When I first started drinking the 2003s, which is a good idea from the drinkable young standpoint, I was put off by their international, red style. Lately, for the sake of variety and low cost, my wife and I have been ordering inexpensive New World wines at restaurants: from California, South Africa, Argentina, – and Australia, albeit a bit reluctantly, since they are the hardest for us to swallow.
Then when we drink our Bordeaux at home it tastes even better, by comparison. On Friday, we drank a 2003 d’Arcins cru bourgeois and it was very good, even if quite international in style – so good, that we opened a 2003 Lynch Moussas on Saturday, and enjoyed that one very much, too. I believe that we liked these two, ripe 2003s back to back more than we normally would have because of the super ripe, sweet, over-the-top California Cab Frank that we drank on Thursday in a restaurant.
The restaurant, The Spring Water, in Saratoga, New York was interesting that its Bordeaux list started at over $200 and shot up from there: 1982 Margaux, 1985 Cheval Blanc, stuff like that. I asked the waiter if they were trying to discourage patronage of anybody below rich. He said the owner collects Bordeaux and keeps a few bottles at the restaurant in case anybody wants to buy a special bottle. I asked if they had Bordeaux glasses, since ours were clunky. He wasn’t sure. He thought maybe a couple, but they might have gotten broken.
It’s a lovely, old Saratoga restaurant, though, across the street from the Thoroughbred Race Track, with some pretty good and imaginative food. We’ll go back in part because they welcome corkage and charge nothing for it.