La Fête du Bordeaux

Featuring the wines of Château Figeac, Château Ormes de Pez, Château Langoa Barton, Château Lynch Bages and Château Léoville Barton, this was focused on the "challenging" 2013 vintage, with reserves called up from 2005 and 1995/6.

• 2014 Château Lynch-Bages Blanc de Lynch-Bages 88 Points

  France, Bordeaux

  Medium-light straw color. Intense nose of grapefruit, freshly-cut grass, and peppercorn. Faint flavor of bell pepper with moderate acidity, and a spicy finish that persists for five seconds. Though I'm usually not one for Sauvignon Blanc, this has more depth and structure than most expressions of the varietal.

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• 2013 Château Petit-Figeac 87 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru

  Medium-dark crimson color. Aromas of vanilla, a hint of mezcal, and beef. Gentle start, perking up a bit at midpalate, overall very light and clean. The site's gravelly soils are apparent on the long-dry finish. Tannins are subtle, but could use another 3-5 years to round off. In total, the weakness of the vintage is evident.

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• 2013 Château Figeac 89 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru

  Medium garnet color. Perfumed nose of rose petals, cranberries and tobacco. The palate is very gentle at this point, coming off as somewhat mute. Structurally, this is tart and linear. Shows more potential for aging than the 2013 Petit Figeac, but likely only a 5-10 year life span for this one.

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• 2013 Château Ormes de Pez 86 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe

  Medium-light ruby color. Dull nose, with only a faint whiff of cinnamon. The palate is thin and tart, with only ephemeral tannins. There's really not much to this one. Another casualty of the 2013 vintage.

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• 2013 Château Langoa Barton 87 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

  Medium-dark rosewood color. Weird nose of latex and Lucky Charms cereal. This starts a bit juicy at the front of the mouth before closing down abruptly at midpalate. Retains decent acidity throughout. This may unfold a bit with time, if you can be bothered cellaring it. I cannot.

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• 2013 Château Lynch-Bages 88 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  Medium-dark rosewood color. Faint nose of cedar, cinnamon, pine needles and kola nut. This is light and sleek on the palate, with less structural support than comparable quality wines from this vintage. Would give this 5-10 years at the maximum.

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• 2013 Château Léoville Barton 90 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

  The last wine we tasted from the 2013 vintage (mercifully), this handily bested its rivals and was a consensus favorite. Crimson color. Most expressive nose of the bunch with aromas of tar, varnish, cigarettes, cocoa, and a faint whiff of oak. This has a full and juicy palate, with persistent (but not overwhelming) oak showing through in the form of an ongoing vanilla pulsation in the mouth. Though I would never in good faith recommend spending the $90 CellarTracker valuation on this vintage, this wine most convincingly argued for the durability of its pedigree in leaner years.

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• 2005 Château Figeac 91 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru

  Medium-dark rosewood color. Ample nose of planed wood with a slightly sweet and toasty aroma, a residual wisp of sous bois, and a slightly green stem smell. The palate, by comparison, is still tightly held in the grip of constricting tannins, giving up little. This finishes plenty strong, with the tannins turning grainy at the back of the tongue. Any thoughts I had of opening my remaining bottle of this will have to wait until 2025 at the earliest.

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• 2005 Château Langoa Barton 89 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

  Crimson color with bright ruby rim. Modest nose of cinnamon. Slight palate, long but not broad. Rather lean, with some twiggy berry flavors. Tannins on this one are still unfolding. Nice enough, but falls short of the epic reputation of this vintage. I'd revisit this in 5-10 years.

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• 2005 Château Lynch-Bages 90 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  Dark crimson color. Intensely perfumed nose and palate, with deep black and red fruit transitioning into a spicy finish. Like the 2005 Langoa Barton, this does not seem to justify the breathless praise lavished on the 2005 vintage. It certainly doesn't come anywhere near justifying the almost $120 price tag implied by the CellarTracker community valuation.

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• 1996 Château Figeac 93 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru

  Wine of the night. Medium-light garnet color with signs of bricking. Nose jumps right out of the glass with bright red fruit and wood. On the palate, this is mature and rich, showing the characteristic Bordeaux "dusty cherry" flavor. Perfectly striding the line between youth and maturity, this is excellent now and will remain so for most of the next decade.

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• 1995 Château Lynch-Bages 91 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  Medium-dark crimson color. Nose of jalapeño peppers, iodine and mocha. The palate on this remains a bit austere, tasting woody with surprisingly astringent tannins. I'd expect this to improve for perhaps five to ten more years.

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• 1995 Château Léoville Barton 91 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

  Dark rosewood, with the faintest hint of bricking. A restrained nose, though deep inhalation reveals sandalwood and ash notes. The palate is juicy upfront, with the red fruit flavors quickly overtaken by strict tannins, persisting through the long finish. Consistent with the bottle I tasted in September of last year, this needs more time to mature and should see its 30th birthday in good condition.

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• 2007 Château Suduiraut 86 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  Medium-light gold color. Honeyed nose. Lightly tangy and decently acidic palate, with a slightly chemical aftertaste. This was hard to identify, but added an unpleasant edge to what was otherwise a middle-of-the-road Sauternes. Hopefully this will fade with time?

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Unfortunately, this confirmed 2013 as a vintage to avoid, with most of the wines coming off as thin and insubstantial. The 1995 and 1996 wines were beautiful, starting to really come into full maturity. For me, the verdict is still out on 2005 and likely will remain so for some time.