Wine School

INDIVIDUAL TASTINGS - SEPTEMBER to DECEMBER 2011

“Schuster is a genuinely thoughtful taster and observer of the wine scene. As a teacher he is fluent and lucid, and his choice of wines is exemplary.” -Andrew Jefford, The Evening Standard

2001 BORDEAUX: Thursday 29th September 2011; 6.30pm
A fine vintage, just entering its early plateau of maturity.These are some of my favourites from a tasting of the best of the vintage earlier this year. 2001 still represents, in the Bordeaux context, reasonable value, and the wines here are available from £25 - £100 a bottle retail. With Poujeaux as a Cru Bourgeois benchmark, we will taste reds from across the region and the hierarchies, up to 2nd Growth and equivalent, illustrating the differences in quality, style, and winemaking philosophies that continue to give claret its fascination and pleasure.


2001 was also a great year in Sauternes, a year where the wines have a complexity, a definition, a lack of excess and a sheer class for which it is difficult to find comparisons.  Both Doisy-Daëne and La Tour Blanche are tasting beautifully now.

St Emilion:
Troplong Mondot
Clos Fourtet

Graves Pessac-Léognan:
Smith-Haut-Lafitte
Pape Clément

Moulis Médoc:
Poujeaux

St Julien:
Branaire-Ducru
Langoa-Barton

Pauillac:
Pontet-Canet
Pichon-Lalande

Sauternes:
Doisy-Daëne
La Tour Blanche

10 Wines, with cheeses  ........  £79

MATURE NORTHERN RHÔNE: Monday 24th October 2011; 6.30pm
It’s a while since I did Northern Rhône tasting. So high time again, with a bunch of characterful wines that have between 10 and 30 years of bottle age. Four wines from the glory days of Jaboulet, with two of the best Thalaberts from the past thirty years, along with the glowing 1989 La Chapelle and the fine 1979 from magnum. ‘Modern’ northern Rhône is represented by Courbis and Guigal, splendid tradition by Clape and Rostaing, all from fine vintages for the region.

Crozes-Hermitage:
1990 Crozes-Hermitage Domaine de Thalabert (Paul Jaboulet Aîné)
1985 Crozes-Hermitage Domaine de Thalabert (Paul Jaboulet Aîné) - Magnum

Cornas:
2001 Cornas “Les Sabarottes” (Domaine Courbis)
1988 Cornas (Clape)

Côte-Rôtie:
1998 Château d’Ampuis (Guigal)
1994 Côte-Rôtie Côte Blonde (René Rostaing)

Hermitage:
1989 Hermitage La Chapelle (Paul Jaboulet Aîné)
1979 Hermitage La Chapelle (Paul Jaboulet Aîné) – Magnum                    

8 Wines, with cheeses ........  £89

All Saints Claret: Tuesday 8th November 2011; 6.30pm
St Emilion, St Julien, St Estèphe - in the week of Toussaint. Any excuse for a theme, a grouping, but a most interesting one as it happens! Wines with 5 to 25 years of bottle age, from the youthful delights of 2004 classicism in Langoa-Barton and Léoville Las Cases, to two fully mature 1985’s, expressive of the extreme opposites of Bordeaux  winemaking style over the past thirty years – the delicate, understated, approach of Pascal Delbeck at Belair (old fashioned?), and the concentrated, oaky, extrovert modernism of Cos d’Estournel. Both perfectly legitimate expressions of their terroirs.

There is a similar comparison with the last fine (1990) Pavie of the old regime under the Valette familly, and the first, highly controversial vintage (1998), under the new owner Gérard Perse. Many of the Brits were very critical of this very ‘modern’ 1998 en primeur, Robert Parker loved it. As he did another ‘new wave’ St Emilion, the 1995 Angelus? How are they both looking now? In between will be three fine 1996’s, two of them ‘second’ wines of 2nd Growths, and a most seductive pair of fully mature 1990’s – a remarkably delicious and harmonious 1990 Lady Langoa, the second wine of Léoville and Langoa Barton, and the first great Lagrange under the relatively new Suntory ownership.
A comparative treat (one might say!) of six St Julien, four St Emilion and two St Estèphe.

Ier Grand Cru Classé St Emilion:
1990 Pavie
1995 Angelus
1985 Belair

Classed Growth St Julien:
2004 Langoa-Barton
2004 Léoville Las Cases
1996 Talbot
1996 Croix de Beaucaillou  (2nd wine)
1990 Lady Langoa (2nd Wine)
1990 Lagrange

Classed Growth St Estèphe:
1996 Dame de Montrose (2nd Wine)
1985 Cos d’Estournel

8 Wines, with  cheeses ........  £119

A Christmas Treat: Monday 5th December 2011; 6.30pm
The Christmas do, with Monika’s delicious canapés and ten mature, dinner party wines. With the exception of the magnum of 1974 Nairac (splendid when we last had it), we have had each of these wines within the last twelve months, and each is a delight in its own way.  A gorgeous palate ‘whetter’ from the great 2002 Champagne vintage, and a mature, rich middleweight 1966 Fonseca to finish up with. The two Domaine de Chevalier whites are drinking beautifully, the finest of the past twenty years, and 1998 Yquem is one of the  most beautiful (and most affordable) for current drinking – class, succulence, harmony and that liqueur-like texture.  And the four 1980’s reds? 88 Poujeaux, a crisp, tasty, classic mature Cru Bourgeois Médoc; 85 Petit Village, sweet, flowing, caramel and mocha infused Pomerol.  The two Pauillacs are at the opposite ends of the class spectrum: a savoury, satisfying, gravel infused Pibran, and a lovely Mouton in early maturity – juicy, fragrant, graceful and classy.
  
2002 Louis Roederer Champagne

2007 Domaine de Chevalier Blanc, 2001 Domaine de Chevalier Blanc, Pessac-Léognan

1988 Ch. Poujeaux, Cru Bourgeois Moulis, Médoc - Magnum
1985 Ch. Petit Village, Pomerol - Magnum
1989 Ch. Pibran, Cru Bourgeois Pauillac
1989 Ch. Mouton Rothschild, 1st Growth Pauillac

1974 Ch. Nairac, Barsac - Magnum
1998 Ch. D’Yquem, 1st Growth Sauternes

1966 Fonseca Vintage Port

10 Wines, with  canapés  ........  £129


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