Notes from a Commanderie de Bordeaux tasting of the 2003 vintage.

Champagne de Venoges Cordon Bleu Brut – a very ripe cantaloupe note in
the nose was a bit obtrusive, but the wine was clean on palate and
finished crisply. A sample from another bottle was identical except
that it (fortunately) lacked the odd cantaloupe nose.

Ch. La Garde – light straw colour, a vinyl pool nose, more or less
palatable in the middle but narrowed at the end to become mean and
acidic.

With seared halibut and tomato and halibut cheek ravioli in a lemon
grass and ginger broth. The food far surpassed the wine.

Bellevue (St. Emilion) – wet stones and muted fruit nose, tannins on
the hard side and right up front, brief finish. Not very enjoyable.

Monbousquet (St. Emilion) – much better nose with interesting
complexity, oak and anise to the fore, with some smoke behind, a
bright wine, also tannic but with better fruit and balance and a
slight bitterness in the finish.

Le Bob Pasteur (Pomerol) – a reasonable dark fruit and herb nose,
perhaps a tad on the green side, not as tight in the mouth as the
previous wine, acidity a bit low, medium length, kind of petering out
at the end.

Served with grilled duck breast and braised duck leg with Shiitake and
green peppercorn sauce.

Clerc Milon (Pauillac) – this wine showed good colour, had a little
tea and cough medicine in the nose, not unpleasant, as underneath were
cassis and spice. Good stuffing, still tannic but focussed a wine
that will improve.

Grand Puy Lacoste (Pauillac) – this nose was almost a little perfumey,
and the wine had decent weight and balance, was softer and ready
now, not bad but won’t get any better. Not what I expect from this
house, which usually turns out light heavyweights.

with thyme and rosemary crusted lamb loins and pommes Dauphine.

Haut Bailly (Pessac Leognan) – currant and some mushroom in this nose,
and a hard tannin attack that gets you at the back of the throat right
off the bat, and I think tends to obscure the fruit, which I expect is
quite adequate. It has a soft spot for a little right at the end and
then rides primarily on acidity through a fairly long finish. On the
whole I liked this and think it will improve with a few more years.

La Mission Haut Brion (Pessac Leognan) – some very nice black currant
and blackberry notes in this nose, a very well balanced wine with soft
tannins, good levels of fruit and a smooth long finish. Class act!

with cheeses

Finally:

Doisy Daene – pineapple nose, sweet and lemony on palate, with a bit
more residual sugar than I like, very good length. Fortunately the
wine also has enough acid to offset the high RS and comes across as
balanced. Should prove popular.

Interesting wines, many still tannic but low acid and a conundrum as
to whether to drink early or wait and pray.