Last week we brought up the remaining stock from our offsite warehouse, a location whose inventory control hasn’t exactly been Amazon level. (We know – pot, kettle, etc.) But when the stock arrived we were excited to find a small lot of ten year old Bordeaux which was listed as white was in fact red – a happy surprise.
With guarded expectations we opened a bottle a few days ago, and found it not at all tired, and simply delicious. As a $25 wine that was drinkable by 2015, it certainly wasn’t something we intended to age for a decade, but it makes a convincing case to consider doing to so more often.
And so today we suggest a perfectly aged wine for which we can claim almost no credit: the Château Léhoul Graves rouge 2012.
Chateau Léhoul is a small family domaine in Graves, just south of the city of Bordeaux on the region’s Left Bank. Their humble wines are well made and well priced, and, as it turns out, age beautifully. This isn’t 2012 Haut Brion, but it’s a fraction of the price and was delicious with our burgers – don’t overthink it and it won’t let you down.
The 2012 shows lovely dark fruits, with notes of dried violets, tobacco, and plum jam. The mouth is velvety and smooth but not at all dry, with its inky tannins and softened fruit laid over a beautiful patina of texture. Give this 20 minutes in a carafe to wake up from its decade of slumber, and admire the power of patience. (Or lack of planning, your pick.)
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Léhoul Graves 2012
bottle price: $25