At 35 years old, the 1981 Chateau La Gaffeliere is at perfection. With 12% alcohol, it scored 18+ points on the 20-point Dionysian Scale. Today, new releases of this 1er Grand Cru Classe Saint-Emilion cost over $100, but back then it was about $19.

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I opened it with my daughter-in-law, June, who was born in 1981. Both are showing extremely well. It’s always fun to drink a wine from your birth-year. This one, like her,  is exceptional.

Garnet in color with lush tobacco and cedar notes, the wine showed perfect balance with hints of lingering red fruits. It continued to open up for another half an hour after decanting. The 1982’s got all the press, but 1981 was a fine vintage as this bottle showed.

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The Merlot based Saint-Emilion goes well with lamb chops, but we tried to make the wine the feature item of the evening, so we paired it with simple roasted onions, Brussel sprouts, spring potatoes and nut-crusted baked chicken.

Subtle rose petal from the Cabernet Franc and a hint of blueberry from the Cabernet Sauvignon, provided a lovely addition to this tasting experience. This has long been one of my favorite Bordeaux wines. In vino veritas.