Med garnet with amber edges. Big nutty round nose showing considerable early funk, breathing out to a beautiful woody old church with stone floors highlighted with crisp briar, raw blood, banana-peel and boiled spice. Rich deep cherry fruit maintains throughout and the common Cali-centric mantra of “If I want lean-and-mean, I’ll drink Bordeaux” fails to cover. Still, ripe and beautiful, concentrated beyond the norm.
I try a lot of sub-30$ BDX because I am always looking for that gem, and somewhat like Oregon Pinot, it almost NEVER fulfills. This is an exception. I have tasted a plethora of IGT’s or even Super-Tuscans more meager than this, and don’t even get me started on Chianti. Full, round and rich, this little thing packs a whallop–even to a CA-centric palate.
In the mouth, slightly thinner than the bouquet promises, but everything translates positively from the nose to the palate with ease. Decadently ripe for a BDX, and gobs of crushed rock, wet graphite, walnut shells gush out, all woven throughout a core of rich decadent fruit. Acidity on 11, and a thin-ness in the middle gives way to clawing, teeth-wiping tannin.
Might want to stash a few of these away in a dark spot for a half-decade. There’s fruit there and structure will polish beautifully. It will not gain much in concentration, and probably always be *thin* but that is the chances one takes with cheap BDX.
2011 Ch. VIEUX MOULIN Lussac St. Emilion Bordeaux 13.0
Stephen McConnell 