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Best Buys from Bordeaux 2009

June 28th 2010, by

All over now bar the shouting.

Here, in my humble opinion, are the Best Buys – at the opening prices – of Bordeaux 2009, broken down as follows:

10 Expensive wines – but sound investments.

£400 to £1000 – 17 Fabulous quality, blue chip names.

£200 – £300 – This is where the values of 2009 lie: 20 cracking wines.

Under £200 - 12 lovely wines from the Left Bank.

The 2009 columns, on the left, show the price per case in £ En Primeur (EP) from UK merchants. Then my scores (GQ) and Robert Parker’s, using the 100 point system, Jancis Robinson’s out of 20.  On the right, I tasted all the top 2005s in bottle for Wine & Spirit magazine for the Dec 2007 issue, five months before Robert Parker released his final scores, followed by both the price EP and now.

10 Expensive – but sound investments

That is, at the opening prices shown. To show all the First Growths would be boring, so here’s my personal selection. Clinet, for example, which I tweeted as ‘a Must Buy’, was released ex-Chateau at €58, or £820 to the consumer, is now being offered by the UK’s biggest merchant at £1600.

Château Appellation £ EP 2009 GQ 2009 RP 2009 JR 2009 GQ 2005 RP 2005 £ EP 2005 £ Now 2005
Beauséjour Duffau St-Emilion £900 94-97 96-98+ 16.5+ 92 91 £550 £450
Carruades de Lafite Pauillac £800+ 91-93 92-94+* 17 91 89 £380 £2,400
L’Eglise Clinet Pomerol £3,400 94-97 98-100 17.5+ 97 100 £1,300 £4,350
L’Evangile Pomerol £2100 95-97 96-100* 18 97 95 £1,100 £1,800
Duhart Milon Pauillac £540+ 93-95 94-96* 17.5 91 94 £240 £630
Clinet Pomerol £820 94-96 97-100* 17 94 92 £550 £600
Les Forts de Latour Pauillac £1,100 91-94 93-95* 18 93 92 £650 £1,300
Lafite Rothschild Pauillac £10,000 96-99 98-100 19 98 96+ £3,750 £10,500
Hosanna Pomerol £1050 93-95 98-100* 17 94 95 £590 £1,200
Montrose St-Estèphe £1,200+ 96-98 96-100* 16.5+ 93 95 £630 £820

£400 to £1000

17 Fabulous quality, Blue Chip names

Château Appellation £ EP 2009 GQ 2009 RP 2009 JR 2009 GQ 2005 RP 2005 £ EP 2005 £ Now 2005
Beychevelle St-Julien £520 90-93 92-94+ 16.5 91 90 £280 £550
Calon Ségur St-Estèphe £600 92-95 92-94+ 18 95 92+ £430 £500
La Fleur-Pétrus Pomerol £930 94-96 96-98+* 17+ 93 93 £550 £1,350
Gruaud Larose St-Julien £470 90-93 92-94+ 16.5 92 89? £330 £384
Larcis Ducasse St-Emilion £480 94-96 91-94 17 97 98 £670 £1,050
La Lagune Haut-Médoc £395+ 93-95 94-96 15 94 95 £260 £500
Malescot St-Exupery Margaux £670 93-95 95-97 17.5 93 97 £355 £850
Lagrange St-Julien £400 92-94 90-93 17 93 91? £275 £370
Léoville Poyferré St-Julien £860 93-95 97-100* 17.5 96 93 £450 £650
Lynch-Bages Pauillac £900 94-96 94-96+ 17 93 91 £470 £800
Magdelaine St-Emilion £540 93-95 92-94+ 16+ 90 90 £350 £400
Malartic-Lagravière P-Léognan £410 92-95 93-95+* 15.5 93 92 £250 £300
Gazin Pomerol £540 91-93 94-96* 16.5 92 94 £320 £480
Pavie-Macquin St-Emilion £780 94-96 94-96 16 98 98 £450 £1,100
Pichon-Longueville Baron Pauillac £995 95-97 93-95 18 95 94 £725 £795
Pontet-Canet Pauillac £900+ 95-97 97-100 18 96 96+ £460 £760
Saint Pierre St-Julien £535 92-93 94-98* 17+ 94 93 £300 £375

£200 – £300

This is where the values of 2009 lie: 20 cracking wines that would grace any cellar. In some cases, such as de Fieuzal and La Tour Figeac, prices have yet to catch up with quality. And you can’t say that about many top wines in 2009. Rouget, for £300, is right opposite L’Eglise Clinet and Clos l’Eglise in Pomerol – and they cost £3400 and £1500 respectively.

Château Appellation £ EP 2009 GQ 2009 RP 2009 JR 2009 GQ 2005 RP 2005 £ EP 2005 £ Now 2005
Batailley Pauillac £265 90-92 90-92 17 90 91 £180 £320
Bellefont Belcier St-Emilion £252 91-93 NT 17+ 91 94 £190 £350
Cantemerle Haut-Médoc £240 90-92 92-94* 15.5 90 90 £160 £190
Clos des Jacobins St-Emilion £280 90-92 92-94* 16.5 90 91 £212 £350
Ferrière Margaux £240 90-92 NT 16.5 91 NT £175 £295
de Fieuzal P-Léognan £250 91-93 91-93+* 15.5 88 90 £160 £220
Grand Mayne St-Emilion £290 90-93 91-94 16 91 93 £250 £320
Grand Pontet St-Emilion £250 90-92 91-93 NT 91 93 £210 £295
Grand Puy Ducasse Pauillac £260 90-92 90-93* 16.5 89 91 £165 £280
Haut Bergey P-Léognan £230 91-92 92-94 16 90 92 £160 £215
Haut-Bages Libéral Pauillac £285 91-93 NT 15.5 90 90 £200 £265
Haut-Batailley Pauillac £280 91-93 88-90 17.5 91 89 £215 £250
Les Ormes de Pez St-Estephe £240 90-92 88-90 17+ 88 86 £165 £235
Phélan Ségur St-Estèphe £250 90-92 90-92 17- 90 89 £200 £276
Pibran Pauillac £215 89-91 NT 16.5 90 NT £150 £260
Rouget Pomerol £299 91-93 91-93* 17 90 90 £210 £280
du Tertre Margaux £260 90-91 90-92 17.5 90 90 £210 £265
La Tour Carnet Haut-Médoc £230 90-93 91-93* 16.5+ 91 91 £180 £280
La Tour du Pin St-Emilion £295 89-91 92-94 16.5 NT NT ? £320
La Tour Figeac St-Emilion £245 92-94 91-93 16 92 91 £200 £340

Under £200

12 lovely wines from the Left Bank: Poujeaux and Chasse Spleen for around £200 are favourites, while Labégorce, not really liked by Parker, is good value. The Wine Society are also offering Fourcas-Borie, another Listrac, which is terrific for £98.

Château Appellation £ EP 2009 GQ 2009 RP 2009 JR 2009 GQ 2005 RP 2005 £ EP 2005 £ Now 2005
Beaumont Haut-Médoc £92 87-88 NT 16.5 87 NT £70 £130
Belgrave Haut-Médoc £180 90-92 88-90+ 16 90 89 £135 £200
Belle-Vue Haut-Médoc £125 88-89 90-92* 16.5 NT 88 £95 £180
Bernadotte Haut-Médoc £140 88-90 90-92* 16 86 NT NA £120
Chasse-Spleen Moulis £195 90-92 90-92 16.5 88 88 £153 £205
Fourcas-Dupré Listrac £110 87-89 NT 16 87 NT £75 £125
Fourcas-Hosten Listrac £110 87-88+ NT 17 87 NT £75 £110
Gironville Haut-Médoc £90 88-89 89-91* 14.5 87 88 £65 £120
Labégorce Margaux £165 90-92 85-87 17 88 NT £160 £180
Potensac Médoc £175 89-91+ 89-91* 17 89 NT £130 £180
La Tour de By Médoc £115 87-89 NT 17 86 NT £80 £180
Poujeaux Moulis £195 90-92 90-93* 16 90 89 £150 £240

If only I could afford the lot.

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