Martin Weiner Cheval Blanc, Ausone, St. Emilion Tasting
Chez Weiner, Westwood, California
Tasted Friday, September 28, 2007 by rjonwine@gmail.com with 1,314 views
Introduction
Of course, I had to make the trek down to L.A. to see my Angeleno wine buddies and taste some of the best wines of St. Emilion, thoughtfully selected and assembled for us by Martin Weiner. This tasting was an intriguing mix of more traditional Right Banks alongside newer style St. Emilions – from the always elegant and graceful Cheval Blancs and a ’66 Canon, to the more concentrated and ripe La Mondottes and Pavies, with our Ausones in this tasting straddling both camps. All of the wines were in good shape, with the exception of the ’78 Ausone. The high points for me were the ’00 Cheval Blanc, the ’90 Ausone and the ’83 Cheval Blanc. The latter was particularly revelatory as I usually think of the Margaux and Palmer as stars of that year in Bordeaux, and hadn’t previously tried the wonderful ’83 CB. The ’90 Ausone was gorgeous and still so youthful. The ’00 CB is a powerhouse in an elegant style.
As usual, Martin provided a dinner to complement the wines—rack of New Zealand Spring lamb, vegetables and Chanterelles, and some great cheeses. The ’00 Tertre-Roteboeuf from magnum proved a particularly lovely pairing with our lamb.
Flight 2 - Magnums (2 Notes)
Flight 3 - La Mondotte flight (3 Notes)
Flight 4 - Older St. Emilions (3 Notes)
Flight 5 - Cheval Blanc flight (3 Notes)
Flight 6 - Pavie (3 Notes)
Flight 7 - Ausones (3 Notes)
Flight 8 - '90 Ausone and Cheval Blanc (3 Notes)
Flight 9 - Port (1 Note)
Closing
Rob, Ronny and Richard:
2001 Château Valandraud 90 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Saint-Émilion Grand Cru
Medium raspberry red color; sweet cherry and cassis nose with caramel and pecan; plush, soft, sweet cherry, a little hot and tight yet; medium finish 90+ pts. (continuing to open in the glass after 45 minutes)
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2002 Château Ausone 91 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Saint-Émilion Grand Cru
Dark red violet color; strong oak, vanilla and cherry nose; tight but sweet red fruit, cherry, with plush mouthfeel and vanilla edges; medium-plus finish 91+ pts.
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1989 Château Angélus 93 Points
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Saint-Émilion Grand Cru
Mystery wine, eventually revealed as 1989 Angelus – medium red violet color; tart cherry and cassis nose with a touch of cedar; tasty, tart plush red fruit, black fruit, plum palate, with iron, mineral, good structure; medium finish (I properly guessed it as ’89 Angelus, based on the hint that it was a St. Emilion; otherwise, I might have been speculating about which older Left Bank Bordeaux it was)
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