Should have given it a longer decant but I brought this to a restaurant. That archetype, mature Pomerol nose of dank rich earth, truffles, toasted garlic and darkish fruits. Palate is medium bodied, that nice balance of spicy plums and darker red fruits. Love these slightly less ripe vintages of Pomerol, like 2001, 04 and 14, as they work so well with your meals rather than over-power them with their hedonism. Tannins nicely resolved on this wine. Really opened up nicely after an hour.
Agreed; but 2001 was a pretty special Pomerol vintage. The idea of the 2001 Bordeaux being a lesser vintage comes from the Left Bank where the vintage was more difficult. Pomerol was harvested before the late September rains showed up.
Oui, Mon frère, but to be clear, I did say “less ripe” not “lesser” in reference to the vintage. Definitely less rich than its immediate predecessors, 2000 and 1998, more “old school”. It’s got great balance.
Will have to source and try the 2001. By reference, I had the 2005 earlier this year and liked it quite a bit, as well as others. That said, I generally like the bigger and riper wines, although not overly pruny or sweet, which the 2005 Trotanoy was not.
In the years that I buy this wine, I would not expect pruny notes at all. Now that said I do not buy years like 2015 and 2018. I would imagine the 2005 is pretty kick ass, but definitely a larger-scaled wine.
Even if you like the wine, I think you’re a touch conservative on this, at least cross-referencing with bottles from my cellar, which are still very youthful, dense and vibrant! Contemplating opening one tonight in fact.
Looking forward to your note, especially your thoughts on drinking window. I still have more of this and the 2004. I’m out of 98s but need to backfill, just a spectacular wine.
My wife and I opened a 2004 Trotanoy 3 weeks ago and we really enjoyed it.
Caveat: my experience and palate are not to be trusted relative to the people in this conversation…
The price in Canada is super steep but I got it to open for my 40th birthday - it’s really the first serious Pomerol we’ve tried. For the price, I think it needed more concentration to really be worth that premium.
But taking price out of it, we both loved it from start to finish (decanted for about an hour prior). At least 3 times over the course of the evening, my wife took a sip and just said out loud “Damn that’s good.”
Jim I think that is a very fair assessment. I like the wine very much, but is it worth the current fair, that’s a tough call. Glad it showed well for you on your 40th, that’s a very cool bottle to open.
Any recent experience with the '95? The last one I tried, 5 years back?, seemed way too young, but with a lot in the tank, as we say.
Or 2013, for that matter? I know not a great, or perhaps even a good vintage, but I took a flier back in the day. It may be time to try one.
Wedding anniversary today, so took a bottle of the 1983 Trotanoy to the Modern in Manhattan. Hard to think we have been married for 42 years, or 294 dog years as Nancy has been saying all week.
Corkage at the Modern is $30, an incredible deal. They also have an excellent and well priced wine list, and very knowledgeable staff. So after a glass of Champagne off the list, we started on the wine. The first pour was a deep crimson and a thin edge of mahogany. The nose was glorious; some darkish fruit, spices and the beginning of leaf meal. On the palate initially there was little to show; everything bunched up in the middle, leaving tannin and a bite of acidity in the finish.
Within an hour the wine had resolved. All the complexity in the nose was translated into a truly beautiful wine. The earth element had receded slightly, the fruit took more of a dominant role, adding a touch of anise. The finish was long and had layered itself. A lovey mature wine at its peak.
Almost one year later, popped another bottle. Really gorgeous maturing stuff. This is why we drink Pomerol, @Otto_Forsberg! My original note remains so on point, but I may be a point higher on it right now. That dank earth truffle garlic thing is intoxicating. Ever so savory. Not sweet. (94 pts.)
