On Monday 10th December Farr Vintners hosted a tasting at our London office with proprietors from 12 St Emilion 1ers Grands Crus Classés and leading journalists in the UK to taste the 2009 and 2005 vintages in order to see how the wines were developing, how the vintages fare against each other and, crucially, to assess the quality and diversity of wine being produced in the region. St Emilion and the right bank in general has often had to stand in the shadow of its left bank brothers, but the wines are now claiming recognition the world over, with many of the wines tasted attaining the perfect Parker score that so many winemakers covet.
We tasted the following wines:
John Kolasa takes the room through Canon
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We started by tasting through the 2009 vintage. The quality of the 2009s has been well covered so I won’t go into too much detail on the vintage as a whole, but I think what became clear from re-tasting these wines is that they are open and drinking so well now. For those who like soft tannin, richness, roundness and fruit concentration, these wines are superb. That being said, there is an acidity here that will give the wines a long life. We discussed after the tasting whether these wines will ever close down as most vintages do, but it is hard to see them doing so at the moment. The range of styles also became very apparent.
The fresher, more classic style of Figeac tied the black plum fruit with a capsicum and peppery complexity, and the wine has great lift and balance from refreshing acidity.
The smokey and rich Angelus is a masculine-style of wine. Rich, full and still very structured, this felt to be one of the last to be fully open and with a very long life ahead of it. Classic Angelus, very accomplished with great concentration and balance.
The almost florally fresh Canon (that only saw 60% new oak), had hints of violets alongside fresh red and black cherries and plums. Hints of vanilla pod, smooth entry on the palate, long and pure finish.
Jancis Robinson, Neal Martin, Father Christmas et al tasting the 2009s
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It was the first time that I had tasted the 100 point Clos Fourtet and I was suitably impressed. 75% new oak gives the wine an inky, currant, black fruit texture. There is an earthiness to the wine that adds complexity. This wine is certainly young, firm and very long in the finish.
Cheval Blanc for me was the winner for the 2009. It is already complex and layered with florality, black plum, black cherry and sweet vanilla spice. The palate is rich and intense, with plenty of tannin to give the wine long life; yet the texture is silky smooth and the flavours are pronounced already. The finish is minutes long, everything we have come to love (and perhaps expect) from this great property.
The 2005s by comparison to the 2009 were, as you would expect, more structured with higher levels of acidity. Whereas the 2009s were in the most part rich and round, the 2005s have a freshness to their fruit, and will probably hit their peak after the 2009s. Most are still going through an adolescence at the moment being slightly closed, but the underlying power and quality is there for all to see.
Eric d'Aramon of Figeac introduces his wines
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Pavie Macquin 2005 had a concentrated nose of currants and black cherries, the palate also carrying a pure fruit quality, held together with firm tannin and sweet spice. This effort is delicious but needs another few years before it will provide full drinking pleasure.
Trotevieille 2005 is already showing a few layers of complexity at this stage. Lighter than some in body, there is a freshness that accompanies smoke, spice and black plum. Toasty finish accompanying a pure black fruit flavour.
On the richer, fuller side of this flight was Troplong Mondot. Cloves, damsons and black cherries are all present on the nose here. There is warmth and richness to this palate, along with firm tannic structure that will need quite some time to settle. This is a full bodied, big wine. Don’t touch this yet if you have a case stowed away.
The tasting was a great success and it was fantastic to have the opportunity for proprietors and critics to have an open discussion regarding the two vintages, the region of St Emilion as a whole and the personality that shines through for each of the wines.
With the tasting finished we moved on to The Ledbury for a specially arranged dinner, where we would get to taste all the Chateaux again, either from the 2000 or 1998 vintage, alongside some absolutely fantastic food. We kicked the night off with Pol Roger 2002, a wine that keeps on showing its quality. One that can be drunk now for 10 years or more…
Our first two courses were served alongside two flights of 2000s. This vintage is proving to be absolutely stunning. Still young, these wines really opened up and revealed their qualities with the well-paired food. Below are my tasting impressions of the six wines.
Beausejour Duffau – Juicy, fruity, and powerful. The tannic backbone has now softened and melted into the fruit. Spicy, black cherry finish.
Beausejour Becot - Black plum and black cherry on the nose. First signs of development on the palate, lovely toast and spice notes coming through in balance with the fruit.
Hubert de Bouard talks us through St Emilion
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Trottevieille – Lighter in style, violets as well as pure black fruit. Good intensity, medium bodied, light hints of oak. Great balance, this wine is actually drinking very well now.
Figeac – so fresh, and still so young! Blackcurrants and capsicum on the nose. Inky, graphite quality to the fruit, background spice from the oak. Firm tannin that still needs time but the concentration of flavours mean that this will be a long-term wine.
Angelus – Still a baby… So much black cherry and black plum concentration. Smoky, spicy and toasty on the palate. Still lots of firm tannin and freshness of acidity too. Oodles of flavour on the very long finish. A keeper, that’s for sure. Softens and becomes even more aromatic with time in the glass with time.
Cheval Blanc – absolutely classic Cheval… subtle and complex, the tannins have started to round out nicely and added a complex spicy and flinty note. Purity and concentration of fruit is outstanding, and all without becoming heavy at all. You can very much drink this now, but it will last for decades.
The Ledbury
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We then moved on to 1998. The more I taste this vintage (particularly in graves and on the right bank) the more I am impressed. There are some stunning wines at good prices to be had that are drinking superbly now but have the structure to continue improving with time. These wines are just hitting their stride now, and were perfect with the duck and beef courses that were served alongside them. The tasting notes are below.
Clos Fourtet – soft and rich, this wine was perfect with duck. Starting to show the hints of game itself in the glass, melded with a nutmeg spice and light toast, and a pure cherry flavour.
La Gaffeliere – toasty and spicy, again with game and forest floor notes. Brambly fruit on show too, with well integrated tannins and balancing acidity.
Canon – perfumed and aromatic, with a mineral-like quality. Subtle layers of both black and red fruit, all ripe but holding on to a freshness that is more apparent here than the other wines in the flight. Soft on the palate with a sweet entry, the flavours broaden across the middle palate and leave a pure fruit finish, with a hint of spice.
Pavie Macquin – blackberries, black cherries, smoke and liquorice here, turning to smoky notes on the palate. Lots of smoke, spice and richness. Full, rich and round.
Pavie – rich black-fruit and toast dominated nose here that stood up well to beef. The palate is full of ripe black cherry and damson fruit, smoke and graphite. The body is round and weighty, still with plenty of ripe tannin. Toast, smoke and ripe fruit linger on the finish.
Troplong Mondot – Vanilla, starting to show some game, truffle and undergrowth notes too. The fruit profile on both the palate and nose is of ripe black cherries and blackberries, all held with generous levels of toasty oak. Full bodied with a long, smoky finish.
The 6 flights of 2009 and 2005
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Full of food, wine and wine talk, we rounded off the evening with a 1952 Banyuls from Pietri Geraud. A great end to the evening that doesn’t perhaps leave you feeling that same sluggish feeling as a port might the next day. Fruity, nutty and very long, it was like an early Christmas present that rounded off the evening perfectly. We would like to thank all the proprietors for providing the wine and making the trip to discuss their wines and their region with us, and to The Ledbury for a fantastic venue and dinner for the evening.
Tasting notes by our friend Derek Smedley M.W. are available to read here
