We had a quick gathering at A’s house. All the wines, except the 45 Leoville Las Cases, were generously provided by the host.
1945 Château Léoville Las Cases- France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Julien
Top shoulder fill and still sound cork. Upon opening noticeable VA from the bottle. With a bit of air, bright red fruits, a hint of cherry preserve, light caramel, slightly hint of balsamico and leather. Fully integrated harmonious palate, exceptional concentration, sweet and sour fruit driven palate impression , bright acidity due to VA and fully integrated tannins. Noticeable VA which is not so unusual considering how old the wine is. If you enjoy old clarets, this will be a good wine to seek at auction. (95 pts.)
1988 Gentaz-Dervieux Côte-Rôtie Cuvée Réservée Côte Brune- France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Côte-Rôtie
Expressive red fruit driven nose, red cherry, kirschwasser, a hint of green olives, smoke meat and garrigue. Very polished burgundian palate with bright acidity and nicely integrated tannins. It may be blasphemy for some, but this reminds me the 92 and 94 Raymond Trollat St. Joseph. I also find some similarity with the 04 Rostaing Cote Blonde. Exceptional nose and polished palate. Not sure whether it deserves the lofty price. (96 pts.)
1989 Château Haut-Brion- France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan
Epitome of balance and harmony. Polished and expressive nose of red fruits, plum, a hint of cassis, flower, tobacco, mineral and strong presence of graphite. Polished silky palate, intensely sweet fruit driven palate impression, noticeable but nicely integrated tannins and incredibly long seamless finish. This is as polished and sophisticated as a Bordeaux can get. Still quite youthful yet so polished and intensely sweet. Simply perfect! (100 pts.)
1994 Harlan Estate- USA, California, Napa Valley
I drank a lot of these upon release at various DC and Baltimore restaurants for around $150 as the secondary market quickly shot up. Intense crème de cassis driven nose, crushed blackberries, a hint of licorice, sweet spices and mineral. Incredible concentration, still unctuous yet perfectly polished, intense crème de cassis driven palate impression, nicely integrated tannins and impressive length. This is still incredibly youthful but perfectly hedonistic. (99 pts.)
2007 Schrader Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon CCS Beckstoffer To-Kalon Vineyard- USA, California, Napa Valley, Oakville
I usually find intense sweet yet cool blue fruits in Schraders but not here. Intense jammy red fruit driven nose and incredible amount of sweet spices. Incredible concentration that masks the tannins completely. For me, it is so intense that it is slightly overwhelming. Impressive scale, it definitely merits 100 but for my palate at this stage, it is not as enjoyable as the 89 Haut Brion and the 94 Harlan. (97 pts.)
1985 Maison Leroy Chambertin- France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambertin Grand Cru
Unfortunately slightly off. NR (flawed)
Kevin (or anyone else), do you have any background information on Gentaz-Dervieux? A search online turned up very little and understand the prices for the wine are quite high.
Most Gentaz-Dervieux lovers tend to dismiss Rostaing’s versions. However, I find the style and expression very similar at least the 04 and later Cote Blondes.
i know this sounds silly, but i feel you had a bad bottle of Gentaz. Opening my last bottle of the 1988 1-2 years ago was a transcendent moment - majestic and hauntingly beautiful. even i knew this was a moment not oft to be repeated. it was not a bottle of wine, but a window into all things that embody the wonders of our mysterious world.
not that rostaing is bad, but to drink rostaing after experiencing Gentaz is, well, drinking a bottle of wine after Gentaz.
my last bottles of other vintages await BN and BK. and despite BK plumping for the 1991 and eschewing the 1988 when offered the choice a few years ago, i think none the less of him.
I am very comfortable with my rating and it was a pristine bottle. An interesting data point, I served the 94 Raymond Trollat VV twice, once to those who knew the producer and then served double blind in a under $40 vs over $70 tasting as my under $40 bottle. In first incident, it was loved. When served blind, some actually thought “undrinkable”. Both correct bottles.
People, including myself, freak out a little at the sight of the roto-fermenters when they visit René. And folks generally frowned on his pulling up of a lot of the old vines in the G-D plots and replanting clones. Despite those quibbles the wines from Rostaing are very good. I’ve had a dud here and there but, overall, they are very well made (maybe a touch oaky for some palates). I can’t comment if it is a replacement for G-D, I’ve not had old enough Rostaing (2000 is the oldest) and I’ve had one G-D. From my few data points I have to admit that G-D’s 1990 is the wine of the group. In spades. But it had a ten year head start!
Addn’l Gentaz-Dervieux info can be found here (Brooklynguy's Wine and Food Blog: Marius Gentaz Côte-Rôtie - a Dinner for the Ages.). If you stumble across one that is priced at “60 CHF” (as I was lucky to do) I would suggest you grab it. Otherwise there are plenty of interesting syrah based wines being made which should substitute just fine.
I like picking up Robert Michel’s back vintages of Cornas (he is also retired so don’t wait too long!). I had a 2004 earlier this year that was stunning and every bit as authentic / old fashioned as the G-D 1990 consumed at Christmas. Guillaume Gilles is knocking his Cornas out of the park these past few vintages. Another good place to look. Finally, and maybe obviously, the wines of Thierry Allemand are really incredible.
I strayed south to Cornas…but Côte Rôtie doesn’t have the same “hands off” style today. Jamet is a good source for a very minimalist approach. I like Clusel-Roch but they are more oaky than G-D’s versions. Maybe Gilles Barge? I find Levet’s wines to be a little sauvage (VA, brett, etc - hit or miss).
Vignerons in Cornas have really taken the place of the leading traditional syrah providers (IMHO).
BTW, thanks Kevin for the great notes. Didn’t mean to stray so far from the original post.
Had the 45 LLC a few months ago Kevin and it was just as you describe. We have been fortunate to have seen quite a few 45’s from Champagne, Bordeaux, Burgundy and Sauternes and Paul Hanna made the point he can’t remember ever having a bad one. A great year.
“BTW, I always prefer drinking DRCs non-blind.”
true dat! although the 1990 La Tache is indeed in the same foursome that the 1988 Gentaz plays in, and is obviously so blinded or not in my experience.
the wine (bought on release) was served double blind to the rest of the crew - all noted was stunning. one could argue that they knew a good wine is being proffered i suppose. and of course sometimes the wine is better for the occasion and company, so that is a factor. i also recall the first time i had the 89 Haut Brion - a magical wine and in my top 40 (thank you Casey Kasem). and at this level, it is simply a matter of style preference, not whether one wine is better than another…
Based on my observation, some small producers get cult like following and the price shots up. This also cause the wines to be perceived as “better”. I thought the 88 Gentaz was exceptional at 96 pts but certain not the grail for my palate. This also goes to Jacky Truchot, exceptional but they are not as good as the Dujac versions for my palate. FWIW, CT average score of the 88 is 95.2.
Have never tasted a Gentaz, but the comparison to Jacky Truchot is interesting. Had a bottle of 1990 Clos de La Roche and expected more from the wine. Very good, no question, but did not hit the lofty expectations prior to opening. 1989 Haut Brion is another story, not sure I have tasted a better 1989 Bordeaux, other than perhaps Petrus.
Not at all shocking that the '89 Haut Brion showed so well. It is a fantastic wine. I am a bit surprised at how much you liked the '94 Harlan. I found that wine hugely overrated.
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