A vertical tasting? Never had one, never experienced it, and just months earlier Katherine and I had discussed how we might go about someday enjoying a true first growth, knowing we could never afford the $1500-$3000 price tag Latour, Lafitte, Margaux, Haut-Brion, Mouton-Rothchild, and 1st growth in all but name (and certainly in price) Petrus traditionally go for in auction or for sale, nor the exorbitant fees they go for in restaurants. The only means we could ever imagine involved going in on a bottle with friends, allowing for each friend to spend perhaps $150-$250 for the privilege of a simple 2-4 ounce pour. It still seemed unfeasible.
Undaunted I began my Bordeaux mission a few weeks before Katherine's 40th, planning to purchase cellar worthy 90 point caliber quality wines, and a nice fruit forward, complex, right bank Bordeaux from a Chateau that had produced a wine capable of early drinking from '05. Having aged 7 years, I figured there had to be a right bank bordeaux, Merlot based that might be drinkable, and Becky, a borderline sommelier who had helped us at Vino 100, helped me again at Total Wine, finding my quest a bit amusing, but also right in her wheelhouse. She suggested a Chateau Garraud, a solid 88-90 pointer with a Merlot base, strong fruit, a bit light on the tannins, but with some complex spice in the finish. Needless to say, her advice, and my research were spot on, as the wine was a genuine hit for us. I also added an '07 Sauternes for dessert, and a '97 Graham's vintage port (Graham's is her favorite Port house), the '97 went into our mini fridge cellar, and we celebrated.
Five weeks later we got lucky. Becky had arranged for Total Wine to produce a Vertical tasting of two Margaux houses, where the Wine Manager Alexander Van Beek would conduct a seminar on the wines, and the region for those curious to learn from him. We bought two seats, and arrived at the store for the tasting on friday, the 4th. Van Beek was amazing, and exceptionally charming, a wonderful representative for Chateau Giscours, and Chateau Du Tertre. He gave a thorough description and explanation of the history of Bordeaux and its terroir, focusing on the last great ice age which transported innumerable stones across the bordeaux region, larger to smaller running south to north, the impact of the soils he explained was translated in the heat they retain and give off to the vines and grapes during the growing season. Margaux, being furthest South along the left bank, houses some of the largest stones in the reason, and as a result, the terroir is deeply influenced by the role of heat in the grapes, and how the winemakers decide how to address this issue in terms of harvesting. So what of the wines?
Giscours is a third growth, Du Tertre a fifth, based on the 1855 classifications, and I was more than a little interested in how their reputations might impact my feelings about the wines themselves. The vertical began with 2000 vintages of Giscours and Du Tertre. The 2000 Du Tertre greeted you with a great deal of spice in the nose, and a very bright, acidic flavor. Not my cup of tea. I did enjoy the finish, which lingered and had a bit of smoke, but in the end, the acid, spice and pepper were just too much for me. Katherine loved it, she loves spice, smoke and fruit, and this wine had 2 of the 3 in spades, the fruit wasn't all that prevalent. I gave it an 87, Robert Parker gave it a 91.
Giscours 2000 was much more my cup of tea, I loved the fruit and body, and it had a lovely finish. Was deep and powerful. I gave it a 92. Katherine preferred the Du Tertre. Giscours scored a 92 with RP and a 93 at Wine Specator.
The next wines were a mismatched pair, an 03 Giscours and an '08 Du Tertre. I loved this Du Tertre, an interesting response considering that I thought '08 was a pretty poor year in Bordeaux. Van Beek described 2008 as a difficult, complicated year with a cool spring, but a hot summer. It was 15% cab franc, as compared to the 2000 which was 20%. The rest being a Cab/Merlot blend. I was really impressed, it was sweet, had deep fruit, and lovely floral elements I have rarely come across. A wonderful wine. A real eye opener, and a reminder to taste for taste, and not for affirmation. I loved it and gave it a 90/91. Katherine loved it too, slightly preferred to the 2000 because of the more plentiful fruit, and perhaps the lower quantity of cab franc. Du Tertre is at a higher altitude than Giscours, exposed to the elements and a great region for growing Cab Franc, which is why it plays a role that it doesnt play with Giscours. The '08 received an 85/87 from RP and Wine Spectator.
The '03 Giscours was a special wine. Smooth, hints of floral notes, medium fruit and body, some heat, and not tannic, it even had a butter flavor hiding in there. I didn't like it quite as much as the 2000, but it was an excellent wine. I gave it a 91. It got a 90/91 from RP and Wine Spectator.
Next came the 2005's, another great year for Bordeaux, and Du Tertre came through beautifully. Medium pepper, a deep, lovely fruit, wonderful, and really open, it wasn't tight or constricted with high tannins. It was a 55/30/15 blend of Cab/Merlot/and Cab Franc. A wonderful wine. I would give it a 91. It got a 90/88 from RP and Wine Spectator.
The '05 Giscours clearly wasn't ready. It needs more time to age, you could taste the fruit, but it was tannic, and simply wasn't ready yet. No point in reviewing it as I don't have the palate skills (or the b.s. skills perhaps?) to taste a wine that clearly hasn't opened up yet, and have a prophetic sense of how it will taste when it actually ready. Maybe in the future I'll be able to grasp that predictive power, for now I enjoyed it, and saw its potential but that was it.
The '09's followed and as usual the Du Tertre was ready and the Giscours was tight and closed. The '09 Du tertre featured a sweet, prevalent depth in the nose, and a wonderful bountiful quantity of fruit and body in it. The finish was smooth and effortless, a light spice, but not enough to bother or irritate me. Kath really enjoyed it too. It was one of her two favorites along witht he 2000. I would give the '09 a 92.
It was a wonderful experience and Alex Van Beek could not have been more accomodating, good humored, and entertaining in hosting the vertical. Easily the most enjoyable tasting experience of my life alongside tasting in Amador, Sonoma and Mendocino.
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