I cleaned out my (tiny) cellar for a tasting with fellow members of my law school's wine club.
Flight 1: Introductory Wines
2004 Justin Cabernet Sauvignon: Red berry fruit, low acid, jammy, lots of vanilla, very pronounced alcohol on the nose and palette. Not my style.
2005 Joguet Chinon “Les Varennes du Grand Clos": Decanted for 30 min. Opaque and purple, with some initial brett that blew off. Identifiably cab franc from the first whiff, with a distinct herbal note, but surprising density of blackberry fruit and deep tannnins. Acidic, but not as lean or thin as Loire wines can tend to be. Improved throughout the tasting, as it opened up and got a more fruited nose.
Support from the group as a whole was split roughly 50/50 b/w the two wines, but as people revisted the Chinon it got more raves.
Flight 2: California Cabs (Decanted immediately prior to serving)
1986 Robert Mondavi Reserve: Orangey red to orange at the edges. Cherry fruit, some caramel notes, mushrooms, fine, but still noticable tannins. This was very good at first, but fell apart quickly as the tasting progressed as it lost fruit and gained what one taster called "those bad mushroom smells".
1986 Laurel Glen Estate: Initially very similar to the Mondavi in color, nose, and taste, except that it had slightly less fruit and slightly more "forest floor" aromas.... but as the tasting progressed, the Laurel Glen became exponentially more fruited and filled out, and by the end, it was blowing the doors off the Mondavi and was the 2nd favorite wine for most of the group.
In this flight, the Laurel Glen beat the Mondavi 7-3.
Flight 3: Bordeaux (Decanted immediately prior to serving)
1988 La Lagune: Brick-red and very clear. Like the Laurel Glen, this was initially quite reticent, with some roasted nut and forest floor notes, but dramatically opened up with time to reveal an amazingly intense nose of licorice. Tannins were initially noticeable, but receded to the background as the sweet licorice emerged. Very, very good, got better until the last drop was drunk, and the 3rd favorite wine of most.
1996 Cantemerle: Surprisingly evolved- in terms of color and clarity, it was indistinguishable from the La Lagune. This drank excellently when first opened, with a nice balance of fruit, forest floor, and a smokiness/spice note that was very hard to place, almost like smoked almonds. But unlike the La Lagune, it didn't really evolve in the glass; it didn't fall apart either, but just plodded along in a very good, but sort of unexciting way. At the end of the tasting, we had more Cantemerle left over than any wine but the Justin.
The La Lagune was the easy winner of this flight, 8-2. The Bordeaux flight was preferred to the Cal Cabs, 7-3.
Flight 4: One more Bordeaux
1983 Lynch-Bages: The obvious, and consensus, wine of the night. Red fruit and licorice on the nose, mint, cedar, integrated tannins, with depth, intensity, and a long aftertaste. Delicious. Can't tell you how it evolved because it was the last wine poured, and first bottle finished.
My personal ranking:
1. Lynch-Bages
2. La Lagune
3. Laurel Glen
4. Cantemerle
5. Joguet
6. Mondavi
7. Justin.