TN: Loosen Ducru Melchor Leonetti Taylors

Blind tasting lunch notes

While waiting for the crew to assemble, the punctual few shared a bottle of Gardet Brut Tradition – decent nose, a tad sweet in the middle and simple clean finish.

2007 Dr. Loosen Urziger Wurzgarten Spatlese – medium colour, excellent grapefruit apricot nose, only slightly sweet and impeccably balanced in the mouth and smooth long finish. Very good.

1995 Latour a Pomerol – corked (and MY wine!)

1970 Ducru Beaucillou – super claret nose with emphasis on wood rather than fruit, good sweetness on palate and well balanced long finish. Good wine that still shows tannin!

2003 Osoyoos Larose – on a good day, this BC wine made by Gruaud Larose can stand as a decent quite claret like blend. This wasn’t a good day – it was a dark, tannic, astringent wine, closed and with some tarry stony attributes. Eek! Should have been drunk up earlier.

1998 Dom. Remizieres Hermitage Cuvee Emilie – featured fruit in the nose, mostly red, and faint mint, balanced on palate, medium weight and pleasant.

1999 Concha y Toro Cabernet Sauvignon Don Melchor – medium colour, good varietal cab nose with cassis and cedar and slight mint. Good length and over all a very enjoyable wine.

2005 Leonetti Merlot – what has happened to this wine? Butterscotch hints in this nose, fairly dark wine and sweet entry and a nice vanilla hit near the end. A much different style than what they were doing with this grape in the previous decade.

1977 Taylors Port – wine of the day by far, for me, and not just because I guessed it correctly. Slightly warm spirit nose, still good colour, medium red to the edge, not hot on palate, nice tactile chalky mouth feel and very good length. Lots of ripe fruit in the nose developed as it opened. Very good.

05 leonetti feels too old for me. But you have a choice here. Butterscotch or oak.

In their defense, ive found their cabs with 7+ years on them to surprise to the upside. Similar happiness to me with my early 2000’s QC reds.