The best of the Medoc

Our last category is the coveted ‘best of the Medoc’ title. There are few surprises with big names: Palmer, Ducru, Las Cases, Lynch and Pontet taking the top five places. A great showing from Xavier Borie’s Grand Puy Lacoste has propelled this 5^th growth into a very respectable 6^th place ahead of the gorgeous Montrose and Pichon Lalande. Clerc Milon is also flying high and at £340 per case looks like a great buy. Last and by no means least - the utterly charming Calon Segur. Never flashy, not really a ‘tasting wine’, but by its sheer allure, it forces its way into the list.

Perhaps it is also worth mentioning Leoville Poyferre, usually high on the list, but narrowly missing out this time. Another absentee is Pichon Baron which came well down the pecking order...

1	Palmer	***
2	Ducru Beaucaillou	*
3	Leoville Las Cases	***
4	Lynch Bages
5	Pontet Canet	*
6	Grand Puy Lacoste
7	Montrose
8	Pichon Lalande
9	Clerc Milon
10	Calon Segur

Bordeaux 2012 - Day 3

By now we were well and truly in the groove and in the familiar surroundings of the northern Medoc, so it was time to unveil fifty shades of red cord (picture courtesy of Peter Richards MW). Appointments were booked thick and fast, so pace and concentration were the order of the day.

Our first stop was Cos d'Estournel to taste with Aymeric de Gironde, ironically from the Loire region of France, but clearly destined to succeed in Aquitaine. Aymeric, formally of Pichon Baron has jumped into Jean Guillaume's loafers and he is a charming and capable substitute; we wish him all the best. He joined after the harvest and vinifications, so 2012 is not his baby, but you can sense his passion for the wine as he hosted our tasting. Views varied from good, bad and indifferent. There's certainly some charm and precision, but we were not wholly convinced - maybe we give it the benefit of the doubt...

Next stop Calon Segur; the first vintage since the death of Madame Gasqueton. Thankfully Toby didn't ask how she was and the tasting passed without incident. We were charmed by the Grand Vin, which is typically graceful and elegant and will no doubt be very yummy in a few years’ time.

Hervé Beland welcomed us to Montrose and there was not a crane or workman in sight. Years of construction appear to be coming to completion. Hervé kindly gave us a tour of the new barrel cellar and we all agreed it would be an incredible venue for a party. The room is spectacular. As for the wine, it is not a classic brooding Montrose; it is somewhat more exuberant and friendly than normal, which we thought suited the vintage. The flavour profile is very correct and linear, but there is an uncharacteristic prettiness and joyousness that we don't normally see from barrel. We like.

Now to Hervé's old haunt, Mouton Rothschild. I'm afraid that the novelty of Golf buggy rides has worn off, but we like Clerc, Petit Mouton and the big Mouton - smart wines with real purity and length.

Back in the wagon for the short trip to Lafite Rothschild and probably the busiest tasting room of the week. Lafite's star is still burning bright. We didn't go for Carruades, but that probably ain't gonna concern DBR much. Duhart is a closed book, but after much coaxing one gets a glimpse at the brooding dark fruit core. Lafite is at first impenetrable, but again with aeration one begins to see what this wine is all about. Real breed and nobility here - a really handsome wine.

A little sojourn to St Julien to taste Leoville Las Cases before lunch. The less said about the Nenin and Potensac wines the better, but the Las Cases stable is looking good. There’s no lack of concentration here – big, impressive, brooding, serious wines.

Alfred Tesseron was our host for lunch, and delicious it was too, much like his Pontet Canet 2012. The Technical Director, Jean-Michel Comme spoke eloquently about a wine which evokes emotion – it certainly hits the right notes with us...

The afternoon started with a visit to Chateau Latour. No longer part of the primeur system we are delighted that we will still be able to taste from barrel and compare with their peer group. The 2012 range is a spectacular display of precision wine-making, with the Forts and Grand Vin both displaying laser guided accuracy and purity – wonderful wines.

The rest of the afternoon we yo-yoed from Pauillac to St Julien tasting Leoville Poyferre, Grand Puy Lacoste, Beychevelle and Lynch Bages. Poyferre was good, but the two Pauillacs stole the show. GPL is classic, charming and definitely one for the cellar. Lots of noble Pauillac flavours delight the senses and with any luck, this should be good value. Jean-Charles Cazes’ Lynch Bages is another Fifth Growth on top of its game. The 2012 has plenty of depth, ripe fruit, lovely precise flavours, complexity and charm; what more does one want?

As we supped a 1664 after a long day’s tasting, we were somewhat perplexed by the mixed reports we had heard from fellow tasters. Granted, not everything was good, but there are plenty of desirable wines from the Northern Medoc, usually hailing from the grandest terroirs and from the most quality conscious estates.

Bordeaux 2011 - Day 4

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Our final day in Bordeaux and a chance to fill in one or two gaps and re-taste and re-affirm. First stop Calon Segur. This is the first vintage we have tasted without the formidable gaze of Madame Gasqueton, but the new regime seems to have found their feet. Despite the well publicised hails that affected St Estephe, Capbern Gasqueton and Calon Segur have produced very handsome, classical, delicately perfumed wines, which charmed us all.
 
Crossing the Pauillac quayside for the umpteenth and last time, we headed for the Pichons. Baron displayed even more depth and sweet fruit than the sample at the UGC tasting. This is a very attractive, seductive Pauillac with just a hint of Pomerol exuberance. It's also worth mentioning Suduiraut, another AXA property, which has excelled in 2011. Pichon Lalande is the polar opposite to Baron - this is pure classicism, fine Pauillac fruit and handsome structure - we left impressed!
 
Our upbeat mood was short lived as we headed to the Margaux UGC. A delightful Rauzan Segla towered above the others; I'm not sure it's proper wine terminology, but there were many ‘dogs’ from this commune. What a shame, they should have consulted Luc Thienpont and Jacques Boissenot... Back up the D2 to Latour - and what a Latour. Deep and elemental, brooding, complex, intense, magical and vivid - an extraordinary wine. Sadly yields are similar to 2010, so there will be around 9000 cases produced, and only a fraction of those will be released.
 
Next, a visit to our charming friends at Ulysse Cazabonne. This was a great opportunity to re-taste many samples and enjoy a glass or two of Rauzan Segla and Montrose with luncheon. Petit Chateau that stood out included: Haut Marbuzet - charming and seductive, La Chenade - impressive Lalande de Pomerol and our old friend Chateau Teyssier. Re-sampling the cru classes re-confirmed our positive notes on Rauzan Segla, Leoville Barton, Canon, Domaine de Chevalier and Haut Bailly, whilst we were wowed by a much more impressive sample of Figeac.
 
The rest of the afternoon was spent tasting at the Haut Medoc, Moulis and Listrac and the Sauternes and Barsac UGCs. Already being billed as a vintage to rival 2001 and 2007, the sweet wines are impressive, but on this evidence not all successes. Rieussec is massive and will reward lengthy cellaring, Nairac was the surprise package and Doisy Vedrines stole the show - bravo Olivier Castéja, the 2011 is spellbindingly vivid and is a must buy come the campaign. To say that Haut Medoc was patchy is something of an understatement. One or two wines like Chasse Spleen, Cantemerle and La Lagune shone, whilst many were failures. Careful consideration will be required when buying from the less fashionable appellations.
 
So, in summary, the wines exceeded our expectations. Given the unusual growing season, 2011 will go down as a triumph of modern viticultural techniques and a challenge to winemakers. It was also a vintage for the optical sorting tables. Those with the means and technology had a better chance of success, but gentle extractions were also key. This is no 2009 or 2010, but the best wines are really interesting and if, and it is a big IF, they are priced correctly, these will prove worthwhile additions to collectors’ cellars. We keep our fingers crossed for a quick campaign and leadership and prudence from the First Growths.

Bordeaux 2009 – More scores

Our second category is `Best of the Left`. Our intrepid tasters were asked to compile a list of their top ten wines from the Medoc and the Grave (excluding the First Growths and La Mission Haut Brion). Competition was fierce; no fewer than 18 wines were utilized, including one or two surprises. The same rules applied, 10 points for first place all the way down to 1 point for tenth position.

Starting at the top, the runaway victor was predictably Leoville Las Cases with a remarkable 79/80. It’s just idle speculation, but I’d wager that if Las Cases had been included within our First Growth category, it would have finished in a Champion’s League spot. Next, and almost as emphatically comes Pontet Canet with 72/80; the wine that prevented Las Cases from recording a perfect 80! Bronze goes to the magnificent Cos and then it all becomes quite congested mid table; just 11 points separate Calon Ségur, Leoville Barton, Palmer, Pichon Lalande, Grand Puy Lacoste and Montrose. It’s also worth noting a particularly strong showing from Haut Marbuzet; a Cru Bourgeois is a sea of Cru Classé.

Leoville Las Cases - 79
Pontet Canet - 72
Cos d'Estournel - 47
Calon Segur - 35
Leoville Barton - 33
Palmer - 28
Pichon Lalande - 27
Grand Puy Lacoste - 25
Montrose - 24
Ducru Beaucaillou - 15
Forts de Latour - 12
Pavillon Rouge - 9
Haut Marbuzet - 7
Malescot St Exupery - 7
Rauzan Segla - 6
Lynch Bages - 6
Pichon Baron - 5
Haut Bailly - 3