“我用一只北京烤鸭镇住了1970年白马!”

(English) Tasting notes and scores by Robert Millman

多亏了好友的慷慨,我们几个逮着机会在纽约Top级的餐厅之一,吃着饭店全城知名的北京烤鸭,搭配品尝了三款来自1970年份的波尔多葡萄酒。

过去10年里,我喝过的1970年份葡萄酒已不算太多。这些酒在1973年秋天首次面世时,被广泛称赞是自1961年以来,顶好的波尔多年份。

尽管有伟大的61年,但60年代对法国葡萄酒整体来说是相当糟糕的十年。3个糟糕的年份:1963、1965,和更烂的1968年。64、66和67年有间歇性的成功,但收官的69年叕令人失望。

勃艮第和罗纳河谷也有各种各样自己的问题,但这不是本篇重点。

现在很多名庄享有的财富在当时是不存在的。那时候葡萄酒价格很低,葡萄酒贸易的兴趣主要局限于英国和美国东海岸。同桌酒友提醒我当时一箱酒的价钱:二级庄大约60美元,一级庄可能160到180美元。看看今天的价格真想哭。

73、74年,世界一片混乱,5美元一瓶二级庄的葡萄酒意味着什么?

所以,葡萄酒世界需要一个好年份,而大自然也听到了这样的呼声。

1970这一年一切都缓慢的展开,天气在8、9月变得非常好。采摘工作在九月下旬开始,没有雨水来冲淡这美好的一年,收获时一大批成熟、健康的葡萄。

而这些葡萄也酿出了来自天堂的甘露。

潘宁·罗塞尔(Penning-Rowsell)在他的经典著作《波尔多葡萄酒》第6版中,将这一年描述为”精美、宏大、果味浓郁,背后又有大量酒体支撑“。这一年也和很多波尔多年份通常的表现情况一样,在装瓶后封闭了十年左右。不过坦率地说,对我和很多朋友来说,即使这段时间里这些酒味道也总是很好。只有少数例外,比如热烈的玫瑰庄园(Montrose)和坚不可摧的拉图。但众所周知这两款酒在年轻时从不友好。

2000年的时候,我和公司的伙伴对1970年份的葡萄酒进行过一次全面的品鉴,重点地区是波尔多、纳帕(1970年也是纳帕一个极好的年份)和一些西班牙的珍品。怎么说呢,当晚的明星是来自杜埃罗河岸(Ribera Del Duero)的贝加西西里亚(Vega Sicilia)——至今仍是王者级别。

但包括柏图斯、白马和拉图在内的几款波尔多葡萄酒表现也非常好。1970年份拉图在30岁时已经慢慢松开那曾拒人千里之外的铁钳。

然而,最近这三款1970年份波尔多酒的品鉴,在我的脑海中同样印象深刻。这次品鉴的顺序依次为:力士金庄园(Chateau Lascombes),碧尚女爵(Pichon Lalande)和白马(Cheval Blanc)

我对力士金的期望不高,虽然最初被列为二级庄,但二战后一度表现不佳,直到2000年左右才真正恢复到优秀状态。但这款酒的表现比我预计得要好。芳香、奶油般的香气,带着花香和成熟的玛歌特征香料,在口中似乎很软,但在一个小时内也没有表现出颓败的迹象。如果我是英国人,可能会说”非常好,没有比这更好的了。16.5分”。

碧尚女爵的表现更好。一如往常,是一款性感的波亚克。然而,1970年份还是在女爵的家族成员Mae de Lencquesaing于1970年代末接管该酒庄之前,这之后女爵逐渐复兴为波尔多绝佳的葡萄酒之一。话虽如此,在70年的酒中,风土的区别仍然显而易见,与力士金相比,有更多的酒体、长度和单宁来支持深色但不浓郁的果味。一款真正出色的波尔多葡萄酒。”确实非常好,奇妙的香气。17.5分”。

最后品鉴的是白马(Cheval Blanc)。不得不说白马酒庄是右岸尤其令人着迷但又难以预测的一个,有时整个波尔多能排第一,有时又令人十分失望。在我看来,白马在过去常受到瓶差的困扰,好在近来它变得更加稳定。

白马的酒庄和葡萄园位于波美侯对面,在混酿时会大量使用品丽珠,有时甚至高达60%,以难以置信的甜美、感性香气而闻名,几乎可以在品鉴中被立即辨别出来。白马在年轻时常显得莫名其妙的轻盈,但随着时间推移,酒的重量也会增加。核心的烟熏式甜味永远不会消失,在这瓶近五十年的老酒(这场局是几年前的)中得到了很好的验证。白马的质地比之前两款更丰富、更完整。如果用帕克的评分标准,我会毫不犹豫地给这款酒打95分;而按英国人的评价则会是18.5,也许是19分。

品尝这些古老的美酒是一种乐趣。陈年方面没有什么能与波尔多相提并论,不仅是陈年潜力,更是其无与伦比的能力,使酒能长期保持在卓越的曼妙水平下,远超其他红酒。

补充一点:里克在几天前就用Coravin抽了些酒。每瓶大约少了300毫升左右。但当天我没在里面发现任何氧化的气味。我最近也品鉴过一款正式开瓶前几个月用Coravin抽了些酒的1976年DRC Richebourg,我可以证明这个东西,特别是用新版更细的针头后,在保存葡萄酒上能有多成功!

最后,差点忘了,1970年的波尔多老酒和纽约城一级棒的北京烤鸭搭配如何?

完美!

Robert Millman

Robert Millman’s wine career began in the early 1980s, when he began working from Morrell & Company, one of the USA’s top wine retailers. During that time, he co-founded Executive Wine Seminars (EWS) with Howard Kaplan, which over the years became one of NYC’s most highly regarded wine events companies. EWS organized and conducted over 1000 wine events during its prestigious thirty-three year history. High points included Robert Parker being a regular guest presenter at the tastings, and through 2011, the results of the tastings were published on the Wine Advocate website. Having reached an age where taking a step back from the wear and tear of life in the wine fast lane made sense, Millman currently enjoys being a taster and wine writer for Grapes the Wine Company, an excellent, leading e-retailer based in Westchester (NY). 

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  • I had a bottle of 1970 Chevalier Blanc over Christmas holidays and it was drinking very nicely at 50. Far better than the Margaux we also had. Still have one last Lascombes 1970 to open one of these days. Glad to hear it is still drinking OK – agree it was not one of the stars of 1970 but still fine.

    • Margaux was a disaster from1964 through 1977– a bad period for many Bordeaux, especially on the left bank. The turn around began in 1978. 1970 was a vintage which should have yielded many superb wine. The weather saved the properties from themselves. But in very good vintages, there will always be many nice surprises even if vineyard management is substandard. I came to the three 1970s quite sceptical. Reality proved me wrong!

      • Very fine review that gives us a great snapshot of what those three 1970s wines were like. Thanks very much Bob. I actually felle exactly the same way you do, 1970 should have left us with many outstanding memorable times, and though they were really pretty good for a while, it’s safe to say that the vintage’s outstanding potential came at a time when Bordeaux was ill-equipped (literally) to do much about it. A vintage like 1970 today would have many crying out “vintage of the century!” talk or something very close to it!

    • Dear Bruce, lucky you, what else can we say? Margaux and Cheval Blanc 1970 at the same dinner, Christmas or otherwise, would always provide plenty of memories and spark much conversation…what more can you ask for? But I think a real important point about your comment is the fact that you HAVE such wiens…it testifies to the importance of owning a good cellar and to buy when wines are still relatively affordable so as to reap the benefits many years later. So again, lucky you for being able to open bottles most people can only dream about, or should they go out an buy them nowadays, would need to pay an arm and a leg for. Good for you, and wish I could have been at that dinner with you all, as I’m sure Bob and just about any other wine lover worth his Riedel or Zalto goblets would have liked to too!

Robert Millman