Chateau Palmer, 1980

[Rhett]

I was given a bottle of Chateau Palmer, Margeaux, Medoc, 1980. Can anyone tell me about this wine? Thanks, Rhett, New Orleans

[hotwine]

Chateau Palmer is a very highly regarded producer. A quick search with AltaVista turned up a number of Web sites that mention it. One, www.cave-cru-classe.com/bord-txt.htm, is the site of a supplier in the U.K., and their Fact File contains the baic information on Ch. P. However, your 1980 was not mentioned in their list of great vintages.
I happened to have enjoyed a First Growth from that year only last month - a Ch. LaFite Rothschild 1980. It was wonderful!
So - although it is probably not a valuable bottle, it should be respected with good food and willing company. For our LaFite, we grilled ribeyes and zucchini over an oak fire and served with baked spuds. Superb!
A note of caution: The cork will probably crumble, if you use a standard type of corkscrew. Suggest you take the bottle to a wine shop in your area and ask them to remove it for you, and replace it with a new one that you can easily remove. Enjoy.

[Randy Caparoso]

Well, the cork should not be an issue if the wine was decently stored. It's the wine which will be a little weak. 1980 was a lean, light, some say downright "hollow" year for red Bordeaux; and although Palmer was one of the few succesful estates, it should have "peaked" well within the first ten years of its life. So enjoy the wine for sentimentality (it's the thought that count's, right?); but don't expect much more than a pale, light flavored red... at best.