WTN: 1938 Pommard , Clos de Epeneaux, A Bichot

I am very curious on how a 73 year old performs today. Bought 4 btls at a very attractive price.

1938 Pommard , Clos des Epeneaux, A Bichot

Probably originally owned by Bichot but later sold to Comte Armand. Low shoulder , with lots of deposits, at year 73, it is still alive and kickin! Open up with a oaky nose with no lack of barnyard, undergrowth, and red fruit, minty and with good uplift which is lively, not at all an old wine nose! In the palate, it is full bodied, with richness . It has loads of red fruit acidity , tannin is there, tamed and hiding behind the acidity with a hint of creaminess. Finish is quite long, after the acidity subside, tannin kicks in caressing the mid palate ! Acidity is on the high side which demands it to pair with food. As for the rating, there is no point to rate , it is an experience that no score can represent!

Not bad at all.

Did you have this with a meal? What dish(es)?

Fascinating. 1938 is my birth year and, because it has such a rotten reputation for European wine, I have never gone along with seeking the wines of this vinatge. It seems as if I may have been wrong to make such a blanket rejection.

To be honest , my wine merchant sent me a clearance list, with a lot of uninteresting stuff and this particular one caught my eye and I placed the order and double confirm it to see if they were 1988. Got a reply that it's a 1938! Not a typo at all. And the price was ridiculously cheap and the condition was actually not bad at all given the age. It was wery drinkable and the nose is clean with a lot uplift behind the barnyard, better with roast pork belly and soy sauce chicken. The acidity got higher and higher after open up before it's dominates the whole palate and deemed not drinkable in three hours or so. But still an experience!

Tim,
If you can find one at a reasonable price, give it a try!

cheers,
Eric

better with roast pork belly and soy sauce chicken.

That's right, you have a whole other culinary repertoire in Asia. I can sort of see the soy sauce working, since I often get soy sauce flavors in aged wines that are losing their fruit. But it could also accentuate that aspect too much.

Either way, sounds like a good time.