I unexpectedly won more '78 Magdelaine on Winebid than anticipated a few months ago so I decided it was no crime to sample one bottle by myself.
I decanted and started dinner. Not much on the nose but I hoped it would open up with air.
And indeed it did as when I sat down to eat the scent of TCA was wafting freely from the glass.
As a backup I quickly grabbed a 1979 La Dominique (along with a fresh glass and decanter) a wine I know and enjoy. Unfortunately it was only as I was decanting that I remembered it needs about a half hour to open up.
Sure enough, it was unimpressive throughout my meal but became a lovely drink some time after I was done eating.
A bit more faded still than my last bottle about 2-3 years ago. Definitely on the downslope but possessed of the most beautiful silken texture.
I had the 1979 Dominique a couple times (a purchase at your suggestion, no less!) in the last few years and it doesnāt surprise me that it is on the downslope. While I donāt think that it will fall off a cliff, it strikes me as a ādrink nowā kind of wine.
Of course, my bottles were acquired at auction, so YMMV.
Ugh. Hopefully TCA didnāt affect that whole tranche, or you, Alfert, and I are screwed. Between the three of us, I think we bought most of those bottles.
I had the Magdelaine a year ago. Not bad, has a little bit of the greeness so beloved by the Loire yaks, but still a good wine. Probably should not wait too long.