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2014 Petits Chateaux Blind Tasting
Tasted January 7, 2018 by englishman's claret with 419 views
Introduction
The Commanderie got together a bunch of inexpensive 2014s to taste blind. Certainly an interesting experience and though I wouldn't chase any of them, some of the more buttoned-up wines (e.g., Meyney, Chasse-Spleen) may well blossom a bit.
Flight 1 - 2014 Petits Chateaux Blind (16 notes)
Red
2014 Château de Landiras
86 points
Aggressive nose, touch saline, a little too vegetal. Touch of capsicum on the palate.
Red
2014 Château Gloria
86 points
Cassis, a little rubber, biscuit notes. Not particularly distinctive.
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Comment
Red
2014 Château d'Aiguilhe Seigneurs d'Aiguilhe
85 points
Lifted, but no lack of weight. Saline accents. For a second wine and the vintage, a good effort I suppose - but I wouldn't pursue this.
Red
2014 Château Croix Mouton (Jean-Philippe Janoueix)
85 points
Big nose, which is a feat for the vintage and pedigree, but a bit too horsey. Nice cedar accents, but fell a bit flat.
Red
2014 Château Lilian Ladouys
81 points
An odd nose; horsey, rubbery notes overwhelming the fruit. Flabby palate.
Red
2014 Château Meyney
85 points
Big, dark fruit nose; subtly spicy, almost Rhonish in that regard. Plenty of substance. Very tannic of course. Finishes well. This could improve from here and, unlike the majority of the 2014 non-classed growths tasted tonight, actually show some interest in 5 years.
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Comment
Red
2014 Château Ormes de Pez
86 points
Deep nose; not giving its all at the moment but it's easy to find biscuit and dense fruit notes with good gloss. May well open and provide some interest when it's 10-20 years old.
Red
2014 Château Paveil de Luze
87 points
A classic Left Bank nose, tasteful wood treatment here and an elegance that sets it apart from many of the other 2014 petits chateaux. Pencil on the palate with nice balance. Give it a few years and this should prove very pleasing in the price point.
Red
2014 Château Siran Saint-Jacques de Siran
87 points
A classic Left Bank nose; pencil, cassis, tastefully treated oak. A gentle touch. Well balanced on the palate. A charmer for the year and a surprise as I've never had the 1st wine as far as I can recall - if the 2nd is this good from a vintage as difficult as 14, perhaps that ought to change...
Red
2014 Château Chasse-Spleen
84 points
This seems to be holding back quite a bit for 2014, making it somewhat difficult to assess. Nice, polished cassis nose; very restrained of course. A hair oaky on the nose and a touch hot on the palate. This may well turn around and merit a much higher score in 8-10 years.
Red
2014 Château Aney
86 points
Balanced and complete if not spectacular. This was in a blind tasting of 16 petits chateaux, all 2014 vintage, and I moved on fairly quickly as this didn't quite capture the attention.
Red
2014 Château Sénéjac
82 points
Is this representative? Very, very barnyard on the nose and palate, obscuring almost all else. Not obviously corked.
Red
2014 Château Rouget
86 points
Saline, pencil, vaguely floral nose. A specious-seeming charm. A bit insubstantial, but pleasant and offers more complexity than some of the other 2014s on show.
Red
2014 Château Tour Saint-Christophe
85 points
A sleek nose with good substance and a black-fruited character. But it's marked down - it's hot on both the nose and the palate which is such a shame. The wine feels a bit manipulated.
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Comment
Red
2014 Château Fleur Cardinale
87 points
Cedary, plummy, currant nose. Though it could use a bit more acid on the palate, this is a commendable effort from a difficult vintage.
Red
2014 Château Franc Laporte
85 points
Dark, jammy, hot nose. Moderate tannin; the balance is fairly good. Fruit and pencil on the palate. Finishes quite well.
Closing
The surprise stars for me were the modest wines from Margaux: Paveil de Luze and the 2nd wine of Siran. There were some very pleasant Right Bank wines as well, namely the Rouget and Fleur-Cardinale.