Posts Tagged ‘slate’

On Friday January 25^th, the LCBO Vintages department hosted a taste and buy event with the Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux.  Wines were from the highly regarded 2010 vintage.  The purpose of the event was to get customers to buy the wine as “futures”, with delivery happening sometime later in the year.  At some point, however, any wines for which there is still stock available will be offered to the general public.

I tasted many wines, many of them exceptional, and many of those with stiff prices for the average wine consumer.  Below I provide reviews for bottles that are more accessibly priced, as well as bottles that might be considered splurges, ranked as “Low”, “Medium”, and “High”.  Bear in mind that any of these red wines will need decades to round into form, so if you are impatient, big Bordeaux bottles may not be for you.  One sweet wine at the end, just to finish things properly.

 

White

 

Low:                      Château de Chantegrive Blanc                   AC Graves Blanc

$33.00 per bottle, sold in a three-bottle lot for $99

 

Pale gold colour.  Med. plus intensity nose of wet stone, candied pineapple, lemon peel, orange, and cilantro.

Dry, med. body, med. plus acidity.  Orange, lemon, slate, and cilantro.  Med. plus length.

 

Medium:             Château Bouscaut Blanc                               AC Pessac-Léognan

$55.00 per bottle/ $165 for three-bottle lot

 

Pale gold colour.  Med. intensity nose of candied citrus slices, quince, and lily of the valley.

Dry, med. body, med. acidity.  Lemon zest, clementine, and struck match.  Long length

 

High:                      Château Pape Clément Blanc                     AC Pessac-Léognan

$229.00 per bottle/ $687.00 for three-bottle lot

 

Med. gold colour.  Med. plus intensity nose of lemon peel, fresh herbs, resin, and stone.

Dry, med. body, and med. acidity.  Fresh lemon, lemon peel, and lemongrass.  Hints of tropical fruit such as guava, too.  Long length.

 

Red

 

Low:                      Château de Camensac (55% Cab. Sauv., 45% Merlot)       AC Haut-Médoc

$45.00 per bottle/ $135.00 per three-bottle lot

 

Med. plus density garnet/ruby colour.  Med. intensity nose of dark cocoa, raspberry, blackberry, blueberry, and cedar.

Dry, full body, high tannin.  Smoke, vanilla, blackberry, and cranberry.  Med. plus length.

 

* Château La Gaffelière, from AC Saint-Émilion had a similar taste profile, and was priced at $145 per bottle/$435.00 per three-bottle lot.

 

Medium:             Château Clinet                  AC Pomerol

$199.00 per bottle/ $597.00 per three-bottle lot

 

Deep garnet colour.  Med. plus intensity nose of cherry, green pepper, roses, and raspberry.

Dry, full body, high tannin.  Cocoa, green pepper, raspberry, cherry, and underbrush.  Long length.

 

High:                      Château-Figeac                                AC Saint-Émilion, 1er Grand Cru Classé

$425.00 per bottle/ $1275.00 per three-bottle lot

 

Deep plum/garnet colour.  Med. intensity nose of dark chocolate, dark cherry, raspberry compote, blueberry, and earth.

Dry, full body, high tannin.  Chocolate-covered cherries, blueberry jam, earth, and leather.  Long length.  Gorgeous.

 

Sweet

 

Château Coutet                AC Sauternes-Barsac, 1er Cru Classé en 1855

$115.00 per bottle/ $345.00 per three-bottle lot

 

Deep gold colour.  High intensity nose of acacia honey, peach jam, beeswax, tarte tatin, and crème caramel.  Luscious, full body, med. acidity.  Peach, honey, beeswax, and vanilla custard.  Long length.