TN: 2002 Chateau Magdelaine, Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

A Chinon lover’s Bordeaux. And never further from the truth in this leaner vintage.

But for the menthol top note, I would confuse this vintage for a Loire Cab Franc. Has a lithe, red-fruit profile with a prominent, leafy ground cover note. Crisp red fruits spanning the range from briary to ripe, finishing with a hint of green and a bitter clip that is a slight detractor. Tannins are integrated, showing like a walk down a dry dirt road, hint of florals in the air. This nose is beguiling. It’s Heitz meets Raffault. I think the 2011 is a great comparator for this vintage of Magdelaine. Turns an allegedly tougher vintage into a rose.

And yes, before I posted this TN, with all you crazy hypesters going ga-ga over the Maggie, I checked if there was any more available. Alas, my purchase of 3 bottles last year at $45 per is a thing of the past. Only Irongate has it at the discounted price of $93. And while I pass at that price, I will point out that they accept BitCoin. First time I have seen a retailer accept it. So, perhaps for illusory currency, the price makes sense.

(90 pts.).

I drank one of these in September, and I agree basically with your assessment. But I did not find the tannins integrated. My conclusion was that it needs time

Does not sound like a wine for me … reminds me on a 1993 … not very attractive …
(I´m no friend of Loire reds)

The 1994 was tight and green. The next day it blossomed. But with a green note all the time. It was for me a great enjoyment
Will open the 1979 tonight
Hope that one is in the window

Great notes - you should reinvent yourself as an international lawyer and open an office in Paris - Magdelaine is hard to find, but does occasionally come up at auction - some 2002 was sold for 35€ in March.

Ha, you might not like a lot of what I drink!

Possibly - and vice versa … but that´s absolutely ok.

I know quite a lot Magdelaines … and usually it´s not green (only 10% CF) and very elegant and enjoyable.

Bobby, what glass are you drinking that from?

Strangely I don’t think of the 2002 as one of Magdelaine’s successes. Robert did describe it perfectly, and while I like a little green, this went beyond herbal, and just about hit low end bell pepper. Some fruit here, but definitely one for the Loire red lovers.

K-John, it’s GrasslGlass. Ya they are big.

Mark I do not see you as a Chinon fan, perhaps my memory is bad. I did not get bell pepper, compare that to 2000 Sociando, where it is quite pronounced. Did you like 2011? Don’t get me wrong, vintages like 2000 and 1998 are another level, but this wine had definite charm. Wish I had more at this price.

I drink Chinon when it is on the table but don’t buy it.

For decades, the price difference between great vintages and less good vintages of Magdelaine was pretty small, so I am old enough to have accumulated the great ones. Now that it is being discovered, the differential is much greater.

When I look at the prices, the prices of the great vintages are still not outlandish, at least in comparison to their equivalents. And what I mean by the equivalents, they are great and distinctive examples of wines that show their origin, and Magdelaine has ended up as being a unique wine that really is a paradigm of what Saint Emilion should be.

Totally agree - which is very sad, especially at the precise moment RMP is officially retiring. On the one hand, they should put up a statue in his honour for all he has done for St.Emilion, but on the other hand, we should then all throw eggs at it for exactly the same reason. The Parker Paradox indeed!

Parker and Rolland have killed St Em. Seriously. Even Figeac folded. There isn’t a single new release from St Em that I buy. Nothing. It’s DTM.

Cheval I cannot comfortably afford.

Rob - you’re welcome (IIRC you picked up the ones from winebid I didn’t buy after I posted about them here).

I agree with you about how enjoyable the 2002 is right now though it certainly has many years ahead of it. Mark’s palate veers too much towards overripe Bordeaux

Likewise. I sold most of mine, apart from a few which were not worth selling. I haven’t tried them in recent vintages, but I do however enjoy Moulin St.Georges and Larmande.

I should have added Bouard, Derenoncourt and Leve to my diatribe!

Damn it; I have been outed.
Thanks to this thread, I asked a friend if he had any Magdelaine. Yes, so bought a case of the 1995 for $60 a bottle. One of the few Magdelaines I have never had. Not for the first time, this board contributes to my delinquency.

I’ll take on the Q as we had the 2011 2 weeks ago and I had 2002 a couple months ago. I think the 2011 is less green, more transparent/pure and classic, and actually better to my taste (now, and probably in future).

If Figeac changed to taste exactly like 1982 Cheval Blanc, Robert would still reject it.

Serve them both blind to me and I give them 100!

The 1947 is a caricature.