Since returning from my most recent trip to France, I have been enjoying several of the wines I selected for B&B’s French Wine Club which are fantastic. It is still not too late to get in on this year’s selections. You can visit our new web site for all the details at www.bandbsfrenchwineclub.com .

I have, however, also tasted a few wines that are available in North America that I want to recommend this month.

The first is the 1991 Chateau Latour my friend Mike McNamara brought to a recent dinner (yes if you bring Grand Cru Bordeaux to dinner you get your name mentioned). Of course you would expect a Bordeaux Grand Cru to be fantastic, but 1991 was a terrible year in Bordeaux. As I’ve mentioned before in this space, the great Chateaux make great wines in almost every vintage and this wine proves that point. The wine was amazing. It was elegant and complex with soft tannins that camped out on your tongue. The classic elements of Bordeaux were all there – terroir, wet hay, mushrooms, smoke, black fruit –in perfect balance. If you can find old wines from great estates like this you are likely to find amazing wines.

The next three wines are more easily available.

The 2001 Chateau La Garde is a surprise from Pessac-Leognan in Bordeaux. The wine is available at the Pennsylvania state run (ie. Soviet era) store. The wine is fairly complex and interesting with some notes of black fruit, oak and wet hay on the nose. It has slight tannins and stays on your tongue. I like this wine and at $20/ bottle I will go back for more.

From Total Wine in Delaware I found another 2001, Chateau Prieure Lalande from Lussad-Saint Emilion. This is also a Bordeaux appellation, but from the right bank, with a blend of 65% merlot, 25% Cab Franc, and only 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. I liked this wine for its depth and richness. It fills your mouth and yet is not an overpowering one dimensional fruit bomb. This is a wine that is better sipped by itself than used to wash down food and I highly recommend it.

Also from Total Wine in Delaware is the 2003 Chateau Garraud from Lalande de Pomerol. Pomerol is also a right bank appellation and this wine is 80% Merlot, 15% Cab Franc, and only 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. This wine is easy to drink and got better as it breathed. It has a strong vanilla hit at first (which is not my favorite), but that subsided after the wine breathed. This is a wine you can drink every day for $20.

I am always amazed when I taste an old wine and it has developed into something almost magical. Three of the wines I recommend this month fit into that category. I don’t get to taste these wines very often, so I am grateful to my friend Bill Vandermarel for reaching into his cellar for me to enjoy these wines.

The first is a 1978 Chante Cigale from Chateauneuf-du-Pape. I spent several days tasting Chateauneuf-du-Pape back in March and if this is what those wines will become, then I understand why it is Robert Parkers favorite region. This wine was layered with black fruits, elegant spices and soft florials. It was really amazing.

The second is a1982 Leoville Barton from Saint Julien in Bordeaux. 1982 was the vintage Robert Parker made his reputation on and this wine is a fine example of what Bordeaux can do. The tannins have developed into soft layered fruit that linger on your pallet. The oak, mushroom and wet hay are there but are subtle and balanced. This is a great wine at it’s peak.

The third wine is a 1970 Chateau Mouton Rothschild. It is not often that I get to enjoy a first growth Bordeaux, but every time I have I am amazed at what can be accomplished with great wine making. This wine is elegant beyond belief. It has layers of fruit, oak, mushrooms, and floral, each in perfect balance. The wine lingers and seems to unfold on your pallet. The wine is ready to drink now, but also has the structure to continue to lay down.

From my recent trip to Napa:Valley there are two wines I will recommend.

The first is Pam Starrs ’03 Cabernet Franc. This is the best Cab Franc I’ve ever tasted. It is a little rough at first but once it opens up it is complex and full of black fruit and earth – a rarity for California. It’s a bit pricey at $50/bottle, but worth it.

The second is the ’05 Pinot Noir from Etude Winery. Pinot Noir is a difficult wine to make, but when a winemaker gets it right it is an amazing wine, and Etude has gotten this one right. It is dense and multi dimensional (also rare in California) with deep fruit that lingers on and on. At $90/bottle it is a bit too much, but for those of you looking for a great California Pinot Noir this one really fits the bill.

I spent eight days in France in March looking for wines for B&B’s French Wine Club. We tasted some amazing wines and were able to find some great ones for the club. You can read about it all on my blog of the trip at:

French Wine Club Blog

Unfortunately, back in the states, I’ve been drinking a lot of overpriced, mediocre wine lately. The price of good Bordeaux continues to skyrocket, and it seems to me that most of the good ones are approaching $30/bottle.  As a result I only have six wines to recommend to you this month.

The first is a stunning Chardonnay from Washington State.  Chateau Michelle has long been one of my favorite American wineries (yes I have a favorite American winery) and they have made a fabulous Indian Wells, single vineyard Chard. It is big on oak and butter, with lingering butterscotch that is perfect for summer evenings. At $15/bottle this is a great buy.

The second wine is a lovely Rhone style wine from the Vacqueyras region. Vacqueryras is located just east of Chateauneuf-du-Pape and makes some very interesting wines. The name of this wine is L’Authenique and it has soft spices on the pallet and a nice complexity. Don’t expect to be overpowered by this wine, but it is another great wine for summer sipping.  At $18/bottle it compares favorably to many higher priced Chateauneuf-du-Pape’s and is an excellent companion to food. 

The ’03 vintage in Bordeaux continues to impress me and I have two wines to recommend. The first is the ’03 Chateau Poujeaux, from Moulis en Medoc. This is a WOW! It is classic Bordeaux with big black fruits and layered mushrooms, oak and wet hay. At a dinner in Chicago we were blown away by this wine.

The other is the ’03 Chateau La Tour Carnet from the Haut-Medoc. This too is a classic with deep fruit that lingers on your pallet and fills your mouth. It has the barnyard layers, but is more fruit forward than the Poujeaux and another WOW! Buy these two before they are gone.

If you are looking for a classic Bordeaux at it’s peak then try the 1999 Les Tourelles de Longueville. This is a wonderful Bordeaux that is drinking great now. It hangs on your tongue and changes three times as it opens up and breathes. Another WOW!

The ’02 vintage in Bordeaux is less celebrated than the surrounding vintages of 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004, and the powerhouse 2005. This means that while the entire vintage is not as big and dense as the others you can still find great wines that are more reasonably priced than the more notorious vintages. I had tasted the ’02 Chateau Leoville Barton from barrel a couple of years ago and was impressed at the time, so it was with some anxious anticipation that I was ready to taste it last month. The wine is a little soft – consistent with the vintage – but nevertheless lovely. It is a beautiful and elegant wine that is complex without being dense. This is a wine to drink now and enjoy while the other vintages are aging in your cellar.