It’s widely accepted as fact that Robert M. Parker Jr., the renowned wine critic, is to blame for the ever higher levels of alcohol in the wines we drink today.
There is no doubt that Parker has aided the emergence of the so-called “international” style of wine by championing its chief parcticioners, such as Michel Rolland, but I’m not so certain we can make the connection between elevated alcohol levels and the pursuit of “Parker” scores.
I have good reason for my skepticism. Just the other day, at the wine bar Fifty Seven Degrees, Larry the Loafer and I were moved to compare a couple of Bordeaux from the underrated 2001 vintage. I had loved the ’01 vintage when I tried it from barrel during the Bordeaux primeurs tastings in the spring of 2002.
Larry had just picked up several bottles of the ’01 Chateau Lynch-Bages, and I was eager to try it at this stage. So I raided my cellar for a bottle of the ’01 Chateau Lascombes to see if it stacked up with the Lynch-Bages.
The Lascombes was stunning: inky, beautifully perfumed, layered, and with firm tannins that will carry the wine for decades. The Lynch-Bages was not as densely structured as the Lascombes, but this is typical of Lynch Bages. It seldom seems to have the stuffing for long-term cellaring, but 20 years out you’ll discover it ages magnificently.
Larry and I took note of the fact the listed alcohol on both of these exceptional Bordeaux was 13 percent. That’s low by current measures. So I wondered what scores Parker had given each, just to see if he had spanked them for being vinous weaklings. I looked it up in the latest version of his book, Bordeaux, and discovered he liked both.
Rating the Lascombes 90-93 points, Parker wrote: “This beauty is undoubtedly the finest Lascombes produced in more than 30 years.”
Giving the Lynch-Bages 89-91 points, he said: “This wine is lush, pure, and just a lot of fun to drink.”
So there you have it. A wine doesn’t have to register 15.2 on the alcohol scale to get a good “Parker” score. If you happen to come across a winemaker or two in your travels, would you please pass the word!
8