Chateau Lynch Bages VS Chateau Gruaud Larose Bordeaux Tasting back to the 1957 vintage with Special Guest Dr. Robert Maliner

"This is very old wine. I hope you will like it."
Count Dracula in Dracula (1931)

And were drinking some really old wines at this tasting with two 1957 vintage Bordeaux on the table for this “Once in a Lifetime” vintage Bordeaux wine tasting.  We are trying to give you lots of reasons to come out and drink with us like our new Happy Hour style wine tastings beginning tomorrow night which we still have 8 seats remaining!  We have our good friend Rob Sweeney here and the event starts at 6pm and although it is not a dinner chef Toni will be serving a few small bites to go with the wines. 

We are trying to help our good friend Dr. Robert Maliner drink his wines also as he has over 6000 bottles in his cellar.  One of the best services that we offer, if you have more wines in your cellar than you can drink, we will help you take as many bottles down as we can- and that is a lot!! 

Join us as we take down another 12 bottles from the cellar of Dr Robert Maliner going back to the 1957 vintage from two of Bordeaux’s premier Chateau along with special meal prepared by Chef Toni Lampasone to accompany the tasting wines, the fee for this tasting which includes dinner is $475+ tax, for reservations call 954=523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com.

Chateau Lynch Bages VS Chateau Gruaud Larose Bordeaux Tasting
back to the 1957 vintage
with Special Guest Dr. Robert Maliner
Saturday, May 29, 2021
7:30 PM

1957 Chateau Lynch Bages Pauillac
1957 Chateau Gruaud Larose St. Estephe
1970 Chateau Lynch Bages Pauillac
1962 Chateau Gruaud Larose St. Estephe
1982 Chateau Lynch Bages Pauillac
1982 Chateau Gruaud Larose St. Estephe
1990 Chateau Lynch Bages Pauillac
1986 Chateau Gruaud Larose St. Estephe
2000 Chateau Lynch Bages Pauillac
1990 Chateau Gruaud Larose St. Estephe
2009 Chateau Lynch Bages Pauillac
2009 Chateau Gruaud Larose St. Estephe

Menu
Selection of Cheese and Charcuterie
Grilled Vegetable Salad with Sundried Tomato and Balsamic Vinaigrette
45 Day Dry Aged Ribeye Served with Truffle Fries and Bordeaux Natural Sauce
Canelés de Bordeaux with Pineapple Rum Sauce

The fee for this tasting which includes dinner is $475.00 + tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com.

A bit about Chateau Lynch Bages:

It has been called "Pauillac's sleeper chateau", for in some years it has been what wine connoisseurs call "a sleeper" – a wine from a lesser estate that rises far above its status and competes with the best of its class.  The status of Chateau Lynch-Bages has been a matter of great controversy in Bordeaux for several decades.  The sixty great estates of the Medoc, Bordeaux's greatest red wine district, were classified into five categories 130 years ago.  It was called the 1855 Grand Cru Classification.  To this day there isn't much dispute about the quality of the five wines in the "Premier Cru."  However, controversy reigns about the relative positions of the other fifty some chateaux in the other four Crus.  The theory was that a wine in the Second Cru category was better than a Third...and so on.  Lynch-Bages was classified a Fifth Cru, but it has been producing wines of Second Cru quality in the last twenty years. (It has even rivaled the First Crus in great years like 1961, 1966, 1970, and 1975.)

Chateau Lynch-Bages is located in the sleepy town of Pauillac, the little village that also is responsible for the great chateaux of Latour, Lafite, and Mouton.  It takes its name from a former proprietor, an Irishman named Lynch, who was once the mayor of Bordeaux.  In fact it seems the chateau has a tradition of mayor-proprietors.  Andre Cazes, who has now turned over the administration of the chateau to his thirty-year old son, Jean-Michel Cazes, was recently the mayor of Pauillac.  In the 1930's Jean-Michel's grandfather, J.C. Cazes, began building the solid reputation Lynch-Bages now enjoys.  In the middle fifties Alexis Lichine wrote of several tastings conducted by the leading Bordelais merchants and winebrokers in which Lynch-Bages finished first – besting the greatest of the classified estates.  Perhaps the watershed year for Lynch-Bages was 1961 - a year many consider the "vintage of the century" in Bordeaux.  In that year the chateau produced one of the greatest wines of the vintage.  During the sixties and the seventies Lynch-Bages commanded a price equivalent to the best of the second Cru and prompted Alexis Lichine to write in his monumental Encyclopedia of Wines and Spirits: "That this fine vineyard is still classed a Fifth Growth indicates the obsolescence of the 1855 Classification."  In a tasting of 21 Bordeaux from the very good 1979 vintage conducted by The Wine Spectator in December of 1983, Lynch-Bages finished third ahead of many highly regarded second growths.  Jean-Michel Cazes has said that the most frequent (and annoying) question asked of him by Americans is why his wine - classified a Fifth – commands the price of a Second.  To connoisseurs the answer is obvious.

In 1977 the entire winery of the chateau was refurbished with modern vinification equipment.  Lynch-Bages is a fairly large estate with some 200 acres under vines and an average production of some 30,000 cases.  The usual cepage (selection of grapes) is about 75% Cabernet; 15% Merlot; and 10% Cabernet Franc.  This seems to produce a meaty, fleshy, robust wine characteristic of a good Pauillac.  Similarities have been drawn to Mouton - perhaps only the finesse of Mouton is missing.  Lynch-Bages also seems to mature earlier - not being vinified with such monster, harsh tannins which other classic Pauillacs like Mouton and Latour often exhibit in youth.

1983 has produced another great year in Bordeaux – although not of the incredible quality we witnessed in 1982.  We think the extraordinary 1982 Lynch-Bages may have been the greatest wine ever produced at this chateau.  Nevertheless, the 1983 is an outstanding wine and again one of the leading wines of the Medoc.  The nose of this wine is dominated with nuances of cedar, new oak, cigar boxes, and ripe fruit...a delight indeed.  On the palate the wine is full-bodied with lots of rich fruit and spicy oak.  On the finish the wine is somewhat harsh, moderately tannic, oaky, and lingering.  This wine is not as precocious as the 1982 at the same stage and can stand a good five to ten years of aging before it reaches its peak sometime in the last half of the 1990's.  Again we must stress that we feel this wine can be enjoyed at this early stage; however, it will definitely improve. July 1986.

Chateau Lynch-Bages also makes a tiny amount of white wine, it is a blend of Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon and Muscadet.  This stunning wine is in such short supply you will rarely see it in the market.  The first four vintages of the 21st century have been outstanding for Bordeaux lovers, never before in the history of this great region have they experienced four outstanding vintages in a row. 

The newest wine from Lynch Bages is simply entitled Pauillac and you could consider this to be a third wine or just another wine entirely.  Aside from the classified growths of 1855, there are only 6 Cru Bourgeois classified chateau from the Pauillac appellation with Chateau Pibran at the head of the pack. With only 6 chateaux classified as Cru Bourgeois, Pauillac has the least amount of Cru Bourgeois estates of any other major Bordeaux appellation that is why this wine has emereged from the Cazes family to give you a taste of the Pauillac appellation at a reasonable price.

All the Pauillac in the store:

Pauillac is on the left bank of the Gironde. St-Julien is to the south. A stream called Ruisseau de Juillac marks part of the boundary between the two communes; other parts are marked by a stone wall and a country lane. To the north, across the Jalle du Breuil, lies St-Estèphe. Pauillac is bounded on the west by the parish of St Sauveur and the Landes forest. All three communes lie within the Haut-Médoc. The town of Pauillac is the largest in the Médoc, with a population of over 5000. Pauillac is somewhat more elevated than the surrounding area, rising to a peak of nearly 30 metres above sea-level in the region of Château Pontet-Canet. The soil is gravelly, as with most of the Haut-Médoc. The forest to the west shelters the vines from the Atlantic winds. Pauillac contains around 1200 hectares of vineyards.

Cabernet Sauvignon is the predominant grape, but it is invariably blended with other grapes. As with all red Bordeaux, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Malbec may also be included in the blend (although wines will not necessarily include all five grapes). Prior to the 19th century, Malbec was predominant.

The style has been described as 'stark'.   The predominant fruit flavor is usually blackcurrant, sometimes veering into plum. Pencil-shavings and cigar-box are also characteristic notes.

Wine from Pauillac may be labelled as Haut-Médoc (usually wine which the château considers inferior to its main offering and wishes to market under a different label).   Similarly, second (or third) wines from the grandes châteaux may be labelled simply as Pauillac.

1941 Chateau Pichon Lalande Pauillac
Price: $6500.00  Sale Price: $5000.00         Quantity in Stock: 1
1959 Chateau Latour Pauillac (high shoulder)
Price: $4500.00  Your Price: $3960.00        Quantity in Stock: 1
1961 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac (Very Top shoulder)
Price: $2500.00  Sale Price: $2100.00         Quantity in Stock: 1
1966 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
Price: $1200.00  Sale Price: $895.00           Quantity in Stock: 1
1967 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac (mid shoulder)
Price: $650.00    Sale Price: $495.00           Quantity in Stock: 1
1969 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac (very top shoulder)
Price: $940.00    Your Price: $827.20          Quantity in Stock: 1
1970 Chateau Batailley Pauillac
Price: $160.00    Sale Price: $130.00           Quantity in Stock: 2
1970 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac (torn label)
Price: $695.00    Your Price: $611.60          Quantity in Stock: 1
1970 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Pauillac (low shoulder, label torn)
Price: $795.00    Sale Price: $595.00           Quantity in Stock: 1
1972 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Pauillac (mid shoulder)
Price: $999.00    Sale Price: $850.00           Quantity in Stock: 10
1973 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Pauillac (mid shoulder)
Price: $499.00    Your Price: $439.12          Quantity in Stock: 1
1975 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac (very top shoulder, label torn)
Price: $1200.00  Sale Price: $995.00           Quantity in Stock: 1
1985 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
Price: $1450.00  Sale Price: $995.00           Quantity in Stock: 2
1986 Chateau Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande Pauillac
Price: $450.00    Sale Price: $365.00           Quantity in Stock: 1
1986 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Pauillac
Price: $1350.00  Sale Price: $1095.00         Quantity in Stock: 1
1987 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Pauillac Magnum
Price: $1800.00  Sale Price: $1350.00         Quantity in Stock: 1
1988 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Pauillac Magnum
Price: $1800.00  Sale Price: $1350.00         Quantity in Stock: 1
1988 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
Price: $1150.00  Sale Price: $977.50           Quantity in Stock: 3
1990 Chateau Latour Pauillac
Price: $1350.00  Your Price: $1188.00        Quantity in Stock: 2
1995 Chateau Latour Pauillac
Price: $795.00    Sale Price: $650.00           Quantity in Stock: 1
1995 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Pauillac
Price: $695.00    Sale Price: $595.00           Quantity in Stock: 1
1995 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Pauillac Magnum
Price: $1750.00  Your Price: $1540.00        Quantity in Stock: 1
1996 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac (375ml)
Price: $595.00    Your Price: $523.60          Quantity in Stock: 1
1996 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Pauillac
Price: $750.00    Sale Price: $625.00           Quantity in Stock: 1
1996 Chateau Latour Pauillac
Price: $975.00    Sale Price: $825.00           Quantity in Stock: 1
1999 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Pauillac Magnum
Price: $1600.00  Your Price: $1408.00        Quantity in Stock: 1
1999 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
Price: $1050.00  Sale Price: $924.00           Quantity in Stock: 1
2000 Chateau Tourelles De Lougueville Pauillac
Price: $89.00       Your Price: $78.32            Quantity in Stock: 3
2000 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
Price: $1850.00  Your Price: $1628.00        Quantity in Stock: 1
2000 Chateau Pibran Pauillac
Price: $85.00       Your Price: $74.80            Quantity in Stock: 10
2000 Chateau Latour Pauillac
Price: $1350.00  Your Price: $1188.00        Quantity in Stock: 3
2000 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Pauillac
Price: $2750.00  Your Price: $2420.00        Quantity in Stock: 1
2000 Chateau Haut Bages Averous Pauillac
Price: $69.00       Your Price: $60.72            Quantity in Stock: 1
2001 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Pauillac Magnum
Price: $1800.00  Your Price: $1584.00        Quantity in Stock: 1
2002 Chateau Latour Pauillac
Price: $795.00    Your Price: $699.60          Quantity in Stock: 1
2002 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Pauillac Magnum
Price: $1500.00  Sale Price: $1050.00         Quantity in Stock: 1
2003 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
Price: $1295.00  Sale Price: $1095.00         Quantity in Stock: 1
2003 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Pauillac Magnum
Price: $1600.00  Sale Price: $1250.00         Quantity in Stock: 1
2004 Chateau Latour Pauillac
Price: $795.00    Sale Price: $595.00           Quantity in Stock: 1
2005 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Pauillac Magnum
Price: $2375.00  Your Price: $2090.00        Quantity in Stock: 1
2005 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac 3 Liter
Price: $7950.00  Sale Price: $6500.00         Quantity in Stock: 1
2006 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Pauillac
Price: $850.00    Sale Price: $675.00           Quantity in Stock: 1
2008 Chateau Lafite Rothschild Pauillac
Price: $1025.00  Your Price: $902.00          Quantity in Stock: 1
2008 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Pauillac
Price: $975.00    Sale Price: $775.00           Quantity in Stock: 1
2009 Chateau Latour Pauillac
Price: $1500.00  Your Price: $1320.00        Quantity in Stock: 1
2012 Les Forts De Latour Pauillac
Price: $299.00    Your Price: $263.12          Quantity in Stock: 22
2014 Chateau Lynch Bages Pauillac
Price: $229.75    Sale $202.18
2015 Chateau Lynch Bages Pauillac
Price: $259.75    Sale $228.58
2016 Chateau Lynch Bages Pauillac
Price: $286.25    Sale $251.90
2017 Echo De Lynch Bages Pauillac
Price: $75.00       Sale $66.00
2018 Chateau Lynch Bages Pauillac
Price: $218.25    Sale $192.06

A bit about Chateau Gruaud Larose :

Although the history of this property goes back to the 18th century we will pick things up in the 20th century.

The 20th century opened with the estate still divided, although with the purchase of both halves by the Cordier group this situation was not to last much longer. The Sarget portion was sold by its then owner Adrienne Lavielle, Baronne Sarget de Lafontaine, in 1917; in 1935 the Faure portion was sold by the Faure descendants. Gruaud-Larose was whole once more, and has remained so ever since. The estate was part of the Cordier portfolio, along with other top properties such as Lafaurie Peyraguey and Talbot, for much of the 20th century. In 1983, however, it was sold, and was subsequently passed from pillar to post in a number of rapidly successive transactions. It was first purchased by Compagnie de Suez, a French bank, before being sold on to the French multinational firm Alcatel-Alsthom just a decade later. Within just four years, in 1997, Chateau Gruaud-Larose was purchased by another important Bordeaux family headed up by Jacques Merlaut, who has put together a portfolio of properties under the Taillan Group. Merlaut is a relative newcomer to Bordeaux, having worked in the region as a négociant in the 1960s, but he began to purchase properties in 1976, starting with Chasse-Spleen. The Group, which includes his granddaughter Claire Villars, now also own Chateau La Gurgue, Chateau Haut Bages Liberal, Chateau Citran and Chateau Ferrière, among others.

The Gruaud-Larose estate amounts to 150 hectares of the St Julien appellation, of which 82 hectares are planted to vines; the bulk of the estate lies around Baron Sarget's chateau, separated from the Gironde by the small village of Beychevelle, and sandwiched between the vineyards of Branaire-Ducru and Lagrange. The terroir is typical for the region, deep Quaternary gravel, planted with 57% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc, 3% Petit Verdot and 2% Malbec. The vines average around 45 years of age, and are planted at a density of 10000 vines/ha. The fruit, harvested by hand, is managed by a winemaking team overseen by Jacques Merlaut's son, Jean. Technical director at the property since 1970, however, is Georges Pauli; he has stayed on through difficult times at Gruaud-Larose, as it passed through the hands of different owners, but he has benefited from continued investment particularly by Alcatel-Alsthom who funded the construction of two new cellars with wooden fermentation vats and a new grape reception room to improve handling and quality of the fruit at harvest time. Nevertheless Pauli must take much of the credit for the maintenance of quality at Gruaud-Larose despite the rapid sequence of new owners and the uncertainty these changes bring.

The fruit is sorted then undergoes a cold-soak prior to temperature controlled fermentation in a mixture of wooden and concrete vats, with pumping over of the fermenting must twice a day. Then up to a third of the vintage undergoes malolactic in oak barrels, before ageing the entire wine in Alliers and Nevers oak (up to 50% new) for eighteen months, and there is a light fining and filtration before bottling. The grand vin is Chateau Gruaud-Larose, of which there are about 25000 cases produced per annum, and the second wine, introduced in 1979, is Sarget de Gruaud-Larose, of which about 16000 cases are produced. Obviously the exact proportions varies with the quality of the vintage.

St. Julien

St. Julien is one of the six communal appellations in Médoc, also known as St. Julien – Beychevelle. The appellation is divided into two areas, the properties surrounding the village of St. Julien and those surrounding the village of Beychevelle.
While somewhat small in size, it is home to eleven classed growths. And while there are no First Growths in St. Julien, there are five Second Growths, two Third Growths, and four Fourth Growths. This is impressive considering that St. Julien is the smallest of the major appellations in Médoc (only 5.5 percent of the Médoc), though almost every acre in the commune contains vines. In fact, around 80 percent of St. Julien’s vineyards is owned by the 11 crus classés.
But what makes St. Julien special is that, pound for pound, it simply produces some of the best wines in Bordeaux. While there are no First Growths here, almost everything that comes out of St. Julien can stand up to just about anything from either side of the Gironde. And with this comes a significant advantage; the wines of St. Julien also offers some of the best values of all of the top wines in Bordeaux.

THE TERROIR
St. Julien consists of two gravelly plateaus with excellent exposure and drainage. These are bounded by Pauillac to the North and the Haut-Médoc to the West and South. The Eastern portion of St. Julien, overlooking the Gironde estuary, is made up of a ridge of deep gravel. The more Southern Beychevelle plateau consists of shallower gravel and higher limestone bedrock. While inland the soil also contains deep gravel and a higher proportion of clay, thinner gravel and sand are more prominent further West.

Besides the soils, the ripening of the grapes is also influenced by the warming of the Gironde estuary. Combined with the Southeast exposure, this helps to ripen the Cabernet Sauvignon found in the area.

THE WINES
While most of the wine is produced by the crus classés, St. Julien has the lowest production of the major appellations of the Médoc. Many say that St. Julien is somewhat of a hybrid of its bordering communes, possessing the elegance of Margaux while delivering the power characteristic of Pauillac wines. While wines from St. Julien are often described as elegant and restrained, their impressive structure (e.g. tannins and acidity) lends to long-term aging potential. The dominant grape varietal is Cabernet Sauvignon, although Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot are commonly used for blending. Common aromas and flavors include blackcurrant, cedar, truffle, earth, and tobacco.

FAST FACTS ABOUT ST. JULIEN
Around 80 percent of St. Julien’s vineyards is owned by crus classés.
The wines of St. Julien are considered to share similarities with both of its neighbors, blending the elegance and softness of Margaux with the richness and power of Pauillic.
St. Julien is home to the only two châteaux still owned by the same family as at the time of the 1855 Classification (Langoa Barton and Leoville Barton).
The largest château that is a cru classé is found in St. Julien, Château Lagrange.
A large portion of St. Julien was once comprised of the massive Léoville estate, which was eventually divided into three properties: Léoville Las Cases, Léoville Barton, and Léoville Poyferré.

This info came from one of our good friends at drink Bordeaux, if you love Bordeaux this is one of the only sites you need to follow!
Bordeaux Appellation St. Julien Wine | Bordeaux Wine Guide | Learn Bordeaux Wine (drinkbordeauxwine.com)

1967 Chateau Leoville Las Cases St Julien
Price: $382.00    Sale Price: $325.00           Quantity in Stock: 3
1982 Chateau Leoville Las Cases St. Julien
Price: $595.00    Sale Price: $495.00           Quantity in Stock: 1
1986 Chateau Leoville Las Cases Saint Julien
Price: $585.00    Sale Price: $495.00           Quantity in Stock: 1
1996 Chateau Ducru Beaucaillou St. Julien
Price: $350.00    Sale Price: $275.00           Quantity in Stock: 1
1996 Chateau Leoville Las Cases St Julien
Price: $450.00    Sale Price: $375.00           Quantity in Stock: 1
2004 Chateau Gruaud Larose St Julien
Price: $172.50    Your Price: $151.80          Quantity in Stock: 12
2005 Chateau Leoville Las Cases St Julien 3 LIter
Price: $2000.00  Sale Price: $1500.00         Quantity in Stock: 1
2008 Chateau Duluc 2nd Branaire Ducru St Julien
Price: $48.00       Your Price: $42.28            Quantity in Stock: 8
2008 Chateau Gruaud Larose St. Julien (12 Liter)
Price : $3750.00                 Sale $3300.00
2010 Chateau Gruaud Larose St Julien
Price: $190.75    Your Price: $ 167.86        
2014 Chateau Leoville Las Cases St. Julien
Price: $210.00    Your Price: $184.80          Quantity in Stock: 8
2015 Amiral de Beychevelle Saint Julien
Price: $60.00       Your Price: $52.80            Quantity in Stock: 21
2015 Chateau Lalande Borie St Julien
Price: $58.50       Your Price: $51.48            Quantity in Stock: 4
2016 Chateau Gruaud Larose St Julien
Price: $146.25    Your Price: $128.70         
2018 Chateau Talbot Connetable Talbot St Julien
Price: $56.25       Your Price: $49.50            Quantity in Stock: 12
2018 Chateau Gruaud Larose St Julien
Price: $130.00   Your Price: $ 114.40