Keith Levenberg wrote:
Have you tried Beau-Sejour Becot?
+1. This was one of my favorites from the UGC tasting a few years ago. The 2015 Brane Cantenac was also very, very good.
Ed
It is interesting that scores for the Canon seemed to have ranged between 97 and 100 points, with three 100 point scores. This may not be the Bordeaux I know and love, but commercially it is a major coup, with the price going up from its release price of $85 to $250.
And now sadly, for a pessimistic view of the Bordeaux we can expect to see in the future. So long as the press loves the wines, they will be made. Already Saint Emilion is a desert, I have noted the same in Graves. Global warming doesnât help. So I think we will see in ten years or so, the paradigm for Bordeaux will change.
So young Alfert, for those edgy Saint Emilions you love, gather your rosebuds while you may, âcos I donât think it will get any better.
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Iâve made a mental note about Graves as well, such a shame. It was Graves that introduced me to Bordeaux. Not buying much from there these days. Tried a 2018 Larrivet Haut Brion a couple days ago, it was gross. Iâm not exaggerating.
Lucky for me, on St Em, largely at your nudging, I have so loaded up on Magdelaine.
I recently had the 15 canon and was excited given the hype. But Robert, i did not enjoy it either. Keep in mind I have a traditional old world palate but the âdrinkable youngerâ wines from Napa are showing significantly better than the Bordeaux counterparts.
I have the '70 Canon RobertâŚletâs pop it
Bitch, you be holding out! Letâs do it, see if it matches the 70 Magdelaine we popped!
Thanks Robert for the cautionary tale - sounds awful.
Iâm not quite as pessimistic. The market forces are undeniable - I suspect that the vast majority bought Canon on the strength of those numbers, without tasting it, and many will have done so in order to make a profit, but eventually, the wine will need to be drunk - if it turns out well and a majority of people actually like it, all well and good. But tastes have changed and are moving away from that sort of wine.
I think the real problem here is trusting the critics. Do they actually like the stuff or are they just toeing the line? If they do like it, how is their opinion consistent with those they give to other more ânormalâ wines? Of course they can like both, but shouldnât the differences be made clear?
I have huge respect for Neal Martin, for example, whose work I have followed since he made his debut. Up until recently, he was my main guide to buying Bordeaux, since I thought that we had more or less the same taste.
My experience of Canon is very limited indeed - 1982 and 1990, both fabulous wines. Unless I was told that 2015 was radically different, which it clearly is, how would I know? Nothing in Nealâs tasting note makes the difference clear. I have no doubt at all that there are many 2015s that he likes which I would like too, but without knowing how different Canon is (or any other similar RB wine), how would I avoid falling into the elephant trap? Whether I paid $85 or $250, thatâs a lot of money for a dud.
I donât consider Jeff Leve to be a wine critic, rather a super-enthusiastic amateur with a great website, but he does at least have consistent taste - he likes what he likes.
I was not including Jeff in the seven I quoted. Yet his palate mirrors most of them closely. You, I and many of the subscribers here are outliers; the Parker and neoparker palates have been going strong for thirty plus years, and there has been plenty of opportunities for their public to change and they donât. The 2012 Saint Emilion classification was clearly a correlation between Parker scores, the marketplace and the classification. Regions have changed wines styles made over centuries to suit the palate because that is where the money is.
Youâre right that WB is hardly a representative sample of the general public! But when even properties like Troplong-Mondot talk about a need for more freshness and less alcohol, and even if it is mostly talk without much action, there is a breeze if not a wind of change - without a general collapse of those all-important scores and without a massive drop of sales, so hopefully things will continue to move in a different direction.
But I still wonder how Neal Martin can enthuse about BAMA on one hand and Canon 20-15° on the other. Those who like the latter are unlikely to enjoy the former and vice versa.
Jeff,
When do you expect to report on the younger sexbomb called Canon 2019? Any good? Thanks
Anyone ever tried to add 10% water to this ABV bombs? Does it lead to old Bordeaux?
Which one? #jamboree
2019s have been arriving slowly. So far, as it was a zoom call, all I have tasted was Lafite and their other wines. I think about 500 bottles arrive late this week! I think I will start in on them next week.
FWIW, it is illegal to water back in Europe.