Commanderie de Bordeaux MN: First Growths at Demi (Demi, Mpls): Medium bricked red color. Double decanted and recorked about 3 hours before drinking. Drank a glass over an hour. There doesn't seem to be a lot of love for the '71 on CT, but I will tell you that probably means you haven't been blessed with the kind of pristine bottles that we were. Coming from an old, cold cellar, the bottles from this case have, by all accounts, been stellar. This simply has a glorious perfume of pretty ripe strawberries and wild flowers, cigar wrapper and subtle dill weed. The palate is light-medium bodied, more like an aged Burgundy. It shows a that same red strawberry fruit, pure and penetrating, rich in flavor, thought light in weight, blood orange, subtle dill, cigar, resolved tannins and a long red berry finish. Some will argue that this is too light or thin, but this elegant, aged Bordeaux is simply divine. 94+ to 95pts, maybe better, just a joy to sip and savor. Thanks Chris & Jenna.
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Light, lean and herbaceous, bricky red in color, the remaining vestiges of bright cranberry and red currant were almost overwhelmed by the green pepper, tobacco leaf, pine, wet forest and herbal components. Soft on the entry and crisp with a tartness in the finish, this was probably better 10 or 20 years ago.
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Purchased a single bottle recently and we opened it last night. Unfortunately, it was vinegar — so here is one particular bottle even I can’t like. C’est la vie . . .
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Château Lafite Rothschild vertical tasting (Wine Watch, Fort Lauderdale, Florida): Surprisingly, one of my favorite wines of the evening. Similar color to the 1970, light and Burgundian. Aromas of red plum, truffle, tobacco, smoke, and brown spices. Interesting flavors on the palate. Lots of bright red fruits. Medium-plus length finish. Tannins essentially resolved and acidity was at a good level. The surprise of the tasting.
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Tasted blind side by side with the 1970. Very lite dull garnet red. Delicious aged burgundy sourness on the nose. Slightly Sour wild strawberries dominate. Still has confectionary body. Delicious.
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This bottle was gone. Tried to let it wake up for an hour or so, but it was past prime and slightly cider-y. Too bad but I have two more bottles to try. We drank birth year wine at Prasino for Kelli’s birthday. For Kelli’s sake I have some 71 Dom and 71 conterminous to try in the future.
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Once we got through that, wine was elegant and refined. The anticipated funky nose was there but the fruit was surprisingly still present. No tannins but a real treat and shocking to see it to drink so well.
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Lovely pure mushroom notes with great acidity, wet earth, a touch of sweet tobacco underneath; elegant silky medium body with a spicy long finish. Probably the wine of the night. Stunning and great length. 70% CS.
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Tasted blind. The color of this wine was a very dark blackish-purple. By far the darkest color of the wines we were tasting this evening. The nose had some spicy aromas along with leather and mushroom. The main note on the palate was a very spicy poblano pepper note. This wine had a nice mouthfeel and good length finish. When we began to guess what the wine was, I was certainly not thinking of a First Growth Bordeaux. The spicy notes on the palate led me to believe that this would probably be about a 10 year old Cayuse Cailloux Syrah... Wow, was I surprised when this was revealed. Another birth year wine for me, and while I can appreciate that this may not be what you would expect to taste from a 40 year old First Growth, it was a very far cry from the 60 point rating that RMP gave this back in 1982, as well as far from being worthless aside from those that care about labels as he also described. I have no doubt that this will be one of the most memorable, lowest rated wines that I ever get to taste in my life. Just awesome!
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Aromatically - initially a bit rusty and wooly - after about an hour this passed to a much more pleasurable dried red fruit and dried hay aroma profile which was very much on the earthy side of the spectrum. The wine had the color of an aged pinot noir. The wine had a lean attack mid and long finish that to me was more reminicsent of a smooth aged Barolo. Over the course of the evening the wine put on tremendous weight and was blossoming 2.5 hours after opening. It is not a blockbuster in weight but a very elegant very very nice wine. 93+?
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I bought this wine, which is my birth year, because it was perfectly stored, and was still a neck fill. We were worried, given the reviews, but opened it on my 36th birthday. This thirty six year old bottle of wine is senescent, but not totally done. It had very delicate graphite, mature fruit, soft wood undertones, lead pencil, currant and slight vegetal tones. The finish was soft, but ephemeral. A pleasant surprise, and no sherry-oxidation noted.
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Cork was completly wet but came out in one piece... first sniff showed that it was doing okay. Nose has a nice aroma of licorice and plum with a slight marine note. In the mouth there is still some sweet fruit, tannins mostly gone, and a slightly tart finish. Pretty good for an off vintage.
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Wonderful aroma, and a great attack and middle, but the fruit goes home early, and having smooth tannins you end up feeling like you're doing tequila slammers with a £100 bottle of wine. The acid is left so the finish is citrus and slightly unpleasant. Would have been a far greater wine 10 years ago.
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2/25/2024 - Cole wrote: 87 Points
No fruit. Like drinking an old, red chair. Graphite, cinnamon, and sun burnt summer tea leaves.
This bottle was already too old when I was given it, and I waited until I had to move to drink it.
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5/19/2023 - rocknroller wrote: 94 Points
Commanderie de Bordeaux MN: First Growths at Demi (Demi, Mpls): Medium bricked red color. Double decanted and recorked about 3 hours before drinking. Drank a glass over an hour. There doesn't seem to be a lot of love for the '71 on CT, but I will tell you that probably means you haven't been blessed with the kind of pristine bottles that we were. Coming from an old, cold cellar, the bottles from this case have, by all accounts, been stellar. This simply has a glorious perfume of pretty ripe strawberries and wild flowers, cigar wrapper and subtle dill weed. The palate is light-medium bodied, more like an aged Burgundy. It shows a that same red strawberry fruit, pure and penetrating, rich in flavor, thought light in weight, blood orange, subtle dill, cigar, resolved tannins and a long red berry finish. Some will argue that this is too light or thin, but this elegant, aged Bordeaux is simply divine. 94+ to 95pts, maybe better, just a joy to sip and savor. Thanks Chris & Jenna.
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11/20/2021 - Burgundy Al wrote: 86 Points
Wines Enjoyed at John Kapon's 50th Birthday Bash (The Pool - New York NY): Small glass, brief note. Lighter style, less substance than expected, but not entirely tired.
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11/20/2021 - hprphf wrote: 91 Points
JK's 50th Birthday: Transparent color. Woody, not bad. 91
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8/18/2020 - Jeff Leve wrote: 80 Points
Light, lean and herbaceous, bricky red in color, the remaining vestiges of bright cranberry and red currant were almost overwhelmed by the green pepper, tobacco leaf, pine, wet forest and herbal components. Soft on the entry and crisp with a tartness in the finish, this was probably better 10 or 20 years ago.
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5/30/2020 - Jmwestiv Likes this wine:
Wine was all there and very enjoyable - all tertiary with acidity left over. Classic old claret
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4/13/2020 - Jmwestiv wrote: flawed
Wine was gone. The acidity was gone and all the alcohol evaporated. It didn’t seem corked and leaking. NR.
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3/24/2019 - Sacramento Geezer wrote: flawed
Purchased a single bottle recently and we opened it last night. Unfortunately, it was vinegar — so here is one particular bottle even I can’t like. C’est la vie . . .
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1/10/2019 - DrinkBordeaux wrote: 95 Points
Château Lafite Rothschild vertical tasting (Wine Watch, Fort Lauderdale, Florida): Surprisingly, one of my favorite wines of the evening. Similar color to the 1970, light and Burgundian. Aromas of red plum, truffle, tobacco, smoke, and brown spices. Interesting flavors on the palate. Lots of bright red fruits. Medium-plus length finish. Tannins essentially resolved and acidity was at a good level. The surprise of the tasting.
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7/15/2018 - TexasBob Likes this wine: 93 Points
Tasted blind side by side with the 1970. Very lite dull garnet red. Delicious aged burgundy sourness on the nose. Slightly Sour wild strawberries dominate. Still has confectionary body. Delicious.
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7/7/2017 - eschaefer wrote: 85 Points
This bottle was gone. Tried to let it wake up for an hour or so, but it was past prime and slightly cider-y. Too bad but I have two more bottles to try. We drank birth year wine at Prasino for Kelli’s birthday. For Kelli’s sake I have some 71 Dom and 71 conterminous to try in the future.
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12/25/2015 - Fito wrote: 80 Points
Great nose, Plums, nuts and coffee, but in the mouth completely diluted, I preferred to open a 1994 Pontet-Canet to enjoy my food.
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12/11/2015 - Dalex Likes this wine: 92 Points
Cork totally shot. Almost fused to the glass.
Once we got through that, wine was elegant and refined. The anticipated funky nose was there but the fruit was surprisingly still present. No tannins but a real treat and shocking to see it to drink so well.
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6/21/2015 - Chipa wrote: 88 Points
Light and still drinkable, but well past it's best.
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4/17/2015 - Cpo Likes this wine: 89 Points
still very drinkable and elegant.
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1/9/2012 - wkkan wrote: 86 Points
Probably over the peak.
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5/25/2011 - peternelson wrote: 92 Points
Lovely pure mushroom notes with great acidity, wet earth, a touch of sweet tobacco underneath; elegant silky medium body with a spicy long finish. Probably the wine of the night. Stunning and great length. 70% CS.
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5/21/2011 - last chance wrote: 95 Points
Tasted blind. The color of this wine was a very dark blackish-purple. By far the darkest color of the wines we were tasting this evening. The nose had some spicy aromas along with leather and mushroom. The main note on the palate was a very spicy poblano pepper note. This wine had a nice mouthfeel and good length finish. When we began to guess what the wine was, I was certainly not thinking of a First Growth Bordeaux. The spicy notes on the palate led me to believe that this would probably be about a 10 year old Cayuse Cailloux Syrah... Wow, was I surprised when this was revealed. Another birth year wine for me, and while I can appreciate that this may not be what you would expect to taste from a 40 year old First Growth, it was a very far cry from the 60 point rating that RMP gave this back in 1982, as well as far from being worthless aside from those that care about labels as he also described. I have no doubt that this will be one of the most memorable, lowest rated wines that I ever get to taste in my life. Just awesome!
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2/11/2010 - Harrypotter wrote:
Aromatically - initially a bit rusty and wooly - after about an hour this passed to a much more pleasurable dried red fruit and dried hay aroma profile which was very much on the earthy side of the spectrum. The wine had the color of an aged pinot noir. The wine had a lean attack mid and long finish that to me was more reminicsent of a smooth aged Barolo. Over the course of the evening the wine put on tremendous weight and was blossoming 2.5 hours after opening. It is not a blockbuster in weight but a very elegant very very nice wine. 93+?
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10/13/2007 - mmyette wrote: 92 Points
I bought this wine, which is my birth year, because it was perfectly stored, and was still a neck fill. We were worried, given the reviews, but opened it on my 36th birthday. This thirty six year old bottle of wine is senescent, but not totally done. It had very delicate graphite, mature fruit, soft wood undertones, lead pencil, currant and slight vegetal tones. The finish was soft, but ephemeral. A pleasant surprise, and no sherry-oxidation noted.
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6/24/2007 - dcleven wrote: 86 Points
Cork was completly wet but came out in one piece... first sniff showed that it was doing okay. Nose has a nice aroma of licorice and plum with a slight marine note. In the mouth there is still some sweet fruit, tannins mostly gone, and a slightly tart finish. Pretty good for an off vintage.
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3/5/2007 - timmyc wrote: 81 Points
Wonderful aroma, and a great attack and middle, but the fruit goes home early, and having smooth tannins you end up feeling like you're doing tequila slammers with a £100 bottle of wine. The acid is left so the finish is citrus and slightly unpleasant. Would have been a far greater wine 10 years ago.
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4/22/2002 - kevin h wrote:
Historic Note (recorded here Aug 06). Weedy flavours, not good.
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9/1/1992 - sdr Does not like this wine: 70 Points
Deathly orange brown. Very faint nose, trace of volatile acidity, fruit gone. A poor bottle, even for this modest vintage on the Right Bank.
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