2019 'Bordeaux Month'
Library Wines Part 2 :: FIRST GROWTHS
From the 1996 and 2000 Vintages
LAFITE LATOUR MARGAUX HAUT BRION
The most coveted wines from Bordeaux have been bequeathed the status of 'First Growth', and there are only 5 such estates in the region. The four châteaux below are the original four first growths, classified in 1855: Lafite and Latour in Pauillac, Margaux in Margaux and Haut Brion in Graves. Mouton Rothschild in Pauillac was granted First Growth status in 1973. Four out of the five wines we are offering today have a PERFECT 100 POINT SCORE, including the 2000 Château Margaux with a trifecta of 100 points from Wine Advocate, Wine Spectator and Wine Enthusiast. The 1996 Haut Brion has 95 points, yet is a Robert Parker favorite, saying, 'As I have frequently written, the one significant change to my palate over the last 20 years has been the fact that while I have always admired Haut-Brion, now I am addicted to its perfume and complexity. It is never the biggest of the first-growths, but it is usually among the most compelling wines of this elite group, with the most profound aromatics.' All of the wines below are glorious to drink now, yet will still age gracefully in your cellar. As an added bonus, we are including 2005 Château Palmer, one of our favorite vineyards in Bordeaux and will easily give any of the 1st growths a run for their money. It is certainly a relative value in this elite class of wines. As with our previous offer these wines have been stored impeccably at 55 degrees, since release, at off-site storage.
We have 12 bottle cases of each of the wines.
Please order early if you would like a full case!
Cheers! the Murray family
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| RATED 100 WINE ADVOCATE : 'The 1996 Chateau Margaux, a blend of 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, 4% Petit Verdot and 2% Cabernet Franc, must be a strong contender for wine of the vintage. It offers everything you desire from this First Growth. It is blessed with breathtaking delineation and freshness on the nose, understated at first and then blossoming with mineral-infused black fruit, hints of blueberry, crushed stone and violet. The palate is perfectly balanced with filigree tannin, perfect acidity, a wine where everything seems to be in its right place. Blackberry, crushed stone at the front of the mouth, just a touch of spice towards the finish that shows supreme control. This is a Margaux that seems to light up the senses.' |
$999.00
$799.00
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| RATED 100 ROBERT PARKER : 'Absolutely compelling, the 2000 Margaux is composed of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Merlot, with extraordinary seductiveness, complex aromatics, and purity. Medium-bodied, with layers of concentration, stunning blue, red, and black fruits intermixed with spring flowers, a subtle dosage of new oak, and a distinctive personality that is elegant while at the same time powerful and substantial, this is a multi-dimensional wine that was extremely approachable and drinkable in both tastings I had of it. The color remains a healthy, even opaque bluish/purple, but there is no reason to hesitate to drink it. It should evolve for another 30-40 years, so there is no hurry either.' |
$1,699.00
$999.00
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| RATED 100 ROBERT PARKER : 'Well, well, well - Lafite Rothschild does it again. Since 1994, there has been a succession of profound wines to emerge from this noble estate. The 2000 Lafite Rothschild, a blend of 93.3% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6.7% Merlot has an extraordinary aromatic expression of liquid minerals/stones interwoven with the tell-tale graphite notes, mulberry, black currants, caramel, and tobacco. In the mouth, it is remarkably light on its feet, but somehow seems to pack intense flavors into layer upon layer of fruit and richness that cascade over the palate. A compelling wine, with extraordinary precision, great intensity, and a seamlessness in spite of what are obviously elevated levels of tannin, this wine was provocatively open and beautiful. The finish lasted a whopping 72 seconds! This is utterly fascinating stuff. Anticipated maturity: 2011-2050.' |
$2,995.00
$1,699.00
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| RATED 100 WINE SPECTATOR : 'A wine that electrifies every taste bud in your mouth. Compacted aromas of crushed currants and minerals, with roses and lilacs. Full-bodied, with masses of silky, refined tannins and a finish that lasts for minutes. Stunning. Best Latour since 1990...' 'The 2000 Latour flirts with perfection. Truly great stuff, it reveals perfect equilibrium, great finesse, yet colossal size, with a thickness and density that rival the brilliant 1996... notes of vanilla, exceptionally pure, mineral-infused creme de cassis, and earth emerge. Full-bodied and tannic, it should come close to representing perfection. There is an extraordinary purity, delineation, seamlessness, and freshness to this wine. In any event, it is prodigious, with at least five decades of evolution ahead of it. Anticipated maturity: 2005-2050.' |
$1,699.00
$999.00
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| RATED 95 WINE ADVOCATE : 'The 1996 Haut-Brion, a blend of 50% Merlot, 39% Cabernet Sauvignon and 11% Cabernet Franc is clearly on a higher plane than the La Mission. There is something much more expansive and complete on the nose: greater depth of fruit, more harmonious with scents of underbrush, tar, black olive and this bottle perhaps less "feral" than I have noticed on previous examples. The palate is very well balanced with dark cherries, sous-bois and cedar. This is one vintage where I think the Cabernet Franc plays an important role and lends more complexity. This is a 1996 that has retained and built upon beguiling fleshiness and it will continue to evolve with style and panache.' Robert Parker makes a point to say in his 4th edition of Bordeaux, "After more than 30 years of intensely tasting Bordeaux, I have a greater and greater affection for Haut-Brion, its character increasingly appealing to me as I have gotten older and wiser..." |
$799.00
$599.00
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BONUS WINE:
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wa |
98 |
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we |
96 |
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v |
96 |
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ws |
95 |
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st |
94 |
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| RATED 98 ROBERT PARKER : 'The 2005 Château Palmer (53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot and 7% Petit Verdot), is one of the great efforts of this superlative vintage. Floral notes mixed with blackberry, cassis, plum, licorice and spring flowers soar from the glass of this dense ruby/purple wine. It is medium to full-bodied, opulent, long, multi-dimensional and textured. This wonderfully pure, stunning wine once again performs as a first-growth. It should drink well for the next 20-25 years...' |
$499.00
$339.00
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