Julian: Is Cali cab a stretch? I think 2003 and 2006 were pretty good there (like every other year), and something like a Dunn will outlive almost any bdx. And how about Musar? Gran Reserva rioja?
For those who have already ‘done’ the birth-year wine thing with their children…how did that go? I saw the poll recently posted as well, and because we’ve got '03 and '05 in this house, this thread was of interest, but when I think about serving ‘old’ (will be, to them, as 21-year old wine is to MOST of the world) wine just won’t go over well. Seems like it’s for us, not them, no?
Another vote for the 2003 Leoville Barton which is a terrific wine that is just beginning to open up and has many years to go. That wine will go to 2030 easily.
The Leoville Poyferre is good too, very well balanced and also not yet ready to drink…another one that will go to 2030 no problem.
I was not as impressed with Pichon Baron, which had some rough tannins young, but I have not tasted it in years, have to try one again soon.
Don’t be afraid of 2003, it’s a fine left bank vintage. Believe all the positive tasting notes from people actually drinking the wines, not the generalized denunciations from people who have theological objections to high temperatures.
I think 06 GPL is underrated. Very classic GPL in profile. A wine I would buy.
This is as close as I can come on these two.
Tasting notes from a variety of posters. Please note that I am NOT a fan of 2003 Bordeaux. Maybe think of California Cab for that year?
Anyway, a couple more if they can help:
Kelly - thanks - sadly, US wines are hard to come by over here. I like Musar, but I didn’t like the 03 I tried a few years ago - I will look out for some 06. Good idea about Rioja, too, I hadn’t thought of those.
Todd - well, I’m like Star Trek, I have two generations of children, the first of which are a boy (1985) and a girl (1990) who are now grown up. I bought wine for both, but my son decided he wasn’t into wine and my daughter can’t drink for health reasons, so it wasn’t a great success. But they were able to sell the wine for good prices and had some useful funds as a result, so I have no regrets at all. The irony is that my son now likes wine, so I’m putting some away for him. I’m more confident about the second generation, but it really doesn’t matter if they don’t like the wine - it’s a first-class investment anyway.
Marcus - thanks for the input - I’m looking forward to sampling them. As to the 03 backlash, I agree that the pendulum has swung too far. But I remember when it was precisely the opposite: when the 03s hit the shelves, many compared them to the 82s and the general feeling was overwhelmingly positive. As usual, I bought with a scatter gun strategy, buying widely in small quantities, aiming to buy more of the wines I liked. I couldn’t have chosen a worse buying strategy! My typically large collection of Crus Bourgeois was not at all to my taste and the CCs which I normally liked were practically all, for me, undrinkable. As for the Right Bank…
The list was seriously long! Generalizations are never a good idea and I made a good few myself. Like them or loathe them, most of the CCs did not taste like what I for one was used to and I don’t think many have aged well either.
But there are some excellent wines and it’s great to be in the position of choosing them carefully, not on the basis of one or two critics’ opinions of barrel samples or fledglings in bottle, but thanks to people like yourself who have acquired a long experience of tasting them at maturity.
William - thank you very much for that - I did indeed pick up some GPL 2006.
Howard - thank you too - yes, I wouldn’t have thought you were a fan of 03! I shall look through those threads with interest. Again, Cali cabs are tough to track down here. My only experience was at a Decanter tasting in London about 15 years ago and I was very impressed.
If you choose to buy California Cabernet, be very careful as to which wineries you buy from. A lot of California Cabs are made in a very modern style and do not age well. However, there are a number of really good wines made in a more classic style that age very well. I have not had much 2003 or 2006 California wine, but in general the following estates age very well:
Ridge [if you want an alternative to the Cabernets, buy Geyserville]
Chateau Montelena
Mayacamas
Forman
Togni
Dunn
As another alternative, how about Bandols like Tempier or Chateau Pradeaux, an estate I really love. Again, I cannot really comment on the specific vintages (I have a few bottles of 2006 Pradeaux but have not opened them yet).
Yes, 2003 was an inconsistent vintage and the right bank in general is a total writeoff. You’re right that a “great vintage” buying strategy of buying across the board wouldn’t really work. I’m sorry for your loss ![[oops.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/1/1f129ddad071ffe5db6c99817c3cab666035a70a.gif "oops"){kind=small}
Hey, one other thought – 2003 was a declared vintage for a lot of the best Port houses. I myself have been somewhat switching toward Port for my birth year wines, I am not a huge fan of the stuff myself but is pretty much guaranteed to be good drinking throughout my son’s adult life. It could even be something to remember me by when I go. I kind of prefer the idea of him at 45 with a bit of grey hair meditatively sipping port after my funeral to him at 21 years old rolling his eyes at me when I gift him a bottle of mature left bank Bordeaux to go with his beer.
2013 is not a ‘very fine’ Left Bank vintage. It’s a very heterogeneous vintage that produced a handful of great wines. A lot of the wines that aren’t ‘great’ are approaching the final quarter of their drinking window. If you’re buying for far-future consumption (sounds like that’s the case) – there are only a handful of really safe choices, IMO.
The DNA test results have not yet arrived.
More good ideas - thanks - out of curiosity I did look for Cali Cabs and unsurprisingly found none - apart from one: as luck would have it, there’s a jeroboam of Forman CS 2003 coming up for auction, with a very low predicted price (40€). I did look on TWA and saw that RMP wasn’t bowled over, but have any of you tried it? I realize it’s not supposed to have a long life, but in a jeroboam it could hold. It comes in a special wooden case so altogether quite a cool idea.
You’re quite right about the port - I’m on the lookout!
Hey, one other thought – 2003 was a declared vintage for a lot of the best Port houses.
IMHO this is a terrific idea! VP will live forever, and is not insanely expensive.
I had a 1970 Dow on Friday night:
1970 Dow vintage port
Chocolate Cremoso | dark chocolate, marsala cream, raspberry
Dunbarton Blue | pasteurized cow’s milk, English cheddar style, subtle hints of blue Roelli Cheese Haus, Shullsburg, WI
Wow, the auslese and port were amazing bookends to the dinner. The port had no label, and was identifiable only by the cork. The fill was mid shoulder. My experience with VP, like the auslese, has been not to judge the juice by the bottle, and here again my optimism was rewarded handsomely. The bottle was double-decanted about two hours before dinner. There is a tactile sensation to this port that is hard to describe, with wave after wave of dark fruit and spice crashing down on your palate. The finish was just…seemingly endless. I feel like it is still lingering on my tongue today. As far as pairing is concerned, some like chocolate with vintage port, and some consider it gauche. For my part, I was so enamored with this wine that I doubt I had more than a bite or two. I managed to save and recork (with a Macallan top!) a nice sized glass for dessert the next night. It was pretty much exactly as I remembered it. High 90s.
it’s not a great vintage but on the left bank it’s a good one. A lot more than a “handful” of good to great wines were produced. Almost all the usual suspects in the Northern Medoc produced good to great wines, and Pessac didn’t do too badly either, although not as well as e.g. St Estephe. (I am going by rep for the first growths here as I can’t afford those). There were notable successes at the lower levels too like Branaire Ducru and Sociando Mallet. It’s a good vintage overall. It depends on the style you like, but on the left bank I’d put it above 2001, 2006 or 2008, which were acknowledged solid vintages.
I love the 2003 Sociando Mallet, and it’s probably still available for $50ish, likely not that much more than where current releases go for.
Kelly - that 1970 sounds wonderful, thanks for posting. I’m looking for some 03 port but in France, they’re not that easy to get hold of.
Arv - thanks - SM 03 was one of cases which I held onto from my original stash, luckily!