Preface: our house is a disgrace, after multiple major leaks, with a small plywood temp kitchen, and the rest of the house littered with everything that should be stored in the basement while the basement is gearing up to be renovated. So I don’t really have people over, which saddens me.
Decided to bite the bullet and host a small gathering of a half dozen fellow winos for some BGE tacos al pastor and whatever I could dig out of my storage locker. There was a lot of wine. In the interests of survival we did not finish it all.
A few brief highlights:
1992 Dom Perignon - a bit oxidized but still drinkable. Amber, with minimal fizz. Reminded me of the 1971 I had last year.
NV Perseval Farge La Pucelle- fine, incisive with a bit of apricot on lemon curd. Showed well.
1978 Heitz Martha’s Vineyard - a gift from a fellow wine lover. This was rich and full bodied. Had a touch of funk to it that came on after an hour and left an hour later, and a bit of menthol was there. Blackberry fruit seemed still very vibrant and this drank younger than expected.
1988 Leoville Barton - tobacco, fruit a little dried, classic Bordeaux nose, fairly pyrazine heavy. This was by far the most lean of the Bordeaux we had. I loved it, but it was not a phenomenal wine. Still some grip.
1974 Haut Brion - maybe this was not a good vintage, but this was still a very good wine. Soft, tannins mostly gone. Still moderately colored. Nose was fine and almost floral, with a bit of cedar and earth. Drank like a classic claret.
1962 Lafite - got this out of a bargain bin for $40 - low-mid Shoulder. Double decanted. This was an Audoize wine - fine, delicate, old, haunting, certainly correct and unflawed. Was just a whiff of prettiness and a soft easy palate. Didn’t last long, but if you didn’t like this you shouldn’t drink old wine.
1980 Mayacamas - More refined and laid back than the Martha’s, but not as persistent. Still a beautiful nose of cassis, still high toned, with a bit of earth and dried herbs as well.
There were many other beauties, including a 1990 Brunello, some older Cameron and Edmund St John and Thomas, some old muscadet and much more. May update if I have time.