There were a lot of wines tasted at Vinexpo but a couple stood out. I didn't take tasting notes so these are just some impressions I recall.
As usual, there was a mad scramble to get into the 2007 Bordeaux tasting. Among the Sauternes, Chateau Climens was clearly superior to the others. A couple of the reds exhibited a green note and lacked fruit and concentration for a young wine.
A tasting of Bouchard Burgundies was very good. Practically the whole range of 1er and Grand Cru wines (both red and white) were excellent. I failed to note the vintage we were tasting but it was the latest one so either 2007 or 2008.
Another highlight were the Champagnes of Henriot. Again, the whole range was excellent. A special treat was the top of the line Enchanteleurs 1996 and 1998. Very different Champagnes but both outstanding. The '96 had a bready/yeasty and very slight oxidative quality while the '98 was more fresh.
Speaking of Champagne, I was able to try the wines of Baron-Fuente which is a very small house. The range is quite good but the most interesting was their 100% Pinot Meunier, something that's not too common. A heavier and quite flavorful Champagne.
Easily the highlight of the whole show was the Seppelt 1888 Para Liqueur Port. I only got about a teaspoon full but that was enough. Very dark brown/green. Thick, viscous, even more slow to pour than pancake syrup. While I was expecting something extremely sweet, it wasn't like that at all. There was sweetness but it was gentle and well balanced by acidity. The finish was a little bitter, like burnt sugar. Also, it was incredibly long; the flavor lingering for minutes. We also got to try a younger wine, the 1910 Para Liqueur Port. Notes for this and the 1888 are pretty much the same. We were told that a barrel of port is laid down every year and released when it reaches 100 years old! It loses about 80% of volume in the years when it's aging. We also tried Seppelt's less exalted offerings and they were also very impressive.
As the show was closing I was also able to try a Paul Anheuser Riesling Trockenbeerenauslese Eiswein 1973. I wasn't able to get the village and vineyard name, though. I expressed surprise at the wine's Pradikat as I had never heard of anything like it. It was explained to me the before the German Wine Law was changed in the 80s, Eiswein was required to have grapes of BA or TBA level, if I recall correctly, hence the designation. The fruit on this wine was already fading although it still had good sweetness to it. I felt though that the acidity already had the upper hand and may dominate the wine soon.
, whereas over in Asia you get to see the Grands Crus as well.