Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux 2011 Vintage Tasting

Trade tasting for the 2011 Bordeaux vintage.

• 2011 Château de Chantegrive Graves Cuvée Caroline - France, Bordeaux, Graves
  Brisk, fresh and clean. Balanced and well made but could use more fruit. (88 pts.)
• 2011 Château de Chantegrive Graves - France, Bordeaux, Graves
  Minerality and chalk are prominent at this early phase. The wine is tight but balanced, showing cherries, smoke, and elements of tobacco. (90 pts.)
• 2011 Château Pape Clément Blanc - France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
  Nice aromas, white flowers, tart and fresh but light on fruit. Lemony. Would be nice with oysters. (87 pts.)
• 2011 Château Pape Clément - France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
  Red licorice aromas. Young and tight with tannins prominent. Fruit is buried at present. Good acidity making for a fresh wine that is long on the palate, but not quite balanced. (88 pts.)
• 2011 Château Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc - France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
  Lovely aromas, white flowers and lime in abundance. Fresh and balanced fruit, crisp, sea shells. Lemon zest, good body. A lovely wine. (91 pts.)
• 2011 Château Smith Haut Lafitte - France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
  Aromas of dark fruits. Wonderful balance, black berries, suave tannins, vanilla, plums. This is easy to drink and will age well. One of the stars of the 2011 tasting. (92 pts.)
• 2011 Château Canon - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
  Boysenberry, sweet anise, warm, ripe tannins. a bit of vinous heat. Not sure how this will age. Disjointed at this juncture. (87 pts.)
• 2011 Château Canon-la-Gaffelière - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
  Tight aroma, not giving much, just vanilla. Tannin is forefront in the taste but it is ripe, then some cherry, tar, blood, with tannic drying on the finish. Difficult to taste at this point. (89 pts.)
• 2011 Château Pavie Macquin - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
  Big aroma of cherries, fruit in the forefront, sweet and long on the palate. Black cherries and plums, ripe, tooth staining tannins that are well integrated. Well made wine with good, balanced extracted fruit. One of the best at the 2011 tasting. (94 pts.)
• 2011 Château Troplong Mondot - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
  Deep aromas of black cherry. Tannins are front and center, but deeply saturated with the fruit. A bit of acidity is sticking out, minerality. Long on the palate. This should age well. (92 pts.)
• 2011 Château Villemaurine - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
  Purple saturated color on this very young wine. Tight aroma not giving anything away. The taste is smooth, showing good fruit and balance, with anise and cherries. This is one for early enjoyment, approachable within 3 - 5 years. (88 pts.)
• 2011 Château Le Bon Pasteur - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Pomerol
  Smooth and deeply extracted fruit. Black cherries, vanilla, and plums that are long on the palate and a bit too vinous. There is simply too much alcohol making for an unfortunately unbalanced wine. 87-89. (87 pts.)
• 2011 Château La Cabanne - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Pomerol
  No aroma, tightly bound. The flavor however is lush and smooth with good fruit all nicely balanced by pleasant tannins. Drinking well right now. Lay some down to age or drink now. 92% merlot, 8% cabernet sauvignon. (92 pts.)
• 2011 Château La Conseillante - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Pomerol
  Wonderful balance in the Conseillante. Smooth drinking with licorice, cherries, warm tannins, all long on the palate. This is a wine with poise. 92-93. (92 pts.)
• 2011 Château Gazin Pomerol - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Pomerol
  Aromas just peeking through. This was in an awkward stage. Tastes of black cherries, cherry cola. Angular with tart notes. This should settle down. Deserves to be retasted. (88 pts.)
• 2011 Château Beaumont - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Haut-Médoc
  I didn't spit this out. Smooth and high toned with black fruits and chalky minerality that I like to see in a young wine. Submerged tannins. This is so easy to drink now. Perhaps it doesn't have the fruit to age for a decade, but it is certainly enjoyable for the near term. Retail is predicted to be $15 - $18. Quite a bargain. (90 pts.)
• 2011 Château Citran - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Haut-Médoc
  Dark garnet in color suggesting great extraction. However this was thin and tart in taste showing cherries, menthol, and furry tannins. A bit disjointed. (86 pts.)
• 2011 Château Coufran - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Haut-Médoc
  Balanced but light in fruit. The tannins make this tight and ungiving. Not enjoyable. (85 pts.)
• 2011 Château d'Angludet - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux
  Cherry cola, tannins front and center, with elements of mint. Long on the palate and good fruit. (88 pts.)
• 2011 Château Cantenac Brown - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux
  No aroma evident. Candied red fruits backed by balanced acidity, chalky minerality, tannins. A fair wine that should improve with 5 - 8 years. (88 pts.)
• 2011 Château Giscours - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux
  Nicely balanced with firm acidity. Showing anise, sour licorice, and dark fruits with interesting minerality. (88 pts.)
• 2011 Château Beychevelle - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
  Well made, balanced and elegant. Minerality with cherries, submerged tannins. Finishes with mouthwatering fruity acidity giving a lift to this 47% cabernet and 47% merlot with petite verdot wine. (91 pts.)
• 2011 Château Branaire-Ducru - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
  Well balanced but maybe a bit hot with some alcohol sticking out. Flavors of cherries, plums, and menthol. Tannins not showing, well integrated. The fruit is balanced and saturated, but the alcohol is flawed and probably will not age away. It won't bother you if you prefer New World wines. (89 pts.)
• 2011 Château Gloria - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
  No aroma at this tasting. Smooth and balanced with good minerality showing in this young wine. Suave but tooth furring tannins, dark fruits and tobacco notes. This has promise. Age 5 - 8 years. (90 pts.)
• 2011 Château Léoville Barton - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
  Deeply extracted fruit, yet the tartness is front and center. Chalk, menthol, and dark fruit show well, along with the pronounced tartness in the finish. (90 pts.)
• 2011 Château Léoville Poyferré - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
  This really showed well at the tasting. Young and solid purple in color with an aroma of saturated flavors showing lovely fruit, deep plums, dark fruits, and vanilla. The wine drank clean and smooth and was very long on the palate. This will be one of the wines of the vintage. (93 pts.)
• 2011 Château Talbot - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
  Tight tasting wine, short on the palate. Flavors of dried cherries, chalky minerality, good acidity keeping it fresh and clean. Not quite balanced at this awkward stage. Needs time to come together. (88 pts.)
• 2011 Château Clerc Milon - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
  Nice cabernet flavors of berries and dark fruit. Showing good balance and length. Recommended for near term aging. Drink from 2019 - 2023. (90 pts.)
• 2011 Château Grand-Puy Ducasse - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
  Very typical of the vintage. Cherries and plums, with minerality typical in a young wine. Medium bodied with good length on the palate. A well made wine, balanced in presentation but at an awkward stage. This needs time to knit together. 89 - 91. Give it 3 - 5 years before tasting again. (89 pts.)
• 2011 Château Lynch-Bages - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
  Aroma not giving much here, just the suggestion of cherries. The taste is of perfect balance, smooth and approachable yet young. Primary fruit flavors, dark fruits, cherries, with notes of tobacco. Well made. 91 - 92. (91 pts.)
• 2011 Château Pichon-Longueville Baron - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
  Nice balance here if a little light bodied. Acidity peeks out above the fruit in this young age. On the palate there is chalk, cherries and menthol. This needs time but it will never achieve greatness. (89 pts.)
• 2011 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
  Along with Leoville Poyferré, the Pichon Lalande is one of the better 2011 wines. The Lalande exhibits wonderful balance, youthful minerality, and tannins completely submerged by the fruit. Flavors of black cherries, dark fruits, and berries. This will drink very well with 10 - 12 years of age, while you are waiting for the 2009s and 2010s to mature. (92 pts.)
• 2011 Château de Pez - France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe
  One of the lighter bodied 2011 Bordeaux wines, approaching thin. Flavors typical for the vintage: cherries, plums, and black berries with unusual chalky, mouth drying minerality and tannins. (86 pts.)
• 2011 Château Suduiraut - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
  Vanilla and butterscotch aromas. Tastes of creme brulee, pineapple, apricots. Long on the palate, lasting over a minute. A nice glass of Sauternes but it lacks the smoothness, viscosity, and depth of the La Tour Blanche. (88 pts.)
• 2011 Château La Tour Blanche Sauternes - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
  Soaring aromas of lychee, jasmine, and pine. Tastes of lemon curd, pine, citrus, and vanilla. This is fireworks in a glass. Incredible viscosity, length, and complexity in this Sauternes. This will age for a decade or more, but why wait? Pour it over some vanilla ice cream or dip a biscotti into it tonight. Better yet, serve it with some foie gras. A tremendous success. (94 pts.)