What did you drink tonight?

Hmm, we're sitting on a sizable stash of '09s (diverted my Côte d'Or budget that year). Are they really close to ready?

Mark Lipton
 
Well ... wines, like people, offer different attractions at different ages, right? I'd say the two Vissoux were well past their period of youthful charm and into post-adolescent virility. Do twenty-something panache and hale middle age lie ahead for this demographic? No doubt yes, for some; but there may also be cuvées with attenuated life-spans.

As a well-endowed (with 09 Beaujolais, I mean) seeker of truth, why not begin sampling, reflecting on the debates at release over the quality and longevity of the vintage? VLM may even award you a carpé diem award. Roilette VT might not be your first choice, however.

Or you could just drop by here in your helecopter one weekend. I'm empty-nesting and will open almost anything for a bit of decent conversation.
 
originally posted by Sharon Bowman:
originally posted by MLipton:
Hmm, we're sitting on a sizable stash of '09s (diverted my Côte d'Or budget that year). Are they really close to ready?

2009 Chevillon??? Back away, mister prof!

Nope, '09 Beaujolais, dear winegrrrrl. The land grab that accompanied the ''09 hoopla meant that those of us without walk-up access to quality wine shops were largely shut out. I'll have to console myself with my '99 and ''02s.

Mark Lipton
 
Lafon Meursault Perrieres 2002 - surprisingly delicious.

2004 Dr Loosen erdener Pralat LGKA auction - not surprisingly, delicious.
 
The other day in the cellar, a friend pours me a taste of a wine from a decanter. I sniff, and there is a vaguely familiar aroma that reminds me of the left bank of Bordeaux. I taste, and the wine still has a bit of tannic grip, giving it some structure and bite, but at the same time it seems ready enough that I would be opening bottles of this for current consumption rather than cellaring them further. There is some Cabernet in there, and maybe it is not quite as ripe as it should be, but close enough. It reminds me of a recent 1989 Chateau Meyney, although it is clearly not the Meyney, which I prefer to this wine. This is not a profound wine, not an impressive wine, but it's a pleasant enough drink, so I tell my friend I would gladly drink this mid- or late-1980s left banker anytime he wanted to roast some lamb and invite me over.

Imagine my surprise when he showed me the bottle of 2004 Henri Gouges Les Vaucrains.
 
Not so clear, Oswaldo. It could also have been a fake 2004 Henri Gouges Les Vaucrains, and the deviant could have made the mistake of using mid- or late-1980s Bordeaux rather than 2004 Burgundy to fake it.
 
Hey, not the wildest mistake. If we're talking dark fruit and firm tannins, Gouges would be up there for Burgundies that fit the description.
 
originally posted by Michael Lewis:
The other day in the cellar, a friend pours me a taste of a wine from a decanter. I sniff, and there is a vaguely familiar aroma that reminds me of the left bank of Bordeaux. I taste, and the wine still has a bit of tannic grip, giving it some structure and bite, but at the same time it seems ready enough that I would be opening bottles of this for current consumption rather than cellaring them further. There is some Cabernet in there, and maybe it is not quite as ripe as it should be, but close enough. It reminds me of a recent 1989 Chateau Meyney, although it is clearly not the Meyney, which I prefer to this wine. This is not a profound wine, not an impressive wine, but it's a pleasant enough drink, so I tell my friend I would gladly drink this mid- or late-1980s left banker anytime he wanted to roast some lamb and invite me over.

Imagine my surprise when he showed me the bottle of 2004 Henri Gouges Les Vaucrains.

All bets are off for 2004s. I was blinded on a 2004 Dugat-py recently and I guessed Loire Cab Franc from 2003. The wine was extracted and polished but yet still green. Tasted nothing like Pinot.
 
originally posted by Michael Lewis:
The other day in the cellar, a friend pours me a taste of a wine from a decanter. I sniff, and there is a vaguely familiar aroma that reminds me of the left bank of Bordeaux. I taste, and the wine still has a bit of tannic grip, giving it some structure and bite, but at the same time it seems ready enough that I would be opening bottles of this for current consumption rather than cellaring them further. There is some Cabernet in there, and maybe it is not quite as ripe as it should be, but close enough. It reminds me of a recent 1989 Chateau Meyney, although it is clearly not the Meyney, which I prefer to this wine. This is not a profound wine, not an impressive wine, but it's a pleasant enough drink, so I tell my friend I would gladly drink this mid- or late-1980s left banker anytime he wanted to roast some lamb and invite me over.

Imagine my surprise when he showed me the bottle of 2004 Henri Gouges Les Vaucrains.

Reminds of that old chestnut attributed to Harry Waugh, and now I quote from his obiturary in The Telegraph:

Waugh had a dry and subtle wit. He once reputedly declared that the first duty of wine is to be red, the second to be a Burgundy, whilst his reply when asked whether he had ever confused a claret with a Burgundy ("Not since lunch") has entered wine trade lore.
 
I finally found my small cache of 2009 Clos Roche Blanche Cot and opened one. It's brilliant, both literally and figuratively. The color is so vibrant, you could be happy just gazing at the wine in the glass. On drinking, it's lithe, vivacious, balanced and charming. What good wine.
 
originally posted by Ian Fitzsimmons:
I finally found my small cache of 2009 Clos Roche Blanche Cot and opened one. It's brilliant, both literally and figuratively.

I agree about its literal brilliance, especially if that suggests freshness in taste as well as visual brilliance. A bottle about a month ago was so fresh and smooth.
 
A bit unyielding yesterday when first opened. Tonight, showing complexity and more suppleness in the mouth. Very long and dense. Quite explosive finish. My guess is better in 3-5 years.
 
I am currently drinking a glass of cat pee.

With air it's improving, but lawdy. You might test me for toxoplasmosis.

It is 2011 Villemade Cheverny "Bodice."
 
Musella Valpolicella Superiore 2013 - delicious, especially after an hour. Perfect with lots of lasagne and a peaceful house.
 
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