Chateau Lynch Bages 1985 Tasting

I was very much looking forward to tasting this wine as it had been recommended to me by a friend who holds it in high regard-in the same league as the legendary 1989, apparently, which I have yet to try. Upon opening the bottle the cork was nice and soft: this was obviously a very well kept bottle of wine. The Lynch Bages’s nose immediately after opening was the unmistakable smell of mature claret with delicious peppery, spicy scents. The wine itself was a beautiful and vibrant garnet red in colour and I also noticed that, surprisingly, this bottle did not throw much sediment at all which is unusual for a wine of this age. Within roughly five minutes of pouring my first glass, the Lynch started to close up which started to rectify itself after fifteen minutes or so. At this point there was not much cedar in either the nose or mouth which was also quite surprising as this is a classic trait of the Pauilliac Appellation of which Lynch Bages is a part. Nevertheless, there were hints of it at times as the wine finally opened up to a lovely spicy palate with strong hints of cassis on the finish.

The balance between acidity and tannins is virtually non-existent and it was very acidic indeed having thrown off its youthful tannins. Should it be consumed right now? I think so! It should also be noted that towards the end of the bottle the wine suddenly changed and became tannic for a few minutes leaving us at Moncharm scratching our heads. This wine needs to be opened, decanted and consumed reasonably quickly as it will not get any better with time.

Although it was not the best bottle of wine I have had (I did not expect it to be) it was certainly a pleasure to drink and a bit of a challenge on the senses at points in the evening-a diversion we all relished.

"The Lynch Bages 1985 was very acidic"

Tasting Notes

Chateau Lynch Bages 1985 bottle (75cl)

Time Opened: 19.20pm

Colour: Garnet Red, slightly starting to show bricking around the rim but it’s so subtle that you would be forgiven for missing it.

Nose: Cassis, mature, peppery

Palate: More pleasant on the palate than the nose, with nuances of spice box leading up to an acidic, cassis finish.

Final Comments:

Although quite a challenge and a pleasure at the same time, it is of my opinion that this Lynch Bages should be consumed  within the next  few years as all of us at Moncharm unanimously agreed that without the tannins the’ 85 would dry out within about  five years. I believe it to be at its peak right now and cannot see it getting any better in the future.

Moncharm Ltd

http://www.moncharm.co.uk/

Moncharm Chateau Pichon Lalande 1982 Tasting

December 25^th 2011

After yet another year working hard in the Moncharm office it was time to relax, and what better way to do that than to enjoy my Christmas dinner of fillet steak (yes, turkey doesn’t go down too well in my house) accompanied with a superb magnum of Pichon Lalande 1982.

This beautiful bottle certainly needs no introduction, with its gold capsule and writing on the label it looks nothing short of majestic, stunning even. The anticipation was high and I literally couldn’t wait to open and decant it. Unfortunately this magnum which had come directly from Bordeaux to Moncharm had at some point or other during its twenty seven year life, been left to stand up for too long as the cork was three quarters of the way down dried out, leaving the top of the cork to perish completely  at the wrath of the corkscrew! After a minutes’ head scratching we decided the best route would simply be to push the remainder of the intact cork into the bottle and filter the wine prior to decanting. "Don’t worry I’m a pro at this" was my father’s comment at the time. This was to be my only complaint about what seemed to me to be a perfect bottle of wine. I could literally not find a single fault with it in regards to taste, complexity and structure. Everyone who had the pleasure of tasting it including my two friends seemed to be completely seduced by it’s subtle yet stylish charm, so much so that in the weeks to come we spent hours trying to locate another magnum for this year.
 We drank this well into the evening all of us feeling blown away by each sip. One third of this vineyard lies in St Julian but now the l’asemblage of the Grand Vin has the right to the Pauillac appellation giving the Pichon Lalande the finesse of a St Julien coupled with the backbone of a Paulliac.I wish I had another bottle!

                                                                                                                    

The Stunning Pichon Lalande 1982

Tasting Notes

Chateau Pichon Longueville Comtesse De Lalande 1982

Magnum bottle (150cl)

Time Opened: 14.00pm

Colour: Garnet red, looks youthful with no signs of bricking although it has all but shaken off it’s tannins   

Nose: Cassis, plums and finesse personified (I could literally sit and smell it all day long)

Palate: Marvelously full bodied, sweet fruit, Rich and spicy without being overbearing, silky smooth tannins and a long finish, This wine is so smooth and silky, with every sip its like giving your mouth a massage!  

Final Comments:

This is quite simply put the best bottle of Bordeaux I have ever tasted and if anything ever beats it I’d like to see it! The Pichon Lalande is at it’s peak and drinking fantastically right now. If I could give a wine 110 out of 100 it would be this one, I recommend anyone that loves Bordeaux wine and hasn’t tasted this do it now while you get the chance! I can only wish I had another bottle ah c'est la vie!

www.moncharm.co.uk
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Chateau Calon Segur 2000 Tasting

I shared this bottle with some of my colleagues at Moncharm- out of working hours of course!

Against the advice of my father that I should wait a good few years to drink this, I decided to try it as we do have another few bottles of this stored and I thought it would be a good comparison to drink them over the years and see how it evolves in time. We decanted this at around 4pm as this wine is still very much in its youth and needed a chance to open up.

Upon tasting I could tell the wine easily needs five plus years in the bottle as it was very closed up and had a very tannic finish to it. In time this wine will undoubtedly have its chance to shine as there is a very good balance between acidity and tannins. It just needs time. I look forward to drinking it again in the future.

The Calon Segur needs more time in the bottle 

Tasting Notes

Calon Segur 2000 bottle (75cl)

Time Opened: 16.00pm

Time Consumed:20.30pm onwards

Colour: Ruby

Nose: Tobacco, Graphite, Cedar

Comments: “Very very tannic” "Closed Up"

Final Comments:  

Although this sparked much debate among my colleagues at Moncharm, I am a firm believer after drinking this bottle that I should have listened to my father’s advice as I found this bottle to be somewhat of a disappointment drinking it so young but I am also sure that given time this will turn out be an excellent bottle of claret. I would strongly urge anyone considering popping the cork on this third growth St.Estephe to hold off their temptation for at least another five years

Chateau Lynch Bages 1982 Tasting

I first tasted this British favorite on a Thursday evening coupled with a beautiful rib of beef cooked on the barbeque: the two complimented each other perfectly! The bottle was absolutely flawless which was pretty impressive considering it was a duty paid bottle that had no verifiable provenance however it came at a bargain price and would have been rude not to buy it! In hindsight I did not regret this decision one bit.  The second time I tasted this I was very kindly invited to a friends house for dinner again it was accompanied by beef.

Both times the Lynch produced consistent results on the palate and was a very dark and dense rich purple in colour slightly amber around the rim of the glass signifying that it is beginning to mature.The nose reminded me of opening the wonderful fresh box of cigars a friend kindly bought me from Cuba and my mouth was filled with a delicious spicy taste followed by fragrant blackcurrent. If you have a bottle of this I would recommend that you consume it in the next few years as it is most certainly drinking fabulously right now. 

Lynch Bages 1982 Cork

"The Lynch Bages 1982 is drinking beautifully right now"

Tasting Notes        

Lynch Bages 1982 Bottle (75cl)

Time Opened:7.30pm

Colour:Dark purple in colour, with some bricking

Nose: Massive fruit, tobacco, cedar and an earthy spice   

Comments:

“This classy elegant Pauillac is spicy, full and chunky”

“Very vibrant and powerful”

Final Comments:

Considering the market price of this wine right now, I would highly recommend you to pick up a bottle of this before it is all gone as it is quite simply an absolute bargain and punches way above its weight as a fifth growth. Its essential Bordeaux drinking.   

Moncharm