1980s Bordeaux at Riverbend

Oregon
Tasted Sunday, September 25, 2016 by aChave with 520 views

Introduction

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Birthday dinner and tasting for my brother. No bad bottles this evening...just grand wines all the way through. Note that the Quilceda Creek was hiding when the picture was taken...shy one, apparently.

Flight 1 - Aperitifs & tour (2 Notes)

Champagne and good company.

Flight 2 - The 1989's (5 Notes)

The 1989's are probably my favorite vintage for current drinking. They all showed well, even the Quilceda Creek "ringer". In my view the Rausan showed the best, but the Gruaud was steadily improving and might have equaled it with another hour or two (the tasting began in earnest 60 minutes in and lasted 3+ hours).

  • 1989 Château Rausan-Ségla 94 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux

    A big, silky, round wine. Mature, but holding well. Only slight funk initially that quickly blew off. Powerful fruit stayed prominent throughout. No hurry to drink. Best of the 1989's for most tasters this evening. Double decanted 60+ minutes ahead.

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  • 1989 Château Olivier 91 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    Consistently good wine in fine form. Initial funk dissipated with air; steadily improved over two hours. Some earthiness with good supporting fruit and mostly resolved tannins. Double decanted one hour in advance; better after 90 minutes.

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  • 1989 Château d'Armailhac 90 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    A bit of initial funk but improved with additional air. Good fruit at the hour mark, but a slight tannic edge was noticeable with just a bit of thinness. Seemed to be adding weight; given my note of a year ago this may have needed mor air time, but wasn't quite on pace with the other 1989's this evening. 89-90.

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  • 1989 Château Gruaud Larose 93 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

    Attractive initial nose with slight funk. Combination of typical Gruaud bouquet with underlying reticence and darker undertones. Opened steadily over 2+ hours. Indicated additional potential ahead. Double decanted 60+ minutes ahead; better 90+ minutes in.

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  • 1987 Quilceda Creek Cabernet Sauvignon 92 Points

    USA, Washington

    Dark, opaque ruby. Big, plummy, dark fruited wine. Rather funky initially, but this disappeared with 30+ minutes in decanter. Plush with resolved tannins; steadily evolved and added nuance, though to my palate it lacked some of the freshness of the best Bordeaux tasted alongside. The cork disintegrated - the worst one of the evening - but the wine didn't suffer for it. Decanted 90 minutes ahead.

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Flight 3 - Leoville Barton and 30 years (2 Notes)

The 1982 wasn't a surprise, but the approachability of the 2012 was. No hurry to drink my remaining 1982's of this wine.

  • 2012 Château Léoville Barton 91 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

    Quite surprising how fruit-packed and forward this was. Decanted for 90+ minutes, but didn't really need it. Very primary with the deep dark red and blue fruit effectively masking the tannins and structure. Will be worth waiting to see how this develops; could be a real sleeper if the Barton structure comes out of hiding down the road. 91 for now, but 92+? in future.

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  • 1982 Château Léoville Barton 95 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

    A resounding success. Round, deep, nuanced fruit with light tannins mostly resolved. A bit of classic wood with beautiful balance and complex fragrance. Steadily improved over the 3 hours it was available. Double decanted 60+ minutes ahead. Cork was removed in one piece...the 2012 Barton was the only other bottle having that distinction.

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Flight 4 - The Closers (2 Notes)

Each remarkable on its own. Bravo.

  • 1986 Château Mouton Rothschild 97 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    Lovely wine not yet in its prime. Perfect balance with clean, pure fruit in a fresh, velvet glove. Not a rich or big wine, just everything in its proper place. Remarkably young in spirit for its age; plenty of time ahead, for sure. Double decanted 90+ minutes ahead; needed all of it. It should yet improve.

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  • 1988 Château d'Yquem 98 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

    Lovely wine. Has the lemony marmalade but freshness and verve of a great Sauternes. No hint of oxidation or cloying character here...just sublime elegance. Has many years of life ahead.

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Closing

The corks were largely in good shape. The only regret was the shortage of decanters, which necessitated double decanting. This was the reason the wines generally needed 90 minutes or more to begin showing their best.

This tasting reaffirmed my opinion of the 1989's. They are drinking beautifully now but have plenty of time in hand.

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