2005 Chateau Potensac Medoc

Happy October!  You ever wonder what October is the 10th month, rather than the 8th month?  I wonder about crazy things sometimes, but today I am wondering about the first Saturday of the month, which of course is Cellar Saturday!  Today I've opened a bottle that's been in my cellar for less than a day, the 2005 Chateau Potensac Medoc, which I bought at Costco today!  The Chateau is one of the Cru Bourgeois estates producing Medoc, that lovely Cabernet Merlot combination from the left bank of the Gironde, so let's see how this one grabs me!

The wine is a deep, inky purple at the center, with bright ruby along the edges.  The nose presents aromas of leather, tar, blackberry and kirsch with just the faintest floral overtones.  The taste brings out the gravelly clay soils of the Garonne, but the fruit is still a major player with flavors of black cherry and plum, but the star is the minerality that expresses itself midpalate, really highlighting the terroir of the Chateau.  The finish is divine, with still vibrant tannins after more than a decade, supporting the long, smooth and exceptionally elegant and dry finish, with just a hint of funk at the end.

I am a big Bordeaux fan, and this is a gem that I would easily rate a 9!  This would be ideal with aromatic or hard cheeses, or with a variety of hearty Autumn dishes.  Tonight I am enjoying this with some additional Costco fare, a rare grilled Prime ribcap steak, with some grilled asparagus and oven roasted fingerling potatoes.  The minerality of this wine is a perfect foil to the rich fattiness of the ribcap, my new favorite cut of beef.  Salut!