The most underrated Bordeaux — Chateau Gloria

[Blanquito]

Sipping on a lovely, cool fruited, minty-herbal, high toned 1996 Gloria with dinner. Quite Graves-y in profile and simply delicious. Fully mature to boot, but will hold here for a long while.

Many inexpensive claret have (at various times) received beaucoup online love — Sociando, Lanessan, Lafon Rochet, the Meyneys of yesteryear, even now lowly and forgotten petit chateaux, cru bourgeois and Bordeaux Superior like Charmail, Reignac, Tour Haut Caussan, Lilian Ladouys, etc. — but we seem to collectively take the charming, true and always fairly priced Chateau Gloria for granted.

Any other candidates for systematic, under-the-radar neglect?

[JimHow]

That 2002 Gloria that you and I scored on was a beauty as well.

[Blanquito]

That 2002 Gloria that you and I scored on was a beauty as well.

I reached for one of those lovely 02s (I still have 3-4) but to my surprise I pulled out a 1996 from my Gloria pile instead! I forgot I had one of these.

[stefan]

I dunno about underrated, but we do tend to take Gloria for granted. WineSearcherPro says the average price of 2016 Gloria is $53 while for Meyney it is $38.

[William P]

I agree Patrick, Gloria is overlooked. It's been a friend since '82. I was lucky to pick up six of the 2015 for $32.00 a bottle a few months ago. I haven't seen the 2016 around my neck of the woods yet.

[AKR]

Yes I like it, but don't think its particularly cheap any more.

Their label remains beautiful as always!

[Blanquito]

Yes I like it, but don't think its particularly cheap any more.

Their label remains beautiful as always!

Yes true, prices have crept up. I got the 09 for $35 just after release, but it’s usually above $50 nowadays to be sure. I guess I was thinking about the auction and consignment market being comparatively cheap still.

[AKR]

Dale and I had a bottle of the 82 at maybe age 30 out here. It was still singing. Would never have expected that....

[marcs]

I dunno about underrated, but we do tend to take Gloria for granted. WineSearcherPro says the average price of 2016 Gloria is $53 while for Meyney it is $38.

Fifty bucks is a lot of money, right there you have your reason Gloria doesn't get more love. Is it better than Branaire Ducru, Brane Cantenac, Grand Mayne, etc. etc.? There are a LOT of excellent Bordeaux available for $50. Grand Puy Lacoste in a lot of years is $50. Hell, you could get 2014 Leoville Barton for $50 on first tranche futures. Then you have wines like Sociando and Lagrange usually in the $40-45 range.

[OrlandoRobert]

I dunno about underrated, but we do tend to take Gloria for granted. WineSearcherPro says the average price of 2016 Gloria is $53 while for Meyney it is $38.

Fifty bucks is a lot of money, right there you have your reason Gloria doesn't get more love. Is it better than Branaire Ducru, Brane Cantenac, Grand Mayne, etc. etc.? There are a LOT of excellent Bordeaux available for $50. Grand Puy Lacoste in a lot of years is $50. Hell, you could get 2014 Leoville Barton for $50 on first tranche futures. Then you have wines like Sociando and Lagrange usually in the $40-45 range.

Bingo!

I do have 2014 and 2010, but yea, the pricing is an issue relative to its peer group. That said, it is a really good wine.

[Blanquito]

I haven’t followed it closely, but my impression is that Gloria was priced more like Cantemerle and du Tertre (and yes, Branaire Ducru) until recently. Leoville Barton, GPL and wines of that ilk have always been a good bit more expensive.

[hautbrionlover]

I had the 2016 Gloria at a UGC tasting last winter (admittedly only a taste) and thought it competed with more expensive wines in quality.

[Comte Flaneur]

I think I finished all my Gloria. But I do remember picking up the 1996 and 2002 for a song at that place on Long Island when I was living in CT.

[Blanquito]

Minor side note: I checked and I paid $35 for the 2014 Gloria. The 2014 Leoville Barton was $55-60, and the 2014 GPL $55.

[Chateau Vin]

Sipping on a lovely, cool fruited, minty-herbal, high toned 1996 Gloria with dinner. Quite Graves-y in profile and simply delicious. Fully mature to boot, but will hold here for a long while.

Many inexpensive claret have (at various times) received beaucoup online love — Sociando, Lanessan, Lafon Rochet, the Meyneys of yesteryear, even now lowly and forgotten petit chateaux, cru bourgeois and Bordeaux Superior like Charmail, Reignac, Tour Haut Caussan, Lilian Ladouys, etc. — but we seem to collectively take the charming, true and always fairly priced Chateau Gloria for granted.

Any other candidates for systematic, under-the-radar neglect?

Gloria has kicked it up a notch, but unfortunately the prices in recent vintages for Gloria have also climbed up. If not underrated, maybe under appreciated a bit with all the growth properties of St Julien. With regards to 2016 Gloria, here were my impressions from UGC tasting...

"
.
.
ST JULIEN: The AOC fared well across the board. My favorite was Beycheville and Leo Barton. Barton seemed to have longer ageability compared to Beycheville for this vintage with more power, tannins and expressive with cassis on the nose. But Beychevelle showed better finesse and elegance with flowers, plums and cherries. Both wines are my top choices for this AOC, but I liked the element of elegance in Beychevelle.

I was not disappointed from Gruaud Larose, but I think it did not rise up to the levels of both Leovilles and Beychevelle. It showed a little thin for me, but enjoyed well. I felt Branaire has a bit more acid than I would prefer. I liked Talbot better than Branaire.

It was the glorious Gloria that moved me. Had earth, smoke and cassis. And who can refuse the qpr it offers? With Gloria upping their game in recent years, I think it will soon join the pantheon of WOTY at BWE. I will be looking for some of this 2016 version...
.
.
"

As per your question, the other property that comes to my mind and producing some real good claret these days is Poujeaux...

[Blanquito]

It was the glorious Gloria that moved me. Had earth, smoke and cassis. And who can refuse the qpr it offers? With Gloria upping their game in recent years, I think it will soon join the pantheon of WOTY at BWE. I will be looking for some of this 2016 version...

That is some nice praise for our modest Chateau Gloria! I skipped trying the 2016 Gloria at the UGC, sounds like a mistake. I too thought St. Julien was the sweet spot in that vintage.

[brodway]

Any follow up on the 2016 Gloria? have seen bottles floating around at $45 and thinking of putting some away based on this last note and other notes suggesting a very successful effort

[JCNorthway]

I've heard good things about this wine, and that is a pretty attractive price.

[Ianjaig]

"As per your question, the other property that comes to my mind and producing some real good claret these days is Poujeaux…"

Agreed, was thinking this as I read the other posts. Big fan of Poujeaux.

[AlexR]

Yes, Gloria is fairly Under-rated. I like the wine because A it is reasonably-priced and B it tends to show well young well, even though it can age harmoniously.

It belongs the Triaud family, who also own 4th growth Ch. Saint Pierre.
Just think: nothing, legally, would prevent the entire productio of Gloria from being incorporated into the grand cru classé...

Both Gloria and Saint Pierre are great success stories due the mytical Henri Martin, also a founder of the Commanderie du Bontemps, who once fulfilled the role of the Union des Grands crus, holding tastings around the world.

Saint-Pierre is somewhat of a sleepier in my opinion too. I'm waiting to see if the bottles of 2009 in the cellar deliver on the promise I saw when tasting the wine en primeur.

As for other "Under the radar" Bordeaux worthy of mention, that would take an entire book!

Best regards,
Alex R.

[brodway]

thank you for the responses. actually Saint Pierre is also on my buy list. what i've read it sounds as if Saint Pierre possesses some of the smooth/creamy/round and dense fruit that seems to be characteristic for the vintage. Have not seen any locally nor can identify any shop with competitive pricing. at $45 i would be a buyer of Saint Pierre as well.

[brodway]

Gloria now offered at $42.94 at 2 retailers...snagged a case yesterday.....very reasonable shipping charge...can't think of a better wine for the buck....although eyeing the Tour Saint Christophe Jim mentioned in recent tasting

[robert goulet]

Anyone have any feedback on Moulin de la Rose? I saw it here local

[Chateau Vin]

Gloria now offered at $42.94 at 2 retailers...snagged a case yesterday.....very reasonable shipping charge...can't think of a better wine for the buck....although eyeing the Tour Saint Christophe Jim mentioned in recent tasting

Nice haul, brodway... As others can also attest, it's a great wine for a very good price...If you can, be on the lookout for some good deal on 16 Beychevelle. When I tasted, it was elegant and had great finesse...

[brodway]

Didn't realize Beychevelle was fetching $100 a bottle...Haut Bailly also at $120....those 2 most likely exceeded expectations...i just can't possibly come to terms that Beychevelle and Leoville Poyferre are trading at same price

[AKR]

What a coincidence that this is the top thread at the moment. I was making a mushroom risotto tonight with bacon crumbles so I started with an older 2001 St Cosme Cote Rotie while preparing it. The wine was too thin and lean for my tastes, especially for the hour plus I spent kitchen puttering and cooking. (This syrah is a food wine & needs something fatty)

So I pulled a 1996 Gloria held from release, back when I had the declasse habit of marking my wine labels with Parker scores and 'when to drink' timeframes, which I poured right into a Rhone stem. Somehow this bottle had eluded my (weak!) organizational ambitions, and evaded its 2012 'expiration'! This must be one of the older wines in my possession (measured by actual years cellared) assuming I must have bought this 1997 or 1998 when I had the motivation to label things. This Medoc is drinking great today, from an era when 12.5% abv was plenty. It has a cedary, hazelnutty nose, a ruby robe with bricking edges, and a great palate. Just the right balance between cranberry fruit, a little zip, and all polished up resolved tannin. This is really good, and I'd give it an A-, which is probably a notch higher than it might have been a decade ago. Time has been good to this St Julien.

picture of my marked up label + dog treat jar (hopefully it works)

https://photos.app.goo.gl/brPZqbBAgrmazVNw6

[Blanquito]

I just passed on a 6 pack of the 96 Gloria for $60 each. Now Mongo sad. And I had been so proud of my restraint, what was I thinking?!

[OrlandoRobert]

I just passed on a 6 pack of the 96 Gloria for $60 each. Now Mongo sad. And I had been so proud of my restraint, what was I thinking?!

Aye Cono, Papi.

WTF were you thinking?