COUTET DINNER - Picco, Larkspur CA (1/18/2013)
This was a fabulous Coutet-themed dinner with our host Aline Baly. The lineup was fabulous, starting with the first vintage of their dry bordeaux blanc, then four vintages of Coutet over three decades, and finally finishing with the ultra-rare Coutet Cuvee Madame (my first time tasting one of these). Although everything was exceptional, my standout wines were the 2008 Coutet (for its raw light minerality and perfect pairing with seafood), the 1988 Coutet (for marrying brilliant youthful concentration with fresh minerality in a way rarely seen), and the 1995 Cuvee Madame (for preserving the Coutet freshness despite focusing more on a richer style of sauternes/barsac).
Sec
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2010 Château Coutet Opalie Sec - France, Bordeaux, Bordeaux Contrôlée
Tropical fruit, balanced, acidic, guava. A good bordeaux blanc, but maybe not worth its roughly $40+ price point. 88-90 (89 pts.)
Coutet
2008: Paired with seafood- brilliant with oysters, then smoked salmon, a salt water fish, crudites, shrimp (brilliant with a bit of lime). All of these were different dishes.
2010: Risotto with lamb, linguini with dungeness crab.
1998: Duck breast, swordfish.
1988: Cheese course, desserts (flan).
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2008 Château Coutet - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac
Elegant, balanced, sweet but light, peach, minerally, palate has great freshness, medium persistence. Quince, spice, very aromatic. Fabulous. This has really integrated well since I last tried it, and it’s main strengths are the intensity of its aromatics, its light minerality, and its absolutely exquisite pairing with oysters and other light seafood. After opening up heavier vintages, this wine was difficult to come back to… It is very well made in its style, but don’t open it up with more full bodied vintages or its delicacy may be overwhelmed. 92-93 (93 pts.) -
2010 Château Coutet - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac
Pineapple, tropical, full fruits, a bit riper and richer than the 2008, needs some time to integrate. This is currently a bit fragmented with richness, some minerality, but this has the potential to settle into a brilliant Coutet made in a riper style. Paired fabulously with lamb risotto and dungeness crab pasta. 91-94 (92 pts.) -
1998 Château Coutet - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac
Secondary, dried apricot, chalky, nose a little reticent, palate starting to transition to a drier style, slightly salty, on the simpler side, some spiciness. This was the weakest of the lineup today and seemed reserved; perhaps it needed more air, or perhaps it wasn’t a strong vintage. 86-88 (87 pts.) -
1988 Château Coutet - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac
Light, fresh, elegant, fruits are still tropical, but very light. Complex, medium maturity. Long finish, fresh. This tastes much younger than the '89 and has great complexity with a long way to go. The main strength of this wine is the balance it strikes between the youthful ripeness of its tropical fruit with the freshness and lightness of its minerality and palate. 93-94 (94 pts.)
Cuvee Madame
Paired with a lovely cheese course and a flan.
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1995 Château Coutet Cuvée Madame - France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Barsac
Deeper orange gold color; concentrated dried apricot is the biggest note and caramel nose, good minerality; palate has mature caramel, still quite sweet, nice freshness, reminds me of the 1989. Excellent balance, still retains a lot of fresh Coutet character which is surprising given the intensity and concentration of the wine. 96
Update: Day 2 and 3- this wine is striking in its combination of almost icewine-like density of fruit with early maturity complexity of botrytis and lightness on its feet. Lovely. (96 pts.)
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