1962 Château Ducru-Beaucaillou

The 1962 Ducru-Beaucaillou is a vintage that I have had twice before with memories of great and not-so-great examples. This is the former. Very well defined on the nose, it is not complex, but it is pure with red berry fruit, ash, tobacco and hints of cedar. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grain tannins, fresh acidity, lovely salinity with an elegant, quintessentially Saint-Julien finish. I could quibble about it losing some vigour in recent years, but it is a lovely 1962 that deserves respect. Tasted at the Ducru Beaucaillou vertical at the château.

Tasted at the chateau, proprietor Bruno Borie thinks this a wonderful vintage, slightly overshadowed by 1961. The style is very different from the 1961—lacking the sheer power and depth of that vintage—but the 1962 Ducru-Beaucaillou is nonetheless impressive for its staying power and more classic Saint-Julien characters. Medium brown-brick colored, it delivers pronounced notes of date pudding, Black Forest cake and mocha with hints of prunes, sassafras and Sichuan pepper plus wafts of old leather and unsmoked cigars. Medium-bodied, the palate is elegantly fruited with a chewy, stewed tea character in the mid-palate, finishing with lovely freshness and lingering savory/smoky notions.

Past its best but it must have been a delight. Mid ruby. A bit tough and tart yet still alive. Velvety texture round a very firm spine. (JR)