Comments on Greatness

Recently, I had dinner with a world renowned wine collector (I can drop a name here, but that would be gauche). We were rhapsodizing about the great wines. He commented, “Where are the great wines like the 47 Cheval Blanc or the 61 Palmer? Where are these monumental wines of the past?” His point was that we recognize certain wines as great or monumental and there doesn’t seem to be wines that stand out in today’s world, as they did in past vintages.
We discussed the fact, that wine making has made great strides and you rarely find undrinkable wine in today’s market. You may find wine that does not appeal to you, but rarely do you find undrinkable wine. That would not have been the case in the 40’s and 50’s. The level between the top wines and the lower tier was a much greater chasm then you find today. The great wines of this era may stand out more, because of the competition.
What effect does time have on a wines reputation? Does a great wine have to stand out for several years before it reaches great status? In 1950, did they taste the 45 Mouton and think, “This was one of the greatest wines ever made.” If that is the case, has not enough time passed to see what will be the great modern wines? Perhaps we are tasting some great wines that will be judged as monumental by a succeeding generation. They will be able to see how it held up over time.
We had the 1990 Pavie at this dinner. Most felt it was an exceptional wine. What if this wine holds together for another 30 years? Would it be considered a monumental wine? Will it stand out from its peers? I think I will keep my last bottle for a few more years and see what happens.