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Wednesday took us over to the Right bank for some Pomerol action first up. In fact we were so keen we were 30 minutes early for our first appointment so were champing at the bit when we were let in – La Conseillante and Clinet were very good, with La Pointe and Petit Village also giving a lot of pleasure. It was a treat to go and taste at Le Pin whose cellars reside under a very unimposing building, miniscule production of luxurious, spicy dark fruit, very good and we also tasted the 2006 – wow! Then onto Vieux Chateau Certan with the very tall Alexandre Thienpont – very fine elegant wine, impressive. Evangile next which is part of the Lafite Rothschild stable so plenty of polish here, I liked the wine very much. To the picture laden tasting room of Denis Durantou next – Eglise Clinet and La Petite Eglise very good.
Chevvy B next, lots of excited tasters here, and the wines were great, Pierre Lurton is doing a terrific job, and it was a treat to taste here. With the taste of 1er Grand Cru Classe A still lingering we ventured via a very good celebratory lunch, Jukesy had some great news meriting Champagne, the perfect antidote to those youthful reds, to the other top rated Chateau in the region Ch Ausone; it is beautiful, very small and unassuming compared to the splendour of Cheval Blanc. The wine was very good indeed but will unfortunately be expensive. One way street signs meant nothing to the Goedhuis massive as we roared up to Pavie Macquin to taste that and a range of Nicolas Thienponts wines with him and Sarah. I really liked Larcis Ducasse and P Maq.
Next another room full of UGC wines this time all St Emilion; La Tour Figeac, Troplong Mondot, Figeac and Larmande looking good. Sat nav guided us to the Quai to taste at the Mouiex office, a treat as Petrus was open! Nice to see an old mate of mine, Christophe, ex Louis Roederer who is now export manager, I can feel some swaps coming along! Petrus was really lovely but I fear as always it will be a nightmare to get hold of, but hey you never know….
A very funny dinner indeed at Ch Pichon Lalande where Goedhuis felt incredibly blessed to have Jim Lad’s palate as he correctly guessed both vintages of Pichon at dinner, 1983 and 1986 – Go Jim Lad. Super Palate was also on fine form getting very close on the white. Anastassia, our Russian fellow guest made for some very amusing distraction in 4 inch Prada stacks, fishnets and topped off with very fetching red hair. She certainly made a great impression on our host, and following an Armagnac fuelled Russian poetry recital was threatening to show us the splits…so we laughed on the way home and felt it appropriate being our last night together to toast the trip with a bottle of Suduiraut 1999, very tasty.