'76 and '78 - What to buy

For 1978 I would recommend Chateau Margaux.

For the '78 I would go with Barolo- I have had a few of this vintage lately- they are drinking really well.

I looked into '78 about a year ago (wife's birthyear) and it seemed to me like Margaux and Heitz' Marthas Vineyard came up alot. Never ended up going with anything. Instead focused on saving for 2002 Bordeaux futures- wedding year. Meant more to both of us. However a '78 Martha's would probably be good to drink right about now.

Kevin

"If you get confused just listen to the music play!"

For '76 I can recommend German rieslings. Some fine late-harvest (TBA, BA, or just Auslese) that are prime drinking now and will last for years to come. Shouldn't be hard to find with retailers and I know a few specialty shops where you can buy as many as you want.
Also from '76 could be a nice Colheita from Niepoort or Noval.

[This message was edited by Trelphtor on Jan 12, 2004 at 04:49 PM.]

I'm going to go out on a limb and suggest you look into the 1978 Diamond Creeks if you can find any. If you have the cash, I bet the DC Lake is perfect, but Red Rock Terrace, Gravelly Meadow, and Volcanic Hill are probably all pretty good, too.

Except for maybe Hietz Martha's or Ch. Montelena, these are probably the only CA wines from then worth drinking.

Semper ubi sub ubi!

I like G&ZN's rec of the Diamond Creek. I was unaware that a Lake was produced in 1978, but it's got to be very expensive. Rothko, Emilio, rjs3, and I had a 1978 Margaux a couple of weeks ago and I felt it wasn't showing well at this time, but it may have not been a great bottle. Parker called it the wine of the vintage.

I'd skip 1976 wines with the exception of the BV GdL. Parker scored it a 96 and said to drink until 2020. My opinion on the 1976 German Rieslings is that they were great in their youth, but many, even up to the Beerenausleses, didn't have enough staying power. If you can find a good TBA, it could be worth a shot, albeit and expensive shot.

Just one more sip.

Crack the piggybank and get the '76 d'yquem. In fact buy all you can and skip '78. How many girlfriends do you have?

Yeah,

I am just noticing that as well... your girlfriendS birth years? Do you switch up every other week? Are they on separate coasts?

Having recently had a '79 Diamond Creek that was outstanding, I would go w/ any of their '78s. Montelena and Heitz are always safe bets as well.

LJ

"Drink up, me hardies, YO HO!"

Parkside Church

Griffin House

Oops, just have 1. Better not let her read that, she might take away the key to the wine cellar.

Anyone tried the '76 Grange or Chappellet? I've seen those availabe.

I haven't actually tasted this one, but I'd bet dollars to donuts that the Chapellet is WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYY over the hill.

Can't go wrong with the Grange, though. Just looked it up on Parker's website -- he gave the 1976 Grange a 100. I'd say that's pretty stout. He also says to drink it 2004 - 2020. Looks like a bottle of that'll set you back about $700.

Man, I hope she's a good girlfriend....

Semper ubi sub ubi!

For 1976, you can't go wrong with D'Yquem. I've had it recently and it was heavenly.
I'd also agree with the '78 Margaux.

That Chapellet might be fine. This past August, we had the 1969 with GATC, Bressler, latour67, and others and the wine was wonderful. None of us thought it tasted over-the-hill. That said, the 1976 might be shot, but given good provenance it could be surprisingly good. The better 1976 CA Cabs had the backbone for aging.

Just one more sip.

Wow, definitely some good suggestions here. Now comes the tricky part ..... finding them. You might start with one of your local wine shops you trust and do business with and see if they have any connections. When you buy wine that old, you want to know that its been properly stored. For example, the company I work for in Florida holds back wine every year, stores them in a massive wine cellar, and releases wines every year around the holidays. Just this last Christmas, I actually saw a '76 Lafite and a '78 Latour come across my plate, so there might be some out there. Good luck and happy hunting!

The 1976 vintage marked a resurgence for Lafite. It was the wine of a very mediocre vintage that, surprise, surprise, received great initial acclaim. The 1978 Latour is a good solid 90 point wine, but nothing special, certainly not worth the price it commands. I have one left and will not save it for a very special occasion.

Just one more sip.

Board-O, I will agree that the $265 price tag the Latour 78 commands at retail might be a bit high, but in the case of my own store, I tell folks that what you have to realize is that you pay for the reassurance that your wine has been ideally stored for the better half of the last 25 years, and should not be tainted due to poor miss-handling.

Would you believe that I recently saw the 76 Lafite on a restaraunts menu for $1500? yikes.....

The only 78 I've had recently was Mouton. Had a bottle with DRAB's friend K.B. and thought it 90 pts and decided to open my last bottle based on that a few months later and thought it 92-93 pts.

My experience is that after age 25 5-7 points of bottle variation is not uncommon, so if I was you I'd put at least as much effort into finding a good cellered source as a good wine.

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Santa Cruz Mountains Vintage Chart

If you can find it and you have lots of $$, the 1978 DRC La Tache is out of control awesome. It is the finest red wine that has touched my lips. As mentioned above, storage up to this point is important.

IW

Life without wine?...... Yeah Right.<br /><br />I believe we have 2 lives; the life we learn with and the life we live with after that.

1978 LaMission Haut-Brion is a 93 to 95 point wine depending on the bottle.
1976 BV Georges de Latour is spectacular, 96+.

1978 Ducru-Beaucaillou ist a great wine and nowhere near decline. It can still be bought for around USD 100.
1978 Gruaud-Larose can be good as well, although I had quite some bottle-variation.
Both wines are not powerful blockbuster but beautiful, complex wines.

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This is just another cheap attempt to boost the number of my posts!

Marc, I'm a big Gruaud-Larose fan, but I must disagree on the 1978. I had it eight times and it was never a 90 pointer for me. The 1978 vintage in Bordeaux, imo, was vastly over-rated.

Just one more sip.

I agree with Italian Wino, 1978 was a great year in Burgundy. DRC and Leroy would be great if you have the cash.

Board-O, I usually agree with practically any TN's you post on Bordeaux I've tried, but again I give a strong vote for this wine. I've had it 4 times now and rated it between 88 and 93 points.
Last time I've had it with the Tsunami-gang and they all agreed on it being a superb wine. Could it be that you had a bad lot?
And then I'd love to open one of my 1978 Ducru's for you - I'm sure you wouldn't say this is a wine from a bad vintage! (You plan to come to Switzerland somewhen?)

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This is just another cheap attempt to boost the number of my posts!

Hi Chilly,

I suggest that you might give the folks at www.ambrosiawine.com a call. They have a cellar of older wines which they taste regularly to determine their status. They primarily have Napa Cabs, however. So while the prices will be far south of DRC, the selection is California only. Not sure if you had specific leanings toward old or new world wines.

Marc, mine all came from the same case. The wines showed no obvious sign of damage during shipping, and they were in my cellar since release. I'm a Gruaud-Larose fan and buy it from many different vintages. I looked up my cellar list and Parker gave this an 88.

I had two bottles of the Ducru-Beaucaillou, but I don't remember anything about them. Parker gave them a 91.

Just one more sip.

Give Shane a holler,

I'm sure he could provide a few recommendations of "insane wines" from '76 and '78.

LJ

"Drink up, me hardies, YO HO!"

Parkside Church

Griffin House