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Bordeaux 1983: Tasting, February 2005
Five years on from from my last inspection of this vintage and it was time for another look. As with my last tasting in late 2000, this was a small sample - just nine wines - but once again they were a well-chosen bunch, with a strong showing from the super-seconds. These included two of the Léovilles, Poyferré and Las-Cases, and from the same commune Ducru-Beaucaillou. The wine that stole the show, however, previously overshadowed only by Latour and Lafite, was Pichon-Lalande.
One disapointment in the tasting was du Tertre, a wine which had shown very well in 2000, perhaps indicative of the quality of the vintage for Margaux, but which seemed very tired and over-the-hill here. Lascombes was also unimpressive, but this was perhaps less noteworthy considering this estate was, at the time, a long-term under-performer. From Rauzan-Ségla we had a good wine, although it and its peers displayed their shortcomings all too plainly when lined up against the St Julien and Pauillac estates. It demonstrated quite nicely that vintage generalisations, although of some merit, are certainly not the final word in judging Bordeaux. One must look at the wine, not the vintage. (24/2/05)
Bordeaux 1983 - Tasting Notes
Tasted in February 2005. Click
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Chateau Larmande (St Emilion)
1983: Some density of hue here. Glorious
mature colour. Sweet, ripe, warm, pepper-liquorice fruit with a floral and
medicinal edge. Quite stylish. Soft, rounded palate, delicate, a little lacking
in the midpalate. Tannins have all gone, but the wine is following too. Drying
out. Drink up. 14/20
Chateau du Tertre (Margaux) 1983: Good maturity, pink-orange rim,
fairly transparent. Earthy, organic, meaty-leathery maturity, Evolved, with
sooty-seaweedy notes. Sweetly mature, but on the palate a little hard and
ungiving. Falling apart a little I think; hollow midpalate, disjointed finish.
Storage related? It seemed on the way up five years ago. 13/20
Chateau Rauzan-Ségla
(Margaux) 1983: Vibrant, deeply coloured, with
just a little maturity on inspection. Glorious nose; open and expressive, with
mature, stylish, meaty, scrubby, maturing fruit. Ripe, full, sweet palate, with
grip and balance. Lovely texture. Stylish, effortless, although not with the
elegance and typicity that other vintages of RS can offer. Very good though.
Drinking now. 16.5/20
Chateau Lascombes (Margaux) 1983: A fairly pale wine. Mature, meaty
nose. Balanced and lithe palate. Not big or impressive, although it develops
very good flavour and texture through the midpalate. A warm, creamy,
alcohol-influenced finish. Great length, but not the quality of the other wines
shown here. Drink now. 15.5/20
Chateau Grand-Puy-Lacoste (Pauillac) 1983: Dark, dense, with a
pink-orange rim. Sweet, ripe, maturing fruit with an evolved, meaty, cinnamon
nose. Full, with rounded, spicy redcurrant fruit and decent texture. A little
grip here. Wood-spice notes. Sweet, graceful maturity. Ready now. Good. 16/20
Chateau Pichon-Lalande (Pauillac) 1983: Mature hue. Smoky, meaty,
coffee-toffee nose. Ripe, intriguing, superb. What a seductive and sexy palate;
luscious plumpness, with spice and fruitcake and chocolate-smothered plums.
Ripe, full, and so drinkable. This is gorgeous - it has Pichon written all over
it. Should drink well for another five or six years at least. 18/20
Chateau Léoville-Poyferré
(St Julien) 1983: Moderately deep hue.
Reserved, stylish nose, a touch floral, with red fruit notes. Textured palate, a
little creamy, although it doesn't quite have the desired body through the
midpalate. Integrated tannins and good flavour though. A little length. Good,
although this chateau has turned out much better wines in more recent vintages.
Ready now. 16/20
Chateau Ducru-Beaucaillou (St Julien) 1983: Deep, earthy, mature hue.
Meaty, earthy, caramel and treacle, and burnt wood on the nose, with ripe
macerated fruit. Pure and delightful, even seductive nose. Full, stylish palate.
Very elegant, although not a voluptuous feel. Some really firm tannins behind
the body, but it still has a warm ripe feel and good balance. I like it. Should
drink well for a few years yet. 17/20
Chateau Léoville-Las-Cases (St Julien) 1983: Good depth of
colour here. Good intensity up to the rim, paling just a fraction. Mineral,
elegant, stylish nose; little notes of coffee-toffee, overlaid with a somewhat
organic note. Intriguing. Firm palate, with ripe tannins showing quite strongly.
Great flavour and good fruit still. And superb depth. This is exuding quality in
the glass and is clearly a first-growth pretender. Excellent wine, still on the
way up. Drink now or watch it improve for another five years at least. 17+/20
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