April 12, 2024 - Decanted about 2 hours before starting to drink and consumed over about an additional 3 hours. The cork was saturated to the top and fell into the bottle when I tried to remove it but was perfectly intact. Bottle fill was bottom of the neck with no sign of seepage.
Virtually opaque bloody garnet color with only a hint of fading right at the rim. Upon decanting there was a soaring, complex nose of tobacco, cedar, ripe black currants and plums, some Asian five-spice, and an earthiness that I always associate with Bordeaux. The nose staid constant for about 3 hours and then faded a bit.
The palate was nearly as complex as the nose with soft tannins and ample fruit providing a lovely, balanced, elegant, even aristocratic, mouth-filling experience. The palate impression started to dry out at about the 2-hour market but remained balanced and pleasant. The finish was deep and fruity and remained that way throughout the evening without ever drying, just getting less complex.
All in all this was everything I hoped for in this wine. It was a simply classic, complex, Pauillac at the peak or slightly past optimal drinking. I would love to have served this to someone unexperienced with classic older Bordeaux to show them what proper aging can do. Purchased within two years of release and stored in my cellar since.
January 15, 2024 - This bottle was drinking really well and was everything you hope for when aging and drinking older Bordeaux (having been bought in 1993 for $19.99 and cellared since then). Dark purple with brick around the rim, dark fruits with some leather and tar, voluptuous nose, medium acidity, medium body, soft tannins, medium finish. Great with basque roast pork at chuleta at Txikito in NYC.
June 23, 2023 - Rather rich with nice fruit; elegant; smooth long finish.
April 26, 2023 - Purple in colour. Notes of Black fruit and some leather notes. Med acidity, med body, fine soft tannins, and med finish. Past its prime, but still drinking well. Interesting all the notes about cork. I noted some leakage as well, but wine was still in tact.
April 15, 2023 - Most typical Pauillac. Earthy, mineral nose. Medium bodied, this very “masculine”, well structured left bank claret finds a good balance between sweet, mineral and herbal elements. Ink, graphite, licorice, tea and some residual tannins in the background. Still young and should keep the level for another 5 years.
December 18, 2022 - Well, this is it, the last of this vintage of Clerc Milon from my cellar. This bottle was bought on release and cellared properly.
I could tell the cork had been slightly leaking and it disintegrated even though i used an Ah-so to carefully remove it. But the wine smelled and tasted fine immediately upon opening. I filtered and decanted it thoroughly for a couple of hours. It opened up nicely with a lot of mature but full fruit and good balance. It held its own over the course of the evening. All in all, it was a pleasure to drink and a wonderful journey in the Wayback Machine to a great vintage. If I had more bottles i would be torn between concern over the cork situation and wanting to hold it for future "special occasions". Check your corks but know this is a great drink right now.
October 28, 2022 - Earth; light; developed; soft; lean blackberry.
October 8, 2022 - Earth and leather; textured; well constructed; coarse; blackberry and currant; balanced; soft tannin with elegant finish.
October 6, 2022 - A nice wine that has survived through the years. Preserved black fruits carry a savoriness and dustiness that only age can bring. This was still a strong wine at 33 years of age, as the tannins have not fully smoothed out.
This definitely has a lot more years ahead of it.
September 30, 2022 - Decanted 4 hours; crisp, clean nose; light, firm body, dominant cherries; very pleasant overall.