I went my local wine retail Saturday and discovered they were having a
tasting of 1996 and 2000 Bordeaux. For only $30 you could taste 6 1996s
and 6 2000s, so of course I took the opportunity to taste these, and a
few other wines they had open. This was a stand up tasting and the
wines were tasted one at time, so there was no opportunity to really
compare them or evaluate how they evolved with time in the glass.
Because of the time I arrived, in many cases I got the bottom of the
first bottle that had been open for several hours.

1996 Clinet
This wine was a disappointment. It was brownish, tasted and smelled
slightly oxidized with some cherry, high acid and long sour finish. I
hope this was a bad bottle. Price $90. Not rated.

1996 Rausan Segla
Garnet color. Spicy and weedy nose. Spicy, weedy, cherry fruit. High
acid, moderate tannins and long finish. Seems ready to drink. Price
$48. Rated 80-85.

1996 Cos d'Estournel
Dark garnet. Nose had cherry and earth. Black cherry and earth fruit
flavors, high acid, high tannin and a long astringent finish. Needs
time. Price $100. Rated 85-90.

1996 Pichon Lalande
Garnet. Nose had cherry, chassis, and spices. Big black cherry fruit,
high acid and high tannins, with a long fruity finish. Drinkable now,
but will age for long time. Price $155. Rated 85-90.

1996 Leoville Las Cases
Dark garnet. Nose was closed. Cherry, chassis, high acid, high tannin,
long finish. A more elegant style, still needs time. Price $190. Rated
85-90.

1996 Margaux
Medium garnet. Spicey, earthy nose. Cherry, spicy fruit, high acid,
moderate tannins, long fruity finish. Very elegant. I thought this wine
was drinking beautifully. Some other people thought it needed more
time. I think I got the bottom of the first bottle, they may have
gotten the top of the second bottle. Price $370. Rated 90-95.

2000 Pensees de Lafleur
Garnet, closed nose. Red cherry and chassis, high acid, moderate
tannins, long fruity finish. Drinkable now. Price $80. Rated 80-85.

2000 Calon Segur
Medium garnet. Cherry and plums on the nose and fruit. High acid,
moderate tannins, long fruity finish. Drinkable now, and structured to
age. Price $80. Rated 85-90.

2000 Ducru Beaucaillou
Medium garnet. Cherry and chassis nose. Red and black cherry, chassis
fruit. High acid, high tannin, and long finish. Needs time. Price $115.
Rated 85-90.

2000 Trotanoy
Dark garnet. Closed nose. Spicy, cheery fruit. High acid, moderately
high tannin, long finish. Needs a little time. Price $150. Rated 85-90.

2000 Hosanna
Medium garnet. Closed nose. Tight cherry and spicy fruit, high acid,
high tannin, and long finish. Needs time. Price $156. Rated 85-90.

2000 Pichon Lalande
Dark garnet. Nose chassis and plums. Big black cherry and plum fruit,
high acid, high tannins, long fruity finish. Needs time. Price $164.
Rated 90-95.

A few other wines I tasted:

2001 Chateau Rieussec
Medium golden. Nose orange and apricots. Very sweet, orange and apricot
fruit. Moderate acid, long sweet, fruity finish. Needs time to develop
complexity. Price $125. Rated 90-95.

2001 Franciscan, Cabernet Sauvignon, Oakville
Very dark. Cherry with hints of barnyard on nose. Very tight, cherry,
herbal, spicy fruit, high acid, very high tannins, long hard, tannic
finish. I think this wine is flawed, and may have bret. Not rated.

2002 Chapplette Signature Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley
Dark garnet. Nose black cherry. Big black cherry fruit, high acid, high
tannins, long fruity finish with hard tannins. Big California cab that
needs time. Price $36. Rated 85-90.

2002 Caymus, Cabernet Sauvignon, Special Selection
Very dark garnet. Nose red cherry. Tight red cherry fruit, high acid,
high tannins, long fruity, tannic finish. Very elegant, but needs time.
Price $125. Rated 90-95.
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Mike's Wine Blog
http://mikeswinecellar.blogspot.com/

It sounds like the Clinet was flawed- brownish, etc. But even a sound
bottle might not be great- while I don't remember having Clinet, the
'96 Right Bankers I've liked are outnumbered by ones that I didn't.

Tough time to drink 2000s right now.

I've had 2001 Franciscan twice, no brett and certainly not high acid.
Maybe storage issues?

thanks for notes- you're a tough grader!

The conditions for this tasting were less than idea. The Clinet was the
first wine I tasted and I remember getting almost the last pour from
the bottle. The bottle had been open for a couple of hours at that
point, so I suspect the Clinet went down hill after opening.

> Tough time to drink 2000s right now.

In the past I have found some, but not all, Bordeaux close down not
that long after they arrive in the US. Are you suggesting the 2000s may
have done that?

> I've had 2001 Franciscan twice, no brett and certainly not high acid.

> Maybe storage issues?

The three California cabs I tasted afterwards were from a separate pay
by the glass tasting bar. They had about 20 different bottles open and
it was unclear how long they had been open, but it could have been from
Friday. Another person also tasted the 2001 Franciscan said it was off.
I suspect it was a bad bottle, although you might wonder why a retailer
would leave a bad bottle in a tasting bar like that. The tasting bar,
however, was self service, and there were so many people there that the
employees were not paying any attention to it.

------------------------------------
Mike's Wine Blog
http://mikeswinecellar.blogspot.com/