Commanderie de Bordeaux Vancouver held their Summer event with spouses August 18, 2025 on the patio of Riley’s Fish & Steak Restaurant. We were well looked after by an accommodating service staff and the culinary team led by Executive Chefs Dennis Peckham & Jon Chuy and Sommelier Philip Kim. Impressive diverse hors d’oeuvre of tuna, scallop, plus Wagyu beef carpaccio followed by tasty crab cake (all crab no filler) with bacon jam on corn puree got the dinner off to a rousing start.
BOLLINGER SPECIAL CUVEE BRUT NV is a dependable classy aperitif using over 85% of Grand & Premier Cru vineyards and lots of reserve wines in a richer spicier distinctive style.
CHÂTEAU LATOUR-MARTILLAC BLANC PESSAC-LEOGNAN: A fan of this well priced Bordeaux white produced for a long time by the Kressmann family and only one of six properties classified for both red & white wines. They have increased since the eighties plantings of Sauvignon Blanc complementing the Semillon and have been leaders in sorting, blending and lees aging producing top quality Pessac-Leognan whites. Your scribe likes their extensive website full of valuable information. We compared three consecutive vintages and details clearly set out at latourmartillac.com –
2021: 57% Sauvignon Blanc (picked September 9-21) + 43% Semillon (Sept.15-21) Barrel ferment (25% new) Aged 15 months on lees (10 French oak) 13 abv 29000 bottles 2024-2030 Young light green colour – as all three wines show. Fresh leaner taut good acidity (compared to softer 2022) Will continue to develop showing more of the Semillon side. NIce tension.
2020: 68% Sauvignon Blanc (August 24-September 2) + Semillon (Aug.27-Sept. 3) Barrel ferment (25% new) Aged 15 months on lees (10 French oak) 13 abv 33000 bottles 2023-2029 Early harvest smaller concentrated grapes shows more intense full rich body drinking forwardly with more almond & pear notes. Higher Sauvignon. Seems slightly more than 13 abv compared to other two vintages.
2019: 58% Sauvignon Blanc (picked September 3-16) + 42% Sémillon (Sept. 4-17) Barrel ferment (25% new) Aged 15 months on lees (10 French oak) 13.5 abv 39000 bottles 2022-2028 Interesting service temperature advice given for colder (10C/50F) under 4 years but warmer after 4-5 years aging (12-14C/53-57F) Wonderful best pear aromatics well balanced developing complexity but still young fresh vibrant. All three wines are fruity showing Sauvignon and IMHO will still improve complexity with more Semillon assertion with a few more years aging. Fun comparison.
Two red Bordeaux vintages that your scribe admires are 2005 and 1986. Nineteen years apart but both in rather a classic structured older times way. Usually show that they need more time. The Vancouver Group of Eight experienced a 1986 horizontal linked here on June 30, 2025. Tonight we compared two properties in both vintages:
2005 CHATEAU L’ARROSEE SAINT EMILION Old time fav property written up several times on this site including the 1962 vintage on April 8, 2024 linked here plus two Ask Sid enquiries on December 6, 2018 here & April 10, 2024 here. This 2005 a result of the Caille Family 2002 purchase from pioneer Francois Rodhain (1957-2013) before Domaine Clarence Dillon acquisition in 2013. Lighter stylish elegant (softer than the typical older vintages were) for lovely current drinking. Highest rating (“best ripe”) 93 points at a 32 vintage vertical back to 1957 held in Copenhagen in 2018.
2005 CHATEAU LA LAGUNE HAUT-MEDOC LUDON Darker than L’A. Full ripe big fruit but a tad jammy. Blend is Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot/Petit Verdot 60/30/10. Some structure and finishing tannic grip but not an outstanding La Lagune for the outstanding 2005 year. Accessible earlier.
1986 CHATEAU L’ARROSEE SAINT EMILION Rather good but my glass had too much fine sediment spoiling the texture. Other glasses perfect. Showed poorly at Copenhagen vertical 85 points as did some other excellent older vintages that can be very good. Obviously bottle variation of older wines applies. Old style coming around but not in the class of the 1962 or 1961.
1986 CHATEAU LA LAGUNE HAUT-MEDOC LUDON Good depth still rather youthful. There is backbone structure with lush full core of fruit balanced by acid and tannin. Preferred by your scribe and others as WOTN. Just had the 1982 which wasn’t as big and structured as this 1986 but was presently more charming, delicious and complex. 1986 will still improve and round out though drinking well now.
2012 CHATEAU GUIRAUD SAUTERNES This Sauternes always has high 35% Sauvignon Blanc with lower Semillon 65%. Used to be even higher around 50 before 2006 partnership purchase that includes Olivier Bernard (Domaine de Chevalier) & Stephan Von Neipperg (Canon La Gaffeliere, Mondotte) replanted (removing red grapes) with a new drainage system. Difficult vintage with a late harvest so is light easy drinking with the appropriate stone fruit dessert. Not a touch on the exquisite 1986 Guiraud full of rich fruit & botrytis to finish up this June at our Left Bank Bordeaux 1986 horizontal event mentioned earlier.
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