We happy that Bernard, who has sampled so many wines, has shared his notes with us. We do have, or have had for sale a few of the wines Bernard writes about, and we include a link to our stock page whenever it is a producer we carry (but since the stock page is kept up-to-date and the wines are sold, don't expect any but the newest of wines to show up in our stock!). Mostly though, since we specialize in County of Santa Barbara Wine and Central Coast Wine, we don't carry a lot of the wines Bernard writes about. But we think it is important that you be able to have an idea what they're like in case you are planning to buy some somewhere, or have them in your own collection. Enjoy.

Here are Bernard's notes from October 31, 2001:

1. 99 Lynch Bages Blanc: Crisp, good nose. Lemony, thin midpalate. 
2. 98 Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc: Beautiful bouquet, very nice, distinct Graves character. 
3. 98 Pape Clement Blanc: Delicate, elegant. Somewhat vegetal edge in finish. 
4. 98 Ch. Manieu (Fronsac): Nice nose of merlot. Tarry flavor, bitter finish. 
5. 96(!) Ch. Bertineau St. Vincent (Lalande-de-Pomerol): Gorgeous, feminine nose. Plush, very good. Excellent QPR at $12. 
6. 98 Charmail (Haut-Medoc): Good substance. Plum, tar flavors. Lacking refinement, but what can one expect for $12. Decent wine. 
7. 98 Ch. Mouton “M” (Bordeaux Superieur): Good color. Dark berry aromatics. Rich, decent length. Bit bitter. May improve with some age. Pretty good QPR at $12.42. 
8. 98 Ch. Haut-Beausejour (St. Estephe): No nose, thin. Nothing special. 
9. 98 Reignac (Bordeaux Superieur): Merlot aromatics. Good, lush, plumy. Very fine Yum! Impressive value at $14.83. 
10. 98 Ch. De Pez (St. Estephe): Classic, but light St. Estephe nose. Pretty good, balanced. 
11. 98 Ch. Grand Corbin Despagne (St. Emilion Grand Cru): Fine classy nose, if a bit faint. Good structure. Top grade. Very tannic. Good QPR at $19.92. 
12. 98 Les Ormes De Pez (St. Estephe): Corky, musty nose, though not corked. Good rich fruit, clunky. 
13. 98 Ch. Poujeaux (Moulis-en-Medoc): Spicy cherry cola nose. Yucky flavor. 
14. 98 Moulin St. Georges (St. Emilion Grand Cru): Funky nose. Thick, clunky. Black and tarry flavor profile. Needs time. 
15. 98 Giscours: Pure fruit aromatics with some oak, showing mostly merlot at this time. Good flavors, depth. Bit bitter. 
16. 98 Smith Haut Lafitte Rouge: Smoky, charred oak nose. Lush, rich, backwards. Very good! Needs time. 
17. 98 Ch. St. Pierre (St. Julien): Funky, skunky aromas. Big, tannic, cab sauvignon dominated. Good, but needs 10 years. 
18. 98 Ch. La Fleur-Gazin (Pomerol): Delicate nose. Medium rich, tannins are greater than the fruit. 
19. 98 Ch. Lagrange (St. Julien 3rd Growth): Smoky, oaky. Rich cherry. Pretty good. Better than what I last had from this Chateau from the 70s. 
20. 98 Ch. Beauregard (Pomerol): Gorgeous sexy nose. Pure. Soft, plush. Wonderful. 
21. 98 La Dominique (St. Emilion Grand Cru): Darker, more cab-like nose. Dark flavors, deep, tannic. Yum! 
22. 98 Grand Mayne (St. Emilion Grand Cru): Seemed corked or sulfurous to me. 
23. 98 Virginie de Valandraud (St. Emilion Grand Cru): Bit plumy, sulfury. Classy, rich, thick. International style, but a bit clunky. Impressive for a second wine. 
24. 98 Clos Fourtet (St. Emilion Grand Cru): Nice cherry cola nose. Plush, bit stemmy, but very good. 
25. 98 Cos d'Estournel: Floral. Sweet fruit, soft. Not overdone. Good wine. 
26. 97 Gracia (St. Emilion Grand Cru): Very international nose. Cherry, vanilla. Soft, ready to go. Excellent. Drink now-2006. 
27. 98 Ch. Le Bon Pasteur (Pomerol): Black raspberry nose. Sweet, terrific balance. Long, deep. A winner. 
28. 98 Pavie: Bit closed, plumy nose. Rich black fruit. Tight, tannic. Excellent, but needs 10-12 years. 
29. 98 Leoville Las Cases: Skunky, reduced. Tart, tannic. Should age well, and it needs a good 15 years, but it will never show much fruit. 
30. 98 Fleur de Gay: Classy, plumy, floral strong merlot bouquet, slightly reduced. Soft, bit funky and not so pleasant in the mouth. 
31. 98 Mouton Rothschild: Typical Mouton plummy nose. Terrific balance. Best of the first growths. 
32. 98 Lafite Rothschild: Bit stemmy, closed. Puckery, tarry. Not much finesse. Not a top Lafite. [RP missed the boat giving this 98 pts.] 
33. 98 Margaux: Smoky, charred, burnt almond bouquet. Lacking Margaux’s usual feminine fruit aromatics. Supple, but finely tannic. Tarry finish. Needs a long time to come around, and maybe not worth the risk of an investment. 
34. 98 Le Moulin (Pomerol): Restrained elegant nose. Tart, astringent now, but might be interesting in a few years. 
35. 98 La Mondotte: Gorgeous rich, international Parker-style. Oaky, cherry nose. Rather austere, harsh tannins, but decent fruit. Needs some years. 
36. 98 Gracia: Closed. Tough, rough tannins. Teeth etching. Yowza! Huge wine. Needs 15+ years. May be a good one. 
37. 98 La Clusières (Sort of a Reserve wine from Ch. Pavie): Great nose. Plush, ripe, oak and black cherry aromatics. Lush, rich, broad on palate. Long and wonderful. Very deep. Needs 10-12 years. Best wine of the day! 
38. 97 Ch. De Rolland (Barsac): Light, moderate botrytis nose. Light, good balance. Soft. Not much depth. 
39. 96 Ch. Guiraud (Sauternes): Slightly alcoholic. Not much nose. Very sweet, round, low acid. Not much structure. 
40. 96 Climens (Sauternes): Bit closed. Lush, classic, complex. Excellent. 
41. 94 d’Yquem: Fairly light nose. Round, fruity, good flavor, but simple like fruit cocktail syrup. Not much structure. 
42. 1929 Rivesaltes: Aged, pruny, cooked onion Madeira-like nose. But simpler than a vintage Madeira. Light, lush, balanced. Slightly lacking in mid-palate. 
43. 2000 Ramos-Pinto (Porto, barrel sample): Antiseptic, not especially fruity nose. Flavor is quite nice.

Short note: This was my first time trying a number of the Garage Wines. I was overall pretty impressed by them, especially the 97 Gracia and the 98 La Clusières.