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Tasting notes from a 1994-96 Bordeaux tasting - Thursday, February 6, 2003, at the Wine Exchange in Orange, CA. Sixteen wines were poured for a tasting fee of $25.

Overall impressions: a very interesting rear-view picture of these three vintages. Several had performed much better than I expected, while others had not lived up to my expectations. Both of the Petite Village's were very nice - with the '95 being the more lively of the two in my book. In nearly every case, I liked the nose better than the mouthfeel/taste. The lone exception was the La Conseillante, which seemed a bit overripe in the nose, but was just beautiful on the palate. Aside from the delicious Troplong Mondot, the Pomerols were generally my favorites in the flight.

The L'Arossee was something of a disappointment. it seemed more dried-out than the rest of the wines. Given that the Clos Fourtet was similarly inclined toward dryness, I might have been tempted to think this was a "right bank" thing in '96. But, the nearly sumptuous Virginie de Valandraud seemed to disprove this.

Tasting Notes

1996 Chateau L'Arrosee - St. Emilion. $36.99. Medium-bricky garnet color. Nice bottle aged nose of tobacco, tea, cassis, and mint. Smooth, soft mouthfeel, with a touch of tea at the latter palate and finish. Seems older than it ought to at this point.
Aroma score: B Taste score: B Overall score: B

1996 Chateau Clos Fourtet - Saint Emilion. $49.99. Medium dark ruby color. Nose has a touch of "French stink" to compliment the herbs and cassis aromas. Tasty flavors, good concentration of cassis fruit, light oak and a bit of heat on the finish.
Aroma score: B+ Taste score: B Overall score: B

1996 Virginie de Valandraud - Saint-Emilion. $45.99. Medium brick color. Lovely nose of sweet cassis, vanilla, and mint. Smooth and toasty mouthfeel, very nice fruit, long finish.
Aroma score: A- Taste score: B+ Overall score: B+

1994 Chateau Troplong Mondot - Saint Emilion. $49.99. Ruby brick color. Fascinating nose of cassis, apple compote, vanilla,and floral scents. Delicious taste, good concentration of sweet cassis fruit, nice toasty long finish.
Aroma score: A- Taste score: A- Overall score: A-

1996 Chateau La Croix du Casse - Pomerol. $26.99. Medium brick color. Beautiful nose of cassis, toast, ash and floral aromas. Very toasty mouthfeel, with lots of concentrated fruit, and long tasty finish.
Aroma score: A- Taste score: A- Overall score: A-

1995 Chateau Beau Soleil - Pomerol. $29.99. Medium brick color. Light toast and cassis nose, with a touch of orange zest and ash. Dry mouthfeel, moderate fruit, bit of ash quality to the taste, and a slightly bitter finish.
Aroma score: B+ Taste score: B+ Overall score: B+

1995 Chateau Petite Village - Pomerol. $39.99. Medium brick color. Gorgeous nose of cassis, toast, vanilla, and a hint of herbs. Smooth and tasty mouthfeel, very round and concentrated on the palate, with nearly perfect balance, and a long tasty finish. Flirty, and still hasn't grown up.
Aroma score: A- Taste score: A- Overall score: A-

1994 Chateau Petite Village - Pomerol. $39.99. Medium-dark brick color. Ashen cassis, herbs, toast, and vanilla scents. Tasty off-sweet cassis, very nice balance, and long tasty finish.
Aroma score: A- Taste score: B+ Overall score: B+

1994 Chateau La Fleur de Gay - Pomerol. $69.99. Ruby brick color. Beautiful nose of toast, cassis, ash, and touch of smoked meat. Good core of fruit, very tasty mouthfeel, with a nice long toasted finish.
Aroma score: A- Taste score: B+ Overall score: B+

1994 Chateau La Conseillante - Pomerol. $64.99. Medium brick color. Nose seems quite ripe, with a slightly caramelized or Porty quality to the cassis and toast aromas. Delicious taste and mouthfeel, with sweet succulent fruit, nearly perfect balance, and long seamless finish.
Aroma score: B+ Taste score: A- Overall score: A-

Favorites - In Order of Preference

1995 Chateau Petite Village - Pomerol. $39.99.
1996 Chateau La Croix du Casse - Pomerol. $26.99.
1994 Chateau La Conseillante - Pomerol. $64.99.
1994 Chateau Troplong Mondot - Saint Emilion. $49.99.
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1994 Chateau La Fleur de Gay - Pomerol. $69.99.
1994 Chateau Petite Village - Pomerol. $39.99.
1996 Chateau Lagrange - Saint Julien. $39.99.
1996 Virginie de Valandraud - Saint-Emilion. $45.99.
1995 Chateau Lagrange - Saint Julien. $47.99.
1996 Chateau Pontet-Canet - Pauillac. $52.99.
1996 Chateau Branaire - Saint Julien. $39.99.
1995 Les Forts de Latour - Pauillac. $52.99.
1982 Chateau Chasse-Spleen - Pauillac. $69.99.
1995 Chateau Beau Soleil - Pomerol. $29.99.
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1996 Chateau Clos Fourtet - Saint Emilion. $49.99.
1996 Chateau L'Arrosee - St. Emilion. $36.99.

1996 Chateau Branaire - Saint Julien. $39.99. Medium dark ruby garnet color. Lovely, slightly mature nose of ash, cassis, and toast, with some floral background notes. Very nice balance and flavor profile, with mature cassis fruit, and lightly toasted finish.
Aroma score: A- Taste score: B+ Overall score: B+

1996 Chateau Lagrange - Saint Julien. $39.99. Medium dark brick color. Nose of cassis, light notes of ash and toast. Very tasty, with excellent balance, good chewy mouthfeel, and long finish.
Aroma score: A- Taste score: B+ Overall score: B+

1995 Chateau Lagrange - Saint Julien. $47.99. Medium dark brick color. Lovely nose of fruit, vanilla, and toast all melded seamlessly together. Nice fruit on the palate, slightly acidic mouthfeel, but not tart or sour, and balanced quite well. Long smooth finish.
Aroma score: A- Taste score: B+ Overall score: B+

1995 Les Forts de Latour - Pauillac. $52.99. Medium dark ruby color. Nose has an initial blast of bottle stink that blows off quickly. Aromas of tea, cassis, and dried celery. Toasty and still even a bit oaky in mouthfeel, but with an interesting hop or malt quality to the very long finish.
Aroma score: B+ Taste score: B+ Overall score: B+

1996 Chateau Pontet-Canet - Pauillac. $52.99. Medium brick color. Nose of cassis, tea, and a bit of tobacco, alopng with a touch of barnyard-chicken pen. Very tasty mouthfeel, with well-integrated toast and fruit, and a nice long finish.
Aroma score: A- Taste score: B+ Overall score: B+

1982 Chateau Chasse-Spleen - Moulis. $69.99. Medium dark brick garnet color. Lots of bottle age in the nose, with a musty, somewhat stinky cassis-tea-damp earth thing going on. Off-sweet mouthfeel, plenty of cassis fruit, very good balance, long finish and very nice aftertaste.
Aroma score: B+ Taste score: B+ Overall score: B+

     

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