For The Love Of Port

It may not be 2000 or 2005 ... but 2009 is shaping up beautifully:

http://www.winereviewonline.com/wine_blog.cfm

http://www.decanter.com/news/296708.html

http://www.decanter.com/news/296708.html

Here's my

I enjoy Bdx very much but I am, or should I say my wallet, is quickly tiring of their pricing schemes. It seems all they love to do is raise and raise prices. Even wines that get low 90's (90-92) scores or lower can be well over $100 dollars. Sure there are some good values, but they seem to be rare. I can find older Cali Cabs in great shape at auction for a fraction of the price that are every bit as good, and in most cases drink better. From the many offlines I've been to I've had far more bottle variation in Bdx wines than from any other region. Why that is I have no idea?? But as such I can only buy so much with limited funds and IMO the Chateau's are quickly pricing themselves out of the game for all but the ubber rich. And before someones brings up the point, these guys make literally 30,000+ bottles of some of the top wines so you can't say this is a "small production" as why they charge so much. IMO, many MANY Douro wines blow Bdx wines out of the water at a fraction of the price....I'll stick with supporting the Douro producers.

Just one example. the 2007 Lynch Bages. Not a Grand Cru, but they make some very nice wines. Their 2007 which recieved a 87-89 points from Parker had an original retail price of $51-86 (according to Parker). Currently the wine-searcher average is about $70-75. Even at $51 that is crazy expensive for a wine that only scored 87-89, let alone $70-75 it currently retails for. I can find $10-15 Douro wines that can perform that well. Heck for $70 I can buy two bottles of the 2006 Vale D. Maria Douro that is far better and still have money left over. In fact I recently bought some bottles of the 2007 Quinta do Crasto Reserva for $33 and this is a freak'n great bottle.

I agree. Bordeaux are too expensive. Heck, they're usually great, but far from all justify the price. They put Bordeaux on the label, and even mediocre wines are expensive. There are lots of other places in France who offer great affordable quality wines.. and that's only one of the many wine producing countries.
Yeah, Bordeaux are now for the rich.

For the first time this year, I am considering buying as an investment - and personally I feel much safer doing this with Bordeaux than with port. I cannot for the life of me imagine ever drinking the stuff given my current circumstances and the VFM it offers when compared to other wines. I'll wait and see, but Cos d'Estournel seems to be producing well received wines recently and the 2009 shows well in Suckling's initial scores.

Some of the pricing in the secondary market is hard to understand though - 2005 Lafite recently at £8,500 per case, whereas 1990 going for under £7000 (both 96+ Parker points). There's a slight feeling of the Emperor's new clothes about it all...

As to Andy's example - even within the Bordeauxs, Lynch-Bages is something of an exception from what I understand, and has its own dedicated following (at least in the UK) regardless of score - one of the true "parker-proof" wines.

Port and Bordeaux is about all I buy. I'll beat the French wine drum to the grave.

I don't go for the big names in BDX, but there are a lot of values in the quaffer price range. I'll wait for Costco to come out with their deals and my local B&M Martignetti's gets some good one's too. It's still a while out before they'll be on the shelves.

I buy one bottle, if I like it, go for case. Does not matter if I am familar with it or not. Wooden case, $20ish a bottle, I'll give it a go!

Moses,

There will be plent of great ops between $20-35 from 2009, that is for sure. Depends on what you are looking for. A cru classe Bdx of course is going to cost a lot more. These are some of the most sought out wines on earth. I personally prefer Burgundy to Bordeaux because I love the Pinot Noir expression from Burg, but they've all but priced themselves out of reach of the middle class too. There are v. few bargains in Burg that you can count on ... year in and year out. Very few. Bdx on the other hand, lots and lots of cheapies are very quaffable. I used to buy (up through 2000) first through 3rd growth with only a rare stab at 4th or 5th cru classe. Nowadays 1-3 are insane, even when pricing was much more reasonable for a vintage like 2008.

No, I am not a buyer of 2009 Bordeaux. But I plan to load the proverbial boat with vintage Madeira in about 6 weeks.

Roy Hersh wrote:Moses,

There will be plent of great ops between $20-35 from 2009, that is for sure. Depends on what you are looking for. A cru classe Bdx of course is going to cost a lot more. These are some of the most sought out wines on earth. I personally prefer Burgundy to Bordeaux because I love the Pinot Noir expression from Burg, but they've all but priced themselves out of reach of the middle class too. There are v. few bargains in Burg that you can count on ... year in and year out. Very few. Bdx on the other hand, lots and lots of cheapies are very quaffable. I used to buy (up through 2000) first through 3rd growth with only a rare stab at 4th or 5th cru classe. Nowadays 1-3 are insane, even when pricing was much more reasonable for a vintage like 2008.

I too love Burgundy perhaps as much as you do, but I just can't afford to invest in them. There are other pinot's from France that I drink, but not as austere. As for Bdx, I bought recently 2005 Contenable de Talbot for like $14 a bottle. I think that's quite a wine for the money and wine that gives all I need without making it an event. Plenty of second label or smaller names that do the trick. Find me some $20ish Burg's that can age and I'd go for them too. I am the same with Rhone wines, still some deals out there. I don't need a name, just something decent to drink.

There are many fine value wines from France, but not from the major regions. Look at the Loire, Languedoc and so many other small sub-regions down South. Also Chile, Argentina, New Zealand and So. Africa provide lots of great opportunities as does even WA State.

As to another interesting view of what is now launching with 2009 Bordeaux, check this out:
http://www.decanter.com/news/296747.html

Haven't bought Bordeaux since the 1990 vintage and not unhappy in the least. Too many other fine wines to worry about it.

Christian Seely that most of you know through his involvement in Quinta do Noval, also has many other wine properties in places like Bordeaux, Hungary's Tokaji region etc. Here is has current view on 2009 Bordeaux, but please do realize he has Chateau Pichon Baron. That said, he is a very straight shooter:

http://www.christianseely.com/2010/04/0 ... 9s+Blog%29