Only the gal, me, didn't have '98 Barde-Haut after all. I had '99 which I would have passed on in favor of a '98 St. Emilion since the drinkability of lower echelon wines from that appellation was in fact the topic, but I couldn't seem to locate the only '98 St. Emilion in my inventory so we opened the '99 Barde-Haut anyway. And am I glad. Sporting a big, highly aromatic and earthy nose that could be nothing but Bordeaux, it displayed black cherry fruit, cigar tobacco, cola, leather and bourbon barrel. On the palate, all of those things with adequate acidity and a satisfying sweetness that slow dances into a rich finish. More rustic than elegant but not without some sophistication, the tannins are still evident and become a bit more noticeable as the wine lingers into it's third hour, but only just and the fruit never faded away as I halfway feared it would in this unreliable vintage. Overall quite delicious and in a peak phase for current drinking. It was so good, in fact, that though I'm under the weather and had no intention of having more than just a few sips, I did a little better than that.
