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A Fronsac in Vietnam

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Matt Richman

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A Fronsac in Vietnam

by Matt Richman » Sun Mar 24, 2013 9:05 am

2000 Château La Vieille Croix, France, Bordeaux, Libournais, Fronsac

Well this was kind of crazy. Spotting a 13 year old minor Bordeaux in an Italian restaurant in a small mountain town in northern Vietnam. A roll of the dice, but since I hadn't had a glass of red wine in over a month of traveling through SE Asia I thought I'd go for it. The staff at the restaurant didn't even know what it was.

In fact this is a nice, fully mature, very enjoyable red wine. Not terribly complex, but has a good herbal element. More balanced than powerful. Tannins are fully resolved. This is drinking nicely. A very good drink, even if it's been hanging around with less than perfect storage for a while.
C+/B-
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Andrew Burge

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Re: A Fronsac in Vietnam

by Andrew Burge » Tue Mar 26, 2013 6:07 am

Matt, i was in Vietnam until last week, and visited a small mountain town in the northwest - Sapa.

Where did you find this wine?
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Matt Richman

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Re: A Fronsac in Vietnam

by Matt Richman » Tue Mar 26, 2013 8:01 am

Yes, it was in Sa Pa in an Italian restaurant called Delta. They had Bordeaux from 2006, 2007, 2009 and more recent vintages. I think I got the last 2000.

From what I understood they order a lot of Italian wine and get a few bottles of Bordeaux along for the ride.

We are on our way back to Hanoi. Sa Pa was wonderful. Hope you enjoyed your visit as much as we did.
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Dale Williams

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Re: A Fronsac in Vietnam

by Dale Williams » Tue Mar 26, 2013 10:46 am

Now that's vintage Matt- he manages to find 2000 Bdx in Vietnam.
I remember liking the 98 of this.
Safe travels. Hope to see you in NY (May?)
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Andrew Burge

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Re: A Fronsac in Vietnam

by Andrew Burge » Wed Mar 27, 2013 10:13 pm

Sa Pa was an eye opener Matt. We were disappoitned twice by "local" food options at Nature Bar 7 Grill and Cafe Fansipan. Option three would have been to give up and go to Delta for a Pizza!

Good luck with the Hustle and Bustle that is Hanoi. We were ony there one nigh ton the wya to Halong Bay. Quan An Ngon was good for a relatively inexpensive meal,

Well and truly back in Australia now though :(
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James Dietz

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Re: A Fronsac in Vietnam

by James Dietz » Fri Mar 29, 2013 6:17 pm

Ha Noi can seem crazy, but it's manageable. Lots of great places to eat.

The local wine, Dalat, is worth trying. We consumed a few bottles while on Ha Long Bay.
Cheers, Jim
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Patrick Martin

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Re: A Fronsac in Vietnam

by Patrick Martin » Fri Mar 29, 2013 11:34 pm

Aside from the air quality, Hanoi is an amazing city and Sapa is stunning. Didn't see any worthwhile wine while I was there though!
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Matt Richman

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Re: A Fronsac in Vietnam

by Matt Richman » Sat Mar 30, 2013 6:39 am

I've yet to try Dalat, but I will soon. I almost bought one off of a lady in a rowboat hanging around our ship. My wife was worried about storage issues. She was probably right.
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James Dietz

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Re: A Fronsac in Vietnam

by James Dietz » Sat Mar 30, 2013 4:02 pm

Matt Richman wrote:I've yet to try Dalat, but I will soon. I almost bought one off of a lady in a rowboat hanging around our ship. My wife was worried about storage issues. She was probably right.


I liked the white better than the red, which was reminiscent of a Beaujolais, with a touch of sweetness.
Cheers, Jim

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