Some of these wines scored higher than Cheval Blanc, Palmer, Pavie and Figeac at the Decanter tasting
BUY DIRECT FROM THE IMPORTER AT WAREHOUSE PRICES
These are recent press reviews on some great buys.
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2006 CHATEAU MAGNEAU, Graves
"Another good well, priced Bordeaux. This wine had an aroma of black fruits with a touch of tobacco. Typical Graves. The palate had nice length and a certain classy depth to it. I am not sure this wine will age for a long time, but it is excellent drinking now. " Grape Observer, Melbourne
Price $30 (Normal retail price $40)
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2005 LES ALLEES DE CANTEMERLE, Haut Medoc
"This second label wine from Ch. Cantemerle is a HUGE bargain! From the outstanding 2005 vintage, this beauty is drinking earlier than the 2005 Cantemerle, which needs a bit of time. Big, ripe red fruits with a hint of cocoa and just a pinch of spice. A perfect foil to a fine, grilled steak or a nice rack of lamb. Top value!' Hollywood website
Price $37 (Normal retail price $58)
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2001 CHATEAU TOUR DU HAUT MOULIN, Cru Bourgeois Haut Medoc
"Some Claret for dinner, this time a Haut-Médoc made from 50% Merlot, 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Petit Verdot. Opened to lingering aromas of black berry, raspberry, strawberry, coffee, earth and cedar. On the palate it was well balanced with soft ripe tannins, nice minerals and a longish finish. Quite an old fashioned Claret in style, but very nice drinking. 91 points." Woine Toime blog
Price $39 (Normal retail price $50)
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2004 CHATEAU GRAND PUY DUCASSE, 5th growth, Pauillac
"Earth and dried herbs, cedar and plump blackberry and cherry fruit. Slight smokiness. It’s full in the mouth with a strong set of dry creamy tannin and crisp acidity to balance. Has a fair bit of weight and grunt and a good earthy tannic finish. Nice sort of wine – rugged but fair. 91 points." Gary Walsh, The Wine Front
Price $72 (Normal retail price $125)
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1989 CHATEAU SUDUIRAUT, First growth Sauternes 375ml
"To finish off our fine dinner, we ordered this Sauternes. On the bouquet were aromas of dried apricot, honey, violet, rosewater, lemon curd, orange peel and mineral. The palate was well balanced, with rich fruit over nice mineral. Quite clean and fresh finish made this quite a lovely dessert wine. 92 points." Woine Toime blog
Price $99 (Normal retail price $140)
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DECANTER MAGAZINE TASTING 2000, 2001 BORDEAUX
This extensive tasting threw up some fascinating stars. As many know I have been lauding the quality of the 2001 wines for years and at the Decanter tasting the 2001 wines generally outpointed their more celebrated 2000s. 2001 Lafon Rochet was the star in a lineup that included the famous Chateaux of Cheval Blanc, Palmer etc
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2001 CHATEAU LAFON ROCHET, 4th growth St Estephe
"Fine depth of fragrant Cabernet fruit - multi-layered and with great expression. Very good ripeness and fine structured elegance. Fragrance allied to vigour and great depth. A classic Cabernet from 2001. 95 points." Decanter Magazine
Price $106 (Normal retail price $140)
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2001 CHATEAU MONTROSE, 2nd growth St Estephe
"Deeply involving. Substantial red and black berry notes, a subtle overlay and an overriding impression of ripeness. Superbly crafted, a refined structure, yet with real Fruit exposition. The spicy finish is very rewarding. 95 points." Decanter magazine
Price $178 (Normal retail price $240)
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2000 CHATEAU CANON, Premier Cru Classe 'B' St Emilion
"Intense, yet restrained, hinting at the taste experience to come. Has a palate of breadth and texture, with wonderfully presented ripe fruits. Rich tannins integrated beautifully. 91 points." Decanter magazine
Price $178 (Normal retail price $240)
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2000 CHATEAU LAFON ROCHET, 4th growth St Estephe
"Fine Cabernet expression and elegancefrom gravel soils. Very good ripeness and shows a sauve smoothness and polish. 91+ points." Decanter Magazine
Price $158 (Normal retail price $210)
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2001 CHATEAU LEOVILLE BARTON, 2nd growth St Julien
"Very good depth of vigorous, fragrant, ripe Cabernet. Fine combination of fragrance and ripeness, good clarity and lots of class, middle sweetness and firm, dry finish. 94 points." Decanter Magazine
Price $205 (Normal retail price $280)
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2000 CHATEAU GRAND PUY LACOSTE, 5th growth Pauillac
"Vigorous red fruits, lots of Pauillac depth. Good natural sweetness on palate with a classic finish. Slightly iron-like Pauillac depth, and elegance. Very good wine. 90 points." Decanter Magazine
Price $238 (Normal retail price $320)
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Le Week-end des Grands Crus
7th, 8th May 2011
Set in one of the old warehouses at the Quai des Chartrons on the Gironde River. Over 100 Chateaux will be tasting their just released 2008 wines and each will have a back vintage. And when you sit down for lunch there are tables groaning with back vintage wines to sample as you enjoy your foie gras entree.
It is simply superb and you are very welcome
More details.....
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December is a great time to look at a few big name wines for the festive season. A fine Bordeaux from a great Chateau makes a celebration or gift quite special. Have you considered these? Not necessarily First Growth as they are expensive but maybe Lynch Bages or Leoville Barton or half bottles of the superb 1997 Chateau Yquem at the cheap price of $258? Or something a little better than you have been enjoying throughout the year.
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A wine's travels from the Chateau's cellars to where it is lying now, are the most important factors in the condition of a bottle. To be drinking a wine that is not close to 100% right, is something akin to be drinking a wine from a lesser producer. And in many cases a much lesser producer, or it may not taste like Bordeaux at all.
Provenance - "The fact of coming from some particular source or quarter; derivation" The Oxford English Dictionary.
Read more on provenance......
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Hugh Johnson MW
Among other books his The Pocket Wine Book is the world's best selling wine book by far with 11 million copies sold worldwide annually.
The book covers all major wine producing countries but Bordeaux is the only region that has its own section. Johnson says "People ask why Bordeaux still justifies its own separate section of this international guide. The answer: it remains the motor of the fine wine world, by far its biggest producer, stimulating debate, investment, and collectors worldwide."
Andrew Jefford
The New France
"Bordeaux not only constitutes France's biggest AOC area; its success also furnishes the scale by which all other French regions measure themselves. Indeed every producer who has ambitions to make great wine anywhere in the world looks to Bordeaux. It is to French wine what Shakespeare is to English drama, what Verdi is to Italian opera, or what Tolstoy is to the Russian novel: inexhaustible, containing multitudes, defining not merely itself but the whole culture in which it exists."
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