I don't have a lot of experience with Bordeaux and how they age so take my notes here with a grain of salt, but it was really interesting to observe how much different the '05 was than the '88s.
I wonder if the '05 Lascombes will take on any of the aged characteristics that I associate with older bordeaux (and saw in spades with the '88s) or if we are dealing with a different animal here....
1993 Kerpen Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese ***
Oh, I like this. Dark golden yellow in the glass, beautifully fragrant nose of dark orchard fruits seamlessly melded with a background layer of diesel (the good german riesling diesel). Great on the palate, viscous mouthcoating flavors with a great spine of vibrant acidity carrying everything through to the long finish. Mostly decaying fruits in the mouth, but there's still a bit of bright green apple hiding in the background suggesting this wine can see a few more years in the cellar before it heads off into the sunset. Not sure how sweet this was on release, but it’s mostly gone now. I usually like my German riesling young, with 7-10 years of bottle age, but this provides a compelling reason to keep some stashed away for the long haul.
2007 Schäfer-Fröhlich Bockenauer Felseneck Riesling Spätlese
This is a good wine, a very good wine. If you like your Spats young and sweet then drink away. Everything is very well integrated and delicate... really nice fruit and a beautiful backbone of acidity that lurks in the background but doesn't pierce through the palate like some of the Mosel wines do... it does it in a more caressing way that I am really enjoying. Some might say it “dances” on the palate. This is just so well put together and balanced, this is going to be fantastic after some bottle age. A definite buy.
2008 Hexamer Meddersheimer Rheingrafenberg Riesling Quarzit
What a nice “little” wine. Very nice, aromatice nose, a little spritz, great cut and delineation with just a touch of sweetness... an excellent wine to drink on the porch on a spring evening. Would buy again in a heartbeat at the price. My love affair with the '08 vintage continues.
2001 Kistler Chardonnay Cuvée Cathleen
Well here we go now. Wow. This is what cali chard should aspire to be. Like a great chassagne or puligny with more opulence and less minerality... it's not trying to be burgundy and it shouldn't try to be burgundy, but qualitatively this is right up there with some of the best 1er crus I've had. With the opulence and ripeness of fruit, I don't think I would have a problem picking this out as a cali chard in a blind tasting and that's a good thing in my mind. Just a great representative sample of what California chardonnay can achieve. Oak treatment seems to have integrated well (although you know it's seen oak), good alcohol levels and a nice streak of acidity behind the opulence that will keep this chugging along in the cellar. No reason not to drink now though. I like this a lot.
1988 Château Latour Grand Vin
This was young, but starting to show secondary development. Cedar & pine on the nose maybe even a little vegetal (in a good way), huge cedar and cigar box on the palate, bright opulent red fruits running beneath it all. Very regal, unmistakably bordeaux, what a treat to taste such a wine (although I'm still sticking with burgundy). Needs more time in the cellar for sure.
1988 Château Haut-Brion
Compared to the '88 Latour, this had more depth and was more wild and penetrating. Dark on the nose, super concentrated with strong pine/eucalyptus aromas. Powerful and opulent on the palate, lead pencil , cedar, cigar box and a beautiful wild streak of dark fruits running through it. This is just a baby, but unmistakably bordeaux. I don’t know much about Bordeaux but I like this. If you start getting into the cost vs. benefits discussion on these wines though… well that’s another story for another time.
2005 Château Lascombes
Very dark, very rich wine. Strong dark coffee and fruit aromas on the nose, deep and almost viscous on the palate. Very primary but drinking well now. This is a well made wine, but compared to the (admittedly small) sampling of older bordeaux that I’ve, I would have more trouble nailing this as bordeaux and that's a problem for me. Could easily be mistaken for a leaner cali bordeaux blend. If you care, this seems to be a prime example of the so called “parkerization” of wine. A tasty, technically correct bottle of wine that to me, doesn't represent the unique intersection of place and time that I think all good wine should.