M. Audouze I have been enjoying wine with a serious attitude for 26 years. I disliked any hint that a wine was “old” until ten years ago. Now I love old wines where the fruit is in its tertiary stage as long as the wine is not truly dead, is not oxidized or cooked, and there is excellent acidity. My three teachers in this area have been random 1983 bottles of Burgundy from many unpredictable sources where the effects of heat and oxygen can be compared to the effects of mere moderate age, picnics at Ridge Winery where we bring the oldest bottles we can and their wines are always balanced with excellent acidity, and your posts. Thank you.
I have learned that in the past, when my friends and I would taste a wine that tasted “too old,” I now realize it was oxidized or cooked in addition to being older. None of us had been storing wine long enough to tell the difference between mere age versus damage. I had recently a wine that had lost virtually all of its fruit through age (a 35 year old Zinfandel that was not meant to age at all) but it was not oxidized and the cork was good. It still had a lovely charming cinnamon/confectionery sweetness although the fruit was at or past the very end of its life.
Great point. 8 percent becomes 16 percent. I’ll pretend I thought of this first.
Thank you for the nice words.
I am impressed by the solidity of old wines, and I try to share what I have learned in handling and opening wines in order that they perform at their best.
The emotion created by the 1898 Lafite and the 1929 DRC Richebourg encourage me to continue in this direction.
Once again thank you.
As someone who has actually set foot inside Amorin and taken part in a very lengthy detailed and at times hostile discussion on corks and the cork industry, what Francois is saying has no factual basis. It was a topic that, for a time, captured my interest and I have had detailed discussions with old and young wine producers and those who work in the cork industry here in the States and in Portugal. But whatever.
George,
It is not rude. I think it’s wonderful that people got to try some old wines, it’s always an education even when they don’t show well. And glad that it appears Todd made Francois put the disclaimer of his business in selling dinners, as his posts serve two functions. Which he doesn’t seem too happy about having to do, but he does anyways. If I wanted to be rude I’d point out that most of Francois posts about these old wines rarely mention any off-bottles. The odds are astronomical that that many super old wines, with those fill conditions, all showed so glowingly as they almost always seem to do in his posts. Not to mention, he’s running a business they want to drink old wines, they pay and they drink. . This isn’t friends getting together to open bottles and i am glad that people know this is a business he’s running, however small it is, but 200 dinners of this type is not a small money losing operation. I have no issues with that and think it great that people now know the full background of these dinners. And people on this Forum get called out for FAR less. Just saying.
Wild thing, I think I love you.
Wow. Just wow
“The cork producers told me there is no problem with the corks. Therefore there is no problem with the corks.”
LOL, that was pretty much how that discussion started at Amorin many years ago…it got ugly real fast after that and it wasn’t me doing the jabbing.
Neal,
Are we to put our heads in the sand and pretend the real world doesn’t exist?
George is right, Andy. You are being insufferable. You can make whatever points you want without being purposefully antagonistic. I am disappointed and surprised.
There are other options besides the above and acting like a dick.
Not at all. Based on his website, since 1999, he’s averaged just about 1 of these events per month (11.8 per year average to be more precise). That’s not a business and his posts aren’t to give awareness to his business? ![[wow.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/7/7d450e9830889c8943b674446a21b7254cad657e.gif "wow"){kind=small}
If this was a winemaker or retailer doing the same they would be flamed here.
I’ve lost a lot of respect for you Andy.
Very sad the direction this lovely thread has taken.
I am an analogue guy living in a digital world. I would agree that A LOT of things are of far less quality than what we had in the past. Thankfully, in most industries, artisans still exist.
First, for someone selling dinners, who writes with graciousness and etiquette, who has a personal relationship with many of the chateau and restaurant owners, the fact that M. Audouze describes with sincere regret three of the wines as clearly not being up to par (and he is not impressed with two other wines), and some dishes too spicy for the wines, and that he regrets his choice of the Comte’, belies the idea that his notes lack trustworthiness. He is being truthful while being courteous. Both qualities were lost on you today, Andy, as was subtlety, as were all of the facts I just mentioned. I have complete trust in M. Audouze’s notes on his top four wines.
Second, attacking someone for stating that corks from older trees, when there was far less demand for corks, tend to be better – which makes sense, especially in light of the insightful chlorine comment in an above post, and is exactly something a winemaker told me years ago – because someone in a factory told you our new corks are good, which is both senseless and worthless information – is bizarre.
Andy I’ve met you and you’re a good guy. I will never meet M. Audouze. But you’re on some vendetta here that makes you seem jealous and unhappy. You’ve still said nothing that indicates you even read his descriptions of the wine or that you understand how TCA is created. You’re offended that he posts at all regardless of what he says because he charges money. It’s ugly and disheartening to read and that’s not fair to us readers.
I hope you never post in one of M. Audouze’s threads again. Including this one. Unless it’s to share insight that he’s exaggerating, for example, about that particular bottle of 1929 Richebourg.
Congratulations Francois , what a marvelous dinner .
Regarding handling old Sauternes , the great Michael Broadbent ( who probably drank more old Sauternes than anybody in the world ) wrote : I disapprove strongly of recorking Sauternes . It is very rarely necessary and adds no new dimensions to the wine . In fact , tasting recorked and original wines side by side , the recorked are usually less good .
Congratulations on your 200th François. May there be another 200 accompanied by your wonderful impressions of each one on the board here.
Best Regards
Jeremy
Francois, ignore the negativity. If this is a sin to drink and enjoy very old wines, count me in as a member of the church. I will sit in the front pew and if the collection basket is passed, I would cheerfully contribute.
“The parity is not respected because there are only two women at our table.”
Why is it that Francois’ English, translated from French, sounds so much more poetic than anything I can concoct in English? And I grew up speaking English?
Cheers…
I keep corks for many years, and I have made a study about corks which was published by the Academy Amorim, which gave me a special prize for my study on corks.
I have kept thousands of corks, capsules, and one day I will offer what I have to the Academy Amorim, if they want to study old corks that I have kept.
On the picture in the middle I have separated corks of DRC wines.
On the question raised by Andy, as far as Todd has allowed me to talk, the problem is solved.
But I will make a remark which I have made many times.
Mortality is in my cellar. Wines collapse when the cork is unable to play its role. You have evaporation and at one moment the wine dies.
Mortality is extremely rarely happening in my dinners with the wines of my cellar, because I choose them. I choose the best and the ones collapsing do not appear in my dinners.
The ratio of dead bottles in my dinners does not exceed 2%. Many wine makers would say that it is impossible. It is because they do not know how to open wines. When they open an old wine, it is to drink immediately. So when the smell is bad, they reject the wine, which could be perfect 5 hours later.
The ratio of good bottles depends on my choice in cellar and of the “Audouze method” which consists in opening wines 4 to 5 hours before dinner. Many sommeliers smelling the wines said to me : “I imagine that you will never serve this wine” and I tell them : “you will see”.
Perfection does not exist but I give the chance to the best wines to shine. If what I write would be not sincere, with internet, after 200 dinners it would be known.
Thank you for the nice words.