Pauillac Red Bordeaux Blend

Tasting Group. My 6th, group 6th. BD distanced tasting @ Corison Winery. Weedy, mint. Leaner and meaner. Relatively fast. Next day: developed a lovely floral perfume. Still hard. One for the ages.

Plums, sour cherry, a bit of bloodiness. Sweet flesh. Per primary but good fun.

@Delectable can you please add the 2003 vintage. I keep getting error message 2000.

It’s a very good night when you have an Allen Brothers Ribcap and an older Pichon Lalande. It is my favorite beef pairing. The 03 is just starting to move into its good phase. I would not open another 03 for at least 5 more years and has another 10 plus years of good drinking ahead.

I decanted it for about 2 1/2...could have used another half hour. Once it was fully open, the body was elegant and the tannins like velvet. The ripe black raspberries & raspberries led the rush onto the palate. Followed by; blackberries, dark cherries and a little strawberries on the long set. Gentle earth of; stones, clay & loamy dry soil, fresh tobacco, graphite, suede style leather, some dark spice, understated baking spices of; vanillin, cinnamon, nutmeg and just a dash of clove. Dark, red, purple & some blue florals. The acidity was excellent. The creamy, velvety, elegant, well balanced in fruit and earth was harmonious wire to wire.

The pairing causes my eyes to roll and let out an mmmmm.

Photos of; Chateau Pichon Lalande, stainless steel tanks, side garden area of the chateau and their barrel room.

Lean but well structured. Young. Opened up nicely over a few hours. Cedar notes. Hint of green pepper.

Rich blueberry and black fruits. Silky and soft tannins. It is similar to the 89 vintage. Seems like the perfect amount of Merlot was blended in here. Huge complex aromas of peppermint, lavender and tea. This bottle is great but not showing as well as the first one I opened. Still remains one of the best wines from Bordeaux/Pauillac. Tasted 4/22/20

Last week was a combo of 4th Friday and Open That Bottle Night on back to back nights. Needless to say, the lineup between both days was full of heavy hitters, so I’m only posting standout bottles.

Fun to try next to a 2000 Talbot. This was decidedly lighter on the mid palate, but much more tannic at the finish. More to the red and black fruit spectrum showing black cherries, raspberries, underripe blackberries alongside lots of herbs, graphite, rose petals and cedar. The palate seems to beg for more time in bottle as it certainly gained power the longer it was open. I’d hold.

Classic bordeaux. Tobacco, dark fruit, some sour notes, leather. Really savory and complex. At a great place now.

Inanely good. Deep mahogany color. still so much beautiful fruit. Perfectly evolved and easy to drink but I wouldn’t hesitate to keep it another 10 years. Absolutely beautiful with finesse for days. Perfect example of lalande. In fact I can’t picture any vintage of this wine drinking better today

This has an intense nose of dark fruit, sour cherry, leather, dried tobacco and an iron-y, bloody intensity. On the palate very savory and dense with real depth and tang and loads of secondary flavors. Long and really interesting. Classic bordeaux- really good.

The 2009 Chateau Pichon Lalande is a thrilling wine to savor at now eleven years of age. Needing a one hour decant to be fully expressive, this glorious Bordeaux opens with a deep core of tar, chocolate covered espresso bean and blackberry compote aromas that take shape in the glass. The dense, chewy mouthfeel is lined with moderate tannins that provide the backbone alongside the bright acidity. Layers of dark fruits are woven together with creosote and shades of Turkish coffee and cassis on this expressive palate — all leading to the exceptional long and inviting finish. Truly sensational now, this beautiful, warm vintage Bordeaux will cellar well for at least another fifteen years. Be sure to give this a long decant if enjoying in its youth. Drink 2020-2040- 95