Mozec,
According my Nicolas - a well-known wine merchant in France, with I believe a shop in NYC - vintage card, published 1997, 1961 bordeaux rouges bears a 9 on a scale (1-10). Leoville Las Cases is a "second cru", which for Bordeaux/Medocs (I use the DOS metaphor so that everyone will understand) means they rank on a "second" set of quality (second-growth I think is the correct naming, after all, those wines were british some centuries ago)
This ranking was made in 1855 with a few changes since, as Mouton-Rothschild who became "Premier" grand cru class‚. Many amateurs and professionals take Leoville Las Cases as a "premier", even if no one wants to change (or retaste) this 1855 classification for huge business purposes... There are 5 ranks, and everyone knows (price shows) that Grand Puy Lacoste, a "cinquiŠme" (a fifth-growth), should be a "second" cru class‚.
I did not taste Leoville on its 1961 vintage, but I tasted some of its close 1961 brothers, and this particular vintage is incredibly strong, dense and young, may be the top of the century by now. If you have a REAL cellar, with ABSOLUTE stable temperature (no more than +/-5øC (9øF)moves each way around the year), you can keep it probably for 10 more years. If your cellar is more shaky in temperature, I would suggest drinking your bottle soon, after resting it for two months in a cool place. Don't drink it too warm !! (20øC is my taste)
Finally, your bottle should be *very* expensive in a wine collector's auction, so you might want to keep it as you would for some (RMBS ?) stocks...
Regards,
MiB |
