Betsy took David to a college interview today, as they were on their way back I made dinner. Herb-roasted chicken, broccoli, and rice with furikake. Wine was the 1990 Cantemerle (Haut-Medoc). Good color,
seems rather youthful. Tannins are fully resolved, and there are mature notes of leather and tobacco, but the fruit is reasonably lively for a 16 yr old "lesser" wine. The fruit is more red plum than black, and does have a little bit of the roasted notes that can distract in the 1990s. This is not especially deep or complex, but a nice soft Bordeaux. Blind I bet I would have guessed Right Bank (merlot), though label says it is 45% CS, 40% Merlot, 10 % CF, 5 % PV. This isn't a great Bordeaux, but a decent mature Bordeaux with roast chicken isn't a bad way to dine. B/B+
edited to change "cru bourgeois" to "lesser"- I forgot Cantemerle is a 5th!
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.