#359 1971 vs 1979

I tried two champagnes from two years that bookended a decade that saw the Vietnam War end, Nixon resign, economic unrest, the calculator, disco and Star Wars.  I decided to figure out which was the best year, 1971 or 1979 by looking at wikipedia and comparing the two years in seven categories.

Fashion trend
1971  Platform shoes
1979  Designer Jeans
Win for 1979, unless you are Tom Cruise, nobody likes platform shoes

Toy
1971  The Space Hopper
1979  Trivial Persuit
Win for 1971, I know that the board game has lasted three decades, but a bouncy balloon with an animal face on has to win.

Sport
1971 British Open Champion - Lee Trevino
1979 British Open Champion - Seve Ballesteros
Win for 1979, Seve becomes first golfer from continental Europe to win a major since 1907

Showbiz
1971  The Ed Sullivan Show airs its final episode
1979  Michael Jackson releases his first album, Off The Wall
Win for 1979, Jackson's first solo album - no further information required

New things
1971  Walt Disney World opens in Orlando, Florida
1979  The first nudist beach opens in Brighton, England
Win for 1971, difficult to believe that Mickey Mouse would win over naked people, but click here to see a standard Brighton day

Celebrity births
1971 Ewan McGregor, Tupac Shakur, Tiffany, Snoop Dogg
1979 Jennifer Love Hewitt, Heath Ledger, Norah Jones, Pink
Win for 1971, only one word matters here, and that is "Tiffany".

So we are level pegging, and the wine has to be the deciding factor...

Champagnes
1971 Pol Roger PR Reserve Special
Rich, stewed apples, a lot of honey and brioche coated in sweetened pear.  A lot of old sherry notes, very fresh, but with a curried element mixed with lime.  Some toffee apple toffee and a bit of popcorn coming through  A lot of spice, some toasty, oak like elements, with butter.  Dirty apple skin with a lot of sherry, polished oak and then confit lime.  Lovely.  9.5/10

1979 Salon le Mesnil
Over ripe pear with some crumble coming out too.  A little bit of honey with some soft, mulled wine spice mixed with a lot of honey.  Some new potatoes covered in butter with melon aromas too.  The palate is so youthful - lots of fresh lemon, lime and then toast, some dusty wood.  High acid levels with a pencil leady finish.  Stunning balance, but far too young.  8/10 (with more to come)

It is a win for 1971, although to be fair, that year had me with the Space Hopper and Tiffany!