Bonham's Pre-Auction Wine Tasting
San Francisco, CA
Tasted December 5, 2011 by dmatley with 909 views
Introduction
This was a pre-auction tasting for the Dec 10, 2011 Fine Wines Auction. They poured 32 wines and a few other surprises Doug pulled out of the back. The tasting was at Bonham's in SF and was set up in 6 flights/tables with nibbles on a large table in the middle. With little experience with aged Burgundy and Bordeaux, this was an education opportunity for me. I tasted all the wines and was able to revisit a few. Except for the first flight, the wines are listed in order of the tasting.
Flight 1 - Sparkling and Whites (6 notes)
Not necessarily in this order.
White
1996 Stony Hill Chardonnay
USA, California, Napa Valley
Typical Stony Hill chard from the mid 90's. Lean with great minerality, citrus, good focus and medium finish. Plenty of upside here.
White
1979 Ridge Chardonnay Monte Bello
USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains
The color of beeswax in the glass--no browning. Rich mouthfeel. Amazed that this has lasted so well. Mostly hazlenut, some fruit, long finish.
Flight 2 - Burgundy/Pinot (3 notes)
There was also a 2005 Chehalem Reserve pinot noir in this flight as a late substitution for a corked '07 Alesia Falstaff Road pinot noir. Sorry no notes on the Chehalem.
Red
2004 Marcassin Pinot Noir Three Sisters Vineyard
USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
Concentrated is not the word. This is like extract of pinot. First time through the concentration of fruit and sappiness was a little assaulting but did find myself revisiting and enjoying in a hedonistic way. Drinking great and seemed to get better and more complex as the night went along. Great finish. Not a food wine but wow what blockbuster new world pinot if you don't mind the style.
Flight 3 - Bordeaux Flight 1 (5 notes)
This was the first table down but clearly outclassed by the next Bordeaux flight. The pours were probably just a little heavier here.
Red
1970 Château Gloria
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
Much bigger fruit than the previous. Big nose--sharp...some salad dressing astringency notes. Not a favorite.
Red
1970 Château Magdelaine
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
Now we're talking. Soft integrated tannins...tobacco notes...beautifully balanced and long finish. Just a lovely wine and one of the best merlots I can remember.
Red
1982 Certan-Giraud
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Pomerol
A sort of rusty, sea salt profile. Odd wine at least at this stage.
Flight 4 - Bordeaux Flight 2 (5 notes)
I could have just stayed at this table the whole time and some did! Very nice wine.
Red
1985 Château La Tour Haut-Brion
France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
Tannins just about completely resolved. Drinking well right out of the gate. Excellent balance. But as time went on it seemed to be less impressive. A solid bordeaux but I expected more.
Red
1985 Château Mouton Rothschild
France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac
Ok, so this was the bottle that really inspired me to go to the tasting and being poured at the 2nd to last table it definitely hung in the back of my mind as I worked my way through the earlier wines. By the time I made it to the table it was a little over half gone and starting to really open up--at least according to the pourer. While I don't have a lot to compare it to, this wine clearly outclassed the rest of the bordeaux that night. Wonderful balance--great secondary aromas of tobacco and leather. No off flavors. Plenty of fruit. Tannins mostly resolved and tenacious, lingering finish. Was able to revisit a second time but would love to have a glass and really enjoy rather than the micro-pours that were just a tease!
Red
1989 Château Pavie Decesse
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
Excellent acid.. Solid bordeaux. Tough to follow the Mouton. No wow here.
Red
2000 Château Grand-Pontet
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
Fruit forward. Soft, gorgeous fruit. Just a baby but it is drinking well and should only get better.
Red
2005 Château Grand Mayne
France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
A bit too closed still but seems to have some good stuffing. Needs time.
Flight 5 - California Cabs and a Zin thrown in. (6 notes)
Another excellent table. The Araujo was another mighty fine wine but man those tannins just give you the fuzzies.
Red
1978 Conn Creek Cabernet Sauvignon Lot 2
USA, California, Napa Valley
Another wow wine for me. Plenty of spirited youthfulness here both in color and taste. No signs of bricking. Lots of lush fruit..some secondaries. I would guess 1996 or 98 but certainly not 1978! Just a fantastic finish that goes on forever. Would love a case of this wine to drink over the next ten years. What a fantastic California Cabernet.
Closing
For me, the highlight of the tasting was certainly the '85 Mouton but also the '70 Magdelaine was just a beautiful wine. For the CA wines, I was especially struck by the '79 Ridge Chardonnay and the '78 Conn Creek. Unfortunately no notes for the Rhone, Barolo, Brunello table--vintages 2000 and 01--there was nothing incredibly special that I hadn't tried before and I was itching to get to the Bordeaux. I did swing back and try them all but by then my palate was shot by then.
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