Ripe, luscious nose, with a bit of reduction. Based on the palate, I guessed a Right Bank Bordeaux from a good year. I thought maybe 1996. This is at a lovely point in its evolution, with softening tannins but enough acid there to balance the lush fruit. Still quite youthful. Really a delight. 92+ for me.
This was about 17% merlot and 15% cab franc, which I take to justify my Right Bank guess. Parker gave the wine 87 at the time (pre-grade inflation), though he lauded it as the best Brane since 1961, and superior to that vintage. He underestimated this. When it was unveiled, I was very surprised at how old it was, particularly given that the property was not a strong performer.
sounds very good. we had an 82 Kirwan recently which also seemed to taste better than its 30 year old mid 80’s rating. neither are estates i’m particularly familiar with, other than the occasional vintage.
Brane is a very large property. Neither it nor Kirwan was considered top tier. But, as much as anything, I think the “low” scores reflect the fact that Parker wasn’t awarding many scores over the low 90s in those days.
Last night, I attended a party whose host generously opened a half case of 1982 Lynch-Bages, proving how well-stored Left Bankers of that year have much life remaining. Amazingly, many the other old Bordeaux and Burgundies there hogged much of the limelight.
The '83 Brane Cantenac is actually better than the '82. I remember the '82 when it was 4-5 years old, and it wasn’t one of the better wines of the vintage, and I’m surprised it lasted this long. The late 60s up to '82 was a horrible string of vintages for Brane-Cantenac. The '83 was the first vintage to actually show some real stuffing and depth in a very long time.
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