Bordeaux 2009: the Golden Vintage

Cellier The Wine Loft
Tasted Wednesday, December 19, 2012 by Stefanos T. with 503 views

Flight 1 (1 Note)

  • 2009 Château d'Armailhac 93 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Pauillac

    Dark ruby color with faint purple highlights it offers a beautiful earthy and sweet nose, quite expressive with notes black fruit, tar, caramel, cedar tobacco, toast and leather.Combines sweetness concentration and freshness. Oak shows a little but is not intruding. Palate however is surprisignly light on its feet compared to the nose, medium bodied with elegant texture, ripe tannins with just a faint astringency barely felt. Fruit is lean and sweet at the same time and medium+ acidity lends remarkable freshness. Finish is long with tobacco, ink, dark fruit and cedar. 20 years of life ahead of it but perfectly drinkable and enjoyable even now.

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Flight 2 (1 Note)

  • 2009 Château Calon-Ségur 95 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, St. Estèphe

    Very darkly colored, almost opaque. Nose is intense and very well defined - intense cedar and ink notes are poised perfectly against minty and eucalyptus notes on a background of concentrated and sweet black mostly blackcurrant fruit and integrated new toasty oak. Nice balance between bitter and sweet aromatics. Palate is seamless, with velvety texture and big bold ripe tannins are almost masked behind the concentration of fruit. Acidsity is refreshing but alcohol shows a bit. Drinks effortlessly even now giving immense pleasure.

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Flight 3 (1 Note)

  • 2009 Château La Mission Haut-Brion

    France, Bordeaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan

    In contrast to the other 2009's tasted, this is still unyielding, tight and positively not ready to drink. Nose is closed, but it still offers the classic Pessac warm bricks, ink and cedar nose in low intensity though. Christmas cake and nutmed appeared after plenty of time in the glass. Palate is ultra concentrated and focused - it almost leaves on the tongue a sandy residue - very tactile sensation like a 'solid-liquid'... Flavors are bitter, inky with black fruit and cedar. Oak is not evident at all. Tannins are big and chewey Afteraste is bitter and cedary. Impossible for me to assess this wine right now but still this is how I was expecting a three year old top Bordeaux to taste like. The other 2009's which were pleasurable were to me more of an anomaly than the unyielding La Mission.

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Flight 4 (1 Note)

  • 2009 Château Margaux 99 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux

    Astonishingly approachable even now at its youth. 99 points for quality, potential and pleasure right now. Opaque in color with an exuberant nose full of dark fruit, spice, vanilla, mint, eucalyptus, minerals, cedar, coffee, ink, a little manure and a core of red forest fruit which the other 2009's tasted last night did not have. Amazing concnetration on the palate - it made some other wines of the evening seem like acid water - with lush fruit, weight but still ethereal lightness. Tannins are still big and bold but opening this wine now is not an infanticide. Finish is endless. Balance, power, finesse, this wine has everything!

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Flight 5 (1 Note)

  • 2009 Château Guiraud 94 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

    Not a great fan of Sauternes I really liked this wine. Color was light golden. Nose was very fresh with the classic botrytis, apricot, honey, jasmin, vanilla notes and in addition to these a very crisp citrus-fruit core which gave the wine a very welcome lightness. Palate is very smooth and round, perfectly poised. High glycerol and apparently high acidity which was imperceptible though. Sweet with finesse and never cloying.

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