Last Saturday night at the Heart's Delight Benefit for The American Heart Association about 30 chefs prepared many different dishes as we bid on various auction items and sipped many wines. It is always a great event, but this year I attended the late afternoon two hour BORDEAUX 2003 Tasting, which served up 31 wines (including one white and three Sauternes) for us to judge and rate ourselves in anticipation of drinking these wines in the way off future.
Indeed, I had pruchased numeorus cases of 2003 futures over two years ago in anticpiation of this great vintage and hoping we can serve it at Samuel's Bar Mitzvah in 2016 (as it is his birth year!).
Our first flight was quite lackluster and the highlight was the CHATEAU TERTE DAUGAY from St. Emilion which oddly enought got an 85 from Wine Spectator. I thought this wine was much better than that and even beat out the higher rated CHATEAU CHASSE-SPLEEN from Moulis en Medoc. There were almost 30 winemakers or vingerons on the panel describing their own wines which was also a great treat.
The second flight of five wines had the highly rated CHATEAU ANGELUS from St. Emilion (Wine Spectator #94) at the top of my list, but at over $165 a bottle, it's way too pricey. Save this wine for at least 5-10 years if you come across it. I also liked the CHATEAU CANON from St. Emilion (rated 91), but it also rings in quite high at $75.
The third flight of five wines was only okay, and I began to think that many of the big Bordeaux would be duds including the CHATEAU SMITH-HAUT-LAFITTE which I had ordered a case of. This wine was rated 93 and cost about $55 now, but at the $40 I paid two years ago, hopefully it will improve.
Flight #4 was a big improvement and I was thrilled that the CHATEAU GISCOURS from Margaux (rated 91) was my top pick as I have a case of that coming. The Giscours at $45/bottle easily beat the lower rated (#91) CHATEAU PALMER which runs over $130!
Flight #5 was the highlight of the afternoon and I felt the CHATEAU BRANAIRE-DUCRU from St. Julien took top honors all day (too bad it's almost impossible to get). This was an intense and terrific wine and will easily last 10-20 years. No wonder it got a 93 from Wine Spectator! My 2nd favorite in the flight was the CHATEAU PONTET-CANET from Pauillac which I DO have a case of coming soon. This was so jammy and excellent was rated 94! All the wines in this flight were rated from 91-97 and were truly magnificent and will deserve aging, so don't drink them too soon: CHATEAU LAGRANGE, CHATEAU TALBOT and the over $150 CHATEAU COS d'ESTOURNEL were all truly exciting.
Finally came the three Sauternes of which I liked the CHATEAU COUTET the best, but nobody who likes sweet wines would turn down the GUIRAUD or SUDUIRAUT either, which we drank after dinner as well that evening. These Sauternes will easily benefit from 10-20 years aging as well as they turn that gorgeous amber color!
ENJOY!
