The bar was set quite highly right away with a 1949 Cheval Blanc. While it was a Calvet Negociant bottling, I don’t recall a Chateau-bottling that was ever considerably better. It needed a minute to blow off some old, pent-up steam, but there was deep fruit inside with some wheat thin borders. Dark and rich, this was a classic Cheval with a sturdy, thick finish that came across youthfully (96).

A 1961 Leoville Las Cases buddied up with the Cheval, and began a procession of Leovilles as well. Its nose was divine, sweet and sexy, full of chocolate and caramel with nice spice. There were ‘no rough edges,’ and the silkiness of Las Cases really shined. This was a delicious, long, smooth and satiny wine, one with a classic profile and an elegant and dusty finish that was still zippy. While stylistically opposite in many ways to the Cheval, it was just as good, perhaps even more natural in its drinkability and enjoyment factors (96).

It was time for the Burgundies, beginning with a ‘flowery’ 2000 Mugnier Musigny. There was sexy fruit here, a red sexy, along with catnip, vitamin, citrus and wet bamboo. The palate had nice flesh and was gamy with ‘good vibrancy’ per China Live. While I found my first encounter with this wine to be excellent, the other Burgs that followed it knocked it down a peg to very good (92).

When it comes to wines, the Forbidden Cellar is one of the world’s greatest, with incredible depth and breadth, and a passion for things that are old and mature. With a heart as giving as his palate is knowledgeable, it is always a pleasure to feed off and drink from his seemingly endless fountain of youth.

The Forbidden Cellar can be quite spontaneous, not necessarily going by conventional wisdom, so the 1962 Leroy Richebourg was opened first. This was a bottle from a case that was recently released directly from the Domaine, and it had a fabulous nose accordingly. There was this great autumnal edge to its fresh, purple and citrus fruit. There was also this hot shot of tabasco in there. The palate was more about wheat and grain flavors, with a dry finish and lean fruit on the tea side. It was an excellent wine, but it never quite took off in the glass, and I wanted more from it (93).

We then had some $2000 a bottle Sake, which was the first Sake I have ever found likeable, but I’ll still take the Petrus instead . It was at this point that Jeremy shared with us a lesson his math teacher once shared with him. I forget the whole story, but I remember the moral, ‘A few moments of pleasure, a lifetime of regret.’ The Forbidden Cellar begged to differ, as he was more in the ‘few moments of regret, lifetime of pleasure’ camp. I don’t call it The Forbidden Cellar for nothing, you know.

One would think that this would be a good time to end lunch, but this was lunch with the Forbidden Cellar, so a break was allowed…for about sixty seconds, before a 1952 DRC Richebourg appeared next. Those who have been reading my notes for the last ten or so years know that 1952 is a phenomenal vintage for Burgundy, and the Right Bank for that matter. This DRC was no exception and another WOW wine. It was deep, bloody and beefy yet red and rosy at the same time, kind of like Big Red Riding Hood with a hatchet. There was oil in ‘dem dar hills, along with caramel, salt, spice, mesquite, tobacco, tabasco and garden. There was pungency to its nose that bordered on half pheromones, half drugs. Its palate was rich and lush with touches of minerals, ceramics and tea time. It had a ‘deeper voice’ per Jeremy, and certainly more strength than the Vogue. Rich and lush appeared again in my notes, kind of like when you say the same thing over and over when you are drunk and trying to impress some girl. Hopefully she’s drunk, too, because then that means you are making sense, but I digress. Tickles of coffee, hay and browned bouillon fruit added complexity to the palate, even if it wasn’t needed at this point. Fantastic (97).

There was one more wine, a 1985 Guigal Cote-Rotie La Landonne, but it was enough already. The first sip was spectacular, but from there on after, I think I was shot. Who shot JWK? The Forbidden Cellar, of course, right through my heart. Amazingly, I still survived. Yes sir, may I have another. Oh yeah, by the way, the Guigal was deep, saucy, rich and beefy with classic menthol, violet and winter. It was definitely at least 95 points, but I really wasn’t in a position to rate effectively any more.

The only wine served out of magnum was the 2000 Haut Brion, which was the most opulent of the Fab Five. Chunky, rich and ripe, the Haut Brion was the most concentrated of the bunch, although I am not sure if the magnum had something to do with that. Classic gravel, smoke and cassis were abundant in this giving, thick red. This could be a dark horse for wine of the vintage, but it may need more time than the rest (96+M).

While Bordeaux may not be as fashionable as other wines from other regions of the world, smart money will always be collecting – and drinking – Bordeaux. That goes for me, too.

As customary, The Don sent me down into the cellar to make a few selections. My son, Nicholas, who is age 13 going on 25, followed me down into the cellar to ‘check it out’ and help with the selections. Upon entering the cellar, he couldn’t believe how many rooms and bottles were below. After a barrage of ‘how much is this bottle worth,’ he soon decided that we should have something from his vintage, 1999. ‘Good idea,’ I concurred. I see many great tastings in his future . My daughter Maggie soon entered, and upon discovering what we were doing, she quickly decided we should have something from her vintage, too, which is 2001. Of course, we couldn’t exclude little Katerina from 2010, and her Mama, Vintage Tastings alum Alexander the Great, from 1982. Last and definitely least, I found something for Old Man Kapon from 1971.

A 2001 Haut Brion Blanc was next, as Bordeaux made a rare interjection into The Don’s rotation. He is a closet lover of Haut Brion Blanc, which I completely understand. Dry white Bordeaux in general still remains a bit of a secret; the quality overall is better than ever before when you look at wines like Pape Clement, Smith Haut Lafitte, Domaine de Chevalier, etc. There are a lot of great wines being made there today. Back to Little Miss Maggie and the 2001, aromas of glue, honey and yeast were out and about in its forward, pungent and gamey nose. The palate seemed ready to go, ‘in the middle’ of its drinking window as The Don put it. There was a heaviness to its character, along with a soft, plush body. Amazing marzipan aromas developed in its nose along with dried pineapple flavors in this delicious white (94).

We lastly sampled a sumptuous and rare 1971 Dujac Echezeaux, in honor of yours truly. At the time, I believe they only made a barrel or two of this beauty, and this was only the third vintage commercially released for this now legendary Domaine. The ’71 was underbrush city, like crawling through the forest floor while seeking out a bowl of mushroom soup. Its soupy, meaty nose had a delightful, brown sugar glaze. The palate was soft and tasty with a love me tender finish. This was a perfectly mature beauty of a Burg (94).