On Friday night we were privileged to taste a selection of 1947 - mainly Bordeaux - from the collection of London- based collector Jordi Orriols-Gil.
All of the wines were sourced from bona fide sources, mainly from French cellars. All wines were from 1947 even the champagnes.
Most wines were served blind
Champagne flight
Moët Chandon remarkably vibrant and tasty - 16/20
Pol Roger #1 - hanging on 12; Pol Roger #2 10
Veuve Letting go 8
StJulien flight
Beychevelle - alive, fresh but drying - 15
Branaire - cigar box fresh and elegant -16.5
Lagrange -spritely, sweaty -16
Talbot - brown, but not dead with sweet mushrooms -14
Gruaud - orange; really lovely 16.5
Leoville Poyferre # 1 - black, tarry but unpleasant -10; Leoville Poyferre # 2 - even more weird - a zombie wine -8
Pauillac flight
Lynch Bages - briary va, with electric wire fuse box blowing -6
Mouton Cadet -old socks and mushrooms funky -15
Pichon Lalande - fabulously exuberant for 15 minutes then it had a stoke 17/13
Ringer: thought it could be Lafite ( durr!). It was a ringer Chambolle Musigny Clerget -16
Latour #1 - very tired -13
Latour #2 - good but quite fragile, not as good as say a 1997 tried y'day -16
Margaux and Graves flight
Brane Cantenac - corked -
Haut Bailly - good showing 15.5
Margaux - beneath the somewhat earthy entry wonderful Margaux berries 17
SHL -corked nr
Right bank flight
Conseillante - I liked it less than most others did but it is alive and kicking -15.5
VCC - likewise -15.5
Dominique - corked
Haut-Pourret - dead
Cheval Blanc # 1 - corked
Cheval Blanc #2 - portly nose, hints of greatness but like an old man in a wheel chair could not lift itself out - shame - but for the hint of what was there - 14
Ausone - old shangri la and long disappearing into a graceful sunset - 15
Sweet
Climens -16
Raymond Louis - cant remember
Rayne Vigneau - Neal said it was good
Huet Haut Lieu - this was good. -16
Last chance saloon
Chateauneuf Pierre Anselme - though it was a burg but it was ok -15
So it was a shame about the Chevals which sell here for £70k a case. A lot of the wines tasted tired and or dirty, which tells you that just because the wines are alive they are not necessarily enjoyable. Many of these wines were zombies. Actually they weren't dead, but just not attractive. There were a lot of long faces at the table. I already learned that from some joyless 1945s. So 1947 probably still is a legendary vintage but I won't be buying any. 1970 is about as far back as I will go.
My faves were Branaire and Gruaud, notable stalwarts from the 2010 vintage - you can't keep a great producer down - Chateau Margaux was probably the only really truly class act.
Many thanks to Jordi for putting this on
All of the wines were sourced from bona fide sources, mainly from French cellars. All wines were from 1947 even the champagnes.
Most wines were served blind
Champagne flight
Moët Chandon remarkably vibrant and tasty - 16/20
Pol Roger #1 - hanging on 12; Pol Roger #2 10
Veuve Letting go 8
StJulien flight
Beychevelle - alive, fresh but drying - 15
Branaire - cigar box fresh and elegant -16.5
Lagrange -spritely, sweaty -16
Talbot - brown, but not dead with sweet mushrooms -14
Gruaud - orange; really lovely 16.5
Leoville Poyferre # 1 - black, tarry but unpleasant -10; Leoville Poyferre # 2 - even more weird - a zombie wine -8
Pauillac flight
Lynch Bages - briary va, with electric wire fuse box blowing -6
Mouton Cadet -old socks and mushrooms funky -15
Pichon Lalande - fabulously exuberant for 15 minutes then it had a stoke 17/13
Ringer: thought it could be Lafite ( durr!). It was a ringer Chambolle Musigny Clerget -16
Latour #1 - very tired -13
Latour #2 - good but quite fragile, not as good as say a 1997 tried y'day -16
Margaux and Graves flight
Brane Cantenac - corked -
Haut Bailly - good showing 15.5
Margaux - beneath the somewhat earthy entry wonderful Margaux berries 17
SHL -corked nr
Right bank flight
Conseillante - I liked it less than most others did but it is alive and kicking -15.5
VCC - likewise -15.5
Dominique - corked
Haut-Pourret - dead
Cheval Blanc # 1 - corked
Cheval Blanc #2 - portly nose, hints of greatness but like an old man in a wheel chair could not lift itself out - shame - but for the hint of what was there - 14
Ausone - old shangri la and long disappearing into a graceful sunset - 15
Sweet
Climens -16
Raymond Louis - cant remember
Rayne Vigneau - Neal said it was good
Huet Haut Lieu - this was good. -16
Last chance saloon
Chateauneuf Pierre Anselme - though it was a burg but it was ok -15
So it was a shame about the Chevals which sell here for £70k a case. A lot of the wines tasted tired and or dirty, which tells you that just because the wines are alive they are not necessarily enjoyable. Many of these wines were zombies. Actually they weren't dead, but just not attractive. There were a lot of long faces at the table. I already learned that from some joyless 1945s. So 1947 probably still is a legendary vintage but I won't be buying any. 1970 is about as far back as I will go.
My faves were Branaire and Gruaud, notable stalwarts from the 2010 vintage - you can't keep a great producer down - Chateau Margaux was probably the only really truly class act.
Many thanks to Jordi for putting this on
