The Auswine Forum

• 1980 Château La Gaffelière - France, Bordeaux, Libournais, St. Émilion Grand Cru (12/02/2017)
  A good start with a very long cork, in fine shape, easily coming out in one piece.
  
  A very healthy colour (red-claret) with a definite band of bricking at the rim. Considering the age, in very good shape.
  
  The nose would have fooled me towards Pomerol, which we've had better luck with than St Emilion. Plum/Blackcurrant, leafy/green pepper, mocha, backed by a little orange.
  
  On the light-medium bodied palate more red-fruited with a hint of green pepper. Not especially complex, but good balance with acidity that works well with a guinea fowl roast, but doesn't dominate when sipping the wine after the meal. Perhaps a hint of tannin, nothing more.
  
  Better or worse than it would have been a decade or two ago? Difficult to say, but I reckon this would be a different experience. No expectation for future improvement, but this is a wine in good health and this bottle would have lasted a good few years longer.
  

JamieBahrain wrote:Forgot to mention a wonderful Wynn's Michael en magnum 1998. Lovely, soft and intense shiraz. 93pts

maybs wrote:2009 Giaconda Nebbiolo. My first try of their Nebbiolo and very happy with it. Could have easily mistaken it for a decent Italian. Went very well with 6 hour smoked/bbq'd beef ribs too.

Luke W wrote:1998 Tahbilk Reserve Shiraz - just stunning and still with plenty of life. Complex, interesting, full of just about everything u want in a wine!

phillisc wrote:

JamieBahrain wrote:Forgot to mention a wonderful Wynn's Michael en magnum 1998. Lovely, soft and intense shiraz. 93pts

Thanks Jamie, have one of these and a six pack of singles.
Might finally be time to have a look.

Cheers
Craig

conformistpete wrote:Jadot Chambolle Musigny 2010 with some duck breast

michel wrote:

conformistpete wrote:Jadot Chambolle Musigny 2010 with some duck breast

Should be racey and great
We had a lambs woolly 2005 jadot 1er suchot last night.

conformistpete wrote:

michel wrote:

conformistpete wrote:Jadot Chambolle Musigny 2010 with some duck breast

Should be racey and great
We had a lambs woolly 2005 jadot 1er suchot last night.

It was! Lots of bright red fruit and lacy tannins to boot... lovely wine for a cool Melbourne sunday evening.

rooman wrote:Stonyridge Larose 2007. one of NZ's top Bordeaux blends. Good tannins and lovely length but I suspect it is still in a dormant phase as the secondary flavours have still to emerge. I will try again in a few years.

brodie wrote:

rooman wrote:Stonyridge Larose 2007. one of NZ's top Bordeaux blends. Good tannins and lovely length but I suspect it is still in a dormant phase as the secondary flavours have still to emerge. I will try again in a few years.

Rooman, definitely needs more time. I have the Larose back to late 1990s in the cellar and I think it shows best after about 15 years from vintage. Had a 2005 last year and it was delicious but still youthful. With enough age they become quite difficult to distinguish from a good Paulliac or St Julien. Lovely cigar box and blackcurrant.

Keep it another 5 years would be my advice.

Brodie

rooman wrote:

brodie wrote:

rooman wrote:Stonyridge Larose 2007. one of NZ's top Bordeaux blends. Good tannins and lovely length but I suspect it is still in a dormant phase as the secondary flavours have still to emerge. I will try again in a few years.

Rooman, definitely needs more time. I have the Larose back to late 1990s in the cellar and I think it shows best after about 15 years from vintage. Had a 2005 last year and it was delicious but still youthful. With enough age they become quite difficult to distinguish from a good Paulliac or St Julien. Lovely cigar box and blackcurrant.

Keep it another 5 years would be my advice.

Brodie

Yep that was my take on the wine as well. I only have one left from the 90s being a 93. Have you tried one of these recently? If you are Auckland based, do you know Steve White over on the island?

Mark

rooman wrote:[quote="brodie]

Hi Mark, never had the 1993, mine "only" go back to 1996. I have not met Steve White and now not likely to. I was on the mailing list for quite a long time but gave up afer the 2013 vintage when they increase the EP pricing from NZ$100 to NZ$125 in a single vintage and that was after they "drifted" the EP price up from $80 to $100 over the prior two years. I wrote them a long email about why I thought this was a poor way to treat the long term mailing list supporters. The response was less than satisfying, something along the lines of "f**k you" in marketing speak. I then decided there were plenty other places to spend my wine related $$.

I really like the wines as they are not over ripe or over oaked, but like many other wineries they have decided that $$ are everything and relationships with long term customers are secondary. I have plenty in the cellar so will enjoy them slowly over into the future.

Brodie[/quote]

Brodie

If you saw the owners lifestyle you would know why he had to put it up to $120 pb. In all seriousness however $120 puts it on par with its peers in this part of the world such as Moss Wood, Mount Mary, less than the 707 and sort of in the 2-5th growth range. Personally I believe it's the same quality as its peers so I understand the pricing even if I have also stopped buying.

With respect to the price, I came to the view years ago there is nothing egalitarian about the world of wine. If a producer can charge $100 or $500 or $1000 and sell his wines then more power to him and his buyers. Like you I'm happy hunting out new pastures and smile at his continued success.

Mark[/quote]