Tonight's wine is a splurge. (That's such a gross word, isn't it?) It's Bastille Day, and I'm opening up a bottle of French wine that I full expect to knock my chausettes off. I haven't been tasting much Bordeaux since I returned from France nearly a month ago, because I tasted so much good wine there, that I was afraid I might be disappointed that I doesn't taste as good in America. You know, the ambience and all. But then I realized that was stupid. So here goes.
Blason d'Issan is the second wine of Chateau d'Issan, third growth Bordeaux in the Margaux appellation. I wouldn't touch a bottle of the first wine from the 2005 vintage for quite some time, but since the second wines of the great chateaux tend to be made with the slightly lower quality grapes and with less use of new oak barrels, they're ready to drink earlier, on average. So I think we're ok.
The wine is an inky garnet in the glass, with some orange-brick coloration at the rim. The aromas are gorgeous - just the right amount of earthiness and fruit that I expect from a Bordeaux - and incredibly complex. Red cherry, slate, licorice, dark chocolate, red currant, pencil shavings (yes, I said it! Pencil shavings! What a cliché!)....
I want to dive into the glass.
But instead, I take a sip. Still gorgeous. I actually think I could have let this one age a couple more years, as the tannins are still a bit firm, but they're not wooly and they don't overpower the ripe red fruits or the freshly turned earth flavors that just keep going and going, long after the mouthful is swallowed. The length is phenomenally long and lucious. My only minor criticism is that the alcohol is just a touch high; 2005 was a very warm year for Bordeaux, leading to higher sugar content and consequently higher alcohol, so it's not totally unexpected. It's just not entirely integrated. But it does not detract at all from my enjoyment of this wine. I hope to enjoy it again very soon. (Hint hint.)
Vintage: 2005
Grapes: 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot
Region: Margaux, Bordeaux, France
Price: $43
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