Cellar Raid #7: A 1995 Trio
My cellar is rich in wines from the 1995 vintage; the only caveat to that statement is that the vast majority of them hail from the Vouvray, Coteaux du Layon and Bonnezeaux appellations, and carry more than a modicum of residual sugar.
When it comes to other regions and styles, a trawl through my cellar records revealed just three bottles, the remnants of cases, half-cases or other purchases I made many moons ago. I figured, given that they have all now passed their 30th birthdays, that it was time to take a look at these three orphans.
And by “take a look” obviously I mean pull the corks and drink them.
So we have a trio from Bordeaux, the Northern Rhône and Rioja.
Starting on familiar ground, the 1995 vintage in Bordeaux was good but somewhat uneven on the left bank, the dry summer producing small berries and firm tannins, the Merlots doing better than the Cabernets which took some rain during harvest. I have always preferred the right bank wines to the left, but there are still good wines to be found on the Médoc – just not as good as the same wines in the 1996 vintage in most (or perhaps all?) cases. Nevertheless the best 1995s from Margaux have nice concentration and are now drinking well, as exemplified by the 1995 from Château Malescot St-Exupéry here.
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