The eighties were the decade in which your scribe collected most of his cherished ageable Bordeaux. Sure there were some outstanding bottles in the sixties (legendary 1961, long distance runner 1966) and seventies (underrated 1970, tannic overhyped 1975, and miracle 1978) but those decades fade against the remarkable vintages of the eighties many still going strong. Pretty consistent run except for 1984 and 1987 as starting with under the radar 1981 like Chateau Margaux, less consistent 1983 better in southern Medoc & Pessac-Leognan but clean classic Pichon Lalande, hard to go wrong with brilliant 1982 and charming 1985 years, and 1988 last of old style and finishing up with a warmer 1989 (and 1990). However, early on the Left Bank 1986s were big backward quite tannic concentrated wines needing long cellaring. Got a chance to try over the years many Left Bank 1986s since bottling and most continue to show encouraging development of their concentrated fruit. Now nearing 40 years of age it was an appropriate time to assess their current development. The Vancouver Group of Eight at meeting #132 held a tasting/dinner on June 24 at Blue Water Cafe featuring 8 well chosen top examples. We started with 2004 SAINT-GALL ORPALE BLANC DE BLANCS GRAND CRU a very prestige cuvee by this grower’s coop using quality grapes from Mesnil-sur-Oger, Cramant, Avize, and Oger with long lees aging. Surprised how fresh alive vibrant these delicate fragile elegant bubbles with higher acidity are showing. Only partial malolactic fermentation works. Interesting and refreshing on the palate with unique opening scallop course.

The 1986 reds followed with a First Flight all Saint-Julien:

1986 CHATEAU DUCRU-BEAUCAILLOU:

Dark, lighter rim, leafy earthy very Bordeaux elegant nose more than a clear S-J definition from this excellent gravel slope. Superb terroir site. This bottle re-corked at Chateau in 2011 because of controversial Cellar TCA issues at the end of this decade. Structured with acidity balance but drier and not the best singing bottle of this vintage. There are better bottles.

1986 CHATEAU LEOVILLE BARTON:

Deep very dark to rim with concentrated Cab Sauv statement less medicinal notes shown by some vintages. Slowly coming together but still rather big hard backward with potential. Lacks a bit of charm and finesse which may still develop. Always bought this property because outstanding value. Promising. Most hopeful. No rush. Patience.

1986 CHATEAU LEOVILLE POYFERRE:

Quite dark with paling edge. Solid but more herbaceous from very young vines replanting by Didier Cuvelier with Emile Peynaud consulting. Later on Michel Rolland changed style direction from 1994. Ian Mottershead found this “more exotic”. Lovely drinking now but lacks complexity compared to LLC. Making outstanding St. Julien the past few decades!

1996 CHATEAU LEOVILLE LAS CASES:

Deepest and darkest with best open classic St Julien intense classy bouquet. Impressive cedar with tobacco showing dense layers of complex smooth flavours with helpful 4% Petit Verdot. Nick Wright liked “more weight more fruit and more structure.” Already a treasure and will continue on this high plateau for a long time. Delicious. Both mine & group favourite of First Flight.

MYSTERY BLIND – 1982 CHATEAU LEOVILLE POYFERRE:

Redder more mature tones looks older. A sous-bois mushroom herbal style is ready now. Softer easy simpler elegant S-J. Not a top 1982 but interesting drinking superbly with a tasty refined Chicken Supreme with morels dish.
This flight is only missing the great St Juliens of Gruaud Larose & surprising Talbot that both really sing eloquently in 1982 & 1986 and are just best plateauing right now.

Second flight of 1986s featuring 3 top Pauillac & the Chateau Margaux. Ian determined that the most popular food matching for these big wines according to the proprietors is rib eye steak therefore he so ordered:

1986 CHATEAU PICHON LONGUEVILLE COMTESSE DE LALANDE:

Lighter look but together. Emile Peynaud called it “the most tannic wine ever” and May de Lencquesaing always optimistic about its future. In tough company here but shows well the mellowing tannins with graphite and mint. Nick said it “has more charm and reminds me of Palmer” and Fred Withers “at a perfect spot with elegance and balance.” It is developing nicely as Pichon.

1986 CHATEAU MOUTON ROTHSCHILD:

So dark & deep right to the edge. Big & powerful as expected with outstanding concentrated Mouton style with 80% Cab Sauv. Wondered about it presently as several 100 point scores earlier on but last year in Fine Wines Andrew Jefford stated it was “perfect once but not now”. However this bottle is most impressive again for me and now is nearing classic perfection. Perhaps catching that remarkable sensual 1982 and about to pass it? Loved unanimously as clear group fav – Wine of the Night!

1986 CHATEAU LAFITE ROTHSCHILD:

Less deep with paling rim. Shows wonderful cedar and cigar box with energy & delicacy. Finishes tannic. Not quite clean pure enough bottle but quality comes through. Excellent balance but believe this is not the very best vintage of Lafite (or Latour) compared to other stellar years.

1986 CHATEAU MARGAUX:

Very dark deep young intense colour. Still closed in. Chateau Margaux has charm in 1985 but more austere backward atypical style in 1986. Always powerful with rich concentration and balance. Quite firm but your scribe feels this vintage still has great potential. Promising future with lots of fruit remaining but requires even more patience.

1986 CHATEAU GUIRAUD SAUTERNES:

Always has so much high percentage Sauvignon Blanc in the blend with the usually more dominant Semillon. Forwardly and the sweetness is a balanced delight perfect now with orange tart dessert.

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Question: What are your thoughts on the current status concerning that fun named Laughing Stock winery in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia?

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Our Commanderie de Bordeaux in Vancouver is well organized by Maître Fred Withers and CellarMaster Alvin Nirenberg together with their knowledgeable wine team. They put together an interesting tasting/dinner held at Blue Water Cafe on June 17, 2025 focusing on the 2005 vintage from the Right Bank of Bordeaux. There were two main flights of 4 St. Emilion followed by 4 Pomerol that gave you the opportunity to study the development of the 2005 vintage but also compare the terroir differences from those two appellations. We started with an exquisite riper creamy 2015 JOSE DHONDT MES VIEILLES VIGNES GRAND CRU BLANC DE BLANCS. This long time grower produced their first Cuvee in 1974 with a focus mainly on excellent NV Blanc de Blancs & NV Rose.

However, they have a small parcel of very old Chardonnay “Les Crayeres” vines on the slope of Oger planted by Jose’s grandfather that they sometimes use to make a vintage Champagne as they did in 2015. They use a traditional vertical wooden press with only one “retrousse” of breaking up the compacted grape solids with the 2015 having 6 years on the lees for complexity and disgorged 01/2022. Two top Pessac-Leognan 2017 whites followed with LA CLARTE DE HAUT-BRION (Domaine Clarence Dillon) and DOMAINE DE CHEVALIER (Famille Bernard) served for comparison. Chevalier David Kester well explained the cepage mix with CH-B using 70 Sémillon + 30 Sauvignon Blanc vs the opposite for DdC of 30S + 70SB respectfully. This early result was that they showed so differently with CH-B full rich but closed in somewhat dumb clumsiness compared to the preferred more open fragrant delicate nutty smoky full fruit of DdC. Delicious with the outstanding Turbot course. Both will age very well indeed and evolve closer together in style as the Semillon develops in bottle with more time. Makes sense similar to what you find in a dry Tyrrell Vat 1 Semillon or sweet Sauternes using a lot of Semillon. Your scribe admired both of them presently and for the future. Chevalier NIck Wright expressed his perspective for preferring the DdC as “more intense and complex, delightful flinty character with excellent acidity.” He “favours white Bordeaux with a higher percentage of SB” because the wines are “tighter with better definition, lighter in weight, and have more of that flinty character which is so appealing.”

The First Flight of four 2005 ST. EMILION shone with the Duck breast dish:

2005 CHATEAU LA GAFFELIERE: Long time property of Comte de Malet Roquefort shows darkest ripe concentrated fruit with some tannins still left. Drinking well but structured with no rush. 50 Merlot/45 Cab Franc/5 Cab Sauv blend of true pure St. Emilion definition. No volatile acidity issues from the old days like 1970. Producing outstanding wines now.

2005 CHÂTEAU CANON-la-GAFFELIÈRE: Similar blend of 55 M/35CF/10CS with a paler rim sings eloquently with excellent open diverse seductive aromatics. Comtes de Neipperg has produced a balanced rounder polished styling on a lovely plateau of enjoyment already. Long finish. Will continue to develop. Well done.

2005 CHÂTEAU CANON: Much rounder Merlot (80%) with 20% Cab Franc used by the remarkable winemaster John Kolasa (and David Orr) for quality Chanel ownership emphasis – same as at Rauzan-Segla. Impressive intense rich multi-flavoured fruit with elegance still developing. Beautiful complexity. Group favourite.

2005 CHÂTEAU MONBOUSQUET: Bought in 1993 by Gerard Perse (who later acquired Pavie in 1998) and an underrated value property that has excelled in 2005. Softer tannins show forward spicy cherry showy fruit using a majority of Merlot (60%)/ CF(30%)/ and 10CS. Easy pleasant ready and a delightful surprise.

New Chevalier Yves Potvin made his first welcomed comments on this flight. He believed they were well structured and would continue to age well. He threw out the stat that Bordeaux produces 900 Million bottles a year of which only 4% is St. Emilion. Asked if 2005 vintage is better than 2009 & 2010?

Nick Wright “likes this nice middle age drinking window of 20 years for St. Emilion with still potential for further aging.” He prefers that “they all showed very well with that softer Merlot, ripe and appealing, and all were very consistent in quality and style.” Nick finds “they often develop a very herbaceous leafy character in older age and become less consistent.”

Second Flight of Pomerol perfectly matched with the lamb course including that special braised lamb neck:

2005 CHÂTEAU CERTAN DE MAY: The Barreau-Badar family have this high plateau top property situated between Vieux Ch. Certan, Petrus, and Lafleur-Petrus. Like the layered darker fruits so textured and classy sweet flavours all in balance. Complex, stylish, and iron terroir textbook Pomerol. My flight fav.

2005 CHÂTEAU LE BON PASTEUR: Home of Dany & Michel Rollland with a less heralded simpler Pomerol terroir but have excelled as an overachiever in 2005. Better power and concentration than many vintages for them. Approachable with a medicinal mineral salts flavour. Rather good.

2005 CHÂTEAU GAZIN: Mixed feelings as surprises with darkest solid extracted powerful ripe fruit with acidity. Very big but some velvet smoothness on entry seems a bit disjointed and hot on the finish. Maybe caught here at less than the ideal time and will find better bottles and might come together with more aging.

2005 CHATEAU LAFLEUR-PETRUS: Quite sous-bois earthy less clean initially but clears somewhat opening up in the glass to more cherries, prune-plum, and exotic floral spices. Lighter bodied than expected but is elegant and long on the palate. Enjoy this vintage of LFP currently – but not the best bottle here.

Chevalier Michael Noble presented an excellent overview on these Pomerols. Nick commented that “something magical happens when Merlot is planted in the soils of Pomerol as the wines have a much greater complexity and depth of flavour.” Nick

liked the second flight even better than your scribe saying “the wines were lovely, great balance, unique in their styling, drinking beautifully, Merlot at its very best.” Sounds like he is describing 2005 Chateau Petrus!

2005 CHATEAU RIEUSSEC SAUTERNES: A good vintage for them with 90% Semillon/8SB and 2 Muscadelle. Usually Rieussec is typically dark coloured but less so here. This R has botrytis plus orange marmalade but with drier fresher tension from a lower pH than some vintages.

1988 CHÂTEAU LAFAURIE-PEYRAGUEY SAUTERNES: The first of the famous trio of Sauternes vintages. A comparison for R with an older more mature sweeter style but with excellent acidity balance as well. More typical.

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Question: Any update on US tariffs on Wines and the ongoing Crafted in BC wine program for 2025 vintage?

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Wines produced from the Riesling grape remain media favs but are less appreciated by consumers. The wide scope of their successful varying styles from increasingly popular trocken dry to special pradikatswein sweeter versions adds to the overall confusion. Still somewhat difficult for the wine consumer to know exactly what balance of acidity and sugar levels they will find in any bottle of Riesling and whether that combination is what they actually prefer drinking or matching with food.

Your scribe is a big admirer of Nik Weis wine caretaker/owner of St. Urbans-Hof and posted here with details on April 10, 2016 a memorable tasting he conducted in Vancouver. I regularly have been collecting and enjoying his St. Urbans-Hof winery (located in the village of Leiwen in the Mosel Valley of Germany) Estate Bottled “From Old Vines” Riesling. His estate vineyard planted in the late forties by his grandfather exclusively to Riesling situated on many of the finest slopes of the Mosel and Saar Rivers are now old vines with deep roots into the slate soils. They are delivering classic complex Riesling at very good value. Originally brought into the BCLDB by Renaissance Wine Imports at only $20 for the 2008, $26 for 2015, and currently available at $35 for the 2023 vintage – all good value for the top quality in the bottle. Just opened this past week my last bottles of 2008 & 2011 (both 9.5 abv) and was delightfully impressed. When younger the bright elegant fruit was off-dry honey with fresh salted peaches, apricots, and juicy limes. With aging that complex stony character with minerals became even more prominent with the signature marmalade/petrol notes in both the more mature fuller 2008 (late ripening good acidity year) and the perfectly balanced still vibrant 2011 (consistent year from ideal harvest). Versatile as a delicious aperitif and pairing so food friendly with the first of the year fresh Copper River Sockeye Salmon and clean Italian-style pasta dishes. Appreciated and sad to have none of those vintages left but luckily still have younger ones.

You can have a similar revelatory experience by acquiring current vintages to enjoy now or with more bottle age. Remember this is their Weis clone 21B Riesling that was planted in both the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia and in Ontario. Support locals too by doing the same with a Riesling bottle from Sperling, Summerhill, Tantalus, Vineland and many others. Tantalus has “old vines” purity originally planted in 1978 and also a new exciting Crafted in BC Riesling 2024. It comes from two sites in Ontario both planted with the Weis 21B Clone: Paul Franciosa at Grimsby Hillside (planted 2007 & 2005) and Mark Picone (his namesake vineyard planted in 2008) with less alcohol at 11.4 abv, low pH 2.83 and balancing tension high acidity 9.16 g/l & 14.8 g/l residual sweetness. Can enjoy now but no rush on any Riesling. At what age do you prefer it? Lots of opportunities presently to learn more about the fantastic Riesling grape and the sensory delights it can joyfully provide. Recommended!

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