There is is a joke told many times and even popular still today, when drinking Petrus: in Las Vegas, more Petrus 1982 is drunk each year than was ever produced. A fiction, of course, but there is one truth about it – always be careful assuming that a bottle of Petrus 1982 is the real thing.
Last week we shared a bottle which some wine afficionados. The bottle was bought en primeur in the mid 80s and has been stored in a private cellar ever since. What more provenance do you need? To start with the conclusion: Petrus 1982 is not the best Petrus of the 80s. There are better 1982 wines within the same appelation. The wine is way overpriced. But anyway, some of our guests did not have the opportunity to taste one the most famous wines in one of the most stellar vintages. And the proof of the pudding is in the eating.
We didn’t decant the wine, the color was medium red. The bouquet started with some reductive notes but opened in about a minute. Cheese, chocolate, burgundy. Quite concentrated, some notes of overripe fruit. Sweet (honey, like a Lafleur 1982) with surprisingly soft and present tannins. We enjoyed the wine with some more funny stories about wine experiences.
However, the wine is past its best drinking period. But still a very nice wine to drink. And of course an impressive experience and a picture for the wine-collection-books. BOW 8+
