Lord, I was born a traveling man. I know those aren’t exactly the lyrics, but give me some creative courtesy please, because recently six weeks have seen me all over the world and then some. I’m still not sure if I am coming or going, but if I had to choose, I would always take coming.

Everything always starts in New York City. I know I am biased in regards to the hometown where I have lived 42 straight years, but it really is the genesis of many people, places and things. And when it comes to wine, there still isn’t a city that throws down as hard as NYC. There may be people in other cities that drink as well, and as often, but the collective wine drinking energy in NYC is second to none.

There was a celebration at Costata of Two Cellars that we sold a month or so ago, and it went a little something like this, hit it:

The wine of the night was the 1996 DRC La Tache. 1996 is a controversial vintage, not adored by all Burgundy lovers. Too much acid, not enough fruit, that’s the knock. The great ones are just starting to blossom, however, and this LT was a perfect example. It was ‘almost open,’ I wrote, fragrant with its bacon, garden, ham, salami and other assorted deli meats. Rose oil dripped in and out of this long and great wine. ‘Cocaine’ actually came from the crowd, but I’ll take credit (96).

I arrived in the AM, and lunch taught me immediately that the B in Brazil starts with Bordeaux:

1982 Lynch Bages Beef, classic, smooth (94)

2004 Margaux Wood, cassis, time(93)

Dinner was at one of the most magnificent homes I have ever seen, and we had a few very big bottles, most notably one out of Imperial:

2005 Valandraud Tasty, red fruits, drinkable(93I)

I choppered outside of Sao Paulo to a gorgeous country home with its own private zoo, but we drank like gentlemen, including:

1962 Cheval Blanc Lush, winter, carnivorous(95)

1989 La Mission Haut Brion Oceanic, black, wealthy(97+)

1995 Pegau Chat du Pape Cuvee Reserve 9L Strawberry, silk, soft(92S)

I went to the capital city, my first trip to Brasilia. We did a blind dance featuring myself and Brazil’s top sommelier, along with the US Ambassador, and we all drank together, some more than others:

1990 Lafite Rothschild Cedar, cassis, olive(95)

2001 Sena Catbox, coffee, tang (90)

2003 Margaux Sexy, chocolate, pine(95+)

2001 Ausone Game, acidity, bosom(95+)

2005 Sassicaia Fruity, different, Zinfandel(89)

2003 Cheval Blanc Rhone, lighter, disappointing(88)

2000 Barca Velha Sweet, seeds, Americano(91)

We also raided the cellar for some DRC and Leroy amongst others, but it was crowded in there, so no additional notes, sorry. My favorite wine of this lunch was the 2003 Margaux, although I will admit the crowd favored Lafite by 3 to 1! Manuel noted in the Margaux, ‘tobacco and coffee.’ The plus in my rating was for deliciousness as opposed to potential, as the ’03 Margaux was spilling out of its shirt. It was very forward, with the full sex appeal of 2003 on display. Hints of garden, chocolate and pine set the stage for a wine with intense character. This was not another floozy from 2003, as many want everyone to believe. There was excellent acidity in this rock star wine (95+).

I know, a full tasting note is better, forgive me for not writing them all.

Then I went to Rio for lunch.

2002 Margaux Tobacco, black, water(89M)

1997 Margaux Expressive, delicious, chocolate(93M)

1990 Margaux High, diamonds, amazing(96+)

1970 Cheval Blanc Menthol, complex, gorgeous(93M)

1975 Vieux Chateau Certan Plums, cobwebs, apricots(93)

1970 Petrus Plums, cinnamon, chocolate(97)

1976 Mouton Rothschild Caramel, honey, creamy (93)

1976 Ausone Red fruits, warm winter, stew(93)

1976 Ausone Red fruits, warm winter, stew(93)

If I wrote up the best wine of this meal, it would be the 1990 Margaux or the 1970 Petrus, but delicious trio of the 1997 Margaux and those two ’76s had me thinking more. Wines like those can exceed expectations; the great ones can only meet them. However, given that I don’t want this article to take an additional month to write, let’s talk about the 1970 Petrus. I have written up this wine many times, and this was a superb bottle. Chocolate and plums were in perfect harmony, and this wine’s sweetness and thickness were both second to none. Spices like cinnamon abounded; this was a wine with a mature knowledge lacking in these other young bucks. Speaking of bucks, the ’70 Petrus is still quite reasonable compared to other Petrus young bucks (97).

I also had dinner, resulting in 1970 Cheval Blanc twice in a day out of two formats.

1970 Cheval Blanc Same, warm, inviting(93)

1950 Lafite Rothschild VA, egg white, creepy(92)

1989 La Mission Haut Brion Midnight, chocolate, full(97+)

1989 Ausone Milk, dust, yeasty (91)

My last night in Rio saw me with The Shocker. He is much better in Rio 2 than in Spider Man 2. We ended with a trio of 98 and 99 point Cali Cabernets.

2000 Krug Clos du Mesnil Thick, citrus, grit(95)

1990 Chapoutier Ermitage Le Pavillon Mint, violet, ham(95)

1995 Margaux Tobacco, cassis, silk(95+)

2007 Maybach Materium Vanilla, booberry, juice(90)

2007 Spottswoode Cabernet Caramel, same, same(90)

2007 Continuum Same, same, same? (90)

It was very difficult for me to differentiate amongst these young, sweet Calis. Perhaps my palate needs more time to appreciate them as much as others, but it was a Margaux kind of week for me, basically a mini-vertical over the course of a few days. The 1995 Margaux was very open and forward, pleasing with its coffee, tobacco, cassis and black forest aromas and flavors. Its palate was soft and silky (95+).

I headed south, close to the border to meet El Gordo for the biggest dinner of them all. I know, he sounds like a drug dealer, but he is actually one of Brazil’s most enthusiastic wine lovers, even if he sells by the ounce and pound lol.

The 1959 Latour was not surprisingly great. There was gorgeous fruit to this fresh bottle. Walnut, cassis, minerals and cedar performed together like a great quartet. This was ‘deep ocean,’ and its thick and long finish still came across elegantly (97).

This evening was really about Soldera. As good as the 1978 DRC Richebourg and 1982 Krug Clos du Mesnil were, I will write first about the 1982 Soldera. This was a rare beast, and a good descriptor. Fresh, shy yet deep, this was a perfect bottle of aged Soldera, and its palate revealed red cherry, leather and that Soldera twang that makes it so unique. Fleshy and chewy, it left a vivid imprint on my palate and on my mind (97).

The 2001 was the only disappointing one, and the 2004 was just too young and too sweet at this point. The 1990 was a monster, a man amongst boys even by Soldera’s standards. It is arguably one of the greatest Italian wines made, ever. Got my Soldera paragraph in, I feel better now. That deserves its own article, but it is just one part of one night during this insane stretch, and about thirty notes are already missing!

I stayed in New York, and later that week we had another Acker Paulee, again in honor of the Tale of Two Cellars auction that would happen two days later. After thirty-two wines, I stumbled out of there in fine, Acker fashion.

The next day I was at Spago for lunch, a lunch of Lafleur and Petrus, organized by the Godfather, but influenced by The Catalyst and The Bordeauxinator. It was good to see Bordeaux being opened in the USA, and even better that it was two of the Right Bank’s biggest names.

Petrus and Lafleur always make for an excellent debate, and as impressive as the ’82 Petrus was, as great as the ’89 Lafleur (usually) was, and as delicious as the ’75 Petrus (usually) was, the 2000 Lafleur stole the show. Talk about benchmark. This was a monstrous wine that was surprisingly accessible, with loads of fruit. When I say accessible, it’s kind of like Mount Everest being accessible. There was still a long road ahead for this wine to develop and unfurl. Rich, saucy, plum fruit came across regally, and its thick finish was fantastic. This was Pomerol at its finest (98).

I went straight to a massage, and then straight to dinner at SLS. There were numerous, fabulous people, most notably Hollywood Jef and The Rev, although there were more recognizable people in the restaurant and at our table.

I didn’t get much time to take an in-depth note of the Krug, but I did for the 1970 Vega Sicilia Unico, which was still very young despite being 44! The Rev commented that it was ‘not as exotic and as open as other vintages,’ and 1981, 1973 and 1962 were mentioned. However, that was not to detract from the 1970, which was deep, earthy, leathery and creamy. Vanilla sex was the flavor that summed up its awesomeness (97).

The 1980 DRC Romanee St. Vivant was a classic DRC from an underrated vintage. It has a great nose full of menthol, iron, blood, mint and spice. This wine was the definition of sous bois in a delicious way, and its rich, saucy and spicy palate had great texture to do with its mature flavors. Hubba hubba (96).Speaking of sous bois, the 1979 Chateau de la Tour Clos Vougeot got an honorary mention for old, earthy goodness. Tobasco, ripe raspberry, cassis and wet fur all competed for my attention. There was this twisted citrus and earth combination, this just right touch of Worcestershire brown, and slaty fruit. It had the best of both old and young (94M).

This was my third 1989 La Mission Haut Brion of this article, so I guess I will finally pay official homage. Consistently great, the thing about the ’89 La Miss is its wealth of fruit. Black, blue and purple still often masquerade like a barrel sample in this youthful behemoth. Sweetness is at the core of this ‘chocolaty,’ ‘BBQ,’ ‘blueberry’ and toffee extravaganza. It is opulent, and certainly a 100-year wine, although I am still, and always have been, in the Haut Brion camp when it comes to these dueling legends (97).

It was a fast and furious evening, and I didn’t take my best notes, but it was nice to cap another legendary adventure with two legends like the 1971 DRC La Tache and the 1945 Mouton Rothschild. The La Tache was brothy and beefy with an amazing tomato stew and outstanding acidity, while the Mouton was just everything one could ask for in an older Bordeaux. Despite other legends like ’89 La Mission (again!) and 1982 Lafite, there was clearly one Bordeaux a head and shoulders above the rest.

The most unique experience of the trip was my last, an authentic, French, old school Chartreuse outlawed in the US due to the use of wormwood, which apparently gives off some hallucinogenic action. These can only legally be acquired in France, and there is one book that has all the recipes for the different batches, which are blends of different vintages, and the one we had was from the mid-sixties. This was the after-dinner drink to end all after-dinners. This was like a Mayweather knockout blow; I can’t believe I drank the whole thing. There wasn’t much gas left in the tank after that, and two auctions in two cities were approaching over the next two weeks. Time to do it all over again.

About two weeks ago, I went to Chicago just for dinner, and it was well worth the trip. Being the “Capone” that I am often called by random people all over the world, I figured it would be nice to see some of the wine gang in town, so I called the X-Factor, and, as they say, it was done.

A magnum of 1990 Pol Roger Sir Winston Churchill welcomed me, still young out of magnum. It was bready and rusty with aromas of white fruits and minerals. The X-Factor was first to reveal his wine superpowers, commenting ‘very ’90, very ripe’ (95+M).

Two Leflaives followed, the first being a stellar 1999 Domaine Leflaive Chevalier Montrachet. It had a classic nose full of sweet yellow fruit, wet rain and rock. It was sweet and musky, ‘lush fat and sexy’ per the X-Factor. Its palate was also rocky with an edgy quality. Over time, more corn and sweetness came out, but this was first and foremost a muscly 1999, full and deliciously typical (95).

The 2002 Domaine Leflaive Chevalier Montrachet was unfortunately off (DQ).

The Earlycomer then added that it was more like a ‘girl in sexy knickers on a tractor.’ He then proceeded to come all over himself lol. I’m still not sure if it was the girl or the Richebourg (96).

A 1971 Arnoux Romanee St.Vivant was reconditioned and not up for the challenge. It was metallic, almost like bad fish tank. It got better, moving in a bamboo and wet frog direction, if that can be a positive thing. It was soft and lush but still weedy and fuzzy (88).

The 1960 Unico that followed was blacker as in berries, shut down in the nose but solid in the mouth. It was a bit slatier and thicker than the ’59, but it had nice body, like asphalt without the sun. Its big finish was admired by all of the above (93).

There was only one place to go next, the 1961 Unico, of course. Its nose was coffee, chocolate and wheat, ‘more depth’ per the Hulkamania. It was long and balanced, also Burgundian like the 1959, with red cherry and leather flavors. It kept extending (96).

The 1965 Unico was a bit reduced and ‘muddy.’ Holmes found it ‘less precise’ than the other Unicos, and it was a bit floral and sour at the same time. It had a fleshy and leathery palate, better than its nose for sure (91).