Bordeaux 2008: First Glimpse

Averys, Bristol
Tasted Thursday, April 23, 2009 by Benj with 949 views

Introduction

Mixed, but generally good quality. Only two wines really blew me away: The Domaine de Chevalier Blanc and the Figeac.

Flight 1 - Whites (2 Notes)

Flight 2 - Margaux (+ Domaine de Chevalier) (5 Notes)

Overall, pretty silky, good perfume, quite restrained.

  • 2008 Domaine de Chevalier

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    3.25-3.75? High acidity, quite tight, slightly spiky tannins, smells very young. Hard to assess at this point

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

  • 2008 Château Ferrière

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux

    3.75. Smoky, perfumed, fresh tobacco, dark plums, uncoils nicely in the mouth, soft tannins, slightly disappointing finish.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

  • 2008 Château du Tertre

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux

    3.5-3.75. Very smoky, nutty, coffee, could do with a little more fruit but surprisingly accessible at this point.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

  • 2008 Château Giscours

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux

    3.25-3.5. Quite hard to get into after the very aromatic nose of the du Tertre. Coming back to this later, still smells of very little, better on the palate, lots of fruit, but one of the disappointments of this tasting for me.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

  • 2008 Château Rauzan-Ségla

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux

    4.0. Seductively perfumed, silky, fairly high acid, tannins soft but everywhere. Hard to evaluate at this point but very good.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

Flight 3 - St. Julien (5 Notes)

Quite variable, some excellent, some not.

  • 2008 Château Gloria

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

    3.75-4.0 Chateau Gloria - Liquorice, dark chocolate and treacle, treacle, treacle. Fine grained tannins, good front attack - great start to the table.

    Post a Comment / 1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Report Issue

  • 2008 Château Saint-Pierre

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

    3.0. Very different to the Gloria before it. Barbecue and brambles, more accessible at this stage, but lacks substance and perhaps longevity.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

  • 2008 Château Beychevelle

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

    3.25. Darkest of the 3 so far at the St. Julien table. Pretty straightforward, uninteresting (though I should note that this has been praised elsewhere). The guy behind the table was surprised at how poorly this was performing. Will hopefully open up with time.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

  • 2008 Château Langoa Barton

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

    4.25. Liquorice (less than the Gloria), charred wood, rich fruit, quite restrained, excellent balance. Very good.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

  • 2008 Château Léoville Barton

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien

    No score. Not giving much away at all. Very tight, very tannic, pretty high acid. I can't get past all. This isn't a negative comment, it's just so tightly wound I can't get into it.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

Flight 4 - Pauillac (5 Notes)

The most consistent overall, generally good performances all round. Warm, smooth.

  • 2008 Château Pibran

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    3.75. Warm, thick nose, fair bit of oak at this stage but good. Fine but sharpish tannins. If someone asked me what claret tasted like, this is pretty close to the model I'd describe. I just like this style.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

  • 2008 Château Haut-Bages Libéral

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    4.0. Good nose, sweet spiced wood, sweet fruit, similar palate to Pibran but more power and more acid.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

  • 2008 Château Batailley

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    4.25. Again very similar to the two previously (Pibran and Haut Bages Liberal) but another step up, more tannin, very potent, solid and balanced.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

  • 2008 Château d'Armailhac

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    3.0-3.25. A little raw and green, blackcurrants and a little floral touch. Slightly burnt biscuit taste. Interesting, certainly, but not for me. A little thin, no mid-palate, quite poor finish.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

  • 2008 Château Clerc Milon

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    3.5-3.75. Somewhere between the Pibran and D'Armailhac, but more polished, very nice acidity, reasonable finish. A little unconvincing, however.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

Flight 5 - St. Émilion (5 Notes)

Some of the highest acid wines - my kind of thing, and a lot of power here.

  • 2008 Château Cantenac

    France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru

    2.5 - Soft, fruity, slightly bitter, no thanks.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

  • 2008 Château La Dominique

    France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru

    4.5. Wow, yes please. Sweet fruit, paprika, slightly medicinal (but...in a good way...I don't usually like that, but here it kinda works). Intense, great fruit loaded with raspberries, high acid, high tannin, high score.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

  • 2008 Château Trotte Vieille

    France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru

    4.0-4.25. Warm, baked fruit, med-high acidity, lovely velvety texture, good concentration.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

  • 2008 Château Figeac

    France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru

    4.75. Phew, very very concentrated, high acidity and tannin, tonnes of fruit, beautiful mouthfeel and a long finish. Left a smile on my face. Best red of the tasting.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

  • 2008 Château Canon

    France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru

    3.25-3.5. Brambly, a little Christmas-like, a little chemical though, uninspiring palate at this point, chocolate berries. Disappointing considering the price.

    Post a Comment / Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Report Issue

Flight 6 - Pomerol (5 Notes)

Very disappointing overall - Domaine de L'Eglise the only one worth trying.

Flight 7 - A couple sweets to finish (2 Notes)

Closing

My first ever barrel sample tasting and a hell of a lot of fun. Will be very interesting to try some of these wines again in the years to come.

×
×