WTN: 1990 Right Bank at Public

Summer offlines can be hard to organize, but Matt got together a nice list for a 1990 Right Bank offline last night. But some last minute cancels put us down to 5 from 8, but 5 quality guys (well, 4 plus me). After a slow subway ride I arrived slightly late at Public on Elizabeth, but a couple of others came in shortly after, so I didn't feel bad.

Nice round table, good service, I started with a pigs head and foie gras terrine with a frisee salad, and then had venison loin (good, though a bit overdrenched in pesto). We shared the British Isles and Spain cheese platters to finish.

Opener (thanks Matt) was the 2005 Nicolas Joly Clos de la Bergerie. My initial impression was fairly positive- somewhat dense/heavy, but good acids, pine and a bit of Riesling-petrol on nose, but fairly refreshing. Nice, but I'd rather drink Closel at half the price. I have to say I really hated it on a revisit, maybe too warm, but at that point it seemed all alcohol and VA. B when opened, D on revisit.

On to the reds (not blind)

1990 La Fleur de Gay (Pomerol)
Red plum,black cherry, a little tobacco, with a slightly unusual (but not unpleasant) iodine edge on end. Good, not overripe, mature. B+

1990 Pavie (St Emilion)
Medium bodied, subdued red fruit, cedar, slightly tacky tannins on backend. Still, quite a pleasant mature claret, if not in a opulent 90 style. Maybe if there was a middle ground between this and the modern Perse Pavies... B/B+

1990 Magdelaine (St Emilion)
For one sec I thought this corked, but it blew away. Medium to full bodied, cassis and ripe cherries, leather, earth. Good length, still some tannins. B+/A-

1990 Clinet (Pomerol)
Big, classic ripe Pomerol, velvety texture, ripe dark fruit, pencil shavings. Nice length, my WOTN. A-

1990 Le Bon Pasteur (Pomerol)
I think I liked less than table. I liked bottles of this 3 and 5 years ago, but to me this is beginning to start the slide. Ripe round fruit, but the tobacco is beginning to turn to ashtray, and the coffee edge turning bitter. Still pleasant, but I'd drink sooner than later. B

To finish, the 1990 de Malle from 375. Fairly advanced color. First pour was too warm, after making a slurry in icebucket it improved. Good acidity for '90 Sauternes, flavors of orange peel, caramel, and apricot, good but not great length. Drink up, at least from half. B+/B

Fun night. Personally I see no reason to wait for any of these (including Sauternes), though I'm sure the Clinet and Magdelaine can coast for a while. Thanks to Matt for organizing and the gang for good company and wines.

Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent wine, B a good wine, C mediocre. Anything below C means I wouldn't drink at a party where it was only choice. Furthermore, I offer no promises of objectivity, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency.  

Edited for incorrect article and a missing S

Thanks for the notes Dale. I'll post some of mine soon.

1990 BORDEAUX RIGHT BANK - Public Restaurant, NYC (7/19/2010)

• 2005 Nicolas Joly Savennières Roche aux Moines Clos de la Bergerie - France, Loire Valley, Anjou-Saumur, Savennières Roche aux Moines
  Waxy, broad and relatively heavy for Chenin Blanc. Long finish with a citric acid bite. Smooth. Expansive with a hot finish and a little chemical. Bright but weighty. As my first Joly I found this better than I feared it might be, but not worth the money as there are better wines for far less money easily available from the region.
  B

• 1990 Château La Fleur de Gay - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Pomerol
  Warm with a nice sweetness and a smokey edge. Mature, ready to drink. I like this.
  A-
• 1990 Château Pavie - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
  Angular and a bit tight. Coffee, smoke, fine tannins, a bit of iodine. Some green veg notes. Long tacky tannin finish with a bit of chemical.
  B
• 1990 Château Magdelaine - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru
  Round, broad with a bit of sweetness. Solid, well built, cohesive. Very nice.
  A-
• 1990 Château Clinet - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Pomerol
  Sweet almost syrupy with lots of espresso. Dense with a long strong finish. A bit of chemical. Good but not my favorite.
  B+/A-
• 1990 Château Le Bon Pasteur - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Pomerol
  Barnyard nose. Broad, sweet, warm. Candied and a bit overdone. Dark notes. Two dimensional, easy drinking. Probably on the way down.
  B/B+

• 1990 Château de Malle - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes
  Sweet, full, smooth. Not the most complex, but friendly, mature and tasty.
  B++

Clinet was the overwhelming WOTN (everyone but me), Magdelaine and La Fleur de Gay were close for 2nd and 3rd, then Bon Pasteur.

thanks Matt. We're on the same page on these, though we differ slightly in particulars. Thanks again for doing the organizing.

I will have to renege on my earlier post regarding my TNs. Aaaaah, what do we do without the latest technology - I failed to save the notes that I was taking down in my iPhone.
Thanks to Matt and Dale for the TNs which I will be perusing for future references.
Also, my thanks to Matt for organizing the event. A nice little gathering with a fun group.

Well as I recall your top wine was Clinet and third was Bon Pasteur.

My vote, in this order was:
1. Clinet
2. LF de Gay
3. Le Bon Pasteur
4. Magdelaine
5. Pavie

Easy to remember with the 5 wines.

Special mention on the 1990 Ch. de Malle. I liked it. Thanks Dale.
I concur with both your assesment on the Joly Clos de Bergerie. It's the only note that was retained in my iphone as I saved it right after jotting down first wine, but did not save after jotting the rest of the flights. I found lots of mineral and some liquerish notes. Medicinal notes, too. But theres something inthe structure that still got me drinking it. Rated it as B. Thanks for bringing it , Matt.

**************************************************************************************************************

Almost a month later, and I find my notes incorrectly buried in the wrong folder in my iPhone. Fwiw, here they are:

1990 Bordeaux: Right Bank only
Public Restaurant, NYC
07/19/2010

This was part deux of 2-tasting series organized by Matt. The first was the “Left Bank Only” tasting that occurred about 2 months ago at Braeburn.

A relatively smaller group this time around, as only 5 of us made a go at this tasting on a usually-difficult-to-gather month of July (and August). Nevertheless, it was an enjoyable tasting with a great group of guys.

The white:
2005 Nicolas Joly Clos de la Bergerie, Loire Valley
I was told that this producer preaches and practices biodynamic methods (just pointing this out as I’d really not know how different his wines would be if he was not practicing). Greyish gold in color. Lots of mineral and some liquerish notes. Medicinal notes, too. But theres something in the structure that still got me drinking it. B. Thanks to Matt for bringing.


The reds:

1990 Ch. La Fleur de Gay, PomerolGenerally red in color with some brick hues, especially nearer to the rim. Terrific bouquet with cigar and leather. Ripe but with restrained sweetness, blueberries, silky mouth-feel. The taste belies the somewhat advanced color of the wine. Finesse all-around and nicely balanced. A-

1990 Ch. Pavie, Saint-Emilion
Sweet fruit and confection on the nose, some wood and leather notes. Sweet tannin, some cherries, acidity, but somehow lacking or having thin fruit. Detected slight green near the finish. B

1990 Ch. Magdelaine, Saint-Emilion
A very dark wine. Smelled wood and the slightest of VA, but not nearly intrusive nor overpowering. High in acidity, a most Left Bank kind of wine, medium-bodied, stern and rigid in structure but nicely so. Restrained on the ripeness than the other wines. B+

1990 Ch. Le Bon Pasteur, Pomerol
Whiff of some fresh baked confection. I’ve had multiple experiences with this wine and all were positive. No exception here. Sweet, with just the slight bitterness that I kinda liked. Consistently pleasing, nothing spectacular, but a solid LBP. B+

1990 Ch. Clinet, Pomerol
Finesse, elegance and power. Excellent level of acidity, pleasing balance, red and black fruit and the structure appears to offer a long-window of pleasurable drinking. My WOTN. A

Dessert:
1990 Ch. De Malle, Sauternes
A good sauternes and fitting one to drink after the reds. Wood, lively nose with sweet confection and slight citrus notes. Nutty and sweet on the palate. Some nice hard candy. B+