We had another blind tasting at one of our favorite places Marche Bacchus. A few members of Tex and Gidget's wine crew met for lunch and of course a couple blind red wines. We did pretty well.
Wine # 1: This wine was light red-purple in the glass and appeared to be about a 2002 vintage. On the nose we got hints of clove, earth , oak and leather. On the palate we got hints of tart black cherry, raspberry , with medium tannins on the finish. Most of the group agreed it was old world and most likely French. Some suggested maybe a Cote du Rhone or Burgundy. The bottle was shown to us as Jean-Paul Brun 2005 "Terres Dorees" Beaujolais "L'Ancien" Vieilles Vignes.
Wine # 2: In the glass this wine was purple-red in color medium bodied and appeared to be about 2003-2005 vintage. On the nose we got hints of coffee , white pepper and hi alcohol. The palate had hints of tobacco, cocoa , hi alcohol and finished nicely with long lingering medium tannins. Most of the group right away suggested an old world Merlot Bordeaux blend. We did very well with this one. The bottle was brought out and shown to us to be a Chateau Clarke Baron Edmond Rothchild Listrac-Medoc 2003.We did some research and found the group really did well with this one. I found the official tasting notes from Chateau Clarke and as you can see we hit most of their descriptors.
2003 was an extremely hot summer across Europe. In Bordeaux, it produced an abundance of rich, ripe grapes that led to excellent, concentrated, early-drinking wines, especially in the Médoc. Château Clarke 2003 is a blend of Merlot (70%) and Cabernet Sauvignon (30%) that aged in French oak barrels (90% new) for 16 months. Robert Parker recently said, “this powerful 2003 is the finest Clarke I have ever tasted.” He also named it a “sleeper” of the 2002, 2003, and 2005 vintages.
Tasting Notes:
A dense dark ruby/purple colored wine that has an expressive and intense nose of blackcurrant, cherry, and plum aromas with hints of mocha, chocolate, smoke and spice. A powerful attack of fruit gives way to a deep, full-bodied mid-palate of ripe tannins before a long and fleshy finish.
A dense dark ruby/purple colored wine that has an expressive and intense nose of blackcurrant, cherry, and plum aromas with hints of mocha, chocolate, smoke and spice. A powerful attack of fruit gives way to a deep, full-bodied mid-palate of ripe tannins before a long and fleshy finish.
Winery:
Château Clarke was purchased by Baron Edmond de Rothschild, of Château Lafite Rothschild, in 1973. He set about completely replanting the vineyards and building a new state-of-the-art winery.
Château Clarke was purchased by Baron Edmond de Rothschild, of Château Lafite Rothschild, in 1973. He set about completely replanting the vineyards and building a new state-of-the-art winery.
Cheers to everyone for a great job !
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