Bordeaux Wine Enthusiasts

It was an email offer Arv. Don't know how much they had at that price.

This is one of those deals that may not be relevant to folks here, and (after you read my TN) isn't something I'm particularly enthralled with

Some Costoco's might have the 2010 de Villambis [Haut Medoc] for $10. It got a 90 pt rating from Neil Martin in a blind panel of the cru bourgoise in 2012. The notes are on his Wine Journal site, which can be accessed through eRP if you have a subscription, but its kind of bassackwardy to find them. $10 is objectively a low price for a good vintage c-b, and one with a rating ought to be worth more. I bought a bottle from Zachys a year ago for $18, and drank it over the last few nights with a prime ribeye steak and then grilled chicken. It's a leaner AFWE kind of effort, so I'm going to pass. (and my bottle was not the same source, but if anything I'd think Z would have a better supply chain, and I got it earlier)

Not my style, but if one wants to experiment, or is having a party, its hard to beat the price.

Just received a Crush email offer on the 2004 Pol Roger Winston Churchill which I think was a favorite of someone on this board, $199.95/per or $189.95/per on 3 or more.

http://www.crushwineco.com/current-spec ... hill-2004/

HDH has a half dozen or so of the 1982 Lanessan [Haut Medoc] for $30 if anyone is interested.

I have that estate across many vintages so I passed.

Arv,

2005 Lanessan is where in its drinking window? Not sure if I should open one to try or not.

A bottle a few months ago probably needed decanting/breathing/time which I neglected to do

http://www.bordeauxwineenthusiasts.com/ ... 70&p=48425

If you have a lot, consider a preview.

Thanks Arv. Only 4 bottles and typically these need time which your notes seem to confirm.

B21 has the 2006 La Vielle Cure [Fronsac] for $22.50 if one uses the ESAVE coupon code.

Have not had that year but the 2004 was solid enough, and LVC seems to generally be well regarded / consistent.

JJB is offering via email (not their website) the 1989 Broustet [Sauternes] for $31

Never had it, and I don't think it gets imported much, but 88, 89, 90 were a nice run of vintages for the sweet wines of the region.

Benchmark has these older BDX offered in their bin end sale, which runs til Monday

$55 per for the names below; under a case each in quantity

02 Latour a Pomerol
06 Gruaud Larose
86 Lafon Rochet
86 Chasse Spleen
82 La Grave a Pomerol

Their bin sale has very different terms & conditions than regular transactions with them.

I suggest reading those if one has potential interest.

Just received MacArthur's 2012 Bdx email and figured it was worth posting here

Just Arrived: 15 Great Values from Bordeaux

15 great values from the 2012 vintage in Bordeaux
All rated at least 90 points, and all under $50.00

Act Fast! Order NOW!

Chateau Beausejour Becot Score List Sale
58875 2012 Chateau Beausejour Becot St. Emilion
"A spectacular wine...One of the stars of the vintage "
92-95 WA 69.99 49.99 Add to Cart.

Chateau Blason D'Issan Score List Sale
67230 2012 Chateau Blason D'Issan Margaux
"A gorgeous second wine, the 2012 Blason d'Issan is beautifully sexy, soft, and creamy textured."
90 WA 31.99 25.99 Add to Cart.

Chateau Carbonnieux Red Score List Sale
67231 2012 Chateau Carbonnieux Red Pessac
"A very complex wine...medium to full-bodied, elegant, very pure with supple tannins."
91 WA 39.99 33.99 Add to Cart.

Chateau Clos Marsalette Score List Sale
64389 2012 Chateau Clos Marsalette Pessac
"Silky smooth, very sexy, complex and a total hedonistic, intellectual turn-on."
92 WA 34.99 27.99 Add to Cart.

Chateau D'Issan Score List Sale
65268 2012 Chateau D'Issan Margaux
"2012 d'Issan is a great success in the vintage, one of the superstars."
95 WA 59.99 48.95 Add to Cart.

Chateau Domaine de Chevalier Score List Sale
58879 2012 Chateau Domaine de Chevalier Pessac
"One of the stars of the vintage"
93 AG 69.99 49.95 Add to Cart.

Chateau Fonbel Score List Sale
65802 2012 Chateau Fonbel St Emilion
"This is a very pretty, impeccably balanced wine from the Vauthier family."
91 AG 24.99 19.99 Add to Cart.

Chateau Giscours Score List Sale
64386 2012 Chateau Giscours Margaux
"the 2012 is very nicely balanced throughout, with lovely persistence and plenty of harmony."
92 AG 59.99 47.95 Add to Cart.

Chateau Haut Batailley Score List Sale
67229 2012 Chateau Haut Batailley Pauillac
"Medium to full-bodied and impressively endowed...a classic 2012 that is full, rich and impressive, with beautifully sweet tannins."
92 WA 49.99 38.95 Add to Cart.

Chateau Haut Bergey Rouge Score List Sale
64399 2012 Chateau Haut Bergey Rouge Pessac
"Another brilliant effort from proprietress Helene Garcin"
90 WA 29.99 22.99 Add to Cart.

Chateau La Fleur Bouard Score List Sale
59061 2012 Chateau La Fleur Bouard Lalande Pomerol
"Rich and intensely concentrated, this beauty should drink well for a decade or more."
91 WA 39.99 29.99 Add to Cart.

Chateau Malartic Lagraviere Score List Sale
58885 2012 Chateau Malartic Lagraviere Pessac
"2012 Malartic Lagraviere is further evidence of how successful this vintage was in Pessac"
94 WA 49.99 39.99 Add to Cart.

Chateau Malescot St Exupery Score List Sale
65963 2012 Chateau Malescot St Exupery Margaux
"Another great wine in this vintage...full-bodied, stunning, multidimensional, and a compelling example of this vintage."
93 WA 59.99 49.99 Add to Cart.

Chateau Olivier Rouge Score List Sale
67837 2012 Chateau Olivier Rouge Pessac
"It is elegant, medium-bodied and best drunk over the next 12-14 years. Kudos to proprietor Jean-Jacques de Bethmann for upgrading the performance of this estate."
90 WS 39.99 34.99 Add to Cart.

Chateau Paveil de Luze Score List Sale
67839 2012 Chateau Paveil de Luze Margaux
"A powerful, authoritative wine, the 2012 Paveil de Luze is shaping up to be one of the under-the-radar gems of the year."
90 AG 29.99 25.99 Add to Cart.

Not Bordeaux, but Winebid has 32 bottles of 2003 Lagier Meredith Syrah available for just $30 a bottle (about $35 when adding in their commission). For those unfamiliar with L-M Syrah, it is a mountain Syrah made in the Mount Veeder part of the Napa Valley AVA. California but definitely not a simplistic fruit bomb -- I wouldn't call it Northern Rhone style, it is certainly American, but while it has some Napa fruit to it it is more complex, layered, and definitely more structured than the typical Cali Syrah. It has a very long aging curve and 2003 should be right in the wheelhouse now and for the next 5+ years. (Actually never had a L-M that I thought was too old).

In my experience Lagier-Meredith is a very good and reliable wine if you like Syrah and it is rare to find older vintages available for this kind of price. This is less than the current release price which is about $50.

Winebid is of course very hit or miss on provenance, but they note no condition issues at all with this, the photo looks good too. Also this is a lot of bottles and they say it comes from professional storage, might perhaps come from ITB source.

Here's a curiousity at HDH

2003 Terrey Gros Cailloux [St Julien] $24

One doesn't see this cru bourgoise much.

I think the last time I saw or had one was from MacArthurs maybe the 86 or 89 vintage.

There is free shipping on 6 bottles or more of few listed wines at european wine resource. I think Jim and others liked fleur cardinale and since it is one of the wines listed, both tax and shipping can be saved for some...

http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com ... 8ca141227f

I loved the 2010 Fleur Cardinale, it's hard to find now. I only have two bottles left.
Based on what I've seen of other 2012 right bankers, I would think Fleur Cardinale would be excellent in a vintage like that.

at the Washington DC Costco today I purchased 2 bottles of Costco's 2014 1er cru Chablis for $15pb. Trying one tonight. Also picked up a 2008 Amarone for $27 but I doubt it's available nationwide. Tomorrow night for that one with prime rib eyes.

Man some of these prices make me super envious.....cheap/cheap by comparison to Canadian standards. I'd be buying if I had the opportunity on the other side of the border. Thanks for the disenablement!

I've been impressed with MacArthur, excellent selection, competitive prices, and reliable service.

Always enjoyed going there, no hassle, leafy neighborhood. Except the time the nasty meter maid gave me a ticket after I had put a quarter in the meter to no effect and came out just minutes later. Jumped the price of my case of wine by 20%.

I remember driving down to DC for a convention a few years back.
I told Stuart I would pick up a bottle of 1986 d'Yquem at Sherry Lehman at their old midtown east location for one of his Thursday night dinners.
The price was like $350.
I parked on the street for like 4 minutes as I rushed in to get the bottle, only to come out with like a $120 parking ticket….

2008 Rauzan Segla [Margaux] $50 at HDH, about a case left as of this morning.

Tempted, but passed after some consideration.

This is kind of interesting

2003 Capbern Gasqueton [St Estephe] $20.50

https://www.superwinesales.com/wines/Ch ... w5358714cr

This is an estate next to Calon Segur, and was vinifed by the crazy lady in charge back then. (The 2003 C-S is excellent of course)

Parker likely didn't care for it (nothing in eRP, but probably presented whenever he tried Calon Segur), but NM has liked recent vintages.

My hunch is that 2003 and St Estephe worked out fine. I do not recall tasting it, but of the many unrated 2003 St Estephe's, I don't really recall disappointments. Even Meyney was ok.

Ownership of the estate has changed and some pallets of this seem to have showed up in New Jersey, where a few retailers have it.

The name has been changed too nowadays, so its a bit of an orphan, for all the above reasons.

The universe of sub $50 2003 St Estephe's is pretty small, even sub $100 ones.

People are reluctant to sell them, or have been drinking them up.

Whereas there is no shortage of 2003 right banks, or southern Rhones, where one constantly sees offers.

Yeah, but most 2003 right bank wines suck, and stefanJr claims that all southern Rhones other than Beaucastel suck.

Yes, that's what I mean. I agree those two categories suck, and not surprisingly, there are lots of 03 St Em and 03 CNDP on the market. (My ones were drunk or disposed of a long time ago)

But the 03 St Estephe's are lovely, and one rarely sees them, especially the QPR level types.

That's why I was pointing out that offer on the 03 Capbern's.

Even Meyney was adequate/functional/palatable that vintage.

Sokolin has a couple of 1990 Bourgneuf [Pomerol] $70

http://www.sokolin.com/1990-bourgneuf-68018-750-ai

It was a very good example, although its been some time since its been tasted.

They also have the 1990 Latour a Pomerol [Pomerol] for $125

Not sure if that latter one qualifies as a 'deal' or not, but not widely available.

K&L has a few of the 2008 Couspaude [St Emilion] for $25, which is a low price. Normally around $45, and the best vintages can be more, ranging up to $65.

I had the 98 some months back

http://www.bordeauxwineenthusiasts.com/ ... ude#p48190

It's likely to be a real, B+ level St Em, for $25ish -- which is a fair enough deal.

There are very few of these, but perhaps someone here wants one

2005 Latour a Pomerol [Pomerol] $80

at HDH

It's obviously a pain to do a token search on either "Latour" or "Pomerol" on their website, but it's there as of a few minutes ago.

I've never had it but that year is regarded as a legendary example.

FWIW the 2015 is being offered EP for $100

K&L has a few mags of the 98 Haut Bailly [Pessac Leognan] $140

Winex has some mags of the 00 Latour Martillac [Pessac Leognan] $110

Those are from email offers today, so some of you perhaps already saw them.

Figured I would post this here as well. Best Buy Liquors in Brooklyn NY has the 2004 Felsina Chianti Classico Rancia Reserva for $32.99/btl. While I do not know when this was purchased or if on close out or not, I can confirm that the bottles do have the Polaner import labels on the back and appear to be pristine. Happy hunting while it lasts!

K&L has a little bit of the 1990 Chantegrive rouge [Graves] for $30.
RP had some regard for it on release, but didn't think it would endure.

Also TCWC has a long list of Bordeaux being discounted IF one buys 12 or more, mixed cases are ok.
There are some real deals on the list...but one has to buy a slug of swill all at once.

PJ's has one of their rare sales going on for the next few days
Spend $250, get $20 back (use code 2016MD20)
Spend $350, get $30 back (use code 2016MD30)
Spend $550, get $50 back (use code 2016MD50)
I have found them somewhat harder to deal with over the years, but they do carry some Spanish wines that no one else stocks.

Cameron Hughes is having one of their rare free shipping, no minimums, days. Coupon code is FREE.
I just used it to sweep out my various rewards points that had been there. They still have some 2013 Cabs in stock.
Felt a little guilty using it, but we buy (and drink) a lot of their stuff... WB's probably get tired of me cheerleading for them....

And B21 is having a 10% off sale this wknd. Code is ESAVE. With their low cost shipping it can be an 'ok' deal but I find the web site to be vexing.

Zachys free shipping code is MEMORIAL but need to spend $250, and obviously their prices are rarely competitive if one comparison shops.

It seems to me that a good chunk of Pomerol's producers are quite aspirational with their 2015 offerings.

• Certan de May $120 vs $75ish for 2010
  Latour a Pomerol $100 vs less or equal for 2005
  La Grave a Pomerol $50 vs. basically the same for 82, 90, 05.
  Lafleur Gazin $45 vs. $33 for 09
  Bourgneuf $49....not sure what to compare it to
  Petit Village $70...same as above

I love the 'come hither' emails I'm getting that are advising that the vintage is 'selling out' in Bordeaux.

Between here and WB, there's a pretty good cross section of consumers, albeit Anglo centric, and I don't get the sense from the group here that people are stepping up.

To my mind however the prices reflect the new reality that the Bordelais do NOT need the risk sharing nature of futures sales anymore. To wit:

The typical grand cru classe estate is corporate, well capitalized, and has access to lines of credit so that even if there is a disaster vintage (like what some villages in Beaujolais might suffer with the weekend's hailstorms) they can plow through, without needing to get some cashflow, by selling on the cheap. They can absorb a riskier earnings stream, if gets them more over the long run, and their strong financial position removes their prior need to hedge.

To me the era of getting a deal by paying up front is withering away. It makes sense, and I understand.

=======

These seemed like ok deals on younger wines in the context of todays market, all at K&L

2000 Dalem [Fronsac] $22 I drank a lot of the 1998 in its first decade. Good four square right bank.
2010 d'Aiguillhe Querre [Cotes de Castillon] $13 That's a price that makes it a quaffer.
2010 Bonalgue [Pomerol] $35 they've gotten restocked on this. It's terrific.
2008 Laforge [St Emilion] $35 never had it, but its a well regarded Jon Maltus St Emilion, with everything that entails. Others advertising it for less, do not have it stock.

The latter three are not widely available.

If you feel like you need to see why aging Lanessan works out, they also have the 1996 for $25, only $7 more than it was on release. It was good a few years ago, mine are finished, so no recent data points, but it could be instructive if one wants to see how similar years might end up.

Happy Memorial Day.

Right in the midst of Bdx 2015 futures the Chicago Wine Company ("TCWC") just emailed out an offer on the board favorite 2010 Cantemerle at the lowest pricing in the country enjoy!

2010 Chateau Cantemerle, Haut Medoc (750ml) - $42.50 per Bottle (750ml)
Special price: $39.95 per bottle with the purchase of 2 or more cases

Delivery: Some in stock and more arriving later this summer

"94+ out of 100…The wine needs a good 7-10 years of cellaring and should keep for 30 more years, but this is the finest Cantemerle I have encountered in my professional career of tasting young vintages (dating back 34 years now). Stunningly deep ruby/purple, with a beautiful nose of spring flowers intermixed with perfumed raspberry and blueberry notes, it exhibits a sort of cool-climate character. Broad, rich and intense on the palate, the wine has plenty of tannins, but they are sweet and well-integrated. Everything is delicately entwined into this beautiful, medium to full-bodied, dense purple wine, which shows stunning character and a prodigious potential for development. This is definitely a major sleeper of the vintage and even better than I thought from barrel." - Robert M. Parker, Jr., Wine Advocate (Feb 2013)

K&L has a magnum of the 1985 Cos d'Estournel [St Estephe] at $260

and if one's pocketbook isn't as strong as their love for older St Estephe's then

HDH has an 88 Phelan Segur [St Estephe] for $35

I have always loved the label colors of Phelan Segur, and once had my flat painted exactly to match - yellow cream walls, claret trim.



The deliciously evil Hannibal Lecter once enjoyed the 1992 of this in one of his movies.

Implausibly they showed him on an airplane, with a full bottle, dining on someone's brain

Wonder if the chateau solicited that product placement. In Silence of the Lambs he merely enjoyed human liver and fava beans "with a nice Chianti."

Which wine would you pair with human organs or tissue? How about Calon Segur with stewed heart? Haut Brion with boiled lights? (the blanc of course.)

A good malbec with ribs?

For the vampires out there, Egri Bikavér with Tiết canh made from front court NBA finalists.

Random Friday Deals

K&L has a few older items

99 de Pez [St Estephe] $15, about a case. underwhelming critical reviews although most other vintages seem 'ok'
05 Malmaison [Moulis] magnum $45, 3 left. ok 85 pt RP reviews.
I characterize the above as 'deals' partly from the aging/development that's already been done for the consumer, rather than the concept that these are 90 pt wines available for 85 pt prices.

Winex has the 12 Blason d'Issan [Margaux] for $23 which is well regarded (90 RP) and probably a decent way to sample Emmanuel Cruse's work if one is impatient for his grand vin.
They also have a little of the 12 Clos du Clocher [Pomerol] for $35, also rated highly (92 RP) which is not so easy to find later on.
Perhaps the 12's are starting to get nudged out?

Lastly TCWC has a few of the 12 Domaine de Chevalier rouge [Pessac Leognan] for $47.50. Not my favorite, but I know the estate has some fans.
Those of you with a TotalWine near you might be able to slightly beat that price by cunning coupon application. They probably have that stocked in most stores.

Flickinger is Chicago is offering up the 2010 Meyney as a (dreaded) prearrival for $28. NB They have minimum order sizes.

JJB has a couple of potentially interesting, older items in stock

2001 Moulinet [Pomerol] $26
1983 La Grave a Pomerol [Pomerol] $36

Good supplies of both.

Realistically I would not expect them to be more than 'B' level wines, but there can be plenty of enjoyment in mature wines.

K&L has one magnum of the 1998 Domaine de Chevalier (rouge) [Pessac Leognan] for $110

It's a well regarded wine by most professionals however the price setters of RP/NM are only B+ on it, but its an attractive price, esp considering the format.

WineLibrary in NJ has these on a wknd sale. There are some free shipping codes attached too - EARLYSHIP, and JULY2016

2006 Le Moulin [Pomerol] $37
2008 Laforge [St Emilion] $30
2014 G de Guiraud [?] $15

I think the last one is a dry white, but not entitled to the Sauternes AOC since its not sweet.

The SO likes Le Moulin, and that's a startlingly good price, so I ordered one.