Winery - Chateau Pichon-Lalande
* Expert NoteAugust 9, 2010
This wine was a wonderful surprise, sweet and ripe nose, green herbs and sweet Asian spices, black pepper, very ripe black fruits, strong earthen elements, full and seductive; first taste was very sweet and loaded with ripe black fruits, more plum than berry flavors with a sweet richness that was, frankly, a surprise to me; there are dry tannins, but at least at this point in this format, there is balance, and while the wine serves up some elements of earth and truffle, there is a sophistication and balance in the flavors that comes with age in Bordeaux; at the same time, the wine shows the Pichon feminine side and is elegant and seductive; does start to dry out some at the end, but definitely at this point in time one of the best of the vintage.
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* Expert NoteAugust 9, 2010
Sweet and very ripe fruit, extra perfumed and floral, elements of chocolate, green pepper, black pepper, charcoal and earth define what is a powerful and refined nose; sweet and smooth in the mouth, this wine has always exhibited a richness that is still there, combined with ripe fruit flavors and a very smooth, richly textured body; long finish, plenty of fruit mixing with elements of earth at the end; still one of the best wines of the vintage.Served from regular bottles at Dick Chang’s Bacchus celebration with consistent notes. Another bottle later was similar but defined more with bright red fruit flavors and lighter, more refined touch of flavors; no reason to change my rating, however.
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* Expert NoteAugust 9, 2010
I was both pleased and disappointed in this bottle, as I remain skeptical of this vintage which continues to show contradictory results; the wine opened with a good set of aromas, elemental but elegant, with a quite earthen and sweet character, conjuring images of mocha, truffles, black fruits, touched with moss and hints of vinyl, all of which was great, but the disappointment came with more time in the glass as the aromas turned medicinal with strong cough syrup tendencies; great flavors in the mouth initially with sweet and very ripe fruit; the Merlot is really in evidence here; balanced acidity; spicy and peppery; at the same time, soft fruit with a nice silky character; the finish was thus weaker than the initial optimism that I experienced with this wine. Served again at the Commanderie’s Le Bernardin dinner, with fairly similar notes.
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* Expert NoteAugust 9, 2010
he lightest of the three wines served as the trilogy, but quite good; initial nose has strong elements of red fruits, hints of apples, red plums, strawberries, earthen and elements of dryness in the nose, but at the same time soft and seductive with a definite feminine character; sweet fruit in the mouth, but unlike the ’89 and ’90 there is not an emphasis on black fruits here; rather the underlying flavors have a more red cherry and citrus character, with the black fruits more repressed; light acidity; many of the ladies present preferred this wine to all of the others; smooth and silky with a long, nicely defined finish.
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* Expert NoteAugust 9, 2010
Of the trilogy, this was in my view the best; wonderful nose, tightly focused and loaded with ripe fruit, chocolate, cacao, smoke, earth and spice notes, touch floral, fairly intense for this property; smooth and elegant in the mouth; layers of black fruits, there is cassis and blackberries, plums, cherries; wood and earth tones underlie the wine’s fruit structure; clearly defined in the mouth and perfectly balanced with acidity and softened tannins; long, smooth, sweetly citric finish. Served again at Dick Chang’s Bacchus celebration with consistent notes.
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* Expert NoteAugust 9, 2010
One of the trilogy of wines served at the dinner, this was the least impressive; very good nose, loaded with chocolate and sweet fruit on first impression, touch floral, spicy but also a bit thick and unrefined; sweet in the mouth, but lacking energy; there is soft fruit and elements of chocolate and charred wood, earth, but the edges are confused and illegible; in short, there is nothing wrong with the wine in the aggregate, but there is a lack of refinement and focus; the finish is also short, and for this property, definitely not its best effort.
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* Expert NoteDecember 19, 2005
An underrated vintage that many feel is past its prime, but I do not agree; this wine shows that the vintage is alive and well; earthen and smoky nose at first with a bit of bottle sickness, but this blew off and was replaced with the more traditional Pichon aromas of sweet floral fruit, touch of rose petals, and hint of mint, a bit tired yes, but not fatigued; sweet and smooth in the mouth, lighter as is the nature of this vintage and a bit more austere and restrained; hints of honey and rosewater, good spicy flavors; a bit dry at the finish now with the dry tannins of this vintage more apparent, but a classy wine at age 40. (17.5/20)
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* Expert NoteDecember 19, 2005
The nose of this wine has now gotten sweet, sweet, sweet, with smooth silky aromas, hint of rose petals, ripe aromas, earth, tannins; smooth and silky in the mouth, this is now one of the best wines of the vintage at this age; coal tar and black fruits; notable presence of ripe tannins; good acidity; long finish with rich textures and the flavors of mocha and chocolate; at its peak now. (18.5/20)
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* Expert NoteDecember 19, 2005
Probably still one of the best wines of the vintage, the nose is sweet and ripe, loaded with fruit, chocolate, and earthen scents; sweet and ripe in the mouth with the softness and ripeness that defines this property and often differentiates it from its Pauillac neighbors; this wine has power as well, and asserts its character through a tannic but balanced presentation; fully mature now, this wine needs to be drunk soon as it will begin to lose some vibrancy in the years ahead I suspect; at this stage still has a strong, rich finish and a long tail in the mouth. (17.5/20)
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* Expert NoteDecember 19, 2005
Loads of sweet aromas upon pouring this wine, very ripe and rich, tobacco and pepper, earthen, smoky, then becoming more floral with aromas of carnations and roses wafting forth; sweet fruit in the mouth; this wine has lots of flavor and depth; fresh pomegranates and sour cherries; citrus fruits; soft tannins and an almost velvety texture; loses a bit at the finish, becoming somewhat attenuated, but a wonderful mouthful anytime. (18/20)
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