Notes from a vertical tasting dinner of Leoville Poyferre held by the
Commanderie de Bordeaux at the Terminal City Club, Vancouver BC.

With some reception nibblies of Emmenthal gougeres with crème fraiches
and caviar, and iced Kumamoto oysters with sauternes jelly:

1999 Nicolas Feuillate Brut – decent toasty nose, the wine showing a
bit on the acidic side on the roof of the mouth, good persistence and
some mature notes in the finish.

With a crispy shallot and prawn risotto with pea shoot salad:

2001 Ch. Carbonnieux blanc – toasty oak nose, soft supple wine a tad
low in acidity. No rush. Decent with the excellent food.

Main event – Leoville Poyferre vintages served youngest to oldest with
three courses.

With roast duck and foie gras terrine:

2000 – a dark rather monolithic wine with great stuffing and
extraction of flavours and a slight nuance of mint in the otherwise
fruit driven nose. Ends with dry tannins. This should be very nice –
one day, about a decade hence.

1998 – lighter than the 2000, with a marked black currant nose,
already a supple harmonious wine that is now ready for drinking and
should have a decent life ahead of it.

1996 – medium dark wine with a nice slightly smoky plumy nose, good
structure excellent length and a nice shot of juicy acidity near the
end. Will have a long life but can be enjoyed from now.

With roast loin of milk fed veal and a porcini mushroom and truffle
brioche:

1995 – lovely sweet currant and cedar nose, really juicy and tasty in
the mouth, sweet with good concentration, a very pleasurable wine.

1990 – the nose on this wine was absolutely flat when opened and took
an inordinate time to start showing much at all. It seemed a bit
muddled on palate as well but eventually pulled together and showed
decent fruit and finish. A disappointment that I am hoping is unusual
as I have yet to broach my stash of this wine.

1989 – some spice in the nose, and cherries, tannins still apparent,
but decent fruit, though it ended a bit abruptly. Although more time
might improve the wine, it also might not. On balance I’d opt for
drinking sooner rather than later, as in more modest company than
these other wines it would offer pleasure.

With grilled bison tenderloin with a pulled pork and potato croquette:

1986 – very good colour, a nice nose with more cherry and spice, the
wine now (finally!) mellow on palate with good balance and length. My
only criticism was a slight dilute impression in midpalate, but
otherwise it drank fairly well.

1983 – a very nice mature nose of more plum than currant, and some
cedar again, as well as vanilla, perhaps a tad ripe. Good weight, a
pleasant wine with smooth sweet presence in the mouth. A good 1983.
Drink up.

1982 – a nose that was almost Rhonish, in that t was slightly warm
and a slight bit medicinal. Great concentration and weight, a wine to
be drunk with pleasure and it should hold well, so no rush.

To finish:

1996 Ch. Guiraud – medium golden colour (is it me, or are the young
vintages taking on more colour at an earlier age that I recall the
wines of the 70s and 80s doing?). A nose of orange marmalade, not too
sweet in the mouth, and a nice long finish. A good one.