Bordeaux Futures 2005: Seventeenth Report

2005:THE EXOTICISM OF THE SECOND WINES AND THE CLASSICISM OF THE FIRST MOULIS AND LISTRACSeventeenth Report (April 25, 2006)2005 : THE EXOTICISM OF THE SECOND WINES AND THE CLASSICISM OF THE FIRSTYesterday I went to Grand Puy Lacoste for a tasting and, in sampling the Lacoste Borie, I thought of the lines which follow. You will have noticed that, since the beginning of these reports, my opinion of the 2005 Second wines is very good. Most of all, they do not resemble their bigger brothers, the First wines. Why? Everything which was too ripe, rather weather-dried, rich in alcohol, with exotic flavours, was left out of the Great wine in favour of freshness and so found its way into the second label. Often, the second wine is made up of the leftovers of the first selection. This means especially the least ripe, or most green, the most crude, the most simple and the least sophisticated. But there was none of this in 2005. On the contrary, the second wines display a particular charm brought about by an aromatic, often mature, nature which evokes the 2003. These wines, very seductive in their youth, will become wines for pleasure. And they will be all the more so for their full mouth has no tannic rigidity. In a year where everything is mature, the criteria for selection are based on high quality, that is to say, sophistication and refinement of style, rather than low quality, that is to say, the necessary elimination of greenness and rusticity. In 2005, two different styles of wine thus co-exist on the same estate. Never before have I encountered this. It took me a few days to understand. As tasting usually begins with the second wine, it sets up a reference and a standard of the vintage to be sampled. Now, by going from the second wine to the first with such a short lapse of time between them, I realised that this reference lost its meaning, for the first wine presented different values from the second. I must admit that it was perturbing and even tiring. It would be easy, in the name of certain principles, to condemn the second wine, a pledge of immediate pleasure, in order to valorise the first, most noble, custodian of the greatness of expression and of tomorrow’s pleasure. Please take note of the fact that I will not compare one with the other. Indeed, in this extraordinary vintage, I think that we will find pleasure in drinking both the second and first wines. All that is necessary is to recognise that the pleasure will be different. And if these second wines are not dried and spoiled by un-rigorous maturing in the wood, they will become delicious. In the next few Chronicles, I will compare the development of the best second wines as they mature.MOULIS AND LISTRACANTHONIC Moulis Cru Bourgeois 83 The wine seems still slightly green and so is difficult to judge. BIBIAN Listrac Cru Bourgeois 84 Crimson colour. Fruity, fresh nose. Very fruity, tight mouth, with medium body, ending tannic and firm. Maturing will tell us more. BRANAS GRAND POUJEAUX Moulis 86 - 87 Very lovely colour. Beautiful floral, fruity, mature nose. Here in the mouth is the very mature and very caressing style typical of Mr Michel Rolland’s winemaking, like the taste of cherry also present. Very good. CAP LÉON VEYRIN Listrac Cru Bourgeois 84 A corpulent wine but its firm tannin lacks flesh. Maturing will tell us more. CHASSE SPLEEN Moulis Cru Bourgeois 86 Dark red colour, of good intensity. A neat, fairly animal, fruity nose. The mouth is fruity and fairly fleshy, while remaining of medium corpulence. Tannic finish with a finer grain than usual. The expression is still reserved. Maturing will reveal more. CLARKE Listrac Cru Bourgeois 85 - 86 The colour is dark and the nose not yet ready. The mouth has plenty of flesh, with rather rustic tannin. Normal length. I would argue for less wood during maturing. CLOS DES DEMOISELLES Listrac 85 What fruitiness! The wine slips into the mouth as only happens with a Listrac once every 30 to 50 years. Lovely length without rusticity. DUCLUZEAU Listrac 84 - 85Owned by the Borie family, this estate has been increased in size by the purchase of 5 ha of vines from Bibian Tigana. A fruity, mature wine at the nose as in taste. The mouth is quite tender, very fruity and simple. 13.2° alcohol.DUPLESSIS Moulis Cru Bourgeois 84 The nose of this wine is still rather wild, and I find this taste again at the finish. On the other hand, between the two, the fullness of the fruit is very noticeable. Better than usual. DUTRUCH GRAND POUJEAUX Moulis Cru Bourgeois 86 Lovely dark colour. The nose smells of ink and incense. The mouth is deliciously suave and fruity. An aromatic, floral finish. Plenty of pleasure. FONRÉAUD Listrac Cru Bourgeois 87 - 88My best score given to this cru as a Future. Very lovely colour and nose. For the first time, I would say it was delicate. It is a little less firm than usual. The mouth is very concentrated, very strong, fat and also tannic. Beautiful, strong, fruity, nearly creamy length. An astonishing, very concentrated profile. The length improves the score. Good aging capacity. FOURCAS DUPRÉ Listrac Cru Bourgeois 84 The firmness of Listrac is to be found in this wine which is certainly fruity but austere at the finish. FOURCAS HOSTEN Listrac Cru Bourgeois 82 Dark red colour of good intensity. A neat nose, slightly green, smelling of crushed leaves. The mouth is light and a little fluid. The fat of the vintage is not present! LA LAUZETTE Listrac 87A discovery!Frans Roskam, owner of Château Cantenac in Saint-Emilion, has taken over this vineyard of 13 ha, a Cru Bourgeois in 2003, as a tenant viticulturist. The estate is situated on the Gironde side of the Listrac appellation, not the forest side (the tannins are always finer from close to the river). The vines are 48% Cabernet Sauvignon, 45% Merlot, 5% old Petit Verdot and 2% Cabernet Franc. The terroir is gravely and clayey-limestone. I find this first approach very successful and very encouraging. There is a leading place free in this appellation which is the opposite of a deck-chair terroir as it needs constant diligent work. The price of this wine for private individuals is announced at 6,50 euros as a Future, tax included. As you may imagine, I will not fail to follow the development of this new wine as it matures. A coloured wine, very fruity at the nose, strong with a liquorice note. The mouth is delicious, more marked by the merlot than the Cabernet Sauvignon, rounded in the middle. Very fruity finish, with perfectly coated tannin. A lovely success. Tel. 33 (00) 05 57 51 35 22 - Fax. 33 (00) 05 57 25 19 15 -email: frans.roskam@chateau-cantenac.frLESTAGE Listrac Cru Bourgeois 86My best score given to this cru as a Future. Very lovely colour. Very lovely nose, so mature that it smells of tar. The entry is incredible for this cru. It develops strong and less austere than usual. Very lovely length, sappy, tannic but aromatic. MAUCAILLOU Moulis Cru Bourgeois 85 I was expecting rather more density. A fruity wine with a medium body. MAYNE LALANDE Listrac Cru Bourgeois 86 - 87 Very lovely colour. Beautiful fruitiness, fresher than usual and more creamy. This wine offers one of the most delicate mouths that I have encountered here. Here, the tannins are smooth, everything melts together. A success. MOULIN A VENT Moulis Cru Bourgeois 85 Here, I have tasted the estate’s best vintage, the most pulpy and the least austere at the finish. Lovely length. PEYREDON LAGRAVETTE Listrac Cru Bourgeois 86 I do not often taste this cru although I hold it in esteem. My last good memory dates back to 1998. I was struck by the softness which it releases, and by its pure fruitiness, its well-placed, flavourful tannin. Delicious. I suppose that it is the quality of the Merlot grapes which have given such suavity to the wine. POUJEAUX Moulis Cru Bourgeois 90My best score given to this cru as a Future. Intense, dark crimson colour. Very, very lovely fruity, intense, mature nose. Notes of blackberry and vanilla. The mouth is beautiful, ample, juicy, very, very fruity, fleshy, unquenchable and full. The tannic coating is remarkable. Great length. Except in 1990, I have never seen so fine a tannic grain at Poujeaux, but in 2005, the taste is purer. The construction of the wine is more in volume than in length and classicism. Maturing will reveal more. SARANSOT DUPRE red Listrac Cru Bourgeois 84 A coloured wine, very fruity at the nose. The mouth is rounded and attractive, with no rigidity at all. Normal length and body. Enjoy the Report. Jean-Marc Quarin

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Bordeaux Futures 2005: Seventeenth Report

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