Community Tasting Notes 511

• englishman's claret wrote: 95 points

  April 15, 2019 - The 86 Gruaud is still a big, potent, virile young wine. From a neck fill bottle decanted for 30 minutes then poured back into the bottle; started drinking 45 minutes later and enjoyed over the following 2.5 hours. At first, this showed almost nothing on the nose but the palate was rich, burly, and potent, packed with cassis, leather, sandalwood, loam, mineral, and a touch of wildflower. Over time, the nose unfolded somewhat but this still isn't giving all it will at maturity. If opening now, give it a good 2-3 hours in the decanter prior to tucking in. This will have a very, very long life, much in the style and build of the glorious 1928 Gruaud Larose.

  2 people found this helpful Comment

• Binkey wrote: 90 points

  April 10, 2019 - Nose at start better than the 85 and much stronger with very nice aromas of plums,dark fruits and leather,at the end it has aromas of uhu glue.
  The color was darker from the vintage of 85.
  In its decline for sure,drink now.

  1 person found this helpful Comment

• oncocyte Likes this wine: 97 points

  April 9, 2019 - Looking for nose, palate, finish? Leave now, please accept my apologies.
  This bottle of this wine..... All I could say was this is a spiritual experience. A seamless apotheosis of what older Bordeaux can be. Joyous tranquility in liquid form. Every aspect of it in the mouth was in complete harmony with each other, and with me. It was not dense; it was ethereal.
  It was such a perfect thing that it moved me to a place of sublime timeless comfort with the universe and my place in it, for a few minutes anyway.
  Sorry if this is not an effective review, but I just had to share this somewhere. No other substances were involved.
  And oh yes, I only let it breathe for a half hour, fearing it would fade with excess respiration.

  4 people found this helpful Comments (1)

• djhammond Likes this wine: 96 points

  March 5, 2019 - Very typical of the vintage, this all day about big flavours and big tannin. Possessing an almost delicate nose of blackberry and plum, the wine is mature on the palate with perfectly balanced tannin. With a finish of nearly 60 seconds, this is my favourite Gruaud Larose after the 1982, just ahead of the 1990. 96+

  2 people found this helpful

• nywine68 wrote: 92 points

  February 2, 2019 - Nice fragrant nose. Blackberries and black tea flavors. Fruit is still very much alive with a good backbone of acidity. As many 86's, the tannins are prominent and dry. The finish is a bit short.

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Pro Reviews 7

Wine Definition

• Vintage 1986
• Type Red
• Producer Château Gruaud Larose
• Varietal Red Bordeaux Blend
• Designation n/a
• Vineyard n/a
• Country France
• Region Bordeaux
• SubRegion Médoc
• Appellation St. Julien
• UPC Codes 087000306547, 087000307650, 087000308947, 087000331891, 087000336810

Community Holdings

• Pending Delivery 58 (1%)
• In Cellars 5,174 (67%)
• Consumed 2,535 (33%)

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