Joy and I recently had the pleasure of sharing an extraordinary bottle of 1979 Chateau Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande gifted to us by our dear friends Steve and Phyllis.

A Second Growth Bordeaux (based on the French government’s 1855 classification), this Cabernet based wine is a product of the Pauillac appellation. The winery, now owned by the Roederer Champagne people, has been unique in its approach to winemaking since a 1925 expansion of planting of Merlot. Since then, the Pichon Lalande has included far more Merlot than Cabernet (35% to 45%) than do most Pauillac wines. Thus, the Pichon Lalande is noted for softer tannins and is also more approachable earlier than many its Bordeaux brethren.

Ironically, the Pinchon Lalande vineyards are located just a row of grapes from First Growth (and very, very expensive) Latour. Latour, a wine defined as more ‘masculine’, blends nearly 75% Cabernet with less than 25% Merlot. Pichon Lalande also relies on older vines than does many Classified Growths (nearly 50 years for the Pichon Lalande) that produce fewer, but generally more intensely flavored, grapes.

Classified Bordeaux is generally noted for its longevity. The rule for Bordeaux has been to buy it as a future, store it wisely, and enjoy it decades later. However, there are exceptions to the rule. Wine critics recommend that some vintages be consumed younger.

The ‘softer’ tannins characteristic of 1979 Pichon Lalande mentioned earlier resulted in a wine often described as ‘feminine’. The lower tannins would also suggest that, unlike many other Bordeaux products, a Pichon Lalande generally has limited potential to age. In fact, many wine reviewers, assumed that the 1979’s drinkable life should have ended a decade ago.

The Bordeaux grape crop in 1979 was large and resulted in many diluted wines. The summer of 1979 in Bordeaux was cool and the brix level of the (sugar) crop was generally low. As a result, the prices of 1979’s were very modest by classified Bordeaux standards. And, unfortunately, most distributors and retailers still had large quantities of vintages of 1975-1978 still in warehouses or on shelves. Adding injury to insult, the 1979 vintage earned just 83 points from the Wine Spectator.  But, there are always wines that outperform the vintage, and Pichon Lalande was one of those.

This specific bottle also proves that there is one factor other that can significantly alter a wine’s survival equation…proper storage.

We opened our 1979 at Nico, a favorite Charleston area restaurant. It had been stored in its original wood case, and in ideal conditions, since its release. The bottle’s fill level was like new as was both its label and foil.

The color was still excellent and the earth, dark berries, and spices that the Wine Spectator noted in a 1997 review were evident through a still lingering finish. The 1979, while soft, was still a vibrant drink 40 years after it was vinified. A 1979 Pichon Lalande, properly stored, still has a couple of years before it is beyond the peak of ‘drinkability’. Ideal storage is what permitted this Pichon Lalande to maintain its vitality.

The same rule would apply to virtually any other bottle…cool, dark, and on its said to keep the cork moist…and don’t forget it is there.