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Château La Conseillante 1945-2009

That was a disaster, thought Jean-Michel. He had been coming to the end of a long day, one that had started early as he directed his pruning team in the vineyard, and finished fairly late, a consequence of one-too-many appointments with a series of well-heeled Japanese clients. And then, just as he thought his work was done for the day, just as he first permitted his mind to wander away the outstanding jobs in vineyard and cellar, Bertrand had called him into his office. To say that he had been caught off guard was something of an understatement.

"One hundred and forty years", Bertrand Nicolas, proprietor of Château La Conseillante, had exclaimed. "One hundred and forty years since my ancestors acquired this little estate, complete with its 12 hectares of vines. This is something worth celebrating, Jean-Michel" he said, fixing Laporte with hawkish eyes. Laporte had nodded his head in agreement, not quite seeing where this was going. He was all at sea here. He listened, trying to keep up, but he was overtaken by a feeling that he was losing control. A day of concerted proactivity suddenly seemed irrelevant; he was suddenly reactive, wrong-footed, the words swirling around his ears. Was Nicolas heading where Laporte thought he was heading?

"We'll celebrate during the primeurs", continued Bertrand, "no expense spared. I want a single purple ribbon on each tank, and at least six balloons". Not too difficult, thought Jean-Michel, his brain finally in gear. "And we'll have a tasting of an older vintage too, one from the cellar". Again Jean-Michel was unphased, now beginning to feel like he was back in the driving seat; there was plenty of 1997 in the cellar, and more than a case or two of the 2002 as well. "Make it the 1990", snapped Bertrand.

Damn.

Laporte's heart sank; Bertrand didn't know that he and a dozen others had supped every last bottle, magnum and Rodenstock (the newly-introduced name for the Bordeaux double-Nebuchadnezzar) of the 1990 at a slap-up feast of Beano-esque proportions at Chez Bruce, one of London's leading restaurants, just three weeks before. He hadn't quite expected the appetites of the attendees, which included a number of illuminated British and American wine writers, to be quite so raging. One had even ended up swigging the 1990 from an upended traffic cone, the contents of which must have been at least two Rodenstocks, whilst his strangely writhing and yet energetic table-top dance sent empty Conseillante bottles and glasses flying in all directions, the noise created by which was more than drowned out by his banshee-wail of "Thirteen per cent, thirteen per cent". So much for the decorum and isolated impartiality of the British wine press, Jean-Michel had thought, as he watched another writer polish off his last bottle of the 1945, pouring the iconic end-of-war vintage down her throat from a plant pot only recently relieved of its contents, before she hurled the pot into the thankfully empty fireplace. As a consequence there was only one possible solution to his new dilemma; he would have to acquire some more bottles of the 1990 vintage. And although the price was prohibitive, he knew somebody who could lay his hands on a decent quantity - twelve cases should do it, he thought - for a more reasonable sum.

Two days later, in the shadows cast by the cellars of Vieux Château Certan, Jean-Michel Laporte and Alexandre Thienpont shook hands. Like everybody else Jean-Michel knew, thanks to a recent exposé on Winedoctor, of Alexandre's association with the scientist Dr Emmett Brown. And of his ability to 'acquire' older vintages, in pristine condition, naturally. How much for twelve cases of the 1990? Alexandre repeated the exorbitant figure he had provided over the telephone just a few hours earlier, and Jean-Michel reluctantly agreed; his job was on the line here, after all. He had pawned his prized motorcycle, his daily transport having now metamorphosed into a briefcase crammed with used banknotes. Without a moment's delay the case exchanged hands, and the deal was cemented with a clammy handshake. The bottles - one hundred and forty-four immaculate La Conseillantes of the 1990 vintage - would be delivered to Laporte later that evening.

It was dusk when Jean-Michel entered Bertrand's office once more. His brow was beaded with sweat, perhaps more from anxiety than physical exertion. Having said that, the task of unloading twelve cases from Thienpont's DeLorean (yes, of course you can get twelve cases in a DeLorean - I know my cars you know) was not a light task. All the same, anxiety acknowledged, he also felt a glimmer of relief, like the first tiny glint of dawn light appearing over the horizon after too long a night. He had done it. The celebration of 140 years of the Nicolas family's rule at La Conseillante could go ahead without a hitch, as he had enough 1990 La Conseillante to pour no matter how many visitors they received during the primeurs week, and although he was now bereft of his beloved MTT Turbine Superbike he did at least still have his job.

Bertrand looked up at Jean-Michel as he closed the door behind him, and fixed him with a familiar, immobilising stare.

"We should pour some of our 1945 as well", he said.

The Tasting

It is extraordinarily rare for me to taste wines from the 1940s, and as I reflect on the wines that have passed my lips over recent years I can only think of one or two examples, with perhaps the 1942 Unico by Vega Sicilia having been the most exciting. It is all the more special for a Pomerol estate, as whereas many Bordeaux châteaux maintain admirable libraries of old vintages, in some cases stretching back to the 19th and occasionally even the 18th centuries, this sort of activity does tend to be restricted to the grander names of the left bank. The smaller-scale estates of Pomerol rarely have the same depth of old vintages to choose from, and La Conseillante is no exception. There is very little truth in my tale above, but the rarity of old vintages presented by Jean-Michel Laporte at Chez Bruce in London in 2010 (and lest there be any confusion, I was not at the tasting, and therefore did not witness any such shenanigans) is not to be underestimated. And so entering the La Conseillante cellars (pictured below, from the driveway leading up to the château) expecting to find a sample of the 2010, only to unexpectedly encounter several older vintages, including small posse of pourers armed with magnums of the 1990 and 1945, is a vinous treat which certainly merits some report. And maybe a little fiction, too.

The 1945 on show was a négociant bottling, and with all old bottles the provenance can play a role in the quality of the wine that is poured - I'm sure you are familiar with the saying about great old bottles rather than great old vintages. Nevertheless, despite this wine's provenance, I was very taken with its showing on the day. Although the appearance betrayed this wine's maturity, with an overt brick-red hue, golden rim and pale concentration, the nose was fairly haunting and the palate was very fresh and confident. Such composure from old bottles never fails to amaze me; I wonder if any of the bottles of Bordeaux currently lying in my cellar, which largely hail from the 1990s and the 'noughties', with a handful of representatives from the 1980s and 1970s, will still be strutting their stuff when they hit their 65th birthdays? I suspect for many of them the answer will be no.

Alongside the 1945 came the 1990, also from magnum. Although nowhere near as elderly as the 1945, this certainly had a mature appearance, and aromatically it displayed a lot of enticing mature complexity, followed up by a polished sweetness on the palate which, for me, gave a lot of pleasure. Both of these two mature vintages came across as very complete wines, ready for contemplative enjoyment, whereas the same can not be said of the younger cuvées on offer. The 2000 had a lot of appeal but came across as rather awkward in the mouth, suggesting that - for my palate at least - this wine is not yet truly approachable. Such a finding is of no surprise to me as, despite the historical tendency to start tucking in when Bordeaux hits ten years of age, I have often found at this age the wines still seem very soft, diffuse and unintegrated. Fifteen years is, for my palate, usually so much better. As for 2005, this was misbehaving to an even greater degree. The sample on show displayed an unhealthy level of volatility, with unusual secondary characteristics which, if tasting completely blind, would have led me to place the wine rather closer to the Ebro than the Dordogne. A second bottle requested showed a similar trait, although much less overtly expressed, and it certainly seemed much more exciting than the first. I was happy to rate the second bottle and overlook some of its more awkward edges, but I have certainly hedged my opinion. Finally, we finished up with a repeat look at the 2009, still yet to be bottled of course.

La Conseillante goes from strength to strength under the direction of the Moueix-trained Jean-Michel Laporte, who has been managing the estate on behalf of the Nicolas family since 2004. Most of my experience with La Conseillante has been with the Laporte vintages, which have been consistently good, largely eclipsing the pre-Laporte efforts I have tasted from vintages such as 2003, 2001 and 1999, although the 1998 was certainly no slouch. I think under his continued guidance we can expect more great wines from this estate in future years. And if he works hard enough, he might even earn enough cash to one day retrieve his superbike from the pawn shop. (24/5/11)

Château La Conseillante 1945-2009 - Tasting Notes

The wines here were tasted in March 2011. Click to locate stockists.