Bordeaux’s first Growths are constantly
in the limelight but sadly the attention that they get is more often than
not about their prices rather than their quality. Over the last 10 years the
price of these wines has grown beyond any reasonable calculation, and to a
certain extent beyond any relation to their quality visa vis other great
Bordeaux wines. No sensible wine lover can question the superior quality
of Latour, Lafitte, Petrus etc but when one includes their price in the
equation, well that is a different story.
The problem with the price of the first
growths today is that it has unnaturally been hiked up by demand from people
who would better suit the title of wine investers than wine lovers.
Primarily the result of the huge increase in the wine media and by the
general increase in wine interest from all over the world, these
speculators started buying up first growths with no intention of ever
drinking them, but for eventual re selling. And who can blame them?! When
one thinks that only 10 years ago Petrus was selling in Malta for Lm30.0 a
bottle and the same wine from the same vintage could sell for Lm800.00 a
bottle. Most first growth producers know the danger that all of this could
bring but sadly there is little that the producers themselves can do to
rectify the situation.
During the en primeur tastings of the
2004 vintage last month, I was having a discussion with the owner of Ch
Ripeau exactly about this subject. She was commenting and asking if Cheval
Blanc which is 200 mtrs away and today sells for about Lm 120.00 (en primeur)
and Petrus, 800 mtrs away which sells for about Lm 200.00 (en primeur) are
15 or 10 times better than her wines which sell for about Lm12.00. I
suppose that given the opportunity, Madame de Wilde will not object to
selling her Ripeau for the prices of Petrus but as she said…”I make wines
for people to drink”….and a very good, affordable wine she truly makes!!
One other important Bordeaux producer, Gildas d’Ollone from Chateau Pichon
Comtesse Lalande in Pauillac recently told me that in his opinion his wine
has achieved the highest price without damaging the long term progress of
his wine with most still bought by people who actually drink them.
One other interesting aspect to this is
the appearance of a number of so called super wines that have managed to
attract the attention of the speculators and with them high prices. These
wines generally come from small properties (restricting supply) which with
clever use of modern viticulture, vinification and more importantly
marketing techniques have managed to build a name in the wine media.
Something very similar happened here in Malta with a Marsovin wine. The
difference between these and the traditional first growths is that wines
like Cheval Blanc, Latour , Petrus , etc have built their reputation on
sheer excellence and quality which goes back many years. In some cases
hundreds of years. Not by a clever marketing campaign. Indeed, speculative
wines created purposely for the speculators whose future is very uncertain!!
Prices for the rest of Bordeaux has also
increased, all be it on a more reasonable scale, with most properties
investing their newly found higher profits in their vineyards and wineries,
giving us better than ever quality and to a certain extent real value for
money. Indeed, the biggest majority of Bordeaux wines today are of
exceptional quality and are still the quality benchmark for many other
French and non French wines. The high prices I mentioned earlier apply to
only a handful of wines.
Putting the financial aspect to one
side, I still love drinking the first growths and if you forget the cost no
one will argue that they are some of the most sensational, mind boggling
wines anywhere. Happily I am lucky enough to have a lot of like minded
friends who occasionally, recently becoming more regularly, meet and open
some great wine, not worrying much about their value. Let me tell you about
the most recent occasion.
We started the evening with Almaviva
2001, the joint venture Chilean vineyard by the Rothschilds of France and
Concha y Toro. This is a super blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and
Carmenere. Very Bordeaux in style but with a new world concentration. Very
fruity (dark berries) lots of spices and very ripe tannins. Still young,
needs 5 years minimum. Moving swiftly to Bordeaux and Cos d Estournel 1994.
This is not the greatest offering from this St Estephe 2nd
growth showing the difficulties of the vintage. A bit tight and austere,
lacking in generosity. First in the line of first growths was Lafitte
Rothschild 1997 . This 1ere grand cru classe from Pauillac is always a
joy to drink. The 97 is at present showing quite well. Very aromatic. Rich
but approachable with a fine balance of ripe currant fruits and soft
tannins. An ever evolving, complex finish. Also in the same category and
from the same commune Latour 1996 followed. I always love Latour. Big,
powerfull and concentrated, handling it’s grandness with elegance, balance
and charm. Lovely ripe black fruits and sweet spices, well integrated oak
and a huge long finish. Visit again in 10 years time. Finally we crossed
over to the right bank and finished off with Cheval Blanc 1995 and 1975.
The 95 was excellent, drinking very well know but will easily handle
another 10-20 years. I know this wine very well having tasted it on a
number of occasions including a barrel sample in 1996. It has evolved into
a beautiful wine. Velvety in texture with an amazing elegance and breed.
Lovely ripe, red fruits with lots of tobacco and spices and a very long
complex finish. The 75, did not handle it’s 30 years as well. Slightly
drying out with lots of tannins and tobacco but lacking in fruit. 10 years
ago it was much more generous. To finish we had a fantastic port. Croft
1963. Still very much alive. Lots of prunes and nuts and a lingering sweet
richness helped along with a nice refreshing acidity.
A Truly first class evening.
Finally a word on 2004. From what I
tasted, I can confirm the early reports that in 2004 Bordeaux returned to
it’s more classical style after the extremely hot and concentrated vintage
of 2003. Across the board yields were very high so the best sited
vineyards with warm soils and those who practiced green harvesting produced
some very ripe wines with an acidic backbone. The traditionalists will
make wine to drink in the medium term but the modernists aimed for early
approachable wines, a trend which seems to be catching on. Mark my words,
we shall be hearing a lot about micro oxygenation. But that is another
story. Maybe next time.
