2003 Ch. De France 2003 was the year of the heat wave in France that killed a lot of people. The heat made for very dense grapes and thus the 2003 vintage is big and quite fruity. The 2003 Ch. De France is drinking nicely now, and shows good balance, and interesting structure along with its dense fruit. It is slightly “new world” and is not particularly “barnyardy,” making it a good “introduction to Bordeaux” and a crowd favorite.

1998 Ch. Simard - One of the interesting things about Chateau Simard is that they do not release their wine until 10 years after the vintage. Good Bordeaux usually takes ten years to reach its peak, so with the Simard you typically get a wine that is ready to drink. While I loved the ’90, the ’95 was disappointing for the vintage. The ’98 is a very good wine in an otherwise light vintage. It has the wet hay and oak flavors, with slight green pepper on the pallet, and is smooth and complex. I really like this wine and serve it when I want to show a side of Bordeaux most people have never experienced.

2003 Les Fiefs de Lagrange – This is the second wine of Chateau Lagrange, and for regular readers you know how much I like the seconds. There is great fruit on this wine, and is another example of the heat wave that made the ’03 vintage so big and dense. The wine has a hint of tannins and good structure that lingers on your pallet. This is a good value wine to drink now.

1995 Pavillion Rouge – Another “second” - this one from Chateau Margaux - is perfect now. I have been waiting for the ‘95’s to be ready to drink and I think they have reached their time. This wine has smooth tannins and the perfect balance you expect from a first growth. Beautiful back fruits and hints of oak and smoke make this wine beautifully complex and a quintessential example of great Bordeaux. The finish lingers on and on and I only wish I had another case of this fantastic wine.

2005 Coudoulet de Beaucastel – Still another “second” this time from the fabulous Chateau de Beaucaster in Chateauneuf du Pape. This wine doesn’t get the Chateauneuf designation however, and is simply labled “Cotes du Rhone.” Nonetheless, it is strongly reminiscent of it’s superior first label big brother and is a great value. You can taste all of the elements of Beaucastel – the earth, spice and black olives - but not in the intensity that the first label has. For Cotes du Rhone fans this is a wonderful buy that still needs a little time in the bottle to reach its full potential.

2003 Bel-Air Ortet: In the quest for a reasonable Bordeaux for under $30 this is a great value. It is a little light but has a great nose of oak and hay and is fairly complex on the pallet. This wine got considerably better after it opened and was a great companion to steak.

2001 Clerc Milon: This wine is from the Mouton Rotschild family of wines and you can taste the subtle elegance of it’s pricer sibling. It has a beautiful nose with big fruit and soft barnyard and is a good buy in the under $60 range.

2001 Les Tourelles de Longueville: This is the second wine of Ch. Pichon Longueville and is a great example of a second wine that is a good value. Typical of the vintage it is a little light, but good smoke, and mushroom are combined with black fruits that linger on the pallet.

2005 Des Eyrins: – A B&B’s French Wine Club selection from last year, I opened a bottle to see how it is tasting young. At this point it is a great California wine, but in ten years it will be a terrific Bordeaux. By this I meant that there is plenty of big fruit here, but also good structure and tannins that will develop over time and make this a blockbuster. Wine Club members note – don’t open this until 2015!

1996 & 1998 Chateau Leoville Poyferre: This was a classic vertical match up between two wines from the same producer in different vintages. A friend came for dinner and brought the ’98 covered up so I couldn’t see the label. I smelled the bouquet and said that it had all the elements of a great Bordeaux but on the pallet it was thin and while all the elements were still there, it dissipated from my pallet quickly. I had the 1996 of this in my cellar so we opened it also to make the comparison. The ’96 had a very similar nose, but on the pallet it was quite different. The ’96 was big and dense with great complexity and depth that lingered on your tongue. It was a true WOW! One of the keys to buying quality wine is to know the quality of the vintage of the wine you are buying. The great vintages in Bordeaux are 1961, 1982, 1989, 1990, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2003 and 2005. The vintages to avoid are 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, and 1997. The other vintages are ok, but you must be selective as they vary from one chateau to another.

1998 Tourbrec: On the same evening my friend also brought over this very interesting wine from the Barossa Valley made of 92% Shiraz and 8% Viognier. It took a while to open up, but when it did, it was reminiscent of a great Chateauneuf du Pape from the Rhone region of France. It had lovely fruit and spice that lingered and lingered on my pallet - an exceptional wine, that everyone really loved.

2005 Mouton Cadet: OK, for those of you looking for something that can be your “glass of wine every night” that won’t break the bank or cause you to gag, this inexpensive claret is just the thing. At about $7 a bottle it is entirely likable and pleasant. It won’t blow you away, but it also won’t kill your budget.

February 2008 Wine Review

’05 Las Rocas – Spain, Garnach - $18 – Yes, I sometimes venture beyond La Belle Hexagon to try wines from other regions, and this wine from Spain is a lovely effort for less than $20. There is a huge initial vanilla hit on the nose and pallet followed by black cherry in the background that lingers and is really lovely. I liked this wine because it is interesting and different and is a great change of pace.

’03 Domaine de Courbissac, $16 – Minervois – This wine is from the Southern Rhone and is typical of the region. It has lots of lovely spice and interesting blueberries that soften and become more complex over time – 3hours –as it opens and changes. The wine is typically a little light, but like the Las Rocas it is something different if you are looking for a change of pace.

‘04 Chateau Labegorce Zede – I keep reading bad reviews of the ’04 vintage but continue tasting wines from the vintage that are excellent. This is a beautiful wine that is drinking quite well now. It is full bodied with a hint of licorice and spice that changed as it opened and the black fruit with hints of vanilla came through. I’m not sure this is a wine to lay down for a long time, but it is a great choice now.

’04 Chateau Boyd Cantenac – I bought this wine on futures and opened it last week to see what the vintage was like, after reading several bad reviews of the vintage. The wine is beautiful and I am rejoicing that I still have 11 bottles left. Unlike the Labegorce Zede I think this wine will do very well with some aging. It is dense, with big fruit and good tannins that linger on your pallet. It has the terroir that is characteristic of great Bordeaux and changed three times as it opened up.

’05 Marquis Rocadour – This wine from Cahors is a great buy for under $10. Cahors is southeast of Bordeaux and makes wines of a rougher nature than its neighbors. This wine is very rough when it is first opened, but after an hour of breathing has a pleasant cherry and spice on the pallet. This is not a great wine, but is a good value.

2000 Chateau St. Jean, Cinq Cepages – Sonoma, California – This is a beautiful wine that tries to be in the Bordeaux style. Cinq Cepages means “five varietals,” and means that it is a blend of five different kinds of grapes. This wine is still fairly one dimensional, but has excellent body, and good, big fruit on the pallet.