Bordeaux Wine Enthusiasts

Bordeaux 2016 revisited

Farr Vintners held a tasting of the 2016 vintage in exactly the same hall in Victoria, London, that Berry Brothers & Rudd did in June 2017.

The wines now in bottle had shut down a little, but the quality of this vintage shines through. I bought heavily into this vintage and glad I did based on tonight’s showing.

Bear in mind none of the first growths showed up, neither did LLC, Cos, Montrose, Ducru, Palmer, LMHB, Lafleur and some of the other expensive RBs...neither did Yquem or Climens show up.

The dry whites are nothing to write home about, the best of the bunch was SHL, typically exotic.

The sweet wines were just charming, but were tried at the end of the evening.

It is more of a left bank than right bank vintage for reds but the quality across the board is just fabulous.

In St-Emilion the tannins can be quite ferocious even for Canon, but the wines have a good structure. Figeac was the pick, and clearly first growth quality.

Pomerol was generally even better, with beautifully balanced wines, at the same time precocious and structured. La Conseillante was sublime as it was 15 months ago, but Gazin shone as did several others.

In Pessac the pick was Haut-Bailly, followed by DDC. Pape Clement didn’t shine as much and SHL came across as a little over-extracted.

In Margaux the clear star was Brane Cantenac, followed by Rauzan Segla, followed by Giscours.

The sweet spot in this vintage is St-Julien. And Pauillac.

Leoville-Barton is a cool fruited masterpiece, Poyferre more exotic with super linear blueberry fruit, Lagrange had a superb fruit driven palate, and Beychevelle had the most sublime texture.

Talbot excelled too and I was glad to reacquaint myself and welcome back Jean-Michel Laporte who hosted us at BWE and took a spell out.

There was virtually no representation from St-Estephe....my interpretation is perhaps the wines were so great they didn’t need to show up.

In Pauillac Alfred/Pontet Canet didn’t show up, but I had the enormous pleasure of having a foursome: Comtesse, Lynch, Baron and GPL. In that order.

Boy were they good. The Comtesse set an incredibly high bar which Lynch nearly matched. The Lynch is simply brilliant but a little more masculine and brawny than the Comtesse. The Baron was a class act too, more in the Lynch mould. Gun to head give me the Lynch. But these are as good as their respective 1989s. What I didn’t expect was how stunning the GPL was...at least a match for its flight mates...some one buy a bottle for Jim. This is the greatest GPL ever made (..probably...)

Finally two Haut-Medoc wines which I bought cases of really shone brightly: Cantermerle and La Lagune. I would venture to say La Lagune made an extraordinary wine in 2016. Perfectly restrained and judged, but stefan would be proud of this wine.

The sweet spot in this vintage is St-Julien. And Pauillac.

Baby doll.

I've been thinking of buying one bottle each of the Figeac and Conseillante, Ian, sounds like they are thumbs up despite the fact that the sweet spot is "over in Bordeaux"?

I've been planning on buying multiple cases of left bankers, 2016 being my last vintage that I plan on buying in quantity. Your descriptions provide even more enablement.

I give up. Time to buy 2016. I'll just have to live longer than I planned. La Lagune will probably be my first purchase.

Go! Go! Go! stefan!

My first, and only purchase so far is Haut Bailly. Might need to look at a few more.

Comte Flaneur wrote: Talbot excelled too

I'm mostly done stocking my cellar at the end of this year, but I'll be in for at least a 6 pack of Talbot.
Thanks for sharing your experience.

Debating buying -- I'm almost 50. Not sure it's a great idea...

What's a vintage comparison? 2005?

I'm 62.
I quit after 2009.
And quit again each year thereafter.
I'm in for 2 cases of 2016s so far.
Swore I was done.
Now not so sure.

62? 50???!??? I am 73. If I had stopped buying in my 50s I would have nothing to drink now. I figure this new monster style of Bordeaux will be great for drinking when I am in my 90s with almost no taste buds and olfactory glands left. If I adjourn to That Great Tasting Room in the Sky before then, well, I have Lucie, my children and partners, and grandchildren who will enjoy toasting me.

Thanks, Ian, and also Alex, for getting me to think about these young vintages.

I’m 47 and I’ve bought zero 2016s so far. But I will eventually. I want to try some beforehand (I’ll be at the UGC in January), and now GPL, Cantemerle and La Lagune are high on my list for when these hit the shelves.

Has the date for the Denver UGC been announced? I looked a few weeks ago and didn't find it. Looking forward to it....

danzur wrote:Has the date for the Denver UGC been announced? I looked a few weeks ago and didn't find it. Looking forward to it....

I don't think the official UGC tour includes Denver...Here are the official ones, but there might be unofficial retail UGC style limited tastings during that time...I will be attending the LA one...

MIAMI - Friday, January 18

NEW YORK - Monday, January 21

CHICAGO - Wednesday, January 23

LOS ANGELES - Thursday, January 24

SAN FRANCISCO - Friday, January 25

Hi Comte.

Did you tried Saint Pierre? I bought few bottles lately and would appreciate your thoughts.

Also have Beychevelle, La Lagune, Malescot and Domaine de Chevalier coming next year.

Nic

Hi Nic

St-Pierre slipped my net unfortunately.

Beychevelle and Lagune are fab...DDC I find a bit generic in modern vintages but it is a very good wine.

Olivier Bernard gave a little speech singing the praises of the vintage...great texture, no greenness, but no over-ripeness either.

Shoot, I was told that the UGC would be in Denver again like last year (or the some grand tasting of 2016, I didn’t go last year but some wine buddies did). There is a Fete du Bordeaux on the schedule at the Westin in January 2019 featuring some 2016s, which is being co-organized by Applejack Wines. If there’s no UGC in Denver, I would be up for this Fete (Tom and I went to the same event in 1/2011 featuring some 2008s).

Ian what a treat to get to taste them now and great job conveying your impressions. It is definitely feeling like another must buy vintage but I will wait until the UGC in January to confirm as the cost of entry is indeed several notches higher than the preceding vintage(s) ...

Having tasted this vintage twice I am pretty happy with my stash of 2016s, even though the prices haven’t moved yet, not that I would expect them to. This is what I got:

Beychevelle - 6 bottles and 12 halves - 96/97 points
Brane Cantenac - 12 bottles - 96
Cantermerle - 24 halves - 93
Conseillante - 6 bottles - 98/99
Figeac - 30 bottles - 97/98 - I am exposing myself to the risk Figeac is upgraded and doubles in price
Gruaud-Larose - 6 bottles - 94/95
Haut-Bailly - 6 bottles - 95/96
La Lagune - 12 bottles - 95
Leoville-Barton - 6 bottles - 95/96
Pichon Lalande - 6 bottles - 97/98
SHL - 12 bottles - 92-96 - the only one I had doubts about last night but it was at the end of the evening and the sample was warm. It came across as a bit extracted a clumsy compared to some of the others, but 15 months ago it was a 96

138 bottles of which 36 are halves so 120 bottle equivalents.

Pretty happy with that lot, the only one I think I should add now is GPL. Would be nice to have Lynch and Baron but they are expensive of course and Comtesse is the pick of the three.

Sheesh! in direct response to the above 2016 haul.

Holy shit, 30 bottles of Figeac?
I'm saving my nickels for one bottle.

Lowest price for 2016 Figeac in the USA is in Austin, TX, where it is "only" $194. OTOH, La Lagune can be purchased for $42 (maybe fake, but it is $50 at K&L). I like Figeac a lot, but I love La Lagune more.

That is a very good price for La Lagune, and outstanding value for money.

The method in my madness with the Figeac is to expose myself to the risk that at some point it is upgraded to first growth equivalent status, now that steps have been taken to improve the product. If that happens, I think the price will double. I would not rate the subjective probability of it happening at more than 20-25% in the foreseeable future, but it seems like a good risk-reward bet, and I am unlikely to lose if nothing happens. So the intention is to keep six and sell the other two cases of 12.

Probably better than my investments, Ian. I guess you have it in bond, which makes it easier to sell down the road, yes?

Yes everything is ib, in case I fall on hard times.

What does in bond mean in practice?

I believe that in bond means you haven’t taken physical possession of the wine and you haven’t paid VAT. And I think with the major merchants, the wine is stored securely and under proper conditions. I’ve always wondered if there is a fee for storage.

Sounds like cryptocurrency.

Now these are the types of arrangements that allow wine stock to be invested as part of the investment portfolio in the UK? Do they still allow that over there?

Wow, 30 bottles of Figeac? I felt guilty about getting 2 bottles. My biggest play was Lynch-Bages at a 6-pk plus 2 mags and a 375.

DavidG wrote:I believe that in bond means you haven’t taken physical possession of the wine and you haven’t paid VAT. And I think with the major merchants, the wine is stored securely and under proper conditions. I’ve always wondered if there is a fee for storage.

That’s right David, and yes you pay an annual storage fee. When in bond the wine is a liquid asset in the investment sense. When taken out of bond it becomes a much less liquid asset, especially if you sell back to a merchant who has to add vat to the next buyer. Out of bond it is best to sell privately peer to peer. However when the wine is in bond you have credit risk if the merchant goes bust, but you should be high up in the pecking order of creditors.

I wish we had a system like IB here. It would make wine more of a good investment asset, and it would also make it safer to buy at auctions...the American auction system for checking provenance, etc. is a joke. They send a truck out, look at like the corner in somebody's garage where they keep their wine, and then write "consignor is original owner" (as if they knew!) or "stored in private cellar" or some such BS for provenance.

Surprising that auction wine is generally in as good condition as it is.

Ah, so another benefit of in bond is a paper trail proving provenance. That makes a lot of sense, and of course it makes it much easier to sell, etc. How long do investors usually keep wine in bond? I mean, does one regularly do this for 10+ years or is it more typically a faster turn around?

Personally I don't think the ib practice would really be beneficial to the non financial purveyor of wine.

Wine would become something with drinking value and increased investment value.

I don't think that's good for the bona fide end user.

marcs wrote:I wish we had a system like IB here. It would make wine more of a good investment asset, and it would also make it safer to buy at auctions...the American auction system for checking provenance, etc. is a joke. They send a truck out, look at like the corner in somebody's garage where they keep their wine, and then write "consignor is original owner" (as if they knew!) or "stored in private cellar" or some such BS for provenance.

Surprising that auction wine is generally in as good condition as it is.

Indeed. I was palmed off as a "Colorado Gentleman" to some unsuspecting, likely Chinese purchaser.

"You pays your money and you takes your chances" is the rule in the USA. We cannot even blame Trump for that.

Ian,

No surprise for me with La Lagune - it's climbing fast up. One of the best value for money in Bordeaux right now and not that many people have discovered it. Even some big wine writers don't seem to know how really excellent this property is right now. I'm pretty sure that it's made a stunner wine in 2018.

How lucky is Maylis de Laborderie, La Lagune's cellarmaster? Ok, she started with extremely difficult 2013, but afterwards hot streak of 2014-15-16-17 and 2018.

Was in Bx 7-16th October and found way to Haut Marbuzet. Great 2016! You have really great choice in Saint-Estephe for small money - Meyney, Phelan Segur, Haut Marbuzet and Cos Labory!!

Excellent right now, GBF? It has been excellent at least since 1961. Even the 2000, which I panned early on, has come around and is now a pleasure to drink. Perhaps the humble Haut-Medoc AOC designation it sports helps to keep the price down.

greatbxfreak wrote:.
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Great 2016! You have really great choice in Saint-Estephe for small money - Meyney, Phelan Segur, Haut Marbuzet and Cos Labory!!

Cos Labory - Wow, one doesn't hear the name that often....

stefan wrote:Excellent right now, GBF? It has been excellent at least since 1961. Even the 2000, which I panned early on, has come around and is now a pleasure to drink. Perhaps the humble Haut-Medoc AOC designation it sports helps to keep the price down.

+1.

And I have reservations about the change in style in the 04 and 05. Not had the 14-16 though, will try when I see one.

stefan,

I think you're exaggerating a bit.

La Lagune has been much better since Caroline Frey took over winemaking in 2004.

Further improvement happened in 2010, while 2015 and 2016 are more precise and pure wines than before.

For me, this property has gone a level up in recent vintages.

I don't have an opinion about that, Izak, as I have only tasted rather than drunk any classified wines from as recently as 2010. But as far as exaggerating goes, I will point out that it was The Bob, not stefan, who wrote in two editions of his book that La Lagune should be promoted to second growth status.

Incidentally, it is amusing that in the next edition of his book, The Bob said that La Lagune "performs below its official status". But he was dead wrong about the 1996, rating it 86 points, and, like me, misjudged the potential of the 2000 (not that the 2000 is comparable to the 1996 or 1990 or 1989).

I look forward to trying my 2010 La Lagune in seven--ten years.