Winery	Barton and Guestier
Region	Margaux, France
Vintage	2005
Type	Red
Grape Varietals	Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Carbernet Franc
Retail Price	$39
Rating	8/10

A lot of hype was generated by the French's 2005 vintage as it was an purportedly to be an exceptional year of crop growth due to a warmer weather year and lesser rainfall year round at the European continent. Not surprising, it has gotten famous wine reviewers such as Robert Parkers and Wine Spectators to fall head over heels over the 2005 En Premier wine. For one, I was another die hard enthusiast eager to get a hand on the 2005 vintage to savour what it has to offer. Not En Premier wine though, but a reasonably affordable Barton & Guestier Margaux 2005 from Giant Supermarket.

Back in March 2008, I blogged a review on the Barton & Guestier Margaux 2006 wine which i mistakenly bought instead of the 2005 vintage. But make no mistake, this wine had garnered an 8 out of 10 from me due to its robustness, rich vanilla and toasted coffee aroma as well as a good balanced structure and tannin. Most importantly the price is affordable and it goes exceptionally well with my spicy hot pot dishes. 

This time, I redeemed my mistake making doubly sure that I really picked up a Barton & Guestier Margaux 2005 and not the 2006 bottle again! This dark ruby wine is full-bodied like its predecessor displaying youthfulness and masculine characters. The nose produces intense burst of spices, capsicum with hints herbs and lychee. The structure is balanced but could do better if tannin is softened up a bit. While there is an obvious lack of the vanilla, coffee and dark chocolate flavour from the 2006 vintage, it reveals on the other hand abundant luscious ripe fruits, loquat (Japanese plum) and peppery overtones on the palate. 

Finishing was incredibly long and tasty with Margaux's trademark earthy and toasty bread like aorma on the palate that seem to diffuse and reverberate in your mouth eternally.  

To be fair (not totally) in my comparison, I paired with spicy dishes again, this time, presenting the famous Thai Green curry chicken, Tom Yum goong (clear tom yum without coconut) and papaya salad. The spciy dishes combination seems to bring out some herbaceous and bitterness in the wine which is inherent in Thai spcies. Not so good...

Overall, Barton & Guestier Margaux 2005 exudes alot of masculine appeal which reminds me of wine definitely reminds me of the Italian. Personally I would prefer the 2006 vintage for it metrosexualiity (masculine yet holds some feminity).  Whatever the case, I know that I am not about to pop this wine for my spicy dishes. For quicker effect, decant for 24 hours before drinking.  Otherwise a few years of cellaring will do the job of toning this monster down.    

Tasting Note:

• This full-bodied dark ruby Margaux red displays youthfulness and masculine characteristics. The nose is very intense in spices, capsicum with hints of fresh herbs and lychee in the concentration. The structure is balance while revealing rich peppery tones on the palate. While the finishing was long with taste of Margaux's trademark toasty bread on the palate, the effect was singular.

Food Pairing:

•  I definitely won't recommend Thai dishes. How about rich beef stew and cheesy pizza to go with? 

Drinkability:

• Maybe a couple of years cellaring will do the job.

Available At:

• Giant Supermarket