1980s Bordeaux at Riverbend
Oregon
Tasted September 25, 2016 by aChave with 524 views
Introduction
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).
Red
1989 Château Rausan-Ségla
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.
Red
1989 Château Olivier
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.
Red
1989 Château d'Armailhac
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.
Red
1989 Château Gruaud Larose
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.
Red
1987 Quilceda Creek Cabernet Sauvignon
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.
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.
Red
2012 Château Léoville Barton
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.
Red
1982 Château Léoville Barton
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.
Flight 4 - The Closers (2 notes)
Each remarkable on its own. Bravo.
Red
1986 Château Mouton Rothschild
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.
White - Sweet/Dessert
1988 Château d'Yquem
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.
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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