UGC Chicago
The Drake Hotel - Chicago, IL
Tasted Wednesday, January 23, 2013 by tooch with 1,085 views
Introduction
I learned that I am not good at tasting young Bordeaux. Everything that I look for in Bordeaux is clearly a result of aging and I'm still figuring out how to judge the younger wines. Most tastes seemed brutally tannic and underdeveloped. There were some real highlights and some wines that were just poorly balanced.
The structure of most of the wines signal an interesting life ahead...I don't have the experience to really pinpoint their progressions, though.
2010 Domaine de Chevalier Blanc 90 Points
France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
Typical exotic nose from Chevalier. This, however, had a lot of oaky spiciness - a bit distracting if I'm being honest. The palate had nice tropical fruits, and a pleasing density. While the oak was the story here, the underlying fruit will hopefully emerge with time. There's a part of me that thinks this could turn into something like the 1991...but not reach the heights of the 2001 or 1987.
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2010 Domaine de Chevalier 72 Points
France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
Surprisingly, I was not a fan of this. Where were the smokey minerals? Where did all the Graves flavors and feel go? Dang...just a lot of heat and blackberries on the nose with vanilla, oak and black fruit on the palate. Big disappointment.
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2010 Château Canon 90 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
More of a red-fruited Bordeaux than the more typical black-fruited core. Nice minerality, smooth tannins, red floral notes and some leather. The finish was noticeable for its smoothness and acidity. Nice stuff.
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2010 Château Canon-la-Gaffelière 94 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
A very impressive wine. There were distinctive green pepper notes that freshened up the palate. Nice tobacco and leather notes with a combination of graphite and dark fruits, earth and truffle. I think this was the most complex and alluring wine I had all night.
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2010 Château Figeac 87 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
Bummed by this wine. The nose was totally shy with only hints of the rustic edge that's usually in place. The palate had a little more going on with a nice combination of warm spices, dark fruits, wet earth and herbs. One of my favorite producers, but this didn't really get me excited.
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2010 Château Troplong Mondot 71 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
Very smooth, super polished...almost seemed manufactured. Dark, sappy fruits, lots of vanilla, and sweet tannins. Not really my thing.
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2010 Château Clinet 71 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Pomerol
Another super-polished Bordeaux. Lush cherry, smoke, earth, and mineral. An incredibly dense wine that is really quite unappealing and is, in my opinion, completely anonymous. Pass.
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2010 Château Le Bon Pasteur 88 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Pomerol
A bit oaky on the nose with that smokey, vanilla tone to it. The palate surprised me a bit...more earthy and mineral-driven than I would have expected from Pomerol. Dark fruits, some leather and damp earth. Pretty nice!
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2010 Château Poujeaux 75 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Moulis en Médoc
I had been tempted to buy other vintages of this at Binny's given the price and its scores. Glad I haven't. Overall, the fruits are dried out with a fair bit of menthol on the nose. Palate was dark and dense - blackberries, smokey earth, and sour cherries. Not my style.
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2010 Château Cantemerle 92 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Haut-Médoc
Yeah, this is really good. Like other vintages, this is a great claret. Lovely minerality, great tobacco, graphite and dark fruit. Just completely yummy and a old-school-Bordeaux-lovers wine.
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2010 Château Malescot St. Exupéry 91 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux
Nose had some really nice green pepper flavors with some dark fruits and earth. Thought that the tight palate showed some signs of secondary floral notes that I liked a bunch. Like the potential here.
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2010 Château Marquis de Terme 73 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux
A new wine for me. Pretty ripe on the nose...dark fruits, vanilla, and some pomegranate. Palate was a bit syrupy and ultimately not my style. Too much alcohol, and ripe fruit...not enough elegance.
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2010 Château Branaire-Ducru 88 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
Warm nose...with cherry compote, pomegranate, and warm spices. Palate had some charcoal, blackberries, and a whole boat load of structure. The tannins were sweet, so this seems like a nice candidate for some aging.
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2010 Château Gruaud Larose 94 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
Always a favorite chateau for me, this didn't disappoint. Had a nice leafy green tobacco note, some darker fruits, graphite and herbs. Great balance and acidity. Home run.
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2010 Château Langoa Barton 85 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
Incredibly tannic and firm. Seemed to be a bit of dark fruit peeking around the tannins, but this seems locked in an iron chamber. Cross your fingers and hope for the best...
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2010 Château Léoville Barton 92 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
I've always been a fan of Léoville Barton and this seems to be another great vintage. Dark and smokey, this is centered around a nice core of rich, dark and elegant fruit. Has a nice spiciness to it that gives is some exoticism and character. Lots of structure here....time should be helpful.
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2010 Château Léoville Poyferré
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
Seems to have the volume turned up to a 14. Nose was aggressively dark and modern. Just tons of oak, alcohol and dark fruits, and it's a turnoff. The palate had more going on for it. Definitely structured, firm and dark...there was a really youthful sense to this. Other wines at UGC just seemed off-balanced, while this just seemed young. Dunno if my instincts are right here, but my history with Poyferré is pushing me to withhold judgment.
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2010 Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste 94 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
Gorgeous stuff. Beautifully composed and stylish - loved the silky dark fruits, smokey minerals, and roasted herbs. Had layers of florals and fruit. Seems to be a superstar in the making.
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2010 Château Lynch-Bages 74 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
The Lynch Bages of recent vintages have seemed more sappy, modern and hedonistic than the lovely wines of yesteryear. This fits into that hedonistic model. Fruit was sappy, gummy and dark. Just didn't have that sense of place and was over oaked and smokey. Disappointing.
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2010 Château Pichon-Longueville Baron 94 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
Impressive wine. Dark (as usual) wine with lots of masculine notes; meat, tobacco, leather and graphite. Fruit was cool, smokey and exotic with some nice truffle notes underneath. Overall, this was young but exciting. I've always been a huge fan of Pichon Baron and I can see this shaping into something like the 1990.
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2010 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande 92 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
Probably the most floral wine I tried at UGC. Really fit the bill of Lalande (in my opinion) with a real feminine appeal....silky, sexy, red fruit and florals were such a nice base. Had some nice minerality, tobacco and graphite bouncing around the silky core. Really nice stuff.
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2010 Château Cos Labory 88 Points
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe
A new wine for me. Had a sweet nose...think red licorice, with some smokey earth. The palate featured really nice red fruits, some savory herbs and floral notes. Pretty nice stuff.
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2010 Château Climens 93 Points
France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac
Oooh baby. A real winning Climens in my book. Has that richness on the nose and palate but, ultimately, is incredibly fresh and pure. Great tropical fruits...especially lychee and apricot. If you're fond of Sauternes, hard not to pay attention to Climens.
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2010 Château Coutet Barsac 85 Points
France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac
A bit more closed on the nose than other Sauternes at UGC. Palate was sappy and rich...lacking some of the freshness I was hoping for.
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2010 Château Guiraud 74 Points
France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
Wasn't my type of Sauternes. Was too sappy, sweet and gummy. No freshness, no firmness...just a honeycomb cocktail.
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2010 Château La Tour Blanche Sauternes 88 Points
France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
Lots of tropical notes - peach, mango and lychee. Thought the vanilla on the palate was a bit odd and awkward, but the fruit was the real story here. More exotic and tropical than other Sauternes. Pretty nice when all was said and done.
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2010 Château Suduiraut 88 Points
France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
Egg cream? Hmm, maybe. A good deal of lychee, too with mango and pear. Palate had nice minerality, but wasn't as complex or layered as the Climens.
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