2005 Bordeaux equals big money. It's a great vintage. Some chateaux produced their best wines. Unfortunately we have a weak dollar and a lot of the wines are insanely priced. My favorite chateau is Chateau Lascombes. The 2004 vintage retails at around $50. The 2005 vintage goes for around $80. (You know what? It's worth it.) So I get to the tasting at the Drake in Chicago and met with my bosses and co-workers. Here are my notes for my favorite wines.

2005 Paulliac, to me, did not taste like Paulliac. There wasn't the pencil lead and tar, they were ripe, fruity and fresh. The below are my actual notes.

Pontet Canet:
Atypical Paulliac. In the nose, cassis and some menthol. I was waiting for pencil lead. No such thing. Sweet fruit, lots of tannin. B+

Pichon Baron:
Wonderful wine. Big nose, of cassis, earth and ripe berries. Full bodied, lots of fruit and tannins. Going to be really good. A-/A

Lynch Bages:
Bright acidty, red fruit, not much depth on the finish. A decent wine, but not the '00 by any means. Needs some time.

On to Pomerol and St. Emilion:

Clinet:
Lots of Cab Franc in the one. Explosive, sweet nose of ripe cherries, mint and coffee. Fruity and racy in the mouth. Nice soft tannins. In my top three for the tasting. A

La Conseillante:
Dark purple in the glass. Coffee, toasty oak and very juicy nose. Bright acidity, with balancing fruit and strong tannins. Huge finish. A-/A

Troplong Mondot:
Deep purple color. Sweet, fruity nose. Medium to full body. Long finish. Not as tannic as I'd think. Looks to be a great value. A-

Angelus:
A monster. Fruity, floral and Earthy nose. Full bodied, huge tannins, balanced acidity and fruit. Will be a classic wine. A

Pavie Macquin:
Another great one. Beautiful bright purple color. Lots of sweet berry fruit in the nose. Almost sweet in the mouth. Not as much tannins as most of the wines there. Great balance. A-(+)

Clos Fourtet:
Dark purple color. Wonderful sweet/earthy nose. Full bodied, balanced, long, long finish. A-

Right Bank wines showed really, really well. Lots of ripe and fresh wines.

Pessac:

Pape Clement:
Lots of toasty oak in the nose, roses, and sweet cassis. Very big and bold in the mouth. In the top five for me.

Larivet Haut Brion Blanc:
Cloudy, with a green tint in the glass. Almost tropical nose. Wonderful wine, very very ripe fruit in the mouth. Going to be a great value.

St. Julien

Leoville Barton:
This is what I wrote:
"I'm glad I have futures of this."
Dark purple. Rich nose. Full bodied. Long finish. A-/A

Leoville Poyferre:
Much better that the 2004, (which I enjoyed)Lots of new oak, warm, dry dirt, flowers. Great balance and a long, long finish.

Branaire Ducru:
Very dark in the glass. Very fruity and oaky nose. I really, really enjoyed the 2004 and it's under $35 a bottle. If the 2005 is the same price, I'll buy a case. But it won't be. Very good wine, though B+/A-

Margaux:

Lascombes:

As far as 2005 goes, you're not going to find a better priced 2nd growth. 3rd and 4th growths are going to be more expensive. In the nose, floral, earthy/dusty and lots a ripe fruit. Wonderfully balanced, medium to full bodied, again ripe berry flavors. Great quality wine.

Sauternes:

Guiraud:
Wine of the day for me. The nose alone is 97 points. There is the grassy/herbacious note in the nose that I can't put my finger on. Honey, sweet butter cream, dried pineapple/apricot and a little bit of botrytis in the nose. In the mouth, full bodied and thick, yet the perfect amount of acidity made this wine for me. Perfect balance, easily the best Sauternes I've had. (No D'Yquem for me, yet) I'm buying a lot of this very soon. A/A+ You can find this online for $25 for a half bottle

La Tour Blanche:

A lot like the 2003 for me. Creamy, tropical and spicy but too sweet. It lacked acidity like the 2003. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it. B+

Suduiraut:

I really enjoyed the 2003 and the same goes for the 2005. Quite tropical and sweet, could use some time, though. There were some tannins as well. A-

I had a great time in Chicago, I feel quite lucky I got to taste these wines.

Overall, the whites were ripe, fruity and fresh. The reds were ripe, fleshy and balanced. The stickies were big and sweet. Most needed a bit more acidity to be outstanding. Find these Bordeaux before their officially rated and the prices skyrocket even more.