Of Château Laroze and sweat
Does your tongue sweat? I think mine might. Here’s the science bit. I did a bit of physics and chemistry at school but no biology – my dad didn’t want me to get an ‘ology and I am not really into science so I sometimes wonder what makes me ask such pointless questions as “does my tongue sweat?”.
Sport is another matter though, and I have always tried to stay active despite my overweight status. So I often follow Gillian McKeith’s advice to exercise before eating to “earn my meal” …and wine in my case. Admittedly, I am taking a liberty here since Dr McKeith specifically prohibits alcohol consumption from her diet plans.
On opening a bottle of Château Laroze 1998 that I have been carefully keeping for a while, I was at first delighted to find the cork and wine in apparently perfect condition.
It smelt gorgeous with hints of blackcurrant jam, but the first taste was very bitter. This is what led me to wonder if sweat in my mouth was the cause.
Fortunately the wine quickly opened up to glorious complex flavours of berry fruits and brown sugar. At 13% it remained subtle and not overpowering. Like most St Emilions, in my opinion, it went perfectly with steak (fillet in my case).
Robert Parker rates 1998 St Emilion as “outstanding” but still has the wines as tannic and slow to mature. My tastings of 1998 (albeit at a lower growth than him) have all been good experiences, apart from the first sip of this one.
So next time I exercise I’ll try several swills of water and allow myself to cool down before serious wine consumption!
July 5th, 2007 at 1:09 pm
I think Ms McKeith’s doctor status has been disproven, so don’t believe everything she says.
Maybe the rim of the glass was dirty 😉
August 24th, 2007 at 11:21 am
[…] pointless topic than ever, so much so I’d completely forgotten about it myself. Thanks to Alastair for reminding […]
May 2nd, 2010 at 6:33 pm
We’ve just opened a bottle of the 2001… Pretty damn’ good, inky coloured and deeply fruity. We would like to lay a few down but are not sure what conditions to store them. Cool? Dark? On their side?
Could you please advise how you stored your?
Many thanks in advance
May 2nd, 2010 at 8:12 pm
Hi Adam
I think as long as the temperature is pretty consistent and not too warm you should be fine. If you are posh like me, you could invest in a Combine Harvester or a real cellar but really it’s a bit pretentious….