WTN: Chateau Margaux plus two other Bdx's

[Jenise]

Yesterday morning, upon spying a really pretty small prime rib roast just right for two, I decided to make last night's dinner a celebration event celebrating: absolutely nothing! And I had just the wine, an 88 Chateau Margaux that various reports on CellarTracker seem to peg as having begun it's slow downhill descent. I'm especially grateful to one poster who found that his bottle hit its zenith between the 2nd and 3rd hour after decanting so I scheduled our meal accordingly. He was right.

First off, sediment: virtually none. Color a warm, maturing red. With a slightly better nose than palate, there were some flowers though not quite the distinct Margaux perfume, cedar, tobacco, tea, roses, and old books. Very satisfying during our first hour with it (it's third hour), but less so during the second when the fruit dropped out and the finish became astringent. If I'd realized we'd dawdle so long over I probably would have moved the schedule back an hour, but without CellarTracker it wouldn't have worked out this good so big kisses to NicholasHollandPark (whoever you are) and Eric Levine.

Last week we had friends over for dinner and served a 95 Haut Marbuzet and 98 Lafon Rochet side by side with the main course. The Lafon Rochet, which I've mentioned in other tasting notes, is in a really great place right now. Mature and open with a great nose and palate: everything in balance. The Haut Marbuzet, however, was well past that and at the end of it's life (not surprising) with some fruit but virtually no tannins and very little acid to lift the palate. But it more than made up for that deficit with it's voluptuous, sensuous nose. A little wine like that could make no finer exit from this world, and for that I enjoyed it even more than the Lafon.

A wine like Margaux alone makes it an occasion. But to be able to do that on a weeknight. I'm quite jealous . . . .

Very nice Jenise. I'm glad the Margaux showed well - such a rare treat these days to be able to enjoy a wine like that at a dinner table quietly (the sole purpose for first and top second growths seems to be either to be opened at huge wine dinners these days, or destined for the auction market with the way the prices have shifted).

Certainly sounds like a much better experience than either of mine with 88 Mgx.

Yesterday morning, upon spying a really pretty small prime rib roast just right for two, I decided to make last night's dinner a celebration event celebrating: absolutely nothing! And I had just the wine, an 88 Chateau Margaux that various reports on CellarTracker seem to peg as having begun it's slow downhill descent. I'm especially grateful to one poster who found that his bottle hit its zenith between the 2nd and 3rd hour after decanting so I scheduled our meal accordingly. He was right.

First off, sediment: virtually none. Color a warm, maturing red. With a slightly better nose than palate, there were some flowers though not quite the distinct Margaux perfume, cedar, tobacco, tea, roses, and old books. Very satisfying during our first hour with it (it's third hour), but less so during the second, when the fruit dropped out and the finish became astringent. If I'd realized we'd dawdle so I'd have moved the schedule back an hour, but without CellarTracker it wouldn't have worked out this good so big kisses to NicholasHollandPark (whoever you are) and Eric Levine.

Last week we had friends over for dinner and served a 95 Haut Marbuzet and 98 Lafon Rochet side by side with the main course. The Lafon Rochet, which I've mentioned in other tasting notes, is in a really great place right now. Mature and open with a great nose and palate: everything in balance. The Haut Marbuzet, however, was well past that and at the end of it's life (not surprising) with some fruit but virtually no tannins and very little acid to lift the palate. But it more than made up for that deficit with it's voluptuous, sensuous nose. A little wine like that could make no finer exit from this world, and for that I enjoyed it even more than the Lafon.

Gosh, Jenise, an old Margaux without perfume! It sounds like it just wasn't up to sniff. So sad, but I know you enjoyed it for what it was.

Too bad the Haut Marbuzet wasn't a 1996. Loved one recently. Bordeaux seems to be crapping out early these days. Bring back the stems? The old roots? I can see (in my mind's eye) my '98 Lafon Rochet resting in the lower left bottom corner of my camp cooler. Now I know what to have for Thanksgiving! The turkey dinner would trump a fabled bottle, so something like LR would be beautiful.

[Jenise]

Very nice Jenise. I'm glad the Margaux showed well - such a rare treat these days to be able to enjoy a wine like that at a dinner table quietly [instead of a] huge wine dinners

That's exactly why I did it. Actually, we can blame Anders. There he was in chat on Sunday talking about some amazing wines he'd just had, and I asked him what he was celebrating. As I typed the words, my brain went "And why does there always have to be a special occasion? Why isn't just being together and surviving all the crap that's going on in the world enough?" Last night's dinner was my way of answering that question: it IS enough.

[Jenise]

Gosh, Jenise, an old Margaux without perfume! It sounds like it just wasn't up to sniff. So sad, but I know you enjoyed it for what it was.

Too bad the Haut Marbuzet wasn't a 1996. Loved one recently. Bordeaux seems to be crapping out early these days. Bring back the stems? The old roots? I can see (in my mind's eye) my '98 Lafon Rochet resting in the lower left bottom corner of my camp cooler. Now I know what to have for Thanksgiving! The turkey dinner would trump a fabled bottle, so something like LR would be beautiful.

Well, I don't drink that many Margauxs! I'm more used to Palmer than Chateau Margaux itself, so that's what I measure by. Btw, I erred in not mentioning the cork condition: saturated, crumbly and ever so slightly protruding. Came out in one piece, but it was hardly pristeen and I was just grateful that the wine was as good as it was.

Yes, LR would make a great Tday Bordeaux.

Gosh, Jenise, an old Margaux without perfume! It sounds like it just wasn't up to sniff. So sad, but I know you enjoyed it for what it was.

Too bad the Haut Marbuzet wasn't a 1996. Loved one recently. Bordeaux seems to be crapping out early these days. Bring back the stems? The old roots? I can see (in my mind's eye) my '98 Lafon Rochet resting in the lower left bottom corner of my camp cooler. Now I know what to have for Thanksgiving! The turkey dinner would trump a fabled bottle, so something like LR would be beautiful.

Well, I don't drink that many Margauxs! I'm more used to Palmer than Chateau Margaux itself, so that's what I measure by. Btw, I erred in not mentioning the cork condition: saturated, crumbly and ever so slightly protruding. Came out in one piece, but it was hardly pristeen and I was just grateful that the wine was as good as it was.

Yes, LR would make a great Tday Bordeaux.

If you can deign to drink just Margaux, rather than Margaux Margaux, there are a whole bunch of absolutely spectacular 2001's drinking magnificently right now. You must have some; and you can buy more. They have all the typicity you could ever want: the perfume, the earth, the elegance, the finesse. I started drinking mine and couldn't quit until I got to my Margaux Margaux, which I will wait a little while for - but not as long as you did with the '88.

[Jenise]

What do you mean, deign. It's not like I'm rolling in first growths! In Margaux, I'm now down to 94, 95 and 98 and I'm actually surprised to realize I have that 95--don't remember buying it. I'll have to sort my list and see what I've got in 2001. I have quite 01's, but I don't make a point of buying evenly across regions or vintages so god knows what I thought sounded like a good idea back when. [sheepish look]

[If you can deign to drink just Margaux, rather than Margaux Margaux, there are a whole bunch of absolutely spectacular 2001's drinking magnificently right now.

Deign or not, I can attest to the wonderful 2001 Margauxs. The '01 Palmer was the WOTN recently and I'm happy to think I have a few more sleeping.

In a blind tasting of 10 top 1999 Haut Médocs, my top 3 picks were, in descending order: Margaux, Latour & Lafite. The Margaux's perfume did it for me.

Best,

N

Jenise,

I did a similar thing last night, plucking a '94 Haut-Bailly from the cellar and opening it to share with my father as we tucked into a nice piece of eye fillet roasted on the folks' new hooded gas BBQ. A "nothing" wine really, but in such a nice place .... it went down a treat.

Jenise,

I did a similar thing last night, plucking a '94 Haut-Bailly from the cellar and opening it to share with my father as we tucked into a nice piece of eye fillet roasted on the folks' new hooded gas BBQ. A "nothing" wine really, but in such a nice place .... it went down a treat.

Glad to hear this, David. I have some bottles buried in a pile but haven't hastened to disinter them because I have been told by a wine pal who has some that Haut-Bailly is a non-performing 94. You encourage me to get one out.

Jenise, there are some very interesting Bordeaux there and having Ch. Margaux is a special treat. Contrary to you, I am a bit surprised that Haut-Marbuzet 95 is showing itself over the hill in that way (BTW, thanks for the linguistic correction the other day). 95s are not usually short of tannins; rather the reverse and sometimes dry tannins. To the extent that the fruit has outlasted the tannins (contrary to my worry with 95s) this is good news but with little acidity the bottle certainly was not in a good place. I agree that 96 definitely seems to be turning out to be the better vintage on the left bank.

[Jenise]

Contrary to you, I am a bit surprised that Haut-Marbuzet 95 is showing itself over the hill in that way (BTW, thanks for the linguistic correction the other day). 95s are not usually short of tannins; rather the reverse and sometimes dry tannins. To the extent that the fruit has outlasted the tannins (contrary to my worry with 95s) this is good news but with little acidity the bottle certainly was not in a good place. I agree that 96 definitely seems to be turning out to be the better vintage on the left bank.

This bottle could have well been in accelerated development; it wasn't that dissimilar if you look further down the curve from an '83 we had about two years ago--there, also an effusive, ethereal nose. I can add that, unlike the Lafon Rochet, I am not its original owner and have no other bottles, so I can offer no insight to the why/what on this bottle if indeed it's aberrant. But I wasn't all that disappointed in it--the low tannin level meant it was not as good with the meal as the Lafon, but it was lovely to sip on afterward.

Contrary to you, I am a bit surprised that Haut-Marbuzet 95 is showing itself over the hill in that way (BTW, thanks for the linguistic correction the other day). 95s are not usually short of tannins; rather the reverse and sometimes dry tannins. To the extent that the fruit has outlasted the tannins (contrary to my worry with 95s) this is good news but with little acidity the bottle certainly was not in a good place. I agree that 96 definitely seems to be turning out to be the better vintage on the left bank.

This bottle could have well been in accelerated development; it wasn't that dissimilar if you look further down the curve from an '83 we had about two years ago--there, also an effusive, ethereal nose. I can add that, unlike the Lafon Rochet, I am not its original owner and have no other bottles, so I can offer no insight to the why/what on this bottle if indeed it's aberrant. But I wasn't all that disappointed in it--the low tannin level meant it was not as good with the meal as the Lafon, but it was lovely to sip on afterward.

Parker also said the '95 was over the hill. Not that his palate is better than ours.

Thanks for the note. I have a half case of the 88 I haven't touched yet - might be time to have a look.

I'd think the wine has another 5 - 10 years in it based on other tasting I've had. You might have got a bottle kept in other than perfect conditions.

Do you have more? I can pull a 78 if you want to do a decade apart vertical some time. Then we need to find someone to bring a 1998 (hint, hint - like your husband....)

Jenise,

I did a similar thing last night, plucking a '94 Haut-Bailly from the cellar and opening it to share with my father as we tucked into a nice piece of eye fillet roasted on the folks' new hooded gas BBQ. A "nothing" wine really, but in such a nice place .... it went down a treat.

Glad to hear this, David. I have some bottles buried in a pile but haven't hastened to disinter them because I have been told by a wine pal who has some that Haut-Bailly is a non-performing 94. You encourage me to get one out.

Jenise, there are some very interesting Bordeaux there and having Ch. Margaux is a special treat. Contrary to you, I am a bit surprised that Haut-Marbuzet 95 is showing itself over the hill in that way (BTW, thanks for the linguistic correction the other day). 95s are not usually short of tannins; rather the reverse and sometimes dry tannins. To the extent that the fruit has outlasted the tannins (contrary to my worry with 95s) this is good news but with little acidity the bottle certainly was not in a good place. I agree that 96 definitely seems to be turning out to be the better vintage on the left bank.

It needs to be drunk in the near term, Tim. My bottle was definitely looking "ready".

[Jenise]

Thanks for the note. I have a half case of the 88 I haven't touched yet - might be time to have a look.

I'd think the wine has another 5 - 10 years in it based on other tasting I've had. You might have got a bottle kept in other than perfect conditions.

Do you have more? I can pull a 78 if you want to do a decade apart vertical some time. Then we need to find someone to bring a 1998 (hint, hint - like your husband....)

The notes on Cellar Tracker are pretty consistent; it did occur to me, however, that this could be a midterm slump vs. the grand finale. With older Bordeaux, it's hard to know exactly, but it was a lot more mature than many of the other 89s and 90s I've had, as well as the 88 Lafite I had not long ago. And no, this was my only bottle. [sad look, considering your offer]

And no, this was my only bottle. [sad look, considering your offer]

Go find another one - it generally isn't super high priced for that vintage, and we can do a thiry year vertical (with only 3 points in it, but it sounds good).

Jenise, it turned out that my lafon Rochet I had in mind was a 2001, I guess I drank my 1998's. The 2001 was very good but a little four-square. And it showed extraordinary purity, which isn't something I lie awake thinking about, though.

Following a hunch from so many 2001 Margaux being so good, I tried a 2001 Cantemerle, which lies close to Margaux, as you know, and it didn't disappoint. Really lovely. Lynn identified it immediately (blind) as a Cantemerle. It had the characteristic earth and delicious sweetness (not a function of sugar, of course). We plan to open our first 2000 Cantemerle next weekend - Lynn insisted on it. I have a full case of those, but only about eight 2001's .