A nice group braved UN Week to gather at Bobby Van’s in midtown East for a GPL vertical last night. Chris brought a bonus, the 2015 De Villaine Bouzeron Aligote. Apple and peach, rich, good finish, no lemony tartness- think everyone agreed it didn’t scream Aligote,but enjoyed. B/B+
2006 Philliponnat Le Leon Blanc de Noirs Extra Brut. Too austere for some, that wouldn’t be me. Lovely complex nose of cherry and citrus, full and crisp (some thought too tart). . B+/A-
Those went well with a quite tasty crabcake. Then we moved to the reds.
1978 Ch. Grand Puy Lacoste
Dark fruit, a touch of green with a tarry/tobacco edge, a bit tired, but a nice edge of complexity and pretty good finish with a graphite edge. Surprisingly lively at end of night. When we were initially tasting, B/B+
1982 Ch. Grand Puy Lacoste
There’s a little funk on opening, then fairly classic ripe claret- cassis, leather, cigarbox. Nice showing. A-
1986 Ch. Grand Puy Lacoste
Pretty tight, brawny, needs time, better with meat. B+
Our tomahawks (along with spinach, brussels sprouts, hash browns, and fries) arrived in time we could taste with the first flight, and linger through the other 2. Nice piece of meat, though my medium-rare was a bit closer to medium
1995 Ch. Grand Puy Lacoste
Stern, not very giving, tannic, not so long. B
1996 Ch. Grand Puy Lacoste
Lovely showing, still lots of structure, but giving cassis fruit, mocha, leather just peeking out. Young but classic. A-
2000 Ch. Grand Puy Lacoste
Very young, but plenty of sweet fruit, polished tannin, enough acidity to stand up. A-/B+
2003 Ch. Grand Puy Lacoste
I didn’t have high expectations, which was good. Extracted, kirsch meets plum jam, hollow despite size. C+/B-
2001 Ch. Lafaurie-Peyraugey (375)
Always a fave, except when corked, like now.
We did our usual 3/2/1 voting.
1978 2 votes
1982 19 votes
1986 6 votes
1995 0
1996 10 votes
2000 5 votes
2003 0
Fun night with old friends, and one new one.
Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent wine, B a good wine, C drinkable. Anything below C means I wouldn't drink at a party where it was only choice.Furthermore, I offer no promises of objectivity, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency.