Bordeaux in winemaking terms has quite a risky climate.
In some ways it’s a grape-growing paradise – a patchwork of unique soils and sites giving intriguing variations in flavours and styles.
But it’s the fluctuation of weather year to year that gives Bordeaux its grace and longevity in good years but also defines the tantalising preciousness of those bottles when the vintages are not so good.
Knowing the good years in Bordeaux is important, but it’s also important to know your winery to keep up with who is making the best quality.
Recently, advance trading in wine known as ‘En Primeur’ has seen prices fluctuate and spike thanks to interest from Eastern markets.
Confidence in this way of buying before the wine has even been bottled is falling, and indeed the highly prestigious Château Latour has declared it will no longer take part.
The sadness for me is that prices of top-end Bordeaux have risen to become nothing more than an investment possibility for the seriously wealthy.
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In my view, these wines should be celebrated and enjoyed, not stuck in a bank vault.
But away from the top end, there are some fantastic wines at more affordable prices. Here’s how to find them.
Wine Rules: No32Generally, ageing wines with plastic corks in them is not a great plan.
Plastic corks are fine for wines designed to be sipped young but tend to allow in too much oxygen to make long-term ageing viable.
Aside from big names such as Pomerol and Margaux, there are good-quality wines being produced in pockets of Entre Deux Mers (see my recommendations) along with Blaye, Bourg and Côtes de Francs.
You could also select wines from vintages such as 2004, 2006 or 2007, which weren’t as highly prized as stellar vintages such as 2005, 2009 or 2010.
Wine newsEl Bulli in Catalonia, which closed its doors in 2011 after 27 years as one of the world’s most famous restaurants, is auctioning off its stock of wines – nearly 9,000 bottles – in April. According to Sotheby’s, the sale is expected to exceed $1 million. I’ll happily volunteer to taste any bottles to make sure they’re still in perfect nick.
A good example is Château Teyssier 2007, on offer at Majestic for £7.99, with layered savoury strata of tight-knit and well-structured flavour.
It’s a wine with backbone that flourishes alongside a hearty roast dinner.
Another tip is to look for hidden gems among producers such as Clos Cantenac in Saint Emilion and Château Siaurac – the 2011 is £105 for a dozen bottles at justerinis.com and is a wine that happily ages for decades.
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For a refreshing white, Château Saint-Jean-des-Graves 2011 is £8.49 in Waitrose and a great example of the local snappy, zesty Sauvignon Blanc blended with the shrill crisp flavours of the Sémillon grape.
Or try the toastier oaky whites of Bordeaux such as Château Doisy-Daëne Blanc Sec Dubourdieu 2007, £19.95 at tanners-wines.co.uk.
However, if it’s the classic reds you’ve set your heart on but you don’t want to remortgage the house, try Grand Puy Lacoste 2006, available in bond from bbr.com at £395 a case, or Léoville-Poyferré 2001 (£680 per case in bond), which is drinking beautifully now but will age and evolve further.
Bear in mind that these kinds of reds, classical and typical Bordeaux wines, are built to be aged before you drink them.
As they age they soften and unfold beautiful layers like the petals of a rose in full bloom.
For an everyday look at Bordeaux, go for a supermarket own label such as Lidl’s Médoc AOC 2008 for £6.99.
It’s an introduction to these classic wines. Expect earthiness and an espresso-like tang.
Or step up to Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference St Emilion, £9.99, with its robust texture and richer flavours.
Wines like these, as with almost all reds from Bordeaux, are built to pair with food.
A chunk of cheddar with a glass of red Bordeaux is tough to beat in a climate like ours – or that of Bordeaux – which is, to say the least, changeable.
Ask Olly...
Roger and Christine have asked me about the availability of sulphite-free wines.
Some people are allergic to the sulphites found in wine, others have concerns over their side effects. Sulphur dioxide is a by-product of fermentation so all wine contains a small amount; but it’s also added to many wines to improve shelf life. To minimise sulphites, ‘natural wines’ are your best bet. A great place to track down naturally produced wines, low in sulphites, is lescaves.co.uk.
