Does the 1975 vintage deserve more respect than it receives?

[SEAN C.]

I've had some decent '75's ..the Grahams is okay, the Taylor was not so good, the Fonseca okay but the Ferreira was EXCELLENT!

[Roy Hersh]

Sean,

I am also a fan of the Ferreira 1975 ... and 1980 while I am thinking of it. I've had it quite a few times, but the most recent one ... at their Lodge last month, was by far and away the best version I've ever tasted. You are going to laugh at this, but I gave it 93 points. It was a fabulous and fresh bottle showing as good as it ever will.

[Moses Botbol]

The Taylor '75 has a perfect mouthfeel and color. It was sweet, but one dimensional and a little hot. The Graham was too acidic for my liking, and would've never thought it to be a Graham. A least the Taylor had some resemblence of a Taylor...

[Ted D]

I've only had one 75, and it simply kicked butt.

Served blind by a very happy sommelier in London last weekend, the 75 Smith Woodhouse wasn't super complex but it was young and festive. You could have convinced me it was a 94 Warres LBV!

91 points (similar to the 94 Warres LBV). A big surprise when I found out it was a 75

[Derek T.]

I've only had one 75, and it simply kicked butt.

Served blind by a very happy sommelier in London last weekend, the 75 Smith Woodhouse wasn't super complex but it was young and festive. You could have convinced me it was a 94 Warres LBV!

91 points (similar to the 94 Warres LBV). A big surprise when I found out it was a 75

Ted,

There are two things that I find disappointing about this:

1. You were in London and did not give us the opportunity to organise an offline ;

2. You have tasted SW75 and I have not.

Please tell me where you found the SW75 and let us know when you will next visit the Uk so that we can try to organise a suitable welcome event.

Derek

[Andy Velebil]

Ted,
Be sure to take Derek up on the offer. Our UK brothers will take good care of you and I guarantee it will be a great time.

[Ted D]

Hi Derek,
I was only in London for a long weekend, eating and drinking with relatives -- next time for sure!

The restaurant is Le Bouchon Breton in the Old Spitalfields Market (E1 6EW if that helps). Been open about 4 months, and it was great,
My brother in law Steve is a chef there, so no doubt we received somewhat special treatment. The steak tartare was suburb.

Good wine list, Francois the Sommelier is great, and matched my sister in law's fish and my steak tartare perfectly with a red Anjou.
I'll gladly go back, even if my brother in law is gone!
The head chef was I believe the head chef at Le Gavroche

[Roy Hersh]

It is really odd that some '75s are still enjoyable, some even with a good amount of life ahead of them ... while others are so far evolved and lack any excitement. Of course we know why, yet there is more innate variation in quality than most other vintages that I can come up with from the 2nd half of the 20th century.