Recent Arrivals

Tasting Notes for Lafite Rothschild, Magnums, 2005:
Made in an ethereal style, the 2005 Lafite is composed of nearly 89% Cabernet Sauvignon, just under 11% Merlot, and a tiny fraction of Petit Verdot (representing only 40% of the total harvest). It is a deep, structured, linear style of Lafite Rothschild that is in total contrast to the opulence and extravagant richness of the 2003 and the bold, dramatic power of the 2000. The dense ruby/plum/purple-tinged 2005 offers up scents of graphite, flowers, crushed rocks, and loads of berry fruit. Medium-bodied and sweet with high tannin, it represents the quintessentially elegant style of Bordeaux. Another brilliant effort made under the auspices of administrator Charles Chevalier, it should be at its finest between 2015-2050+. The Wine Advocate #170 Apr-07.
Parker Points: 96
Drinking Period: 2015-2050

Tasting Notes for Leoville Poyferre, 2005:
While perhaps not up to the standards of the extraordinary 2003, the 2005 is still a strong effort from an estate that has been doing everything right over the last two decades. Sweet toasty oak intermixed with jammy black currant, plum, and licorice aromas jump from the glass of this dense purple-hued wine. In the mouth, there is great fruit, tannin, body, structure, and delineation. This impressively endowed, well made St.-Julien will require considerable patience (as will most 2005 northern Medocs). Anticipated maturity: 2015-2030+. The Wine Advocate #170 Apr-07.
Parker Points: 93
Drinking Period: 2015-2030

Tasting Notes for Lafleur, 2001:
Performing slightly less impressively from bottle than it did from cask, this wineÕs Cabernet Franc element has come forward, revealing a distinctive herbal, bell pepper, vegetal character that kept my score from going higher. Nevertheless, there is plenty to like about this 2001 Pomerol. It possesses a saturated ruby/purple color, powerful aromas (kirsch liqueur, raspberries, and blackberries), an earthy, muscular, chunky character, and the most tannic personality of any Pomerol I tasted. While not the huge blockbuster Lafleur can often produce, it is well-built. Robert Parker- Wine Advocate
Parker Points: 92
Drinking Period: 2009-2019

Tasting Notes for Brane Cantenac, 2000:
Undeniably the finest Brane-Cantenac in 40-50 years, the deep ruby/purple-colored 2000's beautiful aromatics of smoke, black currants, tobacco, earth, and flowers jump from the glass. In the mouth, it is pure, elegant, medium-bodied, with savory tannin and adequate acidity, and a measured yet authoritatively flavored mid-palate and finish. How encouraging it is to see this property get its act together. Anticipated maturity: 2007-2020. The Wine Advocate, #146 Apr-03.
Parker Points: 92
Drinking Period: 2007-2020

Tasting Notes for Carruades de Lafite, Magnums, 2000:
A brilliant second wine, the 2000 Carruades de Lafite (51.4% Cabernet Sauvignon, 42.3% Merlot, 4.9% Cabernet Franc, and 1.4% Petit Verdot), aged in 10-15% new French oak, shows wonderfully sweet lead pencil shavings intermixed with an elegant black cherry and cassis nose. A wine of tremendous purity, medium body, and the tell-tale Lafite elegance, this is a gorgeous wine to drink now and over the next 12-15 years. The Wine Advocate, #146 Apr-03.
Parker Points: 90
Drinking Period: 2003-2018

Tasting Notes for Langoa Barton, Halves, 2000:
Showing far more impressively from bottle than it ever did from cask, this wine has turned out to be an outstanding Langoa Barton. It reveals a deep, saturated purple color and an expansive, sweet nose of earthy black currants, plum, and melted licorice. Structured, dense, chewy, with full body, good acidity, and plenty of tannin, this is undeniably a wine for patient connoisseurs, or as the French say, a vin de garde. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2035. The Wine Advocate, #146 Apr-03.
Parker Points: 91
Drinking Period: 2010-2035

Tasting Notes for Peby Faugeres, 2000:
There are 500 or so cases of this thrilling 2000 that emerges from a south-facing slope of the Faugeres vineyard. In less than three years, the price has caught up with the quality. A prodigious wine as well as one of the superstars of the vintage, the spectacular 2000 represents the essence of Bordeaux with an inky black/purple color, profound richness, and massive concentration. The provocative bouquet of smoke, liquified minerals, cocoa, blackberries, blueberries, and vanilla is accompanied by a multiple-tiered wine with sweet tannin and dry vintage port-like richness. It is full-bodied, yet remarkably well-delineated as well as light on its feet. With high tannin and extract as well as a whoppingly long finish, it will easily rival, possibly surpass the other-worldly 1998. I kept a bottle open eight days without any evidence of oxidation. Anticipated maturity: 2006-2020. The Wine Advocate, #146 Apr-03.
Parker Points: 96
Drinking Period: 2006-2020

Tasting Notes for Latour, Halves, 1999:
Readers looking for a modern day version of Latour's magnificent 1962 or 1971 should check out the sensational 1999 Latour. It is a big, concentrated offering, exhibiting a dense ruby/purple color, and a classic nose of minerals, black currants, leather, and vanilla. The wine is long, ripe, and medium-bodied, with high levels of sweet tannin. This surprisingly full, concentrated 1999 should be drinkable in 5-6 years; it will last for three decades. Wine Advocate # 140 Apr 2002
Parker Points: 94
Drinking Period: 2007 - 2032

Tasting Notes for Pichon Lalande, Magnums, 1999:
The 1999 Pichon Lalande performed inconsistently. This wine is a blend of 47% Merlot, 37% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Cabernet Franc, and 7% Petit Verdot. It offers a complex, evolved bouquet of cedar, underbrush, red currants, and spice box. The dark ruby color is not as saturated as many 1999s, and the wine possesses the weight and style of the 1979 and 1981 (both of which are superior to 1999). There is medium body, excellent ripeness, and an angular finish, without the persistence typically found at this chateau. Wine Advocate # 140 Apr 2002
Parker Points: 87
Drinking Period: 2002 - 2012

Tasting Notes for Pichon Lalande, Halves, 1999:
The 1999 Pichon Lalande performed inconsistently. This wine is a blend of 47% Merlot, 37% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Cabernet Franc, and 7% Petit Verdot. It offers a complex, evolved bouquet of cedar, underbrush, red currants, and spice box. The dark ruby color is not as saturated as many 1999s, and the wine possesses the weight and style of the 1979 and 1981 (both of which are superior to 1999). There is medium body, excellent ripeness, and an angular finish, without the persistence typically found at this chateau. Wine Advocate # 140 Apr 2002
Parker Points: 87
Drinking Period: 2002 - 2012

Tasting Notes for Les Forts de Latour, Halves, 1998:
Latour's second wine exhibits a dark ruby/purple color as well as a nose of black fruits, ketchup, earth, and minerals. Moderately tannic and closed, it is reminiscent of its bigger brother. Give it 4-5 years of cellaring and enjoy it over the next two decades Wine Advocate # 134 Apr 2001
Parker Points: 88
Drinking Period: 2004 - 2020

Tasting Notes for Petrus, 1998:
The 1998 Petrus is unquestionably a fabulous effort boasting a dense plum/purple color as well as an extraordinary nose of black fruits intermixed with caramel, mocha, and vanilla. Exceptionally pure, super-concentrated, and extremely full-bodied, with admirable underlying acidity as well as sweet tannin, it reveals a superb mid-palate in addition to the luxurious richness for which this great property is known. The finish lasts for 40-45 seconds. Patience will definitely be required. Production was 2,400 cases, about 1,600 cases less than normal. Wine Advocate # 134 Apr 2001
Parker Points: 98
Drinking Period: 2008-2040

Tasting Notes for Carruades de Lafite, 1997:
The 1997 Carruades de Lafite (a blend of 32% Merlot, with the rest mainly Cabernet Sauvignon and a small portion of Cabernet Franc) maintains its reputation as one of Bordeaux's better second wines. The color is dark ruby with purple nuances. The wine is soft, fleshy, and round, with more up-front fat than Lafite, but not nearly the length or perfume. Wine Advocate # 116 Apr 1998
Parker Points: 87-88
Drinking Period: 1998 - 2006

Tasting Notes for Margaux, 1992:
The 1992 Margaux displays an impressively saturated, dark ruby/purple color, and a fragrant bouquet of cassis, vanillin, and floral scents. The wine is smooth, supple, wonderfully ripe, and seductive, with medium body, low acidity, and light tannin in the finish. It is drinking extremely well. Some tasters will no doubt rate it even higher than I have, given its elegance and layers of ripe, generous fruit that are presented in a medium-bodied format. This impressive wine should drink well for 10-15 years. Wine Advocate # 96 Dec 1994
Parker Points: 89
Drinking Period: 1993-2008

Tasting Notes for Margaux, 1991:
Margaux's 1991 is a candidate for "wine of the vintage." It reveals a deep ruby color, and a tight but promising nose of rich cassis, licorice, and toasty new oak. Dense, medium to full-bodied, with plenty of depth, it possesses moderate tannin and a long, rich finish. Anticipated maturity: 1996-2007. A bigger, more powerful wine than Margaux's 1987, it is close in quality to the estate's 1988. Wine Advocate # 91 Feb 1994
Parker Points: 88
Drinking Period: 1996-2007

Tasting Notes for Angelus, 1990:
This chateau has been turning out such spectacular wines that it is not surprising it was elevated in the recent reclassification of St.-Emilion. Any Bordeaux lover would be thrilled to have either of the 1989 or 1990 in his or her cellar. Both wines reveal an opaque purple color, with the 1990 slightly more inky. Both wines are also exceptionally endowed, backward, rich, full-bodied, and crammed with fruit. The 1990 is softer than the 1989 (because of the vintage's greater ripeness), as well as lower in acidity, giving it a marginally more forward and flattering set of aromatics and flavors. However, the impression is one of a big, beefy, thick, super-rich wine offering that tell-tale L'Angelus nose of smoky vanillin oak, olives, jammy cassis, and spice. Picking a favorite between these two fabulous examples of their respective vintages is - for me - presently impossible. I will probably end up drinking the 1990 before the 1989, but both wines are 25-30-year wines, with the 1989 possibly reaching full maturity in 5-6 years, and the 1990 needing several more years of cellaring. Robert Parker - The Wine Advocate.
Parker Points: 96
Drinking Period: 2020

Tasting Notes for Cheval Blanc, 1989:
Since its bottling, the 1989 has frequently been disappointing. In this tasting, it showed better than it has over the last several years. The 1989 is not a great effort for this chateau. The color is already revealing an amber edge, and the lead pencil, cedar, spicy, black fruit, and vanillin-scented nose is more reminiscent of a young Lafite, than the exotic style associated with Cheval Blanc in a hot, dry, ripe year. This medium weight, lightly tannic wine is very approachable. I have rated the 1989 Cheval Blanc consistently between 87 and 89, which is indicative of an excellent wine, but given the vintage terroir, this is not one of the star's of the 1989 vintage. It should continue to drink well for 10-15+ years, as there is moderate tannin in the wine's elegant framework, but readers should not expect any miracles. Robert Parker- Wine Advocate
Parker Points: 89
Drinking Period: 1997-2012

Tasting Notes for Gruaud Larose, 1989:
In this blind tasting, the 1989 Gruaud-Larose was corked, but a bottle secured through a friend and tasted under non-blind circumstances was excellent, nearly outstanding. The herbal side of Gruaud-Larose was more noticeable in the 1989. The wine revealed a deep ruby/purple color (but not the opaqueness of the 1990), more obvious tannin, without the mid-palate and sweet inner-core of fruit exhibited by the 1990. It is a big, tannic, spicy wine, with plenty of potential, but not the sweetness and chewy texture of the 1990. The 1989 needs more time to shed its cloak of tannin; give it 5-8 years of cellaring and drink it over the following 20+ years. Robert Parker Wine Advocate
Parker Points: 89
Drinking Period: 2002-2022

Tasting Notes for La Mission Haut Brion, 1989:
I am certainly not going to argue with anyone who believes La Mission-Haut-Brion's 1989 is every bit as profound as the 1989 Haut-Brion. It is a spectacular wine, and as it ages in the bottle, it is quickly becoming one of my all-time favorite La Mission-Haut-Brions, ranking alongside the 1982, 1975, 1961, 1959, and 1955. The 1989 boasts a dense, thick, purple color, followed by a sweet, roasted cassis, chocolatey-scented nose with whiffs of tobacco, tar, and minerals. The wine is extremely full-bodied, unctuously-textured, sweet, jammy, and rich. Although it is still a youthful, unformed wine, it is already delicious to drink. It should develop additional bottle bouquet by the turn of the century, after which it will drink well for 15-20 years. Last tasted 11/96. Bordeaux Book, 3rd Edition # B1 Jan 1998
Parker Points: 100
Drinking Period: 1996 - 2016

Tasting Notes for Latour, 1989:
This wine was tasted at a vertical tasting held in Charlotte, North Carolina several days before the Christie tasting. The Latour staff spoke far more highly of the 1989 than my experience has shown. It possesses many characteristics that make great vintages of Bordeaux so alluring - softness, overripeness, and sweet fruit. The problem is that there are insufficient quantities of these components. An evolved dark ruby color reveals amber at the edge. The nose offers aromas of caramel, coffee, ripe black cherry and currant fruit, cedar, and spice box. Although medium-bodied, with low acidity, the wine lacks richness in the mid-palate, and is surprisingly abrupt in the finish. It is a very fine, delicious Latour, but it is hard to believe it will attain the weight and flavor dimensions its producers suggest. Wine Advocate # 129 Jun 2000
Parker Points: 89
Drinking Period: now-2020

Tasting Notes for Montrose, 1989:
An outstanding Montrose, the 1989 is one of the vintage's stars. It possesses an opaque dark ruby/purple color, a sweet nose of minerals, black fruits, cedar, and wood, dense, medium to full-bodied, highly extracted flavors, low acidity, and moderate tannin in the long finish. While it appears to be closing down far more quickly than the legendary 1990, it has layers of sweet fruit as well as an elevated level of glycerin. Give it 5-7 years of cellaring, and drink it over the subsequent 2-3 decades. Last tasted 3/97 Robert Parker Wine Advocate
Parker Points: 96
Drinking Period: 2002-2032

Tasting Notes for Pape Clement, 1989:
Neither the 1989 or 1990 performed as well as I might have hoped. The 1989 was tight, with a lean, austere personality, as well as astringent tannin. It exhibited medium-weight and ripe fruit, but the charm and suppleness this wine displayed the first several years after bottling appears to have gone into hiding, replaced by the wine's structure. This impenetrable 1989 requires 4-5 years of cellaring. Whether the tannin will melt away sufficiently for the wine to exhibit complete harmony is doubtful. Robert Parker WIne Advocate
Parker Points: 87
Drinking Period: 1993-2003

Tasting Notes for Petrus, 1989:
Multi-millionaire collectors will have fun comparing the 1989 and 1990 Petrus. The 1989 has a slightly more saturated color, and seems more tightly knit both aromatically and on the palate. However, this is splitting hairs, as this is another stunningly opulent, rich, full-bodied, amazingly concentrated, exotic, flamboyant Petrus that remains remarkably youthful, and in need of 7-8 more years of bottle age. Additionally, the tannins are slightly more elevated, at least from a tactile impression. However, the 1989 looks to be another 30-year wine, with extraordinary equilibrium between all of its component parts. An amazing effort! Last tasted 11/97 Bordeaux Book, 3rd Edition # B1 Jan 1998
Parker Points: 100
Drinking Period: 1997-2027

Tasting Notes for Ausone, 1986:
86 points. The 1986 is a deeper and fuller wine than the 1985, but every time I have it I wonder if it could not have been better. The bouquet is extremely reserved, but does offer up mineral scents, some herbaceous, spicy elements, and hints of ripe fruit. On the palate, the wine remains tart, hard, even astringent, with medium body, and considerable tannin in the finish. A consistently ungenerous and tough-textured wine, it may dry out before the tannin melts away. Anticipated maturity: 1997-2020. Last tasted, 4/93. Robert Parker - The Wine Advocate.
Parker Points: 0
Drinking Period: 

Tasting Notes for d'Issan, 1986:
This wine is exhibiting considerable amber and orange at the edges of its uninspiring medium ruby/garnet color. The nose offers up old cellar smells intermixed with earth, and spice. Some sweet, diluted Cabernet Sauvignon fruit is present in the wine's attack, but it falls off, revealing significant dilution and thinness. There is also astringent tannin in the wine's finish. This wine will continue to become more attenuated with cellaring. Robert Parker Wine Advocate
Parker Points: 77
Drinking Period: 1995-2005

Tasting Notes for d'Issan, 1986:
This wine is exhibiting considerable amber and orange at the edges of its uninspiring medium ruby/garnet color. The nose offers up old cellar smells intermixed with earth, and spice. Some sweet, diluted Cabernet Sauvignon fruit is present in the wine's attack, but it falls off, revealing significant dilution and thinness. There is also astringent tannin in the wine's finish. This wine will continue to become more attenuated with cellaring. Robert Parker Wine Advocate
Parker Points: 77
Drinking Period: 1995-2005

Tasting Notes for Domaine de Chevalier, 1986:
This wine has evolved less evenly than I hoped. The attractive nose of roasted earth, herbs, minerals, and red and black fruits is pleasant. In the mouth, the wine reveals unresolved, astringent tannin. Although short in the finish, it is a very good, possibly excellent Domaine de Chevalier that should continue to evolve, and, hopefully, fatten up over the next decade. Robert Parker Wine Advocate
Parker Points: 88
Drinking Period: 1995-2012

Tasting Notes for Latour, 1983:
Tasted from my cellar, this wine is fully mature, not terribly concentrated, and slightly herbaceous, exhibiting aromas of sweaty saddle leather, melted asphalt, tobacco, and red as well as black fruits. Notions of caramel and roasted nuts also emerge. A medium-bodied effort with soft tannin, but little persistence and length, it requires consumption over the next decade.Wine Advocate # 129 Jun 2000
Parker Points: 88
Drinking Period: 2000 - 2010

Tasting Notes for La Mission Haut Brion, 1982:
An extraordinary effort that gets better with each tasting, this dark, murky, garnet/purple-colored 1982 exhibits a fabulously complex nose of hot bricks, asphalt, black fruits, tar, roast beef, and truffles, colossal concentration, super-ripeness, an unctuous texture, and low acidity. While still exceptionally youthful, this wine is powerful, dense, large-scaled, and intense. It is evolving at a snail's pace, but should continue to improve for another 10-15 years, and last for another three decades. A candidate for perfection!Wine Advocate # 129 Jun 2000
Parker Points: 99
Drinking Period: 2010 - 2040

Tasting Notes for Lafleur, 1982:
96 points. This wine is finally beginning to live up to my proselytization. Over the last several years, it has begun to reveal its extraordinary richness. The wine's fragrance of quintessential black-cherry jam must be smelled to be believed. It is completely different than the thick, tannic, colossal 1975 or mammothly constituted wines of 1985, 1988, 1989, and 1990. The vintage that comes closest to resembling the 1982 is the 1990. The over-ripe, cherry liqueur character of the bouquet is unmistakable. The wine possesses a dark ruby color, and a fabulous, exotic nose of incense combined with cherry jam. Thick, alcoholic flavors filled with glycerin and extract border on the surreal. Add a dosage of orange marmalade, soy, and juicy black cherry and plum-like fruit and, yes, the 1982 Lafleur is at your service. This thick, exotically-flavored wine is almost too intense and idiosyncratic for most tasters. But, wow, what a persuasive case for old vine Merlot and Cabernet Franc. This wine was actually softer 10 years ago, but it has taken on more grip and tannin with age. I would never hesitate to drink a bottle now, but it will undoubtedly become even better over the next 5-10 years. It should last through the first two decades of the next century . Tasted 16 times since bottling with consistent notes. Robert Parker - The Wine Advocate 12/95.
Parker Points: 0
Drinking Period: 

Tasting Notes for Ducru Beaucaillou, 1979:
Fully mature, this narrowly constructed, angular, compact Ducru-Beaucaillou reveals a healthy medium ruby color with a little amber at the edge. The undistinguished nose offers straightforward, slightly diluted, curranty fruit and damp earth. High acidity has kept the wine fresh in the mouth, but there is not much depth, body, or length. Drink it up. Wine Advocate # 88 Aug 1993
Parker Points: 82
Drinking Period: 

Tasting Notes for Leoville Lascases, 1966:
This may be the most successful wine produced by this estate during the decade of the sixties, although some bottles of the 1962 come close to offering as much pleasure as the 1966. The wine may have turned the corner and begun its decline. I have never tasted it out of larger format bottles, but I suspect magnums of this wine might merit an outstanding evaluation. The wine has always been a classic Bordeaux, with more fruit and body than many 1966s. There is a degree of austerity, but the wine's dominant characteristics include a complex, tobacco, cedar, and red currant-scented nose, medium body, excellent concentration and ripeness, and a spicy, long, moderately tannic finish. Drink it up as it is unlikely to improve. Robert Parker Wine Advocate
Parker Points: 89
Drinking Period: 

Tasting Notes for Charmes Chambertin - Rousseau, Armand, 1996:
This dark-colored wine may earn a score at the top of the range, if it gathers some more depth during its elevage. It displays a deep nose of super-sweet black cherries, and a pleasing, seductive, and medium-to-full-bodied character filled with delineated and pure flavors of candied raspberries and cherries. This spicy, silky-textured, expressive, and elegant wine concludes with a long, satiny finish. Projected maturity: 1999-2005. As far as the 1996 vintage is concerned, Rousseau's comments were bluntly candid -
Parker Points: 88-90
Drinking Period: 1999-2005

Tasting Notes for Richebourg - Grivot, Jean, 1996:
It offers a gorgeously bright medium-to-dark ruby color and extraordinary fragrances of super-ripe plums, cherries, and morel mushrooms. This brooding, powerful, full-bodied, mouth-coating, and refined block-buster is crammed with awesomely sweet black raspberries, cherries, candied strawberries, cassis, stones, and raw meat flavors that last throughout its unending finish. Wow! Bravo! Even though I have a stated policy of only reviewing wines that have completed their malo-lactic fermentations, I decided to make an exception for this spectacular wine. First, its malos were virtually finished, and secondly, readers deserve to know about this wine's sublime qualities. "The most important thing for me is harmony. I don't want hard and tannic wines. Those that are too tannic will never be good." So stated Etienne Grivot, the tall, intelligent, Basset Hound-eyed, and youngish man in charge of the domaine that bears his father's name. This estate produces some of Burgundy's finest wines, and consumers need to search them out before their prices reflect their quality.Wine Advocate # 118 Aug 1998
Parker Points: 94-97
Drinking Period: 

Tasting Notes for Chambertin - Rousseau, Armand, 1995:
Displaying a bright, dark color and huge aromas of Pinot fruit, smoky oak and rocks, the Chambertin has a massive, deeply spicy, sweet, very thick, super-complex palate with sauteed bacon notes. Tannic, extremely tight and stunning, this backward wine will reach its peak between 2007-2020. This note is the result of tastings I did in Burgundy between January 7 and January 29. The wine was tasted from cask, not bottle. Pinot Noir, a fragile varietal, reacts poorly to fining, filtration, and careless bottling techniques, I recommend caution when considering buying a red burgundy based on cask samples. I called it as I tasted it, and hope the bottled wine reflects the quality of the samples I was provided. #The Wine Advocate, #111. The Wine Advocate, #111, Jun-97.
Parker Points: 92-95
Drinking Period: 2007-2020