Community Tasting Note

vagrantone Likes this wine:

Sunday, May 14, 2017 - Difficult wine to evaluate...
Picked worst fill level of remaining 10 bottles, which was mid-shoulder with signs of seepage. The cork came out, not without a challenge, in two pieces fully saturated.
After a quick evaluation, to eliminate cork taint and assess tannins, the wine was decanted.
The color is extremely impressive for a 42 year old Medoc wine; displaying a color more typical of a 10-15 year old wine with mostly ruby and hardly any amber around the edge.
Early on, the fairly closed nose confirmed the need for early decanting. This was later confirmed by the impressive tannin structure. While this is an unsettling statement to make after 42 years, I'm still not sure whether the tannins will eventually soften to reveal a sufficient level of ripeness and aromatic intensity. A strongly Cabernet Sauvignon dominated profile from the controversial 1975 vintage is evident: inky, graphite, early hint of cigar box, cassis, no significant herbaceousness.
On palate, the acidity is present but not out of balance. The tannins still dominate the palate to the point of leaving significant doubt as to the final status of this wine. I hope to evaluate this wine for another 20-30 years....
Tasted again after about 70 hours after decanting. Remarkably, the tannins had softened and the aromas had persisted. Might there be light at the end of the tunnel?

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