Chronicle 188 - 189

Bordeaux 2015 (3 part). Fine, nothing but fine! The first exhibition to focus on taste before looking at labels on 20th and 21st November in Paris Ducru Beaucaillou versus Grand Puy Lacoste Second and third comparative vertical tasting. Grand Puy Lacoste wins both times! Two new Outsiders: Château Jean Faux and Château de Lamarque Bordeaux 2015 from 20th September to 15th October (part 3). Fine, nothing but fine! After the rain from 10th to 18th September, fine weather returned and lasted until Friday 2nd October in the evening. There was no excessive heat and night-time temperatures dropped from 24th September onwards. It started raining during the night on 2nd October and continued on Saturday 3rd and Sunday 4th, totalling about 35 millimetres, before it turned fine again from 6th to 17th October. From 13th, temperatures at night became much cooler. This weather was a stroke of luck that enabled everyone to take time with their harvest, waiting for each plot to become fully ripe without the fear of rot. Estates like Cheval Blanc in Saint-Emilion stretched out their harvest over 30 days, and actually picked grapes for 10. Present situations vary from estate to estate and so does what they say. While Château Margaux finished harvesting on 6th October, in Saint-Emilion the properties with soil types that crop later, such as Pavie Macquin and Fleur Cardinale were only half way through. 2015 has thus been a good year for early and late cropping terroirs. And this is what will help build the vintage's reputation, even if some professionals cite greater irregularity than 2009 for four reasons: Different soil reactions during the drought conditions in July Different vine reactions depending on the way they were cultivated i.e. whether the rows were tilled or grassed Differences in ripeness and expression depending on yields Differences resulting from significant changes in rainfall in August and September On high quality estates and even when the harvest was considered to be early, I found no hint of greenness in the Merlot. In fact the fruit displays remarkable vigour and imparts its colour with no resort to mechanical means required. The texture of these wines is finely chiselled. However, to gain any lasting approval, the vintage must make the grade in the Medoc, where both production and prestige is vast. In this area, the professionals expect a lot from its royal grape variety, Cabernet Sauvignon. Grape samples have revealed concentration indicators that are twice as high as those for Merlot samples. For now, only fruit from the earlier harvested young vines has finished fermenting. We have no idea as yet what the more representative old Cabs will be like, but there are some very positive signs. Paul Pontallier at Château Margaux let me taste Tank 28, which contains fruit from young 6-year-old Cabernet Sauvignon growing on a great plot. Its rich, supple texture and especially the burst of flavours with its lovely soft feel made it much more delightful than the 18-year-old Merlot in Tank 92. We both fantasized what the best Cabernet would produce! I've been tasting certain batches of Château Margaux as the alcoholic fermentation calms down for 20 years now. That the wines can be so clear-cut and aromatic so early is astounding for me. I had the same impressions again, when I tasted the 17 tanks at Brane Cantenac. More of that later. ____________________________________________________ Salon des Outsiders on 20th and 21st November in Paris The first exhibition to focus on taste before looking at labels. See the full programme here: http://lesalondesoutsiders.com/uk Don't miss: - The Inaugural Dinner on 19th November in Paris at the very exclusive Restaurant Laurent, http://lesalondesoutsiders.com/uk/inaugural-dinner.html The TASTING WORKSHOPS A special moment with Jean-Marc Quarin A special moment with Jean-Marc Quarin. Seated tasting sessions for no more than 30 participants. Jean Marc Quarin subscribers are entitled to a 25% discount on the exhibition entry fee and 15% off the cost of the Inaugural Dinner. Request your code by E-mail. Friday 20th November 5.0 to 6.0 p.m. - How to recognise quality in young Bordeaux red wines – the palate before the nose! Workshop presented by Jean-Marc Quarin Bordeaux red wines are presented for the public to taste, before they are bottled or just after. At these times, their bouquets are not fully formed. Only by analysing the sensations these wines stimulate on the palate, can an idea of their potential quality be gained. In this workshop, Jean-Marc Quarin summarises his new tasting method, in which the palate counts more than the nose. Four wines will be served. Price: €40 Saturday 21st November 11.0 a.m. to 12.30 p.m. Vertical tasting of Château d'Yquem, or everlasting quality in the taste. Workshop co-presented by Sandrine Garbay, cellar master at Château d'Yquem and Jean-Marc Quarin. In the taste of d'Yquem there is more than just the sweetness of a classical sweet white wine. In this wine, the sugars don't just sweeten the palate. See how they melt and fill it with fragrance? We owe this taste sophistication to the natural physical qualities of the area where the vines are cultivated, as well as to human observation and intervention. Together they foster the development of noble rot, which is the only agent able to make the sweetness ethereal. Nature's gift and the talent of Man achieve this everlasting quality for the delight of connoisseurs year after year. There is no point in waiting; this ethereal nature of the sweetness can be perceived just a few months after the wine is bottled. We illustrate this by tasting the vintages 2013, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2005, 2004, 2002, 2001 and 2000. The 2013 will be served as a welcome drink paired with a dish concocted by Guy Savoy. Price: €110 2.30 to 3.30 p.m. - Cork, the final dimension of wine. Workshop co-presented by Ardeaseal and Jean-Marc Quarin. Historically, great Bordeaux wines have always been sold and paid for before they are bottled. However, corks are still the final interface between producers and consumers. Cork stoppers are all inherently different and contribute to variability between the taste of one bottle and another from the same case. 10% of the time, this variability can go from very good to very bad. Ardeaseal has developed another stopper and in this workshop, explains its research and its solutions to beat this costly and infuriating annoyance. The workshop also includes comparative tastings of Italian and French dry white and red wines with cork stoppers and Ardeaseal. And to finish, an exceptional tasting of Liber Pater red 2011. This very innovative wine has become the dearest of the Graves area at €3,000 per bottle. It seeks to recreate the taste of Bordeaux wines of 1855, by selecting forgotten grape varieties from its collections of non-grafted vines. Liber Pater is also so innovative that it no longer uses cork closures. Price: €40 Book now 4.30 to 5.30 p.m. - New ways to serve wine at table. If you no longer drink to quench thirst, but to experience new flavours and to share your feelings with others, this new form of conviviality requires a different way to serve wines. So how do you delight your guests? Tasting highlights the most important moments of a dinner. Service of four wines. Price: €40 ________________________________________ Ducru Beaucaillou versus Grand Puy Lacoste Second and third comparative vertical tasting. Grand Puy Lacoste wins both times! The initial story: a first tasting was held in 2012 and declared Grand Puy Lacoste the winner. The magazine “Terres de Vins” published a summary of my findings from the tasting and was subsequently taken to court by Château Ducru Beaucaillou. In its defence, Terres de Vins summoned me to appear in court. Ducru Beaucaillou lost the case and went to appeal. To find out more: I tasted the wines blind and in public on two consecutive evenings on 7th and 8th September. The bottles had been bought and were not supplied by the chateaux. The wines were of course served in a different order from one evening to the next. Grand Puy Lacoste (GPL) won easily both times, so overall, GPL won the contest three times. The results are very interesting to observe with significant differences between bottles of the same wine and vintage and bottles that were corked, which was the case twice for GPL in 2003 and once with Ducru also in 2003. The following vintages were tasted: 2010, 2009, 2008, 2006, 2005, 2003, 2000, 1998, 1996 and 1995. Results to be published. ____________________________________________________ Two new Outsiders: Château Jean Faux and Château de Lamarque Château Jean Faux, Bordeaux Supérieur, located on the right bank The property is at Sainte Radegonde on the other side of the Dordogne valley in magnificent surroundings, facing the hills of Saint-Emilion and Castillon la Bataille. Since 2003, it has produced a very good red wine, which has gained substance since 2009. This is what makes it good. The white wine is a Sauvignon varietal. The vines are still too young and the wine is light. Since 2002, Pascal Collotte has cleared land here to increase the vineyard from 3 to 12 hectares (7.5 to 29.5 acres). The results so far show that he has been doing this carefully and with a drive to do it right. He is very switched on to local history and has even planted white wine vines in the cooler areas, like the “old locals” told him to. Pascal used to work as a cooper for the Saury cooperage and asked Stéphane Derenoncourt to help him with his wine growing venture. Today, Simon Blanchard is his consultant. The work put into the vineyard and winemaking here exceeds Bordeaux Supérieur specifications. At €16 including VAT per bottle, Jean Faux rivals Saint-Emilion wines and is amply worthy of its Outsider status. A closer look at the wines shows that a lot of care has gone into the way they are made. The same is true for the second wine, Dame de Jean Faux, which is by no means green or dry; light certainly, but still fruity and flavoursome. Jean Faux is predominantly Merlot based – 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc – and has a lovely burst of aromas on the nose. The balance between the ripeness of the tannin and the aromatic freshness is very well done. Some vintages even display very distinct hints of violets and truffle. It is pleasingly soft and smooth on the palate, full in the middle, savoury and displays ripe, rounded tannins on the finish. There is no coarseness, which heightens the whole. Overall, the wines have more body from 2009 onwards. Their ageing potential is worthy of the best. Surface area: 12.3 hectares (30.4 acres). The soil is clayey limestone on the slopes and limestone on the plateau. Planting density: 7,400 vines per hectare (3,000 per acre). Average age of the vines: 20 years. Grape varieties planted: 80% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc. The wines are aged for 12 months in barrels, 40 to 50% of which are new. Price: €16 including VAT per bottle to the consumer. Contact: pascal.collotte@chateaujeanfaux.com - Tel. +33 557 400 385 2012 16 // 89 Lovely wine with a fruity, creamy nose, very flavoursome on the palate with good body and an elegant mouthfeel. Nice finish. Hard to spit out. 2016 – 2030. 2011 15 // 87 Vintage less successful than the 2012, lighter, but no roughness on the tannins. 2015 – 2022. 2010 16 // 90 This wine has lovely black cherry and truffle aromas, if you decant it. Full, fleshy, flavoursome and vigorous on the palate with rounded tannins. A hint of violets. Good length. 2016 – 2030. 2009 15,75 // 89 A fruity, flavoursome wine that is a little austere for a 2009. Hints of liquorice. Good length. Unfortunately there is variation from bottle to bottle. 2015 – 2025. 2008 15,5 // 88 Lovely nose with a nice coffee aroma. Delicious on the palate, both smooth and slender, flavoursome and elegantly creamy as it lingers. A touch of violets. Drink now and before 2022. 2007 15 // 87 Coffee on the nose. Light and soft on the palate. Quite Burgundian. A fine achievement for this vintage. Drink now and before 2020. 2006 15 // 87 Merlot on the nose. It fills the mouth on the attack and is more tannic on the finish, but it is flavoursome. Best to decant it for an hour before. A little austere. Drink now and before 2020. 2005 15,5 // 88 The aroma of cedar on the nose, is a sign of quite a classy bouquet from ageing. Fleshy and caressing on the palate, if it is decanted. Lovely floral and fruity finish. Very pleasant. Drink now and before 2025. 2004 15 // 87 A pleasant wine that is a bit light. Drink now and before 2020. 2003 15,5 // 88 It has to be decanted and you can smell a lovely hint of coffee and a touch of cream. Round, lush, flavoursome and creamy on the palate with a quite surprising flashback of violets on the finish. Slightly tannic as it lingers. Appealing overall. Drink now and before 2025. Château de Lamarque, a new Outsider located in Haut Médoc at Lamarque I have been tasting this wine for about twenty years and the new way in which the 2014 stood out caught my attention. I performed a vertical tasting recently that confirmed that this wine has changed status and has become more elegant since 2009. It has gained aromatic distinction, body and a refined finish, which I couldn't find before. Its very reasonable price around €16 to €18 per bottle makes it an Outsider. Don't miss the very successful 2012, or the 2014 sold by Laurent Perrier Group for €10 per bottle (excluding VAT)! Contact: alexia.chareyre@laurent-perrier.fr In the Bordeaux area, the company Crus et Domaines de France in Landiras distributes it exclusively to professionals. Other details on the website: http://www.chateaudelamarque.fr Surface area: 38 ha. Gravelly, clayey and sandy soil. Planting density: 7,400 vines per hectare (3,000 per acre). Average age of the vines: 25 years. Grape varieties planted: 45% Cabernet-Sauvignon; 45% Merlot, 10% Petit-Verdot. The wines are aged for 18 months in oak barrels, 40 to 50% of which are new. 2012 15,75 // 88 A fragrant caressing wine with flavoursome tannins and body, energy and well-rounded tannins. 2017 – 2030. 2011 15 // 87 Medium body, but tender and fragrant. 2016 – 2025. 2010 16// 90 Well-coloured wine with a fragrant nose, both vigorous and smooth on the palate. Good length, very slightly tannic and lots of fruit and flower flavours. 2017 – 2030. 2009 15,75 // 89 Elegant, fruity and ripe on the nose with aromas of cherry and patchouli. Full and very, very fruity on the palate with an unusual flavour and rounded tannins becoming apparent. Very good length. 2018 – 2035. 2008 14.5 // 86 Too light. 2007 15 // 87 More graceful and a better result than the 2008. 2006 14 // 85 Austere on the finish. 2005 15 // 87 Quite rough body. Old-style wine. 2004 14.5 // 86 Light and coarse. ________________________________________ @Copyright This publication is the original work of Jean-Marc Quarin Sarl, 10 allée de Ginouilhac, 33320 Le Taillan-Médoc. France. E-mail : jmquarin@quarin.com The news media and subscribing wine distributors, importers and retailers may use portions of this material (such as tasting notes, ratings or quotes) provided that it is not distorted, the proper wine and vintage are stated, www.quarin.com is given credit for the material utilized, and Jean-Marc Quarin is shown as the Copyright holder.

2015 Chronicles

Chronicle 188 - 189

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