Los Angeles "Bucket List" Offline

A group of ten gathered for an offline "bucket list" tasting of fully mature wines that represent the epitomes of their respective Old World appellations. First we tasted everything in small pours and successive flights; then we casually finished all the wine over cheese and conversation.

• 1958 Giacomo Conterno Barolo Riserva Monfortino Speciale 95 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

  Double decanted for six hours, then followed over the next four. Rusty amber color in the glass. A bouquet of tea, vinegar, cherries, tar, and flowers. Strong acidity frames spice and hints of fruit for a mouth-watering palate presence. While this may have been just slightly past peak and light on the fruit, the flavor profile was nonetheless of great breed and class.

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• 1978 Bruno Giacosa Barbaresco Santo Stefano 95 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco

  Double decanted for six hours and followed over the proceeding four. Youthful color with a great complexity on the nose: brown sugar, spices, red fruits, and roses. Still short of full maturity, the palate featured prominent tannins, red fruits, and great acidity.

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• 1947 Giacomo Borgogno & Figli Barolo Riserva 97 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

  Double decanted for six hours and followed over the next three. Incredible spice, menthol, and floral nose. Fully bodied and brooding with high acidity, resolved tannins, red fruits, and minerality. With all of the tertiary character of the '58 Monfortino paired with the powerful fruit of the '78 Giacosa – it's absurd that this is nearly seventy years old – the humble Borgogno had no trouble matching and perhaps surpassing the two heavyweights.

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• 1961 Fontanafredda Barolo 91 Points

  Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo

  Sadly, this was overshadowed by its '58 Monfortino, '78 Giacosa, and '47 Borgogno flightmates. Nevertheless, this offered pretty floral, fungal, and fruit aromas and a lightweight (perhaps slightly clipped) palate of copious acidity, resolved tannins, light fruit, and earth.

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• 1988 Taittinger Champagne Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut 95 Points

  France, Champagne

  Slightly better than my last bottle. In comparison to the '88 Krug, this is marked by higher acidity, more tertiary character, and wonderful chalkiness.

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• 1988 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut 95 Points

  France, Champagne

  The Krug required an hour in the decanter before it started to show its stuff. Unlike the Blanc de Blancs, the Krug offered greater power, intensely pure fruit, and oxidative notes on the palate.

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• 1988 Domaine Jean-Louis Chave Hermitage 97 Points

  France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Hermitage

  Decanted and followed for three hours. Archetypal Northern Rhone nose of game, olive, and blood. Beautiful balance on the savory palate of red and dark fruits, meatiness, minerality, moderate acidity, and light tannins. Refined and polished – everything integrates into a truly spectacular whole.

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• 1995 Moët & Chandon Champagne Cuvée Dom Pérignon 93 Points

  France, Champagne

  While young, this offered a beautiful balance of fruit, acidity, and effervescence. As Charlie mentioned, the Dom set itself apart from the powerful, oxidative Krug and the tensely acidic, nutty Comtes de Champagne with its roundness.

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• 1966 Château Haut-Brion 98 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

  Quintessential Graves nose: smoke, cigar tobacco, gravel, iron, forest floor, and dark fruits. Tertiary notes abound on the palate alongside black cherry and moderate acidity. The balance is flawless, and the mouthfeel is truly that of an iron fist in a velvet glove.

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• 1983 Château Margaux Flawed

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux

  Heat damaged.

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• 1983 Château d'Yquem 96 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  On the day of the tasting, the d'Yquem was honestly a bit cloying and did not live up to its pedigree. I was however lucky enough to follow the leftovers for several days thereafter, and the wine just kept getting better and better. Orange marmalade, ginger, crème brûlée, botrytis spice – incredibly complex. While certainly rich and unctuous, there is still great delineation and precision to the palate and just enough acidity.

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• 1989 Domaine Huet Vouvray Cuvée Constance 93 Points

  France, Loire Valley, Touraine, Vouvray

  Laser-like precision, Chenin Blanc waxiness, plenty of acidity, minerality, and stone and tropical fruits. The d'Yquem was certainly the more complex, but I preferred the acid-sugar balance of the filigreed Huët. Well integrated, but I suspect this needs a few more decades to reveal its fully mature side.

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