Though I’m a fool for wines from the Southern Rhone, the highlight of a recent French wine class the 1998 Canon-Moueix. Sure, those two bottles of 2014 Vacqueyras were lovely, but there is just nothing like a bottle of Bordeaux with some age to it.
This particular one, from the great-on-the-Right-Bank 98 vintage, took a while to open up–it seemed a bit over-the-hill when first poured. But by the end of class, it had blossomed and become subtly rich with aromas of dried flowers, underbrush, and a hint of cigar tobacco. So while it took decades and nearly two hours to get where it always needed to go, it was well worth the wait. Not bad for a rainy Saturday night.