K&L High-End Bordeaux Tasting - October 2015

K&L
Tasted Saturday, October 10, 2015 by RajivAyyangar with 515 views

Introduction

Overall, the wines were consistently of high quality, excellent typicity, and ridiculous price. When I think about how the 2001 Latour could be exchanged for over a case and a half of Corison's '95 York Creek Meritage, I wonder why anyone buys classified-growth Bordeaux anymore.

How I felt about the wines:

Around 9.5
-2000 Pontet-Canet (5th) $150

Between 9 and 9.5
-1995 l'Evangile $170
-2000 Brane-Cantenac (2nd) $139
-2000 Leoville-Poyferre (2nd) $230
-2010 Pontet-Canet (5th) $280
-1995 d'Yquem $250

Around 9
-1990 Grand Mayne $120
-2010 Lynch-Bages (5th) $170
-2001 Latour $475

Around 8.5
-2000 l'Avocat Graves Blanc

Flawed bottle
-2000 Kirwan (3rd) $100

Flight 1 - Basic Blanc as a Palate Opener (1 Note)

  • 2013 Château L'Avocat Blanc 85 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Graves

    Fresh, slightly grassy, slight impression of cheese rind (lees). A bit richer than you'd expect from Sancerre. No overt oak. Very nice - slightly mineral but mostly fairly simple. Fresh and light.
    Score: around 8.5

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Flight 2 - Right Bank (2 Notes)

  • 1990 Château Grand Mayne 90 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru

    75% Merlot, 15% CF, 10% Cab

    Lovely plum with some development. Some dog fur on the nose. A bit plummy, but mostly earth-driven - sweet leather, sweet tobacco, dried forest floor. Only a medium-length finish.

    Score: Around 9.

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  • 1995 Château L'Evangile 92 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Pomerol

    75% Merlot, 25% CF
    Beautiful nose - dark, glossy black fruit, slight blackcurrant liqueur. Cold coffee grounds - slight minty pyrazines. Super well-integrated. If you pull it apart you get a bit of dog fur (Brett), a bit of toast - slightly burnt/charred, a bit of baking spices (oak), bruised apple (development). Slight mentholated bourbony aroma - french oak with a touch of pyrazines. In the mouth it's plush, with some milk chocolate (Merlot character). Medium bodied. Moderate alcohol, acid is just medium, and tannins are just medium, papery.

    This is what I think of when I think of Right Bank Bdx.
    Score: Between 9 and 9.5

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Flight 3 - Margaux (2 Notes)

  • 2000 Château Kirwan Flawed

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux

    This bottle seems a bit oxidized. A bit tired with bruised apple, figginess (acetaldehyde). Maybe the fruit and other elements will come out with a longer decant. Medium-plus grippy tannins, with moderate concentration and some plushness (40% cab, 30% Merlot, 20% CF, 10% PV).

    Score: Flawed.

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  • 2000 Château Brane-Cantenac 92 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux

    2000 Brane-Cantenac
    Really nice nose. A lot of development. Sweet cedar, hint of tamari, sweet tobacco. Mushrooms, leather. Savory and earth-driven but with ripe fruit (blackcurrant and also plump-chocolate merlot character). Great flavor concentration. Longer than the Kirwan or l'Evangile. Less tannins.

    Score: Between 9 and 9.5

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Flight 4 - St. Julien (1 Note)

  • 2000 Château Léoville Poyferré 92 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

    Moderately concentrated dark ruby with lots of garnet.
    A bit tight on the nose - it seems as if the fruit is not expressive on the nose, but on the palate there seems to be a density and weight of fruit. This is extracted and long, but the fruit hasn't unfurled yet. The most tannic of the lineup (m+ tannins - papery). This is really nice though - it's that magical combination of Brett and new oak, with cabernet character.

    Score: Between 9 and 9.5

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Flight 5 - Pauillac (3 Notes)

  • 2000 Château Pontet-Canet 94 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    2000 Pontet-canet.

    Dark, brooding, and detailed on the nose - one of my favorite of the tasting. Muscular blackcurrant with a minty pyrazine note. Slight brett and new oak frame a long, extracted palate with elevated acid - there's an impression of tart black cherry. This is what I think of when I think of Left Bank Bordeaux. Very well done.

    Score: Around 9.5

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  • 2010 Château Pontet-Canet 92 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    A bit buttery. Unintegrated - blackcurrant liqueur, sanded wood/baking spices, slight dog fur, slight tinge of pyrazines - bell pepper/mint. It's all quality but not playing nicely together. Intense and long. Not complex or elegant. Elevated tannins. Young. Still though - the potential seems there.

    Score: Between 9 and 9.5

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  • 2010 Château Lynch-Bages 91 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    A bit of volatile acidity - balsamic vinegar. Black fruit - blackcurrant liqueur with purity, minty pyrazines, wet dog fur, forest floor. Slight burn of alcohol - 13.5%? (correct). It's warming and more in the direction of Brunello in the flavors (though acid would be higher and color would be lighter). Slight wet coffee grounds for pyrazines. Medium plus papery tannins. Tastes younger than it smells - a bit thin in flavor.

    Score: Around 9

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Flight 6 - The Legends (2 Notes)

  • 2001 Château Latour Grand Vin 90 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    First First Growth wine! The nose is on the dirty side - ripe to overripe plum, dog fur, bacterial aromas as well ("Central Park West"). The nose isn't really compelling to me. Plummy in the mouth - a definitely medium between cabernet and merlot character (surprising - this is 75% cab). Medium body, just medium acid, slightly warm alcohol - 13.5% ish? Slight mintiness from pyrazines, slight brett spice, new oak doesn't stick out - it's well integrated. Flavor balance is great but it's not really compelling to me. It's complex but nothing is really grabbing me. Overall the flavors seem a bit washed out, watercolored, withered. I don't get anything awesome from age.

    Score: Around 9

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  • 1995 Château d'Yquem 93 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

    Slight parmesan cheese rind, orange peel - candied, almond (toasted), marzipan, and saffron-waxy botrytis. Show-stopper of a nose - it gave me pause every time I smelled it. A bit acid-deficient, though.

    Score: Between 9 and 9.5

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