WTN: 1983 Giscours (Margaux)

[Jenise]

Needed a softer wine for chicken and dumplings last night, so I chose this from the necrotic-and-possibly-doomed corner of our cellar. This was a compromised bottle: obvious capsule corrosion, and beneath that the cork was fully saturated with surface mold, but it did come out whole. Decanted to separate the better wine from about an inch of heavier sediment. Not unexpectedly, wine looked fully mature-- reddish purple-brown, medium body. Tasted of crushed berries and beef consomme with a bit of sandalwood; nice acid, resolved tannins. Didn't improve in the glass, but didn't further degrade. Merely pleasant, but pleasant to the last drop.

Merely pleasant, but pleasant to the last drop.

From the "possibly doomed" corner I'm sure you were happy with that showing. I think Giscours kind of struggled in 80s and 90s, but '83 was a strong vintage in Margaux (probably better than '82). Thanks for notes.

[David M. Bueker]

Sounds enjoyable as an accompaniment (rather than a distraction) to a meal. Isn't that what matters after all?

[Jenise]

Merely pleasant, but pleasant to the last drop.

From the "possibly doomed" corner I'm sure you were happy with that showing. I think Giscours kind of struggled in 80s and 90s, but '83 was a strong vintage in Margaux (probably better than '82). Thanks for notes.

I love the '83 vintage--an '83 Margaux was the first First Growth I ever tasted--and there are some great bargains at auction if you're willing to take a chance on a wine that's beyond Parker's drinking window where the "pointy people" fear to tread. This was one of those--drinking it was less disappointing than receiving it and finding undeclared signs of past seepage.

And David, you're right. That was kind of the point of this note--sometimes even bad bottles are good enough.