Will Neal Martin save Bordeaux?

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JimHow
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Will Neal Martin save Bordeaux?

Post by JimHow »

From what I hear, he has a more conservative, British, European palate than the 100-point-scoring He Who Shall Remain Nameless.
Will Bordeaux go in a new direction, back to the classic European style of decades past?
Or is the genie out of the bottle, is the damage done, are we left with the Americanization of Bordeux for decades to come as a result of decades of worship to the ultra-ripe, over-extracted 100 point score?
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Roel
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Re: Will Neal Martin save Bordeaux?

Post by Roel »

So many critics now.. Neal Martin won't save Bordeaux I guess. The world likes sweet these days. Maybe rediculous pricing will come to a stop, though. And maybe Neal wil provide us with the little 'sleepers of the vintage' that will be classic-in-a-good-way-Bordeaux. All is not lost.
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Comte Flaneur
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Re: Will Neal Martin save Bordeaux?

Post by Comte Flaneur »

Neal strikes me as thoughtful and unassuming, and not prone to hyperbole; so the fact that he is in effect stepping into Uncle Bob's huge shoes does not imply any imperative to make a big splash or a great call on say the 2014 vintage. 

Talented though he undoubtedly is, more likely he will be first among equals with other eminent critics rather than immediately metamorphosing into a similar phenomenon to his predecessor. I am sure he would not want to live with that pressure and the envy and resentment that would follow. 

So while we may see some of the more spoofulated creations from the right bank and elsewhere fade into obscurity, I don't think we really need to worry about our favourite traditional Bordeaux wines becoming unobtainable or their prices shooting up into the stratosphere.

Unlike Keith I am not part of his inner circle of close friends but I have dined and tasted with him on several occasions. I would say his palate is mainstream, eclectic, open-minded, but at the same time discerning with a fondness for the esoteric and quirky, especially for older wines. I would say his palate is more European than American, if such a distinction is really valid.
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JimHow
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Re: Will Neal Martin save Bordeaux?

Post by JimHow »

It will be interesting to see how his "sleeper of the vintage" compare to He Who Shall Remain Nameless's, a nice sleeper for me was the 210 Maucaillou, I found it very classic. Nothing fancy, but a nice restrained, balanced Bordeaux. I'd like to see more wines like this coming out of Bordeaux than the Clos Lunelles etc.
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JimHow
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Re: Will Neal Martin save Bordeaux?

Post by JimHow »

Talented though he undoubtedly is, more likely he will be first among equals with other eminent critics rather than immediately metamorphosing into a similar phenomenon to his predecessor. I am sure he would not want to live with that pressure and the envy and resentment that would follow.
But will the Singapore investors tolerate that Ian?
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DavidG
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Re: Will Neal Martin save Bordeaux?

Post by DavidG »

I think Ian's description of Neal Martin's palate matches my impression from reading his notes. I've never met him.

But does Bordeaux need saving? They seem to still be plugging along despite all the dire warnings about pricing themselves out of existence. And they've exhibited that seemingly irrational pricing behavior even in years that Parker hasn't gone bonkers over them. The stuff eventually seems to get sold, even if it ends up in the supermarket foires au vins. I think there may be less hype and speculation for the top wines with RP stepping back, but I think that too has already tapered off because the Chateaux at the top end have already taken most of the profit out of the game with their pricing. At the same time, I don't think that the market for top end Bordeaux will collapse with the transition from RP to NM.
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JimHow
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Re: Will Neal Martin save Bordeaux?

Post by JimHow »

I can't figure out what the New Hampshire Liquor stores are doing with all their ridiculously high priced Bordeauxs in recent years. Every time I walk in there there is like NOTHING sold. Where does it all go? Likewise, I don't see any of those 2010 Lynch Bages moving off the racks at PJs at their $175 price point. Where does it all go at these ridiculous prices?
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DavidG
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Re: Will Neal Martin save Bordeaux?

Post by DavidG »

Good question. Sooner or later I guess they'll have to price it to move. Maybe when they run out of storage space. That's what I do. When the cellar starts to overflow, time to send some off to auction...
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Gerry M.
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Re: Will Neal Martin save Bordeaux?

Post by Gerry M. »

Time will tell what Neal's impact will be on the Bordeaux marketplace. It's early in the game and I think everyone will sit back and see how consumers react to his opinions.

Jim, I also sit back and wonder where the hell all the 2009 and 2010 wines are going to end up since it's obvious not much is being sold. Some of it they have been trying to move in the close out areas by cutting prices on the 1st and super 2nds but that is only down to what they should have been priced at in the 1st place compared to the rest of the market. By now though most people have moved on looking at the upcoming releases or the pricing is still ridiculous. Frankly I've given up on NH for major wine buying given their insane pricing model and look only in their closeout sections at mid-range wines to take a chance on. Recently on a trip there I picked up a couple of 2008 Ridge Monte Bello for $80ea that was brought in special for a charity tasting and these were leftovers. I saw they were closing out the 2009 Haut-Bailly for $129. I almost bit on a couple until I realized they've been sitting there now almost two years and the storage area felt like it was 90 degrees. I came to my senses and walked out.

With the 2011 release I was hoping that something similar would happen to when the 2006's were released. They ran an Bordeaux sale at the time of the release and also brought out a lot of the warehouse stock at crazy prices just to move it all out. I picked up a case 2003 Ch Cantemerle for $17/btle among others.
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JimHow
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Re: Will Neal Martin save Bordeaux?

Post by JimHow »

Yeah it's pretty sad, Gerry, New Hampshire literally went from like the best place in the country to buy wine to the worst place in the country to buy wine. Those current prices are bizarre, how do they expect anyone to pay those prices.
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Chateau Vin
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Re: Will Neal Martin save Bordeaux?

Post by Chateau Vin »

That's what happens when govt meddles in trying to run liquor stores. They are bloated, slow to adapt and not to memtion their vagaries about rules and regulations. With the advent of internet and online wine sales, they will fall on the wayside..
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JimHow
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Re: Will Neal Martin save Bordeaux?

Post by JimHow »

They used to have unbelievable deals (1995 Petrus for $275, 1995 Ducru, Cos, and PLL for $50, 2002 Pichon Baron for $25 on sale, etc., etc.)
Then when Chateau and Estates stopped doing Bordeaux business they started charging like $350 for 2008 Ducru, etc., etc.
Right now wines like 2010 Lagrange are on the shelves just sitting there untouched for like $120.
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