1999 First Growth Bordeaux Tasting

Was able to attend the second of two recent 1999 First Growth Bordeaux tastings held at Esquin Wines tonight. My first time tasting the 1999s. The tasting was set up for 7PM down at Esquins shop in south Seattle. Kudos for Chuck and the rest of his crew for setting up this tasting. Not many commercial venues here in Seattle host tasting events were consumers can try wines of this expense. Lets hope that Esquin continues to host tastings for other high end wines. That being said, conditions for the tasting were not optimal, but overall acceptable. Not much was able to take away from these wonderful wines. Stems were standard all purpose glasses (unfortunately did not bring my own), one per person to be used for all wines. The space was relatively crowded and there was no room to sit down, set a glass down, or take notes. Pours were moderate. Arnie Milan provided background and brief instruction on the wines. He was also quite helpful in answering questions. Finger food was provided as well. Wines were all double decanted approximately 5 hrs prior to tasting and served non-blind. In addition, wines were tasted only once without time for in-glass development as I needed to make room for the next wine! Notes are somewhat sparse as I was only able to jot down brief impressions on my wine order form.

We started off the tasting with a nice, refreshing white from Graves while everyone was arriving

• 2002 Vieux Château Gaubert Blanc 85 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Graves

  This wine was a nice way to clean the palate. Bright straw colored. Nose of herbs, mineral, and smoke. Nice acidity on the palate. Refreshing, but not moving.

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We then dove into the first growths. Order tasted is as listed. I have to say that it would have been nice to have a better stem to drink this wine out of. The glasses provided by Esquin were adequate, but likely diminished the overall experience.

• 1999 Château Haut-Brion 93 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

  Kicked off the tasting of reds with this beauty! Deep ruby with hint of purple at rim. Wonderful nose of earth, dust, forest growth, cedar, and cigar tobacco. I was also able to detect just a touch of flowers too. Fruit and earth combined on the palate with a delicate balance of acidity. Finish was moderate, a bit shorter than I expected. A great example of Haut Brion.

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• 1999 Château Margaux 93 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux

  Dark garnet in color. Nose of lead, cedar, leather, and cassis. Plum fruits and earthy notes up front and continued through the finish. This seemed to be balanced nicely with a healthy touch of acidity in the mid palate. Very smooth with a healthy dose of tannins that were sweet and added a nice dimention to the finish.

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• 1999 Château Latour Grand Vin 94 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  Oh my! This will turn into a gorgeous wine. Dark red with violet at the rim. Nose somewhat closed, but you could tell that this wine is waiting to open up. Beautiful black current, floral, and cedar notes immediately on the nose continuing into the palate. I tried to coax this wine into opening with the little time that I had while in glass, but to no avail. The fruit and aromas were there, but just had to concentrate a little harder to get them. Lush mouthfeel with what seemed to be a little more acidity on the palate compared to the first two wines. Sweet tannin, moderate finish. Excellent. Probably about a 92-93 now, but should improve.

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• 1999 Château Mouton Rothschild 91 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  Slight, but noticible bricking at rim. Nose dominated by leather and earth. Cedar and dark fruit on the palate with opulent, mouth coating cassis. This wine seems much smoother than many of the others. Softer tannins on the finish make this wine very easy to drink. The balance is still there and given the rich palate and complex nose already in this wine I imagine that it will turn into something beautiful. Seems that this one may have "aged" a little faster than the others given its color, softer tannins, and complex aromas. Could this be?

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• 1999 Château Lafite Rothschild 96 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

  The bottle characterized by an eclipse. This was a fabulous wine that was a real treat to taste. Deep ruby without any hint of the brick that was seen on the Mouton. Nose of "lead pencil" - I honestly got it - with cedar dominating. Again, similar to the Latour, this wine seems like it needed a little coaxing to open up. The nose lovely albeit closed. The palate is full of subtle dark plumb, powerful blackfruits, and earth. The flavors nicely tied together with a powerful mouthfeel. Firm, yet sweet tannin on the finish that lingered a good while. Overall, my WOTN. I think this wine is about a 94 currently, but will likely improve to 96 with a little more age.

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This was a lovely treat added onto the first growths, and a nice contrast as well.

• 1999 Château Cheval Blanc 94 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Saint-Émilion Grand Cru

  My very first Cheval Blanc! Bright, deep ruby in color. Wonderful nose of flowers, coffee, dust. Palate dominated by dark raspberries and some chocolate. Again, very soft, lush and mouthfilling with sweet tannins into the finish. This wine seemed like a nobrainer, one that is quite easy to love given the fruit forward style with sweetness and moderate tannins. I really enjoyed it and found that it seemed to be showing quite well amongst the others. An exuberant right banker.

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Overall I was impressed with how well the 1999s were showing with just a little bit of air time. Lafite was clearly the winner and generated much discussion amongst the attendees of the tasting. Many people were rushing off to drop the $220 asking price for this wine. Latour was a favorite of many as well. For those of you who have these in your cellar, enjoy now or wait. You will not be dissapointed either way. Cheval Blanc struck a chord with me. I liked the up front, in-your-face smooth style. I imagine that I will be seeking this wine out much more in the future!