Experimental Margaux: White Wine Aged Under Different Closures
Now for the same experiment, but this time as applied to a white wine. The wine in question was made from fruit not included in Pavillon Blanc in the 2004 vintage. This is 100% Sauvignon Blanc.
Wine 1 – Second White, Cork, 2004 (bottle 1): From the first bottle this tasted evolved, lightly limey but with a firm and overt caramelly edge to the fruit aromatics. This is very mature, polished, supple and slightly flat on the palate. Caramelly and subdued, and overall very suggestive of oxidation. Surprisingly to me wine number one was the most popular choice, and it became apparent most tasters were enjoying something much fresher and more aromatic than the wine described here. A replacement bottle was opened.
Wine 1 – Second White, Cork, 2004 (bottle 2): Tasted after the identities of the three wines had been revealed. A much cleaner and fresher nose here. Suddenly this is much more convincing and brighter, with an attractive substance to it, and citric tones to the fruit. And on the palate I find a greater depth and confidence to the fruit character, much more typical of white Bordeaux, without the oxidation found in the first bottle from under cork, and in comparison to the screwcap wines clean, free of reduction, and certainly the best wine overall….but only if you were lucky in the cork lottery (cork two versus cork one) of course.
Wine 2 – Second White, Permeable Screwcap, 2004: Notes of honeyed wax, and some citric tones to the fruit here. Certainly brighter than my first example of the wine under cork, but no match for the second. It has a very light, matchsticky edge, but nothing like the overt character seen in wine number three. Slightly stony and flinty, full and bright character on the palate, fairly rich, nicely citric although still solid and evolving. Not my favourite wine.
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