St Estephe VS St Julien Bordeaux appellation series tasting at Wine Watch

This is part of our "Exploring The Dirt" series of Bordeaux tastings and there will be 8-10 Bordeaux wines ranging from current releases to vintage wines that have been cellared for 20+ years.

This tasting is part of our Bordeaux appellation series and tonight we wil be exploring the wines of St. Estephe and St. Julien.  Join us as we experience wines from these two left bank appellations of the Haut Medoc and see why these are considered to be two of the best terroirs in all of Bordeaux

Saint-Estèphe is a true "terroir" wine. The influence of the soil, gravels as usual and more clays than in Médoc, can be experienced when tasting a Saint-Estèphe wine. Although Pauillac is just close-by, Saint-Estèphe wines are different.

Saint-Estèphe wines are very colored, earthy, firm, robust and tannic. They reach their maturity slower than other Médoc wines.

Saint-Estèphe hosts 5 Grands Crus Classés (great growths) such as Château Montrose and Château Cos d'Estournel

Just a little bit less powerful than Pauillac and rustic than Saint-Estèphe, Saint-Julien wines are very aromatized. They are harmonious and well balanced red wines. Saint-Julien is the right balance between Pauillac and Margaux.

Saint-Julien has 11 Grands Crus Classés (great growths). The quality is so good in Saint-Julien, that second wines from those châteaux are very attractive.

St. Estephe versus St. Julien Tasting at Wine Watch
Friday, August 14th
7pm

1959 Branaire Ducru St Julien

"...with lots of style. Medium ruby-garnet, with focused, currant and licorice aromas. Full-bodied and tannic, with peppery, licorice flavor.--1959 Bordeaux horizontal." (10/90) Wine Spectator

1966 Talbott St Julien

A four-star wine, according to critic Michael Broadbent, who wrote in his book Vintage Wine: "Consistently lovely, sweet, rich and ready."

1975 Montrose St Estephe

(87 Points) Still backward, although the color is beginning to exhibit amber/rust at the edge, this large-scaled, muscular, charmless Montrose is structured enough to be admired, but I wonder if there is enough fruit to hold for another 10 years? Full-bodied, with earthy, dusty, red and black fruit aromas, this tannic, behemoth needs another 2-3 years of cellaring. The jury is still out on this one.  Wine Advocate #103, Feb 1996

1982 Branaire Ducru St Julien

(93 Points) A strong effort for this estate, the 1982 exhibits sweet aromas of plums, licorice, earth, and flowers. The tannins are slightly rustic, but the sweetness of the fruit, the broad expansive mouthfeel, and the wine’s full maturity represent a classic Bordeaux at the top of its game. Enjoy it over the next 5-8 years.  Wine Advocate #183, Jun 2009

1982 Gruaud Larose St Julien

(98 Points) A massive wine that is clearly of first-growth quality in this vintage, the 1982 Gruaud Larose remains a youngster. A broodingly dense, thick, unctuously textured, inky/plum/garnet/purple color offers up scents of beef blood, steak tartare, cassis, herbs, tobacco, and underbrush. One of the most concentrated wines of the vintage (as well as one of the most concentrated Bordeaux’s I have ever tasted), it is a huge, full-bodied, weighty, rich wine whose tannins are getting silkier and silkier. It appears set for another 30-40 years of life. This behemoth is a singularly profound example of Gruaud Larose that continues to justify its legendary status. Anticipated maturity: now-2050. Wine Advocate #183, Jun 2009

1982 Leoville las Cases St. Julien

(95+ Points) I have had perfect bottles of this cuvee, but, perplexingly, the bottles from my cellar tend to be broodingly backward and require plenty of coaxing. This huge wine is, in many ways, just as massive as Leoville Barton, but it possesses a greater degree of elegance as well as unreal concentration. Classic lead pencil, cassis, kirsch, cedar, and spice characteristics are abundant in both the nose and full-bodied flavors. The tannins are still there, and, at least from my cellar, this 1982 does not appear to have changed much in the last 10-12 years. One wonders how much patience admirers of this brilliant St.-Julien will continue to exhibit. Anticipated maturity: 2020-2050.   Wine Advocate #183
Jun 2009

1982 Cos D'Estournel St. Estephe

(95 Points) This 1982 is still displaying a beautiful deep ruby/purple hue as well as a stunning set of aromatics consisting of blue and black fruits, loamy earth, flowers, licorice, and spice box. The wine is medium to full-bodied with sweet tannins, a medium to full-bodied mouthfeel, and a silky finish. It appears to have hit full maturity, but it can easily be held in a cold cellar for another 10+ years.  Wine Advocate #183, Jun 2009

1985 Ducru Beaucaillou St Julien

(92 Points) A wine of extraordinary charm and elegance, the dark garnet-colored 1985 Ducru-Beaucaillou has a floral, cedary nose intermixed with red and black currants as well as flowers. The wine is fully mature and soft, with beautiful concentration and purity. It is not a blockbuster, and certainly not nearly as powerful and massive as the 1986, but it is certainly much more seductive. This wine should continue to drink well for at least another 10-15 years. Anticipated maturity: Now-2012.  Bordeaux Book, 4th Edition, Jan 2003

1989 Leoville Barton St Julien

(89 Points) This wine continues to lose out to its younger sibling, the 1990. Aromatically, the dark garnet (some amber is beginning to creep in at the edge) 1989 seems fully mature until it hits the palate. There is big, spicy, cedary, sweet cherry and black currant fruit, along with some tobacco notes in the impressive aromatics. On the palate, the wine is more narrowly constructed, medium-bodied, with excellent richness on the attack but then some relatively dry, dusty tannins in the finish. This kind of performance tends to suggest the wine needs to be drunk sooner rather than later. Anticipated maturity: Now-2016.  Bordeaux Book, 4th Edition, Jan 2003

Menu

Summer Squash soup with chicken stock and sage cream

Duck Confit with cassis natural sauce

This is a formal seated event with only 12 spaces available.  The fee for this tasting is $235 + tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463.