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Flight 4 , wine 2. This was quite a difficult wine to read at first , again quite closed , mineral and tobacco edged . Dark fruits. On the palate rounder than expected , good richness and balance , dark cherry , blackberry fruit . Good rounded tannin and ok length . Quite obviously Bordeaux in the context of this tasting , though I had this as the Lynch Bages 1982 when it was actually the Brane Cantenac 1986 …..I give up ! 90
This was an interesting , though challenging tasting , all served blind in flights of 2 wines , 3 flights of 1 Napa and 1 Bordeaux and 1 of 2 Bordeaux; served in a random sequence . The fact that at least a couple of wines were not pristine didn’t help , though if you will taste 8 , 40 year old wines that is probably par for the course . I found it relatively easy to spot whether what was in the glass was Napa or Bordeaux but didn’t actually get a single wine completely correct ! Probably overall the winner of the tasting was Napa (won the 3 rounds 2-1) as they had more suave polished , rounded personalities. Many put the wines the wrong way round , imagining that Napa was Bordeaux etc. The 1982s in general showed poorly too much funk and brett on the Lynch and Talbot but the Duhart showed surprisingly well . The 86s both showed pretty well and equalled the Dominus (even though I didn’t think we had a pristine bottle) . The Montelena was enjoyable , though was the first to oxidise whilst the Inglenook was the biggest positive surprise , still drinking surprisingly well at 47 . — 2 months ago
It had classic Chenin telltales—hints of honey on citrus and apples with ripping acidity. Literally, the only physical note I made was simply, “I love Chenin.” — 10 months ago
Pings your nostrils with sequence of subtle vibrations at hummingbird frequency. Lime, orange blossom, burnt match. Then a slow slip into my absolute favorite honeyed dimension. I love when honey shows up - it's one of my favorite notes in wine. Here it changes the direction from steely stern face to a textured viscous warm smirk. — 3 years ago
Lived up to the hype. Really expressive with flavors arriving in sequence like an orchestra of fruits. Subtle enough not to overwhelm though. Shame the owner was unavailable to partake, but they had a good reason. — 5 years ago
Dark ruby color with an earthy spice aroma sequence: clove, thyme, black tea. Good red fruit flavors of pomegranate, cherry, and strawberry. Leans more fruit than earth. Good strong tannins but not overpowering. Medium acidity. Really refreshing. — a year ago
Andrew Cullimore
Flight 4 , wine 2. This was quite a difficult wine to read at first , again quite closed , mineral and tobacco edged . Dark fruits. On the palate rounder than expected , good richness and balance , dark cherry , blackberry fruit . Good rounded tannin and ok length . Quite obviously Bordeaux in the context of this tasting , though I had this as the Lynch Bages 1982 when it was actually the Brane Cantenac 1986 …..I give up ! 90
This was an interesting , though challenging tasting , all served blind in flights of 2 wines , 3 flights of 1 Napa and 1 Bordeaux and 1 of 2 Bordeaux; served in a random sequence . The fact that at least a couple of wines were not pristine didn’t help , though if you will taste 8 , 40 year old wines that is probably par for the course . I found it relatively easy to spot whether what was in the glass was Napa or Bordeaux but didn’t actually get a single wine completely correct ! Probably overall the winner of the tasting was Napa (won the 3 rounds 2-1) as they had more suave polished , rounded personalities. Many put the wines the wrong way round , imagining that Napa was Bordeaux etc. The 1982s in general showed poorly too much funk and brett on the Lynch and Talbot but the Duhart showed surprisingly well . The 86s both showed pretty well and equalled the Dominus (even though I didn’t think we had a pristine bottle) . The Montelena was enjoyable , though was the first to oxidise whilst the Inglenook was the biggest positive surprise , still drinking surprisingly well at 47 . — 2 months ago