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1971 x 50 (Feb 2021)

The 1971 Gruaud Larose has a similar nose to the bottle tasted just several weeks earlier. This ex-château bottle is ferrous, more than two previous encounters; savory with melted tar, cigar box and graphite. Good definition but the fruit concentration is not at the level expected. The palate is medium-bodied with quite masculine, obdurate tannins,…

Bordeaux 2018: Not Back in Black (Mar 2021)

The 2018 Les Gravières is every bit as impressive as it was from barrel. Graphite, dried herbs, licorice, lavender and purple/black fruits are all laced together. The 2018 has shut down quite a bit after bottling. Today the acids and tannins are quite present. That won't be an issue in time, but it does mean…

The Future’s Definitely Not What It Was: Bordeaux 2018 (Mar 2021)

The 2018 Les Gravières has maintained its opulent nose of oodles of boysenberry and plummy fruit at the expense of some delineation and terroir expression. The palate is powerful and dense with a powdery texture and grippy tannins. It has lost some of its sinew but I still find that the wood tannins crowd out…

Bordeaux 2010: All That Glitters… (May 2011)

Deep, almost inky purple. Initially closed nose turns classic and complex with air, showing aromas of cassis, cedar and graphite. Enters bright and juicy, with nicely textured flavors similar to the aromas, then turns a bit austere on the moderately long, essentially smooth finish.

Cellar Favorite: 1986 Grand-Puy-Lacoste (Feb 2022)

You cannot get more “trad claret” that the 1986 Grand-Puy-Lacoste. From a Pauillac that takes time to reach its drinking plateau and a notorious vintage hellbent on testing the most patient Bordeaux-lover, after 35-years, it is finally waking up the idea that its raison d’être is to give us pleasure. This bottle was poured by…

The Annual Red Bordeaux Report (May 2005)

Good red-ruby. Black fruits, licorice and shoe polish, with a light roasted note. Then dry, inky and penetrating, with medicinal black fruits and nutty oak showing. Finishes with dusty, even tannins and an edge of acidity. Classic, rather austere Pauillac, with moderate texture and ripeness.