'89 Pradeaux Bandol - Drinking window

I'm in Edmonton this weekend for Easter and a little Bandol hunting. Picked two different 2001 Bunan cuvees and lucked out and heard about a blowout sale of Bordeaux including some older Bandol. Pradeaux is very rare here for one thing, and at $40 a bottle a great deal, and it's already got some age. Too bad they only had two bottles - it's like a missed winning the lottery by one number. \

Any idea on how good the 89 vintage was? Should I be drinking these soon, or wait?

Thanks,

P.S. Bob/Mark - didn't hear back from you on my last PM so figured it wasn't going work. I was at Devine and finally met Dirk. He knows a friend of mine in Calgary so we hit it off and he opened a 89 (I think) Gardine CdP from his store cellar for me to taste. What a really nice person he is and it is excellent store too. PIcked up quite a bit of wine including an 04 Clos De Caillou CDR Reserve that is on sale. And Dirk turned me on to Madiran and Chat. Bouscasse which he figures I'll like because I love Bandols.

Here is a TN I posted on this wine nearly 8 years ago.

"Topic: TN: Pradeaux 89; a disappointing Bandol
Author: Tim York
Date: Mon May 1 06:01:22 2000
Accompanied Charolais beef fillet with tapenade (crushed olive) sauce, caviar d''aubergines (a purée of aubergines with atouch of garlic) and brocoli. Both tapenade and aubergines were quite salty.

C: Deep but hints of browining round the edges.
N: Discreet initially somewhat deep and complex but developing bitter crushed grape pip almost burned rubber tinge.
P: Curiously all structure but no fruit and somewhat disjointed. On attack same deep dark impression as initially on nose, then a moment of sharpish acidity and long but dusty and bitter finish again with aromas of crushed grape pips almost burned rubber.

This is a famous property and a very good year so what is going on? Given the difficulty in perceiving any fruit,I find it hard to believe that this will ever show the sumtuous and harmonious qualities of which some experts write. Indeed it shows a lot of symptoms of a wine already on the way down-hill.

HOWEVER

PS on drinking the remainder at the bottom of the bottle this morning both nose and palate were distinctly more harmonious. Still austere and somewhat bitter w hints of oxidisation and little fruit but the crushed grape pip aroma had disappeared and the good length resulted in an agreable and distinguished if staight-laced after taste.
Does this give a clue that the future development may be better that I thought possible yesterday?"


I recall that there was some discussion and advice not to despair because it is not unusual for 15-20 tyears to be required for Pradeaux to open up into its full glory.

I have one bottle left which I have vowed not to touch until its 20th birthday. I will be interested to see what other opinions you get.

Thanks for the reply and TN, Tim. I'm going to drink one soon, maybe even tonight.

Bryan

Tim,

Checked cellar tracker and all 89 Bandols. Not many notes. A handful on Tempier and they were well rated. One on the Pradeaux too, it was in French however - and a rating of 82 which is not good. Can you read French? Be curious to see if the note says it's past its prime.

Bryan

Bryan.

Sorry to miss you. The Grill investors are buying Eastside Marios in the west end and I am helping all day with inventory out there.

Glad you met Dirk, top notch guy eh. See he opened something nice for you.

Call me tomorrow night at 488-1344 if you have time.

Cheers Bob P

[David M. Bueker]

A quick summary of the cellartracker note would indicate that there's not a lot of fruit but lots of tannin. Not a wine of pleasure is the gist of the note.

Bryan wrote.....He knows a friend of mine in Calgary so we hit it off and he opened a 89 (I think) Gardine CdP from his store cellar for me to taste.

Actually Bryan, it was the `95. I found it quite pruney but still drinking fairly nicely. Could have used a tad more fruit perhaps?

Re the Cellar Tracker TN from 11/30/98.

David had already given you the gist of it. Here is a free translation of the whole -

" Slight evolution
little fruit, closed: tobacco notes
gentle attack with finesse; still massive tannins
too soon by at least 3 to 5 years
this is not an easy pleasing wine; austere and not as "sunny" as Provence entitles one to expect "


I recognize the wine I drank about two years later. I think that the "too soon by.... 3 to 5 years" was wildly optimistic. If you open it, please let us know how it is now performing.

Bryan wrote.....He knows a friend of mine in Calgary so we hit it off and he opened a 89 (I think) Gardine CdP from his store cellar for me to taste.

Actually Bryan, it was the `95. I found it quite pruney but still drinking fairly nicely. Could have used a tad more fruit perhaps?

Hi Bob. Yes. I thought it was unbalanced with too much acidity. Don't know why though.

Bryan

Hi Tim.

There are actually quite a few positive notes on ebob posted in 2004 that state this wine is very good. I didn't have it last night after all but I think I'll have one of them in the next couple of weeks and I'll post my impressions.

Bryan

Hi Bryan,

All this talk of Bandol has has whetted my appetite so I have pulled out a bottle of Pibarnon 98 to go with the Easter lamb. Let's see how that one is drinking. Those EBob notes sound encouraging on the Pradeaux.

Tim

Hi Bryan,

All this talk of Bandol has has whetted my appetite so I have pulled out a bottle of Pibarnon 98 to go with the Easter lamb. Let's see how that one is drinking. Those EBob notes sound encouraging on the Pradeaux.

Tim

I found it odd that 2004 was a big year for posts on this specific bottle and there are virtually no other posts after that, Tim. I just unloaded the fruits of this weekends Bandol hunt and reorganized my little cellar a bit. In the month or so since tasting my first Bandol I now have two cases of mixed Bandol comprising of mostly Tempier and a decent mix of Bunan, La Suffrene, Sorin and the Pradeaux. Next trip to the US I'll hopefully have access to others like Pibaron. I can see myself getting a little compulsive and obsessive with acquiring Bandols.

I buy and eat more lamb than most people I know. I have access to naturally raised Alberta lamb that is raised in the foothills of the Canadian Rockies on a hobby farm in a village called Bragg Creek. My family and I consume 3-4 lamb a year, custom butchered. It's the only way to go. For what it costs for a couple of racks and maybe a leg and shoulder roast at a city butcher I can get a whole lamb including processing. I haven't had any lamb with a Bandol yet, but I'll bet it is superb. Especially a leg, bone in.

Ribs and a Domaine La Remejeanne Les Arbousiers Rose CDR tonight.

Bryan

[David M. Bueker]

Lamb with some rosemary is heaven with Bandol.

And now you've got me wanting to head for the Rockies again.

Lamb with some rosemary is heaven with Bandol.

And now you've got me wanting to head for the Rockies again.

If you like skiing how about a moderately chilly day in mid-February at Lake Louise downhilling or classic Nordic and then dinner at the Post Hotel or Banff Springs Hotel consisting of a leg of lamb with rosemary and a select bottle of 20 year old Tempier followed by a cognac in an outdoor hot tub looking at the stars and ominous mountain silhouettes. A dream day for me.

Bryan

Hey Bryan, a busy weekend. Sorry we didn't connect.

Glad you could drop in at deVine and meet Dirk. He's good people.

Tim

From your note is sounds like it was dull and dominated by burnt rubber. This is a very typical note from a old wine in need of decanting. The rubber is then logical from the reduction in bottle and aering could bring forward more flavours.

On the other hand it sounds like typical Pradeaux notes. Never understood the hype of it and even if I have visited the estatet it failed to impress me.

Best
Fredrik Svensson. Luxembourg

Tim

From your note is sounds like it was dull and dominated by burnt rubber. This is a very typical note from a old wine in need of decanting. The rubber is then logical from the reduction in bottle and aering could bring forward more flavours.

On the other hand it sounds like typical Pradeaux notes. Never understood the hype of it and even if I have visited the estatet it failed to impress me.

Best
Fredrik Svensson. Luxembourg

But it wasn't that old when he drank it last.

Bryan

Here is a TN I posted on this wine nearly 8 years ago.

"Topic: TN: Pradeaux 89; a disappointing Bandol
Author: Tim York
Date: Mon May 1 06:01:22 2000
Accompanied Charolais beef fillet with tapenade (crushed olive) sauce, caviar d''aubergines (a purée of aubergines with atouch of garlic) and brocoli. Both tapenade and aubergines were quite salty.

C: Deep but hints of browining round the edges.
N: Discreet initially somewhat deep and complex but developing bitter crushed grape pip almost burned rubber tinge.
P: Curiously all structure but no fruit and somewhat disjointed. On attack same deep dark impression as initially on nose, then a moment of sharpish acidity and long but dusty and bitter finish again with aromas of crushed grape pips almost burned rubber.

This is a famous property and a very good year so what is going on? Given the difficulty in perceiving any fruit,I find it hard to believe that this will ever show the sumtuous and harmonious qualities of which some experts write. Indeed it shows a lot of symptoms of a wine already on the way down-hill.

HOWEVER

PS on drinking the remainder at the bottom of the bottle this morning both nose and palate were distinctly more harmonious. Still austere and somewhat bitter w hints of oxidisation and little fruit but the crushed grape pip aroma had disappeared and the good length resulted in an agreable and distinguished if staight-laced after taste.
Does this give a clue that the future development may be better that I thought possible yesterday?"


I recall that there was some discussion and advice not to despair because it is not unusual for 15-20 tyears to be required for Pradeaux to open up into its full glory.

I have one bottle left which I have vowed not to touch until its 20th birthday. I will be interested to see what other opinions you get.

Tim, I finally opened one of the bottles yesterday. I don't know if it was aged in less than idea conditions. The wine had quite a bit of that burned rubber you mentioned and it seemed to be past its prime. This wine was a complete disappointment. I poured it down the drain and opened a 01 Bunan Moulin Des Coste instead. This wasn't a great example of a Bandol, especially compared to basic entry level Tempier. This Bunan was quite loose and a little sweet tasting and came across as a disjointed Mouvedre to me. Not a good night of Bandols for me and just goes to show you can't go wrong with a Tempier.

Bryan

Thanks for that, Bryan. When I open my last bottle, I'll make sure that I have something reliable in reserve.