, wet fur. A bit of brett and bitterness in that wine, which is nevertheless quite enjoyable. Medium-bodied with slightly harsh tanins this wine should have been drunk 10 years ago I but still gives a bit of pleasure. It is not really balanced, but quite elegant though. I haven't drunk much wine from this vintage, but I don't think I have had some that were better than that.
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Light, and definitely not at the level it was almost a decade ago when I last tasted it, but, that being said, it was still a treat. Popped and poured, its nose of tobacco leaf, truffle, fresh herbs, mint, dried flowers, and bright red plums showed with no effort. Medium-bodied, soft, and refined on the palate, the elegantly textured wine requires consumption before it continues its slow fade.
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At birthday party with family. Beautiful color, very subtle tertiary aromas of leather and dry fuit, and a decent finish. One of the best 1981s I've had so far with Pichon Comtesse
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Dekantert for sedimenter og kranglete kork, så tilbake på flaske. Jordbær, plommer, lær, teblader, fortsatt såvidt tanninbitt, kantete men samtidig meget elegant - tenk Lamborghini Countach - ingen sjarmør, men vakker klassisk høyreside-Bdx som drikker på topp nå. Frukten dabbet av etter ca 1,5 time, men ikke tid til slow ox i dag som kanskje kunne reddet en time eller to til med fruktspill. På topp var dette nydelig.
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From memory. Small pour. Decanted for > 2h off sediment. Lovely, seamless melange of dried cherries, currants, leather, minerals, a bit of cedar on palate. Elegant palate with fantastic balance. Wish I could spend a night with the bottle to see the evolution - suspect my score would be higher. Nevertheless, lovely for the small amount that I had. 93+
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The good news is that this still smells like Cheval Blanc - damsons, chocolate, sage, mint. The bad news it that it has also taken on the autumnal notes of old age. Clearly would have been better 5 or 10 years ago though it still requires some air time to pull itself together. The palate is austere, the finish clipped.
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Château Cheval Blanc vertical tasting dinner #1 (Vienna Cafe & Wine Bar): started out with a very off-putting nose; almost seemed to have some volatile acidity going on. This definitely improved after a couple of hours of air. Black currant, juniper berries, fresh herbs, musk, and Indian spices dominated the nose. It certainly had the most unique nose of the night. Stronger on the palate, with good depth. Velvety tannins that are nicely integrated. Fell short on the finish. Not a showstopper by any means, but a good showing considering the vintage. Would drink this relatively soon.
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Cheval Blanc tasting (30 different vintages) at the Rheingau Gourmet Festival 2014: rubin red color; creme de cassis; extremely austere; pungent tannins.
Vintages 4th flight: 1979-1980-1981-1982-1984
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colour is blink blink and clear, perfume with big bouquet, earth , skin saddle , branch and leaf , after 2 hrs. wine is show up , like gallop a horse in deciduous forest , wide and damp, long finish, peak , impress so much
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Returning to Wine & View Bar; 1/23/2013-2/1/2013 (Vaanta Airport - Helsinki): Fully mature colour. Totally resolved to a brownish one. Tears to be crying all day long What a nose! Complex to the bone of garrige beans, milky chocolate and clove among many others. Definitively a perfume. More austere on the palate, as the Chateaux wants to reefier, acid still but without that aromas exuberance. Just good at best. Quite ready in my modest opinion. Unquestionably an outstanding bottle but only because that nose.
Color plenamente maduro. Totalmente resuelto hacia uno amarronado. Piernas para servir cafés en Santiago de Chile. ¡Pedazo de nariz! Compleja a más no poder con aromas a algarrobas, chocolate con leche y clavo entre otros. Definitivamente un perfume. En boca más austero, como al propio Chateaux le gusta referirse, todavía ácido pero sin la exhibe rancia que aportaban esos aromas. En lo mejor solo bueno. Bastante listo en mi modesta opinión. Incuestionablemente una botella fuera de lo común pero solo por esa nariz.
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Nose: mild plum fruit and sewer with a hint of pine needles. Palate: Watery and mild but there is a little rust and shoe polish. Great minerality. Some nutty flavors and a few dried herbs. A very subtle taste but very elegant. The tannins are fully integrated.
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Good mature color and clarity, a little tight in the begining but after about 30 minutes of swirling and out came a lovely elegant and mature bordeaux. Warm dark fruits with hints of saddle and tobacco. A well intergrated and balanced middle weight with a long smooth finish. Too bad it is my last bottle
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Gosh, lovely stuff. Just reinforces how good Bordeaux is even in the supposedly weaker vintages - this is great classic Claret. No signs of being over the hill, and while fully mature there is still tannin evident that suggests it will hold this plateau for a good 5 years if not more like 10. Powerful bouquet on the quick decant prior to drinking; sweet and lovely floral notes. Over the course of half an hour though this settled into a strong cigar smoke with a touch of pepper.
Glad I tried it and to have a few more. Don't put this into any kind of WOTN competition with esteemed vintages, but if you drink just for the pleasure of aged Bdx there is something to like here at a very keen price for the quality.
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Extremely austere with rusty dried beef blood, dried roots, dried herbs, a whole ton of dried dusty earth with a bead of berry juice for measure. Bitter rootish finish with gingseng. Not for the faint hearted.
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Wonderful... Decanted about 30 minutes... bright and clean red color. At the beginning very powerful ripe blackberries, liquorice, spices... over the time it develop toward leather, mocha, chocolate... Medium bodied, concentrated with lovely acidity. Very matured and softened, smooth tannins. Lovely mineral finish, very very long... such delicate complexity...
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Cheval Blanc Vertical (Craftsteak): At its peak and, consequently, the runaway wine of the night for me. Expressively fragrant bouquet combining autumn leaves with a cakey sweetness. The fruit is still juicy and fresh to taste with firm and precise acidity given added weight by its sticky sappiness. But the dominant flavor isn't fruit at all but bold tobacco that bulges like a plume of cigar smoke on the back end.
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ature and maybe just a tad tired, but rather elegant with red fruit edged with earth and cigarbox. Some cedary elements get more pronounced in the glass. Overshadowed by its flightmate, but really a nice bottle of mature Bordeaux
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TWITS Cab Franc Event (Dale's house): Nose of alcohol. Very very ripe plums, alcohol, and some spice on the palate. Very little structure, but sharp tannins nonetheless. Mellows and loses some alcohol over time. Becomes creamier, becomes nicer. Fully mature.
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Quotes from tasters: Purpley blue red as poored and pinkish amber in the glass making it multi-colored, Smells like it has a year left, Liquidy, Doesn't coat the glass, Don't like the smell, Extremely brittle cork (took several attempts to remove it as the top part broke off and the rest had to be very carefully removed, no cork was allowed to drop or crumble into the bottle however), Like clothes left in the washer for 2 days but not quite moldy yet, Smells like wood in the barrel, Taste like nothing, Watery, Stale smell, Caramel flavor, Best, Smooth, Rich, Mellow, Best bordeaux ever, Musky bad smell, Still lake water that's stale and stagnent, Tingly smell, Tingles going down with incredible flavor, Watered down Smell, Too peppery.
Quotes from myself: The consensus on this wine was that it probably went a little beyond it's appropriate age. There was great contrast in the ones who like this wine versus the ones who didn't. With the prior wines most of the amateurs agreed with each-others opinion and likewise the afficionado's all seemed to agree with each-other. This wine split the table with no consistency. At the end of the night the Opus One had the most people fighting for the left-overs. This wine was a second only to the Opus One in popularity despite the mediocre comments and reviews. Perhaps it was because of the age and the expectations this wine had associated with it.
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Red with brownish rim. Nice plummy scents, but also whiffs of cigar box and rose petals. A wine without any rough edges, packed with charm and elegance, but lacking just slightly in complexity. The finish is balanced and pleasant and medium long.
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Good colour, mid garnet; earthy, Asian spices, verging on exotic; flavoursome; upfront, fleshy. Smooth velvety. Extended. 18+. [B ****, C 15.5, P 90. Thought this was Pétrus].
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Great Wine Seminar. Light garnet, looks old. Delicate floral bouquet. No flaws but just too insubstantial. David Peppercorn: “ready to drink, charming, mature flavors, not big.”
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3/21/2023 - Burgnick wrote: 90 Points
Good for the vintage but fruit is fading.
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1/14/2022 - levicn Likes this wine: 94 Points
醒酒一小时，闻香是檀香和雪松的香气，入口酸度中高，单宁细腻如粉，酒液咸鲜，雪松的味道，复杂的陈年的植物性气息，如咸橄榄一般的香气和口感，慢慢释出山楂一类的果香，轻微的老酒酱味，后段植物清凉感和长久回甘，余味是人参和胭脂香料，还有一些奶油芝麻。一支状态完美的白马，展现出超过四十年的陈年带来的独特魅力，有别于传统波尔多的大骨架，它的叙事结构更像一款勃艮第，柔情绰态，娓娓道来，那深邃复杂的陈年香气和魅惑的香料感，让人惊叹顶级波尔多酒陈年后的伟大。
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9/13/2021 - Vinum Deorum wrote: 90 Points
Past its prime but still enjoyable. Aromas of chocolate, sage, bell pepper, leather, wet fur. A bit of brett and bitterness in that wine, which is nevertheless quite enjoyable. Medium-bodied with slightly harsh tanins this wine should have been drunk 10 years ago I but still gives a bit of pleasure. It is not really balanced, but quite elegant though. I haven't drunk much wine from this vintage, but I don't think I have had some that were better than that.
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8/28/2021 - Jeff Leve wrote: 90 Points
Light, and definitely not at the level it was almost a decade ago when I last tasted it, but, that being said, it was still a treat. Popped and poured, its nose of tobacco leaf, truffle, fresh herbs, mint, dried flowers, and bright red plums showed with no effort. Medium-bodied, soft, and refined on the palate, the elegantly textured wine requires consumption before it continues its slow fade.
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8/14/2021 - boillatm Likes this wine: 93 Points
At birthday party with family. Beautiful color, very subtle tertiary aromas of leather and dry fuit, and a decent finish. One of the best 1981s I've had so far with Pichon Comtesse
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7/8/2021 - Krokfjord Likes this wine: 92 Points
Dekantert for sedimenter og kranglete kork, så tilbake på flaske. Jordbær, plommer, lær, teblader, fortsatt såvidt tanninbitt, kantete men samtidig meget elegant - tenk Lamborghini Countach - ingen sjarmør, men vakker klassisk høyreside-Bdx som drikker på topp nå. Frukten dabbet av etter ca 1,5 time, men ikke tid til slow ox i dag som kanskje kunne reddet en time eller to til med fruktspill. På topp var dette nydelig.
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5/20/2021 - James Kim Likes this wine: 93 Points
From memory. Small pour. Decanted for > 2h off sediment. Lovely, seamless melange of dried cherries, currants, leather, minerals, a bit of cedar on palate. Elegant palate with fantastic balance. Wish I could spend a night with the bottle to see the evolution - suspect my score would be higher. Nevertheless, lovely for the small amount that I had. 93+
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11/29/2019 - Collector1855 wrote: 94 Points
Chateau Cheval Blanc - 30 year vertical (1949-2015) tasted blind: Licorice and spice jump out of the glass. Lots of tannins still, not for the faint hearted but tannins at least not drying on the finish. Good length.
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8/12/2017 - Ericsson wrote: 91 Points
Bordal chez DZ (Latour, Cheval Blance, Lynch Bages, Beychevelle...) (Saconnex d'Arve): Pas carafé, couleur rubis avec des nuances de brique.
Très joli nez sur les fleurs fanées, le sous-bois, le cuir noble.
Il reste encore une belle matière bien que légère en bouche, les tanins ont fondu. Finale moyenne.
Très surprenant!
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11/5/2016 - dcwino wrote: 93 Points
2016 Villa d’Este Wine Symposium - Kelly, Alan and Kevin's excellent adventure; 11/3/2016-11/12/2016 (Villa D’este, Lake Como, Piedmont, Milan and Frankfurt): Beautiful fully mature nose with excellent freshness, caramel, raspberry, a hint of green and mint and black truffle. Medium concentration, fully resolved harmonious palate, round and lovely silky finish. Sort of wine that you can sip all day. Beautiful claret.
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10/21/2016 - jeremy@ Likes this wine: 92 Points
Double decanted for 1 hour. developed very nicely, but definitely would not last the whole night.
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10/4/2016 - Sean Tay wrote:
Drank alongside with Cheval Blanc 1978 and both was drinking well. Nose of tea, mushroom, truffle and black fruits.
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4/1/2016 - englishman's claret wrote: 90 Points
The good news is that this still smells like Cheval Blanc - damsons, chocolate, sage, mint. The bad news it that it has also taken on the autumnal notes of old age. Clearly would have been better 5 or 10 years ago though it still requires some air time to pull itself together. The palate is austere, the finish clipped.
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2/19/2016 - DrinkBordeaux wrote: 89 Points
Château Cheval Blanc vertical tasting dinner #1 (Vienna Cafe & Wine Bar): started out with a very off-putting nose; almost seemed to have some volatile acidity going on. This definitely improved after a couple of hours of air. Black currant, juniper berries, fresh herbs, musk, and Indian spices dominated the nose. It certainly had the most unique nose of the night. Stronger on the palate, with good depth. Velvety tannins that are nicely integrated. Fell short on the finish. Not a showstopper by any means, but a good showing considering the vintage. Would drink this relatively soon.
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10/13/2015 - Philippe_C wrote: 90 Points
Very evolved nose of ripe red pepers, wet underwood, black fruit... tannins presence, red pepers, licorice, average lenght
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3/8/2014 - Fatty Cat wrote: 88 Points
Cheval Blanc tasting (30 different vintages) at the Rheingau Gourmet Festival 2014: rubin red color; creme de cassis; extremely austere; pungent tannins.
Vintages 4th flight: 1979-1980-1981-1982-1984
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11/26/2013 - Aenie wrote: 93 Points
after 2 hrs. like a ride horse run into forest , wide , cool and pure , cassis , in mouth is good , fruit is round and power
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7/4/2013 - Aenie Likes this wine: 93 Points
colour is blink blink and clear, perfume with big bouquet, earth , skin saddle , branch and leaf , after 2 hrs. wine is show up , like gallop a horse in deciduous forest , wide and damp, long finish, peak , impress so much
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2/1/2013 - Harley1199 wrote:
Returning to Wine & View Bar; 1/23/2013-2/1/2013 (Vaanta Airport - Helsinki): Fully mature colour. Totally resolved to a brownish one.
Tears to be crying all day long
What a nose! Complex to the bone of garrige beans, milky chocolate and clove among many others. Definitively a perfume.
More austere on the palate, as the Chateaux wants to reefier, acid still but without that aromas exuberance. Just good at best.
Quite ready in my modest opinion.
Unquestionably an outstanding bottle but only because that nose.
Color plenamente maduro. Totalmente resuelto hacia uno amarronado.
Piernas para servir cafés en Santiago de Chile.
¡Pedazo de nariz! Compleja a más no poder con aromas a algarrobas, chocolate con leche y clavo entre otros. Definitivamente un perfume.
En boca más austero, como al propio Chateaux le gusta referirse, todavía ácido pero sin la exhibe rancia que aportaban esos aromas. En lo mejor solo bueno.
Bastante listo en mi modesta opinión.
Incuestionablemente una botella fuera de lo común pero solo por esa nariz.
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4/19/2012 - canan wrote: 93 Points
Nose: mild plum fruit and sewer with a hint of pine needles.
Palate: Watery and mild but there is a little rust and shoe polish. Great minerality. Some nutty flavors and a few dried herbs. A very subtle taste but very elegant. The tannins are fully integrated.
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4/2/2012 - Aenie wrote: 93 Points
Smell is good , heavy terrior, cheval blanc style big power , medium fruit low acid
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5/11/2011 - paul195 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Good mature color and clarity, a little tight in the begining but after about 30 minutes of swirling and out came a lovely elegant and mature bordeaux. Warm dark fruits with hints of saddle and tobacco. A well intergrated and balanced middle weight with a long smooth finish. Too bad it is my last bottle
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4/13/2011 - Ho Bryan wrote: 93 Points
Gosh, lovely stuff. Just reinforces how good Bordeaux is even in the supposedly weaker vintages - this is great classic Claret. No signs of being over the hill, and while fully mature there is still tannin evident that suggests it will hold this plateau for a good 5 years if not more like 10. Powerful bouquet on the quick decant prior to drinking; sweet and lovely floral notes. Over the course of half an hour though this settled into a strong cigar smoke with a touch of pepper.
Glad I tried it and to have a few more. Don't put this into any kind of WOTN competition with esteemed vintages, but if you drink just for the pleasure of aged Bdx there is something to like here at a very keen price for the quality.
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2/5/2011 - psmith wrote:
Pretty dark fruits and tobacco notes. Black tea and pleasant green notes. Mature, but certainly not fading. Medium bodied and soft. Very nice.
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10/26/2010 - Rupert wrote: 93 Points
Cheval Blanc dinner (The Ledbury, London): Light, floaty, fragrant, fine, elegant, really gorgeous, a cracking start
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5/16/2010 - Alex H wrote: 86 Points
Extremely austere with rusty dried beef blood, dried roots, dried herbs, a whole ton of dried dusty earth with a bead of berry juice for measure. Bitter rootish finish with gingseng. Not for the faint hearted.
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2/16/2010 - Zoce wrote: 95 Points
Wonderful... Decanted about 30 minutes... bright and clean red color. At the beginning very powerful ripe blackberries, liquorice, spices... over the time it develop toward leather, mocha, chocolate... Medium bodied, concentrated with lovely acidity. Very matured and softened, smooth tannins. Lovely mineral finish, very very long... such delicate complexity...
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4/19/2009 - dougie wrote: 92 Points
Very nice. A bit green at the beginning, but opened up real nice. Elegant finish.
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3/13/2009 - Keith Levenberg wrote: flawed
Not cooked but obviously stored warmly enough to strip it of everything it's got.
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10/19/2007 - paul195 wrote: 92 Points
A great example of the value offered by wines of great makers from less heralded vintages. A lovely wine easy to enjoy.
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7/18/2007 - Keith Levenberg wrote: 95 Points
Cheval Blanc Vertical (Craftsteak): At its peak and, consequently, the runaway wine of the night for me. Expressively fragrant bouquet combining autumn leaves with a cakey sweetness. The fruit is still juicy and fresh to taste with firm and precise acidity given added weight by its sticky sappiness. But the dominant flavor isn't fruit at all but bold tobacco that bulges like a plume of cigar smoke on the back end.
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5/15/2007 - edbrux wrote:
Smooth and a little tired but elegant with a balanced medium long finish. In my cellar the last bottle, just in time, of this vintage.
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7/12/2006 - DaleW wrote: 91 Points
ature and maybe just a tad tired, but rather elegant with red fruit edged with earth and cigarbox. Some cedary elements get more pronounced in the glass. Overshadowed by its flightmate, but really a nice bottle of mature Bordeaux
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7/11/2006 - trankin wrote: 90 Points
TWITS Cab Franc Event (Dale's house): Nose of alcohol. Very very ripe plums, alcohol, and some spice on the palate. Very little structure, but sharp tannins nonetheless. Mellows and loses some alcohol over time. Becomes creamier, becomes nicer. Fully mature.
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11/26/2004 - MagnumGourmet wrote: 93 Points
Helping to Clean out the Cellar (South Lake Tahoe): Incredibly balanced. Smooth and supple.
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11/25/2004 - coryj wrote:
Thanksgiving at Laurel's House in Lake Tahoe (Lake Tahoe, NV): Bottle was filtered and decanted prior to drinking.
Quotes from tasters:
Purpley blue red as poored and pinkish amber in the glass making it multi-colored, Smells like it has a year left, Liquidy, Doesn't coat the glass, Don't like the smell, Extremely brittle cork (took several attempts to remove it as the top part broke off and the rest had to be very carefully removed, no cork was allowed to drop or crumble into the bottle however), Like clothes left in the washer for 2 days but not quite moldy yet, Smells like wood in the barrel, Taste like nothing, Watery, Stale smell, Caramel flavor, Best, Smooth, Rich, Mellow, Best bordeaux ever, Musky bad smell, Still lake water that's stale and stagnent, Tingly smell, Tingles going down with incredible flavor, Watered down Smell, Too peppery.
Quotes from myself:
The consensus on this wine was that it probably went a little beyond it's appropriate age. There was great contrast in the ones who like this wine versus the ones who didn't. With the prior wines most of the amateurs agreed with each-others opinion and likewise the afficionado's all seemed to agree with each-other. This wine split the table with no consistency. At the end of the night the Opus One had the most people fighting for the left-overs. This wine was a second only to the Opus One in popularity despite the mediocre comments and reviews. Perhaps it was because of the age and the expectations this wine had associated with it.
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10/3/2003 - Joe Belmaati wrote: 90 Points
Red with brownish rim. Nice plummy scents, but also whiffs of cigar box and rose petals. A wine without any rough edges, packed with charm and elegance, but lacking just slightly in complexity. The finish is balanced and pleasant and medium long.
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1/21/1996 - chbeaumont wrote: 95 Points
Good colour, mid garnet; earthy, Asian spices, verging on exotic; flavoursome; upfront, fleshy. Smooth velvety. Extended. 18+.
[B ****, C 15.5, P 90. Thought this was Pétrus].
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3/1/1994 - sdr Does not like this wine: 82 Points
Great Wine Seminar. Light garnet, looks old. Delicate floral bouquet. No flaws but just too insubstantial.
David Peppercorn: “ready to drink, charming, mature flavors, not big.”
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