Down the Line

It is amazing how things look as you go on. Down the line, you can make a better judgement or final call. We had Mr Marlborough Riesling in town, and after a good night out, we thought that some Cabernet-based wines would be fun, but also perverse. Our humour was not lost on him, as he said "I'm not familiar with this type of wine, but I'll give it a go..."

So on to some 25 y.o. reds. First up was 1983 Te Mata 'Coleraine'. Youthfully red and bright in fruit. Seemingly primary, how odd! But there it was, in beautiful condition, though the bottle was a bit ullaged. As we tried the other wines, this seemed greener, especially to SWMBO. But the next day, still vibrant and fresh, and only a little cool. Down the line, this was surprisingly good.

Next was a 1983 Ch. Beychevelle St Julien. In its day, it was deemed a little dilute. Not a great success, but an Englishman's wine, an elegant wine that is not in your face. On the night, beautifully clean and refined. Everything a claret at a quarter of a century should be. If there was a fault, it dried on the finish. Down the line, this was very fine indeed. A bit of a surprise and a stunner.

Then thirdly, a 1983 Ch. Talbot St Julien. Brett city here. But full and fleshy still. Those who don't mind not knowing the appellation or the variety would enjoy its game and meat flavours. It could have come from anywhere, I suppose. If such things as provenance and varietal identity matter, then the wine is a disaster. We were in the second camp. In its day, it was a wine that punched above its weight. The owners, Cordier, at the time, were hot. Down the line, it was a pity that brettanomyces ruined it.

We gave the three wines our best shot, but couldn't finish them. We called in reinforcements - the Master of the Universe, a good guy friend who is positive on everything. He liked all three wines, so he got to take them home. A good thing to cement our friendship, and keep us 'sweet', down the line!