WTN: anticipation

Our little bottles sit in the cellar are like siren calls, trying to seduce us into opening a bottle too early. Luckily, I didn't heed the seductive call to the corkscrew on this wine. After 21 years, I thought it time to wrestle from slumber a 1989 Jaboulet Hermitage 'La Chapelle'. Upon opening, the first thing I notice is how the aromas are flying out of the bottle neck. This is going to be good. Color a still youthful medium-cherry red, no maroon or orange to speak of. Beautiful, full aromas of meaty beef blood and iron, this is as masculine in the mouth as it smells, besides the blood and iron, there is a high-toned savory aspect to the finish, where the tannins clamp down like an old leather-bound book would, as a gentle poompf instead of strangling the tongue as a more youthful wine would. The finish is in the between stage when the power of young fruit fades but before it morphs into a whisper of advanced age. Drinking oh-so well. Nice. A

Great note. Glad it showed so well, it's rare when an older wine is opened and happens to be right in between that wonderful stage between youth and advanced age, but it's always fantastic when it happens. That sort of thing may make it easier for me to not pull corks like mad on things like 01 German Rieslings.

Hi Mark -

Thanks for the nicely written description of this wine. Sounds like a great experience!

"the first thing I notice is how the aromas are flying out of the bottle neck"

Surely this is a wine for Halloween then?

Alex R.

Great note, Mark. Yes, those older N Rhone Syrahs are a joy that's hard to duplicate. Alas, I drank my '80s Chaves too young as I've learned only after their demise. Fortunately, I kept hold of some Verset and Clape Cornas from that era to confirm my conclusion.

Mark Lipton

You've written the answer for the question "why we do what we do with wines " nice and thanks!