2019 Pichon Lalande    November 21, 2023

Enjoyed this first of six bottles with Max, Emily, Laura, Sarah and Estelle (in the peanut gallery). Decided I'll open one of these precious jewels each Thanksgiving time. Initially it is wound fairly tightly but with some nice hints of red fruits and traces of blue. The palate is surprisingly soft, with soft, well-integrated tannins. The finish goes on foreever with mostly red fruit notes and a little licorice, some fresh wood, forest and flowers. 

After 30 minutes in decanter, more black fruit hints and coffee. Perfect balance of acid, tannin and fruit. The accompaniment of tenderloin expertly cooked by Max with the wine is amazing! The long finish is the most impressive and though young, it's really quite drinkable--just as the '19 Pontet Canet was at RDV last summer.

 Notes from visit to RDV winery tasting July 2023 (with Sarah and also Sharon O'Brien). This is reputedly the best winery in VA and they daringly create a tasting of three bordeaux-style wines, theirs, a real bordeaux, and a bordeaux styled wine from CA. Notes:

Pontet Canet 2019: Surprisingly forward and drinkable: coffee mocha, blueberry and blackberry. Though it's still obviously very young it's not super tannic, or rather the tannins are very soft. I love this. It has noticeably more vanilla oak than the others.

Lost Mt '19 (RDV) Fruity in taste, and more tannic than Pontet Canet. But nicely balanced. A good amount of alcohol, presumably good for aging. Coffee coming out with more air, and ripe plum.

Ulysses '18 (owned by Petrus and Dominus). Very forward with eucalyptus, and a bit of spicy veg. Very pleasant and distinctive spice. Cranberry essence, nice long finish. Warm too but good balance. No merlot. This is also beautiful and very different from Pontet Canet. Super complex, even with some lavender.

 1982 Mouton Rothschild (final bottle of the original 24) tasted November 2021. The cork fell apart and wine was rescued using cheese cloth with help from Sarah, Emily, Laura and Max. Beautiful old cab nose with off-notes. Does smell of age for sure and the rim color is the perfect gradation of brick to darker interior. Very familiar lead pencil and tobacco nose like my memory of Mouton. Long finish with a little heat, some fruit and oak. Absolutely remarkably fresh for a 39 year-old wine. The finish is very long still! With air the nose became fruitier and taste also fruitier--so even more glorious with airing, and here's a wine nearly 40 years old that still improves with 30 minutes in glass, even after two decantings. Remained great after 1 hour. Max made a fabulous, best-ever duck dish.

 2018 Catena White Stones Chardonnay

Spice, cantelope, mineral and very fruity but balanced with acid and perhaps the longest finish of any chardonnay I've ever tasted. Of course with more time in glass more coplex nose. Ginger maybe provided the spice. The person who led tasting at Catena (attended with Max, Nov. 2019 trip to Argentina) said green peppercorn. Definitely a popcorn butter element, and some smoke. Carmelized pineapple. Finish is incredible, mineral-acid-fruit balance perfectly persists. Color is light golden yellow, not super dark looking considering how rich the wine tastes. Another hour on in glass: very fruity, almost like another wine. This one scored in high nineties with experts and I agree. Bottle tasted in 2021.