Château Saint-Pierre
St. Julien Red Bordeaux Blend 2009
Almost mature. Black, fresh fruit. Not overripe. Velvety tannins provide just enough structure and backbone to the wine. Well controlled use of new wood (not overdone). Long aftertaste. 95/100. — 6 years ago
Château Smith Haut Lafitte
Pessac-Léognan Blanc White Bordeaux Blend 2005
Now past its prime. Still oily and nutty, but with a strong note of oxidation. We did not finish the bottle. — 5 years ago
Château Musar
Gaston Hochar Pere et fils 1999
20 years old now. Firmly on its plateau of maturity. Certainly not dried out: still lots of cassis, kirsch, rose petal and tobacco aromas. Tannins have disappeared, dissolved in a thick, almost port-like wine. Good and long aftertaste. One of the better bottles of Musar I have tasted. Don’t be afraid to give Musar some time. 92/100. — 6 years ago
Château Lynch-Bages
Grand Cru Classé Pauillac Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 2000
Lynch Bages 2000. Will this get any better? Very open nose of dark berries, leather, cigar box and white pepper. Some secondary notes are emerging. Some soft tannins remain, lending the wine structure and backbone. Long and persistent aftertaste. Very enjoyable wine indeed! 96/100. — 6 years ago
Tenuta Casale del Bosco
Brunello di Montalcino Sangiovese 2008
The wine is almost ready to drink. The nose is dominated by its (very long) upbringing: lots of leather, overwhelming the red and black fruit. It’s as if the barrels absorbed some of the wine’s fruit and substance. Nevertheless, the wine is very enjoyable. It is medium bodied, retaining some fine tannins and matches perfectly with the grilled lamb chops. 90/100. — 6 years ago
Château Léoville-Las Cases
Grand Vin de Leoville du Marquis de las Cases Saint-Julien Red Bordeaux Blend
Like always a true gentleman, somewhat lean but very sophisticated. Silky wine with fruit preserved. Very little signs of evolution. Very aristocratic but lacks some flesh. Still very enjoyable. — 6 years ago
Johan Bogaert
Still a very robust wine. Not in the least past its prime. There’s a lot of fruit left, but there’s also a lot of oak., even after 26 years. This has dried out the wine a little bit. Don’t make too much out of my criticism. The wine is very enjoyable, so the bottle was finished without any complaints from my friends at the table.
89/100. — 5 years ago