1985 Vintage

14 February 2014: This would go down in my book as a very memorable Valentine's Day. 7 of us (less one who couldn't make it last minute) came home for supper. A friend kindly donated a 1985 Salon (and a 1991 Dominus) to dinner and this inspired me to organise the red wines around the theme of 1985 vintage around the world.....or as much as possible.

1996 Bollinger La Grande Année Rosé: Lovely salmon colour. Raspberry, dried strawberry, candied fruit, toast, a hint of savoury and earthy note at the finish. Creamy mousse caressing the palate, with the gentle prickling of fine bubbles. Gorgeous ripe fruit, balanced by a vibrant freshness. Persistent finish. Very impressive! Drink now but certainly can hold for a long while yet....6 - 8+ years, properly stored. 17/20

1985 Salon: Medium gold. A mature bouquet of coffee, caramel, nougat, honeycomb, shortbread, and hints of smoke. Some minerality on the palate. Creamy texture, with very fine bubbles. Still displaying an elegant vibrancy. Long finish. Classy! 17.5/20

1985 Clos Saint Denis, Dujac: Medium garnet. Notes of coffee, mushroom, dried flowers. Its refined structure still held extremely well within a mid-weight frame, with silky texture. A wine of unequivocal finesse and charm. This bottle would suggest that it still has cellaring potential for a while (5 - 6 years?)...if well kept. 18/20

1985 Backus Vineyard, Joseph Phelps: Deep garnet. Notes of dried fruit, black cherry, herbal, liquorice, with a distinct stoney minerality on the palate. Medium bodied, with the backbone of bright acidity and fine moderate tannin. Still showing tremendous balance and harmony, in a subdued manner. We were all taken by how elegant it stood up next to the Bordeaux! 18/20


1985 La Conseillante: A deeper colour than the Backus. A rich and intensive bouquet of over-ripe fruit, prune, mocha, kirsch and plum. The full and voluptuous body flaunted a lush and rich texture, laden with intense flavours. Lowish acidity. Well balanced but quite a boisterous wine, leaving not much to the imagination! A big and powerful wine that falls short on finesse. 17.5/20

1985 Vega Sicilia Unico: The epitome of elegance, harmony and completeness. Beautifully proportioned in every aspect. Gorgeous aromas of red fruit, black cherry, spice with earthy and savoury notes. Medium-bodied. Still sufficient acidity giving a refreshing lift to the finish. Plenty of character and verve. A very complete wine! This bottle didn't suggest a need to drink up soon....18.5/20

1991 Dominus: Deep ruby. This did not seem to have aged very much! Still lots of primary fruit character of cassis, sun-kissed bing cherry, kirsch, herbal and liquorice. Full-bodied, intensely flavoured, concentrated, with a mouthcoating texture of firm but very ripe tannin. Fresh acidity, but the wine clearly needs another 8-10 years of cellaring time. There was a bit left over in the bottle and it was still drinking very well the following day! This was not a charmer at this stage, perhaps my rating would be improved in a few years' time when this wine had settled into middle age! 17.5/20

1963 Fonseca: A rusty ruby/tawny colour. Bright cherry fruit, with nutty and savoury notes on the palate. Medium bodied, just a slight spirity finish, to an otherwise very harmonious port. Drink now or over 10 - 15 years. 17/20

What this tasting missed was a representative of the vintage from Australia! But overall impression of 1985 now, the best still have many years ahead and it certainly was a very good all round vintage, at least in the Northern Hemisphere!

Happy Valentine's Day, 2014!