WTN: 2007 Bordeaux tasting

As Bordeaux lovers are already aware, on Friday and Saturday, at the Four Seasons restaurant in Manhattan, the Union Des Grands Crus de Bordeaux held Le Weekend Des Grands Amateurs of the 2007 Vintage tasting.

Eighty four properties somehow brought their offerings to the restaurant with, hopefully, minimal bottle shock for a few hundred fans to, actually, drink, rather than just get a hint of. The pours in Riedel glasses! were about the size I would pour for myself, and you could go back for seconds, or thirds, if you wanted to. I drank 45 samplings before Jiminy Cricket told me I should probably call it a night, even though there were several favorite properties left that I would have loved to have tried.

I was also dragging around a hurkey leg brace from a snowshoe accident repair. I ran into a comely lady with the same thing. I asked her if she had done it skiing. She reported that hers was not nearly as romantic; she had blitzed it jumping into a subway car.

I was especially anticipatory over this event because I have been waiting to try the 2007s for three years, ever since I read that they might resemble the 1997s in style and early drinking amenability. I won’t this time wax ebulliently about the vintage, like I did the last time, because there are so few people who share my passion for this particular style of Bordeaux that it would be a waste of everybody’s time. For the two or three folks that might relate to the descriptor, sexy, I will say that the 2007s outdid the 1997s, and the only starlet’s body parts I will evoke are Scarlett Johansson lips.

Many bouquets were already well developed; although they of course might change with time. If the marcs weren’t extracted properly, green and dry tannins marred finishes. On the flip side, a certain loosey-goosey diluteness marred some middles. The season was, as we know, inconsistent: cold and wet at times with a warm and adequately dry September and early October pulling it from the jaws of obliteration. This type of season, however, as was also the case in 1997, creates fetching, altogether unique, flavors. (For anyone who doesn’t agree with this consideration is as right as I am; there is no accounting for taste.) I smelled aromas and tasted flavors that were wholly different than any others I have ever encountered in another vintage. The flavors were not the same as in 1997, but different from the norms in a very similar and wonderful (to me) way.

The various regions managed the grapes differently. Pessac Leognan did by far the best job of not over-extracting skins and pips so as to overpower the somewhat under-ripe fruit, both phenolically and sugar-wise. These Graves wines were delicately and perfectly balanced. I have no pedigree to be so certain with this asseveration, but I will not shy from it. In the Medoc, only Margaux seemed to reach perfection from what they worked from. On the Right Bank, Pomerol – although St-Emilion’s Fegiac could vie with Margaux’s Rauzon Segla and Lascombes; Pessac’s Chevalier and Smith-Haut Lafitte; and Pomerol’s Clinet for WOTN. If Pichon Laland’s body catches up with its nose, it will be in the running. There were (and usually are) exceptions to all rules of thumb.

Speaking of noses and bodies, many of the bouquets effused wonderful combinations of flowers, perfume and earth along with ineffable other influences for which I have no comparators. Bodies were especially (and unexpectedly, to me) mouth caressing. And there was considerable sweetness, presumably from new oak on such babies, and possibly alcohols (other than ethanol), which might be quickly reacted out, and maybe glycerin?

As anyone who did not attend can probably imagine, the Four Seasons Restaurant is not a dingy atmosphere for such an event. And the beauty of having to pay to sample wines swept the throng of walk-ins who would just as soon drink Eucharist or Italian table wine if it were abundant and free. This, with having the actual property owners there, faces that you see all the time in Decanter, to talk with added to the Bordeaux experience.

God and global warming blessed the event by providing a Ft Lauderdale temperature to stagger into the night with. I had only to walk a block and a half to my room, and had not brought a coat, which would have put too much friction on my elbow. I took only one indulgence in the short trek back - into a diner to order two half-pound hamburgers with freedom-fries and coleslaw. The best dinner I ever had in New York.

you are certainly describing the wines i tasted yesterday in chicago. i spent a lot of time in the graves/pessac section because the wine deserved it. the whites lived up to their high reputation and the reds were just plain charming - though my own favorite was the haut bailly. as i said in another post, i just got back and will try to give some more impressions of the vintage and of individual wines. these i certainly restaurant wines; but they will also find their way into my cellar. i've never enjoyed a tasting of young red wines as much as i enjoyed this one.

I had the pleasure of attending this tasting in Atlanta and have not had time to post my notes. Covert, you did such a nice job overall that I will not try to compete. You are right on about the owners being there. I was overwhelmed and humbled by their presence. These are some hard working dedicated folks. And I would agree that the wines were almost exciting, but remember, we were tasting from the upper crust. Obviously a problematic vintage, but these big guys had the wherewith all to persevere and apply preventive measures. Pessac was my favorite as well (my scores follow each wine, scores are relative and probably higher than the wines will ultimately shake-out).
Starting with the Pessac whites: The ones that stood-out for me were Latour-Martillac (91), Malartic-Lagraviere (91), Olivier (91) and Smith Haut-Lafitte (91). These were solid wines and seemed to avoid most of the weather problems.
The red from Pessac were partidularly inviting, particularly Haut Bailly (93), Haut-Bergey (94), and Larrivet-Haut-Brion (95). I liked Oliver (93) and Malartic-Graviere (92) too!. Of the others I was fond of Angelus (92), Canon (93), Canon-La-Graffeliere (94), La Tour Figeac (92). Moving on to the left bank, the Cantemerle was decent (89), Forcas Hosten (89) with their new owners and Greysac (88), and La Tour de By (89) will be good values. In Margaux Cantenac-Brown (91) stood out as did Ferriere (91) and Giscours (91), though Du Tertre (92) jumped from the glass. Will it be able to maintain that liveliness? Giscours seemed to have a little more elegance and depth. Labegorce (92) had a nice finish, and Lascombes (92) was almost over-extracted, but we will see how it turns out. Rauzan-Segla (94) was the class of the commune!
On to St.-Jullien: Branaire-Cucru (94) showed some nice structure and Gruaud-Larose (93), Lagrange (92), and Leoville Poyferre (93) will all be quality early drinking wines. Talbot (92) was above average. In Pauillac, Clerc Milon (92), Batailley (92), D'Armailhac (91), Grand-Puy Ducasse (90), Haut-Bages Liberal (93), Lynch-Bages (91), and Lynch Moussas (91) showed interesting wines, and to my palate, Pichon Lalande (94) clearly leading this commune, while Pontet-Canet (93) pulled a close second.
In St-Estephe we had a good showing from De Pez (92), Lafon-Rochet (91) and Ormes de Pez (92).
Wrapping up (with some Stilton cheese) were a nice selection of Sauternes. I liked Bastor Lamontagne (90), Coutet (91), De Fargues (92), De Rayne (93), Doisy-Daene (92), Guiraud (94), La Tour Blanche (93), Lafaurie-Peyraguey (94), and Sigalas-Rabaud (94).
Bear in mind that the Union des Grand Cru de Bordeaux only has about 90 members (no first growths) but a good representation of Bordeaux producers. I think I tasted close to 90 wines in four hours, with no adverse effects.
A wonderful tasting, and so well laid out, and like Covert said, having the owners there really made it special!
Well done!

you are certainly describing the wines i tasted yesterday in chicago. i spent a lot of time in the graves/pessac section because the wine deserved it. the whites lived up to their high reputation and the reds were just plain charming - though my own favorite was the haut bailly. as i said in another post, i just got back and will try to give some more impressions of the vintage and of individual wines. these i certainly restaurant wines; but they will also find their way into my cellar. i've never enjoyed a tasting of young red wines as much as i enjoyed this one.

I’m glad you enjoyed the young wines, too, David. It will be fun to track their development over the ten years, or however long they hold up. The tasting provided a wealth of candidates for purchase, with only a few, really, that I decided to stay away from because of their lack of focus or harshness on the finish. But I will try a couple of these, too, after a few years to see where they ended up.

Prices for the 1997s remained high, even with so many critics dusting them off as pretty, picnic wines but not worth paying much attention to. A couple of the property owners I spoke with said the 2007s would offer bargains. We’ll see, but the Chinese are not in a recession like much of the western world is, and they are more and more getting interested in the region, with their large population. They could affect demand.

I had the pleasure of attending this tasting in Atlanta and have not had time to post my notes. Covert, you did such a nice job overall that I will not try to compete. You are right on about the owners being there. I was overwhelmed and humbled by their presence. These are some hard working dedicated folks. And I would agree that the wines were almost exciting, but remember, we were tasting from the upper crust. Obviously a problematic vintage, but these big guys had the wherewith all to persevere and apply preventive measures. Pessac was my favorite as well (my scores follow each wine, scores are relative and probably higher than the wines will ultimately shake-out).
Starting with the Pessac whites: The ones that stood-out for me were Latour-Martillac (91), Malartic-Lagraviere (91), Olivier (91) and Smith Haut-Lafitte (91). These were solid wines and seemed to avoid most of the weather problems.
The red from Pessac were partidularly inviting, particularly Haut Bailly (93), Haut-Bergey (94), and Larrivet-Haut-Brion (95). I liked Oliver (93) and Malartic-Graviere (92) too!. Of the others I was fond of Angelus (92), Canon (93), Canon-La-Graffeliere (94), La Tour Figeac (92). Moving on to the left bank, the Cantemerle was decent (89), Forcas Hosten (89) with their new owners and Greysac (88), and La Tour de By (89) will be good values. In Margaux Cantenac-Brown (91) stood out as did Ferriere (91) and Giscours (91), though Du Tertre (92) jumped from the glass. Will it be able to maintain that liveliness? Giscours seemed to have a little more elegance and depth. Labegorce (92) had a nice finish, and Lascombes (92) was almost over-extracted, but we will see how it turns out. Rauzan-Segla (94) was the class of the commune!
On to St.-Jullien: Branaire-Cucru (94) showed some nice structure and Gruaud-Larose (93), Lagrange (92), and Leoville Poyferre (93) will all be quality early drinking wines. Talbot (92) was above average. In Pauillac, Clerc Milon (92), Batailley (92), D'Armailhac (91), Grand-Puy Ducasse (90), Haut-Bages Liberal (93), Lynch-Bages (91), and Lynch Moussas (91) showed interesting wines, and to my palate, Pichon Lalande (94) clearly leading this commune, while Pontet-Canet (93) pulled a close second.
In St-Estephe we had a good showing from De Pez (92), Lafon-Rochet (91) and Ormes de Pez (92).
Wrapping up (with some Stilton cheese) were a nice selection of Sauternes. I liked Bastor Lamontagne (90), Coutet (91), De Fargues (92), De Rayne (93), Doisy-Daene (92), Guiraud (94), La Tour Blanche (93), Lafaurie-Peyraguey (94), and Sigalas-Rabaud (94).
Bear in mind that the Union des Grand Cru de Bordeaux only has about 90 members (no first growths) but a good representation of Bordeaux producers. I think I tasted close to 90 wines in four hours, with no adverse effects.
A wonderful tasting, and so well laid out, and like Covert said, having the owners there really made it special!
Well done!

Wow, Richard, 90!? When you didn’t mention spitting, I trust that you just took just one or two sips per sample. I heard that many of the whites, including the Sauternes, were spectacular, but I just didn’t find the capacity to drink them too; so, I didn’t even sample one for fear that, like potato chips, I wouldn’t be able to stop with one.

I wouldn’t call the 2007 reds exciting if I were comparing them on classical scales against the great years; but when I consider the unique, very pleasant - even beguiling - tastes that rollercoaster seasons like 1997 and 2007 produce, they were exciting to me in that context. I agreed with most, if not all, of your picks; even though a couple of them have already been treated harshly by pundits. Olivier for example. One thing I should have maybe clarified is what I mean by loosey-goosey is lack of focus, which a few, Carbonnieux for one, evidenced. And on the positive side I kind of implied but did not say outright that very young Bordeaux, which are also accessible, like these are, present a freshness that no other wine region I am aware of can provide.

All in all I am so happy that these reds taste so good and will be very soon, or already are, accessible. I am still sitting on many long agers in my cellar and sometimes desire a bottle that is fresh and at the same time perfect for right now, rather than drink one that is accessible but still promises further improvement, so that I get the sense that I am compromising.

We were definitely spitting. Got through all of the wines just fine. By far the most I've ever tasted in one session. I did "inhale" a few of the Sauternes, and we took a bottle of the Branaire-Ducru to dinner at a nice French restaurant (Cafe Babbet) and enjoyed with cassoulet. I did sleep well.

We were definitely spitting. Got through all of the wines just fine. By far the most I've ever tasted in one session. I did "inhale" a few of the Sauternes, and we took a bottle of the Branaire-Ducru to dinner at a nice French restaurant (Cafe Babbet) and enjoyed with cassoulet. I did sleep well.

Well then, I guess I still hold the record at 45. I even drained the pours I liked. And, other than suffering a lower IQ the next day, which I am used to, I felt absolutely fine the next morning, maybe even better than usual. Fine Bordeaux is sooo digestible.

Branaire is one of my perennial favorites, and one I missed trying at the event. Because I really couldn't justify drinking more at dinner, I forwent fine dining, which I enjoy second only to Bordeaux. Sounds like you had a great time.