Joseph Drouhin Beaujolais-Villages 1982
A bit of ullage, but nothing scary for this age; filthy cork, but came out cleanly; the colour seemed excellent.
To put it mildly, the first sniff was not promising: sewage. But just a short while open and the bottle stink disappeared.
It is old, seemed much like a Cantillon Kriek with its elegantly oxidized and lifted aromas of cherry. And with our bookshop group being all beer enthusiasts, this bottle went down very well - probably more so than it would have with more wine-oriented friends.
Where the scent seemed old in a pleasant way (i.e. lovely aromas, but not in any way recognizable as Gamay), the palate was sweetly fruity (still!), pleasantly acidic, low in tannin and gravelly - very Gamay.
For us Kriek-geeks and us lovers of old aromatics, this was an extremely pleasant drop. Thank you Asko.
The Beauty and the Beast (sorry for this unruly employee being in the way):
