2008 Vintage Tasting Union Des Grand Crus de Bordeaux, Great Wines of Bordeaux, USA Tour New York City
Metropolitan Pavilion
Tasted Friday, January 28, 2011 by tkoby11 with 1,284 views
Introduction
Each year the UGC of Bordeaux tours the US to offer samples of the new vintage to the trade and consumers. The tasting represented most of the subregions of Bordeaux with many classified and unclassified Chateau.
Flight 1 (29 Notes)
Closing
2008 was not an exceptional year, but a good year in that many fresh tasting wines were produced with good acidities and full flavors and tannins from the long hang time achieved as most Chateau did not finish picking until mid to late October. This is also hands down the best priced vintage on the market, with many wines well under $100. In fact if you focus on the $40-75 you will find many, many fantastic wines available.
2008 Château Troplong Mondot 95 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
Solid, the best wine for me at the 2008 UGC tasting in NYC as it was perfectly in balance and had all of the right components: beautiful aromas in the nose, wonderful flavors (though packed tightly b/c of youth), and stoic tannins that will allow this to age well for years, plus the right amount of acidity to keep things fresh.
90% Merlot
5% Cab Sauv
5% Can Franc
Color: medium to dark red, crimson edges
Nose & palate: Coffee bean, licorice, blackberry and black cherry. The nose was a little tight, but still pretty generous. The tannins were so perfect for what you want at this stage, ripe and big but not too strong. Great texture and purity of flavor....very well done, I bought some the day after the tasting.
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2008 Château Pavie Macquin 91 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
Plum and blackberry, tobacco and black tea, tannic with full on ripe tannins.
89% Merlot
14% Cab Franc
2% Cab Sauv
Color: Black with red edges
Nose: Ripe, full of blackberry and ripe dark fruits, black tea aromas, lush
Palate: Juicy and ripe fruits of plum and blackberry, kirsch, but the terroir still comes through with notes of earth and minerality. Its a ripe wine with concentrated flavors but not heavy on the palate so its not fatiguing.
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2008 Château Figeac 92 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
As usual 1/3 Cab Franc, 1/3 Merlot, 1/3 Cab Sauv
Bright and full fruits that had a silky and inviting perfume that got better with a few minutes in the glass. Cherry, currants, great texture with fine but full tannins.
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2008 Château Canon-la-Gaffelière 94 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
My second favorite wine of the night, exceptional balance and purity, everything was showing extremely well.
50% Merlot
45% Cab Franc
5% Cab Sauv
Color: dark red to lighter gradation at the edges
Nose & Palate: A superb perfume with a long and full nose. Juicy with structure, a beautiful fruit filled cornucopia of cherry, cassis, currants and plum, concentrated and pure, with great focus from the ripe tannin and fresh acidity. Long finish.
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2008 Château Angélus 93 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
Deep red and blue fruits, big but supple and silky tannins, currant and cherry wow the palate and help to provide a full aroma that also shows earth, sweet tobacco, a touch of mocha and a splash of spice. As usual super, silky and supple Angelus.
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2008 Château Larcis Ducasse 89 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
This wine was a pretty wine with restraint and elegance, bright and juicy red fruits merged with the obvious mineral notes. This was a very highly rated wine by Parker and I thought it was not up to his score, but thats fine, it was still a great wine but did not match my expectations.
Maybe it was in a sleepy phase as I felt the nose and the palate were a little shy.
84% Merlot
16% Cab Franc
Color: More medium red than the others, with lighter red edges
Nose & Palate: Elegant red fruits and acidity, tighter and more angular red cherry and flowers, lots and lots of minerality, very terroir driven wine
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2008 Château La Gaffelière 91 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
Lots of raspberry and cherry, with the tannins in full bloom, feeling quite structured but still some suppleness and roundness from the fruit.
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2008 Château Pape Clément 94 Points
France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
48% Melrot
48% Cab Sauv
3% Petit verdot
1% Cab Franc
Good concentration and showing very well, deep black flavors of cassis, cherry, tar, toasty oak with big tannins, a touch of mint lingers on the finish. It may be big with fruit but the wine comes into balance with the tannins.
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2008 Domaine de Chevalier 92 Points
France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
Superb concentration and length, this wine was an early blockbuster in the night's lineup. Meaty and cherry notes, some scorched earth and charcoal, smoky and toasty oak, ripe and full tannins. Great wine especially at $40!
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2008 Château Haut-Bailly 92 Points
France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
Supple and elegant, this was a little shy compared to the other wines but was in great balance. This wine passed over the palate with the texture and feel of silk.
Deep red fruits in the nose and palate drew you in to keep trying this more, very complex and tight, this was not showing as well as I would have hoped, but the hints are there as well as the pedigree.
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2008 Château Smith Haut Lafitte 90 Points
France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
Lots of tannins, big fruits of cherry and raspberry with a toasty oak frame, not too much of course but just enough oak.
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2008 Château Beauregard 91 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Pomerol
Very full nose with sensual red and dark fruit aromas, toasty smoke and a touch of sweet oak. The palate is full and expansive, with silky cherry, sweet plum, a little earth and tobacco. Silky textures and a long easy finish with smooth and supple tannin. Very nice start to the Pomerol lineup.
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2008 Château Clinet 94 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Pomerol
I initially thought this started out slow but with a few minutes in the glass the wine's aromas and flavors grew and expanded nicely. Ripe cherry, plum, floral notes, and some toasty mocha all wrapped up in a superbly balanced wine that is nicely concentrated and finishes long and silky.
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2006 Château La Cabanne 88 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Pomerol
The 2006 was being poured as this chateau lost all of their 2008 to fire, the 2006 was showing more animal and barnyard funk as well as more tannins, as you would expect, from 2006. A nice wine showing terroir and more strength than some of the fruity and plush 08s.
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2008 Château La Conseillante 89 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Pomerol
Nice and pretty, a little less oomph than the other 08 Pomerol, but a very elegant wine showing supple red fruits and silky tannins, with a touch more acidity than I'd like given it's lighter structure.
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2008 Château Cantemerle 91 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Haut-Médoc
This Chateau is on a hot streak, even in 08 they deliver superior Bordeaux quality at a great price.
Color: Dark red core with vibrant red edges.
Nose: Smoky and toasty oak, coffee bean, currants and black cherry, a touch of oak
Palate: Medium to full bodied with chocolate, ripe bing cherries, currants. Nice structure with good tannins and very fresh acidity. Very well done.....back up the truck!
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2008 Château La Lagune 92 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Haut-Médoc
Another solid wine from the Haut Medoc and another good value. A touch more complexity than the Cantemerle.
60% Cab Sauv
25% Merlot
15% Petit Verdot
Violets from the Petit Verdot jump from the glass and enhance the pencil lead and currants from the cab and merlot. Good depth and a nice 30 second finish.
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2008 Château Lascombes 93 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux
The other top Margaux of the night, this was a solid wine with a wonderful perfume of currants, flowers, smoke, and earth. The palate was full and round, with a clean finish from nicely held acidity that buttresses the deep fruits and minerality. It was so fresh I had to go back for more!
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2008 Château Malescot St. Exupéry 93 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux
A very impressive effort here and tops in Margaux on this night. The nose was singing fresh roasted toasty coffee beans, lush currants and black cherry, flowers and a spicy streak. On the palate raspberries joined the currants and cherry, to fan out over the palate in a full bodied and silky display of pure Margaux. The acidity finishes this clean while the tannins add structure and what would seem a nice ability to age.
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2008 Château Giscours 90 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux
Lots of cab notes of green pepper, tobacco, piney, silky textures and a supple finish. Nice wine with more masculine aromas.
65% cab sauv
30% merlot
3% cab franc
2% petit verdot
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2008 Château Branaire-Ducru 90 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
A pretty wine with elegant textures and purity to the red fruits and a zesty freshness. Good length and texture on the palate and the finish.
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2008 Château Lagrange (St. Julien) 89 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
Classy and elegant, this was a nice wine with good balance and structure. Cherry and cassis wove neatly into a medium bodied palate with sturdy tannins and good acidity.
72% cab sauv
26% merlot
2% petit Verdot
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2008 Château Gruaud Larose 88 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
With nice depth and a fine elegance this was a good wine with nice fruit and perfume. Blackberry, currant and cassis meshed nicely with flowers, violets and spicy plums, a medium bodied palate with fine grained tannins and a touch of leaner acidity.
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2008 Château Saint-Pierre 91 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
A lovely wine with bright red raspberry, cherry, flowers and spice box, very fresh on the palate, this medium bodied wine finished pure and clean. The 2005 is still the best frequent years,though this is a nice runner up that vintage.
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2008 Château Lynch-Bages 90 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
A big and lush nose of black fruits, herbs, licorice, and spice. The palate was very giving upfront but the mid palate tightened too much and the finish clamped down with acidity and tannins shutting out some length on the finish. Too young or starting close down? Good potential however...
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2008 Château Pichon-Longueville Baron 92 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
A very ripe and expressive nose, plush mocha and roasted coffee beans mixed with currant and cassis fruit. Lots of oak, surprising though how it finishes so long and full, the Bordeaux really know how to use oak in the right way. Good acidity keeps things in line too.
71% cab sauv
29% merlot
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2008 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande 94 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
This seemed to have the most terroir of all of the grand vins of the night. Some funky notes of earthy barnyard mixed with concentrated floral currants, black cherry, roasted coffee, herbs, crushed rocks, and kirsch. This was very complex and intriguing as it was throwing quite a few layers of flavor and aroma. Medium to mostly full bodied, this was a remarkably fun wine to smell and taste. The tannins are big, but round and ripe with well balanced acidity.
63% cab sauv
29% merlot
5% petit Verdot
3% cab franc
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2008 Château Ormes de Pez 87 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe
Pretty and simple but so great because of that simplicity. Very straightforward offering of red fruits like currants and so ice in a nice package of tannin and acidity. Good value wine.
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2008 Château Phélan Ségur 92 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe
What a bargain, this wine came across very classic in Bordeaux in style. Smoky and toasty oak aromas mix with ripe red fruits for a fresh nose of fruit and tastiness. The tannins were big, but ripe and perfectly fit for this wine.
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