The 2003 Lynch Bages was the winning bottle in the April Installment of Pick My Next Bottle. The wine was decanted for almost two hours and served with grilled pork chops.
I chose this bottle to kick off a week of Birthday shenanigans. Lynch Bages has a special place in my cellar which I wrote previously about in Life Lessons, Landmarks and Lynch Bages.
Chateau Lynch Bages dates back to 1728. The winery is located in Pauillac, and is designated a 5th growth as determined by the classification of 1855. In the late 1980’s, the AXA Millésimes group began to develop a portfolio of wine property holdings, and approached Jean-Michel Cazes for help. They established Châteaux & Associates, which Cazes ran until he reached 65, and which by the end of the twentieth century owned many vineyards across Europe. Ownership of Château Lynch Bages, however, remains with the Cazes family.
Crimson in color. 13% ABV. Brooding nose of red fruits, smoke, leather and graphite. Medium to full bodied with perfect acidity. Rich, incredibly polished and concentrated. Black cherry, cassis, currants and tobacco on the palate. Tremendous length on the finish with warm, silky tannins. Gorgeous Bordeaux that is aging brilliantly in spite of the exceptionally hot vintage. This will drink well for another decade.
My rating: 95 points.
Current vintages of Lynch Bages are some of the best wines being made in Bordeaux and any young collector should buy selectively.
Tom, sounds delicious. I cut my teeth on the 2001 vintage of Left Bank Bordeaux and bought several bottles of ’01 Lynch-Bages from Zachy’s for about $34/per. Those were the days. I’m afraid I’ve never been a patient man and drank my last bottle circa 2012. Haven’t had one since as my tastes and the marketplace have conspired against me ;-).
I figured out early on in this hobby that I really liked Lynch Bages. I ended up buying lots of the 85, 86, 88, 89 and 90 at great prices.