Following on the very next night after the Ardbeg vertical, and an ill defined quantity of very fine grappa, my palate was not at its sharpest, but bravely soldiering on I can bring you this report.
Chateau Grand Pontet '97. The Big Egg was obviously starting off on a low key, so as to work up to the good stuff at the end. Considering the price, this was really very ordinary. A decently made, clean claret, but frankly thin and short. 11/20
Chateau La Pointe '00 was tricky to pin down. Slightly rubbery at first, it developed a lovely candyfloss sweetness and a perfume-y edge. Final score 14/20, YMMV.
La Gomerie '97 was reticent to begin with, albeit showing a complex palate which lingered. The green privet hedge (The Small Egg calls it green tea) coffee-ish character did evolve, so it scored 15/20 in the end.
L'Eglise-Clinet had a similar green character, but greater complexity on the nose. It also showed a very appealing marzipan touch on the palate. 15/20
La Gomerie '98 ended up being my favourite of the night. This might have been cuz it was more impressive on the palate than the nose. There was a consensus amongst the tasters that these wines offered more to the nose than the palate: for me, La Gomerie was the counterexample. The nose was not strong and seemed to consist of barley sugar and washing up liquid. But the palate was concentrated, tannic, verging on full-bodied, hinting at marzipan, and ending long and tannic. Yum 15-16/20
Le Bon Pasteur. This was SmallFierceGlasses's favourite, and other tasters made favourable comments. I think I marked it down cuz the initial nose was somewhat burny, like hot green tea. The palate was medium bodied, very tannic, with white pepper. 14+/20
Saved the best fer last, huh? That would work, except that I was operating on only two hours sleep, and waaaay too much grappa. Aaaanyways.
Cheval Blanc '89. An iconic wine, but not a great year. Yikes. The wine looked well aged, showing dark brown. The nose was reticent, clean and sweet, like boilings. On the palate it was sweet, light to medium bodied, with a vegetal character, perhaps of green peppers. The finish seemed reminiscent of hot menthol. Everything about this wine was balanced, together, integrated, but..., but..., it just didn't excite me. Perhaps it is beginning to become a little ethereal, ghostly. 15/20
Cheval Blanc '97. Distinctly green on the nose. Medium bodied and tannic, with a long sweet finish. In the glass, the wine developed hints of marzipan. 15/20
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