I’ve been enjoying some great wines in the past couple of months and am thrilled to pass on to you the following recommendations.

I’ve said many times in this space that the great Chateaux make great wines even in off years. Such is the case with the 2002 Pape Clement from the right bank of Bordeaux. Brian (who owns the Wine Chateau in St. Louis) told me this was a great wine and that “the last sip is the best sip,” and he was right. The wine is big and dense and changes three times as it opens and breathes. It doesn’t have the lingering, staying power that wines from better vintages possess, but it is a great wine to enjoy now, and at $63/bottle is a very good value.

I opened the ’95 Chateau de Villambis for New Year’s and this wine has finally come into its own. I visited the chateau last summer and was generally disappointed in their ’96 and ’01 vintages, but this particular vintage is outstanding. The wine is big and dense with lots of rich flavors that will get even better with more time. I bought this wine in Canada and haven’t seen it in the States, but my point is that the ‘95’s are beginning to be ready to drink but they still could use more time in the bottle. If you have ‘95s in your cellar, patience is key here, because this great vintage is going to get even better in a couple of years.

The 2004 vintage is in stores now and I dipped into my cellar to see how they are tasting. I believe the vintage is going to be better than originally scored. We opened the ’04 Boyd-Cantenac from the Margaux region of Bordeaux and it was fantastic. It fills your pallet with complex flavors of black fruits and barnyard that are the markings of a classic Bordeaux. If you are building your collection, this is one you should consider adding now before the price goes up.

The modern benchmark vintage in Bordeaux is 2000. With all the hoopla that surrounded this vintage I have wondered if it will really live up to the hype. I tasted some of the vintage last summer in Bordeaux and was very impressed with what I tasted. While they are too young to drink now, I opened a bottle of the 2000 Chateau Haut Breton Larigaudiere (available only through B&B’s French Wine Club) and it was outstanding. It was still a little young, but it has great depth, complexity and fruit. This – and the whole vintage – are going to continue to age well and will be outstanding wines when they are ready – sometime after 2010.

1999 Lynch Bages
This is a classic big wine from one of the premier estates on the left bank of Bordeaux. While 1999 was not the strongest vintage to come out of Bordeaux in the last twenty years, it is nonetheless a solid vintage with wines that are ready to drink now.
This wine is absolutely stunning. It is a huge, complex wine that lingers on your pallet with flavors of black cherry, plum and soft terroir. It is pricy but worth it.

2000 Chateau Duhart-Milon
This wine comes from the domain of Lafite Rothschild this is a constantly great wine that well reflects it’s first growth pedigree. This wine is almost as good as the Lynch Bages and is also huge, power and complex. It lingers on your pallet with hints of licorice, smoke and black fruits. The 2000 vintage in Bordeaux is stunning and this wine is a great representation of what great wine makers can do when the weather is right.

I bought this wine on futures and have been waiting for it to be ready to drink. I think it still needs another five years in the bottle before it will be at it’s peak, but it is drinking well now.

2001 Lafon-Rochet
This winery is located within shouting distance of Cos D’estournel and benefits from similar terroir and climate. The producers make an excellent wine at about a quarter of the price of Cos. The 2001 Lafon-Rochet is beautifully balanced, interesting and layered. It has the classic black fruit with good oak, smoke and mushrooms around the edges. This is one of my favorite wines beause of the quality and price.

2003 Chateau Grossombre
It is always great to be able to recommend a Bordeaux at a reasonable price. This wine is a great example of the 2003, when the heat made the grapes particularly ripe. The wine has huge fruit on the pallet as you first open it, but it gets softer as it breaths and becomes more elegant and interesting. This wine will benefit from aging, but is also great now.

2005 Mongeard-Mugneret, Sabigny-les-Beaunne
While I am pretty familiar with Bordeaux, I am still on a learning curve regarding Burgundy. I will be headed there in the spring to attend a tasting event and hopefully find some great Burgundys for B&B’s French Wine Club. In the mean time, I attended a wine tasting last week of thirteen wines from Burgundy to begin climbing up the learning curve. This one from Mongeard-Mugneret was my favorite. It has a nice strawberry and cherry finish with hints of spice and a little toast, and is a great example of a good Burgundy at a reasonable price.

2000 & 2001 Ch. D’Armailhac
I was first introduced to this wine about ten years ago and began collecting a couple of bottles each year. I love this wine and it was a great delight to find the 2000 to be and outstanding example of everything this great vintage is supposed to be. The 2001 was a surprise because it surpassed every other wine I’ve had from that vintage. I’ve know this to be a great Chateau, but I was delighted to experience again just how great the wines are. The property is owned and operated by Mouton Rothschild and the quality of winemaking always shows in this great wine. While the 2000’s should be kept for another couple of years I found this to be wonderful now. It is smooth and balanced with lovely black fruit and hints of hay and smoke. The wine will only get better with more aging and is yet another confirmation of the vintage. The 2001 is also drinking well now, and may be peaking.

1999 Ch. Clerc Milon
Another great wine from the house of Mouton Rothschild; this is an elegant and beautiful wine with soft tannins and floral notes on the nose and pallet. This wine lingers on your tongue and has plenty of licorice, rose and oak as it opens up and breathes. This is a classic Bordeaux that is well worth adding to your collection, but one which is drinking well now.

2001 Haut Bages Liberal
From Pauillac, the center of the wine world this is another fantastic wine. It is smooth with layers of black cherry, cedar and licorice that spreads across your pallet and lingers long after the last sip. Although most 2001’s are probably peaking now, this wine could use some more time in the bottle.

2001 Chateau Tour de Segur, Lussac-Saint-Emilion,
This is a great discovery from the Andre Lurton family of wines that is full of spice and earth and is an excellent compliment to food. The wine changes as it opens up and breathes, and is ready to drink now. At $17/bottle it is also a great value.

2003 Savigny les Beaunne, Les Grands Liards, from Patrick Javillier-Guyot.
My experience in Burgundy has been frustrating. I have tried lots of Burgundy’s but they never seem to get me very excited. I’ve been three or four times and the only wine I was thrilled about was in the neighborhood of $100/bottle. This 2003 Savigny les Beaunne was the first Burgundy at a reasonable price ($25) that I will buy more of. It had some typical Burgundy characteristics of Strawberry, crushed cherry and smoke along with a great blend of soft tannins and spice. I really liked this wine and can’t wait to get more.