I’m planning on opening my first of 4 bottles of 1975 Chateau Magdelaine on 8/25 at a small wine group dinner (5-6 people).
Typically, I wouldn’t bring something with this kind of age out to a restaurant for a group but my birthday is the 26th and since our group only gets together 2-3 times/year, I thought a birth year bottle was appropriate this time around.
I know several on this board have enjoyed this wine throughout the years. Any suggestions on preparation? I can decant (decanter or carafe)/double decant/slow ox/amount of air time/etc.? I don’t own a craddle so that would be the only option that is out.
I will stand the bottle upright for at least 1 week prior to the dinner and I will use a Durand to pull the cork. If doing a DD, I will clean out the sediment from the bottle and have a backup cork available if the one removed isn’t reusable, which it probably won’t be.
I am also the point person to work with the manager and chef of the restaurant to select the menu based around the wines, so any food course pairing suggestions for the 1975 would be greatly appreciated. If it’s better on its own then it can be paired in-between courses as well.
This will be the oldest bottle at the table. So far there is tentatively a 2017 Ultramarine Rose and a 2009 Jean Louis Chave Hermitage Blanc. The other wines haven’t been selected yet by the group but they are leaning towards good CA and/or Oregon pinots and possibly a 1994 or 1995 Ridge Monte Bello.
If I were drinking this at home, I’d probably pop and slowly pour and consume over 2-3 hours. Since you’re taking it to a restaurant, I’d recommend a double decant shortly before departure. Enjoy and please report back. The only Magdelaine I’ve had from that era was the 1970.
I would double decant. Could be right before you drink it. If it’s a good bottle, it is may show a little saline and grumpy when you open it. It’s not a fragile wine. Should be singing within an hour or so, but it should keep getting better or drink on a nice plateau after that.
Agreed. I last had this about 3 years ago when Gilman and I put on a big Magdelaine tasting.
I double decanted about 30 minutes before the tasting and left the bottle open. Looking back, I think we got to the wine about 90 minutes after that, at which point it was singing.
1975 Magdelaine shows its vintage, but as is usually the case- not to the extremes of many other top wines. And so while I would normally advise a very long decant for most 1975s, something in the range of what Jayson and I are reporting above should be just fine.
You are in for a treat BTW. It is a fantastic wine once it settles down.
Since you have four, stand two up just in case you need a back-up. These are great wines, but also very old wines. There are only great bottles. I had one 1970 that was glorious, one that was stewed tomatoes.
If you double decant, please only after 2-3 h of slow oxing, otherwise it can get “sharp” …
but why d-decanting?
Take a clean spare bottle, slow-ox, decant into the spare bottle before leaving … and take both bottles with you …
that way you even can serve the wine blind …
(I did it yesterday eve…)
Inasmuch as Chateau Magdelaine is already as old school as they get, the 1975 is one of the oldest school I’ve had from this property. Since my 1975 claret experience is not wide, this had become one of my preferred vintage wines. Finished off my 3-pack, at $30ish per bottle purchases, all in the last decade. Just stand your bottles up for 5 days and double decant to pour out the sediment.
I wanted to thank everyone that contributed advise on this post. I integrated a little bit of everyones advise, including the use of a cradle (an unexpected birthday present from my wife)!
When i first pulled the cork, I thought the bottle was going to be flawed but it showed beautifully and it was enjoyed by all. (Unfortunately, the friend that was bringing the Chave had to cancel last minute due to an illness)
TN: 94-This wine is a birth year vintage and was served at a wine dinner with family the night prior to my birthday. The wine had excellent provenance and was sourced on the secondary market from Lopa. The fill was very top shoulder.
The wine was stored in my Le Cache and was moved from horizontal racking to a display cradle 5 days prior to opening. On day 5 the bottle was removed from the Le Cache and placed into a wine cradle. The foil was removed and there were no visible signs of wine seepage based on the presence of the foil or the exterior of the bottle. The cork was extracted using a Durand. However, the cork was hard with what appeared to be slightly dried wine on the outside that was visible prior to pulling the cork. Inside the bottle, the cork was wine soaked and soft. The cork broke on extraction, leaving approximately 1/4 of the bottom in the bottle. I was able to successfully remove the remaining cork with the Durand and it helped that the wine was in the cradle, as I was able to see the remaining cork that stayed in the middle neck of the bottle. Based on the condition of the cork, I thought the bottle was going to be flawed but I was very pleasantly surprised at how well this wine showed on this night!
The wine was Double Decanted (DD) and immediately returned into a previously cleaned wine bottle with a fresh cork returned to the bottle. It was transported to a restaurant where it remained under cork for the next 90 minutes until it was paired with Cheese: Goat/ Old Chatam Creamery Cheve Cow/Grass Fed Camembert Sheep/Caved Aged Blue Cheese, Fruit, Preservers, and Crackers. The wine was consumed out of a Grassl Liberte stem.
The wine color was burgundy with slight bricking at the edges. It had a beautiful bouquet of dried flowers, leather, salinity and brown spices. The palate was primarily secondary and tertiary flavors but there was surprisingly still some red and dark fruit tones present, specifically red and black cherries. The wine had good texture and was well integrated with slight tannins and a pleasant streak of acidity. The body was medium and the wine was fully mature.
For a 47 year-old wine, this bottle exceeded my expectations and I’m glad I have a few more bottles to enjoy over the next handful of years!
I am really delighted that you liked your bottle. As I mentioned on these boards before, it is not an easy wine, no wagging tail, but one that can be enjoyed and savored over hours.
I can’t think of another wine from Saint Emilion that is that traditional, although the trend seems to be moving back a little.
The 2 middle bottles, 1994 Monte Bello and the 1975 Magdelaine were the wines of the night! Both bottles showed beautifully and the true WOTN for the 5 of us was a split decision between these 2.
