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2005 Chateau Charmail (Haut-Medoc)
$ 24.99"Another fabulous sleeper of the vintage, the 2005 Charmail is a blend of 45% Merlot, 35% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. There are 10,000 cases of this exquisite, sexy, deep purple-hued effort. It displays plenty of creme de cassis notes intermixed with notions of licorice, charcoal, and cedar, sweet fruit, round, ripe tannins, an endearing opulence, and a long finish. Drink it over the next decade." 90 points - The Wine Advocate, Issue 178
2007 Wine - White ANY Varietal France ANY Rhone
2005 Chateau Cos Labory (St Estephe)
$ 39.99"One of the finest wines I have tasted from this estate, the 2005 Cos Labory exhibits a deep ruby/purple hue, aromas of road tar, blackberries, creme de cassis, forest floor, smoke, and graphite, medium to full body, and abundant tannin. It is a complete, dense effort with high tannins in the finish. Once the tannins melt away, it should represent an outstanding example of the vintage. Anticipated maturity: 2015-2030." 89+ points - The Wine Advocate, Issue 170
2005 Chateau Malartic Lagraviere (Pessac-Leognan)
$ 49.99"Perhaps the strongest wine I have ever tasted from Malartic Lagravière, the 2005 has a dense ruby/purple color and a wonderfully sweet nose of crème de cassis, graphite, and soil undertones. Medium-bodied., smoky, with classic scorched earth, Graves-like aromatics and flavors, this wine displays impeccable winemaking, with pure fruit, medium body, and gorgeously long, rich flavors and moderate levels of tannin. The wine should be relatively drinkable in 3-5 years and last for at least two decades or more. This is possibly the finest Malartic Lagravière ever made. Anticipated maturity: 2011-2025." 92 points - The Wine Advocate, Issue 176 "There's beautiful blackberry and toasty oak on the nose, with hints of licorice and meat. Full-bodied, with velvety tannins and a dark chocolate, fresh herb and currant aftertaste. Best after 2013. 8,330 cases made." 90 points - Wine Spectator, March 31, 2008
2005 Chateau Batailley (Pauillac)
$ 49.99"Renowned Bordeaux oenologist, Denis Dubourdiu, oversees the winemaking at all of the properties owned by Philippe Casteja, which includes Batailley. Their 2005, one of the finest efforts this estate has yet produced, is backward, tannic, and almost primordial in style. Built for the long-term, it offers plenty of sweet creme de cassis fruit intermixed with smoke, cedar, and earth notes. Full-bodied and powerful, it is an old style Pauillac with well-integrated acidity as well as sweet but elevated tannins. Give it 7-8 years of bottle age, and drink it between 2015-2035." 91 points - The Wine Advocate, Issue 176 "Has licorice, currant and fresh cèpe on the nose. Full and silky, with lots of sweet tobacco and berry character and plenty of ripe Cabernet fruit. Long and caressing. Best after 2012. 20,000 cases made." 90 Points - Wine Spectator, March 31, 2008
Chateau Clos Des Jacobins 2005 Bordeaux
$ 54.98This may be the finest wine I have ever tasted from Clos des Jacobins. Proprietor Bernard Decoster and consulting winemaker Hubert de Bouard have fashioned a magical blend of 75% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc as well as a touch of Cabernet Sauvignon. An opulent, flamboyant nose of incense, forest floor, creme de cassis, pain grille, cappuccino, and licorice is followed by a fleshy, opulent, heady, atypically showy St.-Emilion. Although there is plenty of sweet tannin, the wine's precociousness and flamboyant, even ostentatious style suggests it should be drunk over the next 12-15+ years.
2005 Chateau Boyd Cantenac (Margaux)
$ 59.99"This chateau, which is often under the radar (production is only 5,500-6,000 cases), has fashioned a terrific, inky/blue/purple-hued 2005 with a beautiful bouquet of spring flowers, creme de cassis, pain grille, and blueberries. Powerful and concentrated with full-bodied richness, stunning purity, and a tannic, 40+-second finish, this beauty requires patience. Anticipated maturity: 2017-2030+." 92 points - The Wine Advocate, Issue 176 "Offers loads of toasty oak and very ripe fruit, with hints of coffee and tobacco. Dark, full-bodied, rich and round, with beautifully textured tannins. Very long and caressing. Best after 2013. 6,000 cases made." 92 points - Wine Spectator, March 31, 2008
2005 Chateau Saint Pierre (St Julien)
$ 69.99"Because of this estates small size, only tiny amounts are available in the marketplace, which is a shame as the wine has been superb in recent years. Smart consumers should be checking out this estate whose wines have been superb over recent vintages. Under the same ownership as Gloria, it is a classic St.-Julien with sensational concentration and intensity, but more powerful, thick, and muscular than wines such as Ducru Beaucaillou or Beychevelle. The 2005 possesses the vintages structured, tannic mouthfeel as well as enormous concentration and massive extract. It exhibits plenty of earthy creme de cassis intermixed with notes of forest floor, licorice, and roasted meats. Backward with huge tannin, full body, and the potential for 3-4 decades of aging, this superb St.-Julien will get even better over the next 10-15 years. Anticipated maturity: 2018-2040." 93 points - The Wine Advocate, Issue 176 "A very beautiful red, with blackberry, licorice and currant on the nose. Full-bodied, with velvety tannins and lots of smoke, berry, coffee and dark chocolate flavors on the finish. The best wine from this producer in ages. Best after 2014. 5,000 cases made." 93 points - Wine Spectator, March 2008
2006 La Peira de La Peira (Coteaux du Languedoc )
$ 79.99Mocha, honey, cassis, lightly-cooked cherry, and iris inform the strikingly bitter-sweet and complex 2006 Coteaux du Languedoc Terrasses du Larzac La Peira. Its confectionary hints as well as its ultra-polished texture suggest butter cream on the palate, with bitter-sweet floral perfume wafting throughout, and the same reservoir of fresh-fruit juiciness that is retained by all of the wines in this collection. The lift and refinement surpass the already in those respects remarkable Las Flores, although this cuvee is slightly less enveloping in its richness. A shimmering, crystalline sense of minerality here is no less remarkable for being illusive, and is in distinct contrast with the chalky manifestations found in the 2007. La Peira en Damaisela is the property of London-based composer Robert Dugan, located between Jonquieres and Aniane, on two adjacent parcels of no known previous distinction, but to which in 2004 instinct led him either with remarkable prescience or remarkable luck. The deep alluvial fan that is the basis for this site is only barely tilted, as it might be in St. Helena or Rutherford, St.-Estephe or Pomerol ... and these comparisons will not seem inapt once you experience the quality of La Peiras wines. Claude Gros (of Chateau de Negly fame) consults here, expense seems not to have been spared on a new facility (with, of course, lots of new barrels), and Bordeaux-trained Jeremie Depierre is the hands-on (or, as I am sure he and Dugan would prefer me to put it hands-off) winemaker. New barrels of 500-600 liter capacity are favored here, incidentally, rather than classic (225 liter) barriques. I had the good fortune to taste the La Peira cuvees of 2005 and 2006 in late 2007 before any wines had been released and again this past December, when I tasted the extraordinary 2007s here for the first time. As this report goes to press, the first of the three red bottlings is about to be released in its 2007 rendition, but neither of the two other red cuvees from the 2006 vintage although all three were bottled at around 20-22 months has even been released yet. 95 Points, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate (June 2009)
2004 Chateau Pichon Longueville Comtesse De Lalande (Pauillac)
$ 79.99"The 2004 Pichon Lalande is a strong effort for the vintage (much better than their underwhelming and much more expensive 2005). A blend of 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, it exhibits a deep ruby/purple color as well as scents of cocoa, espresso roast, black cherries, and cassis. Medium to full-bodied, opulent, and fleshy, this classic wine cuts a stylistic persona somewhere between the 1995 and 1996. It can be drunk now or cellared for two decades." 92 points - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, Issue 171 "The color is deep and concentrated, as is the rich extract that fills the texture of this wine. The aromas hint at currants and violets, though they remain hidden for now. Brisk tannins give it a stony feel. This should develop into a classic." 92 points - Wine & Spirits, October 2007 "Aromas of currant, flowers and berries follow through to a medium- to full-bodied palate, with fine tannins and a fruity finish. Round and very caressing. Best after 2010. 20,830 cases made. 53 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, 36 percent Merlot, 4 percent Cabernet Franc and 7 percent Petit Verdot." 90 points - Wine Spectator, March 31, 2007
2005 Chateau Leoville Poyferre (Saint-Julien)
$ 99.99"This wine's heady rush of flavor gave one taster goosebumps. She called it sexy. "Formidable." Other technical descriptions included "the shazam," "has zazz," and "unprintable. That's some serious s#¡." At the en primeur tastings, this appeared to be chunky and superripe. Now it's massive, with dark extract and exotic spice, a sophisticated wine that ends on sweetness, bitter chocolate and dark berry fruit. With all the flash, it will give a lot of pleasure as a young wine, but it has the plump Poyferré terroir drive to sustain that pleasure for years to come." 95 points - Wine & Spirits, October 2008 "The 2005 Leoville Poyferre is a gorgeously opulent, approachable wine that is far less massive and austere than its two siblings. The most seductive, approachable, and charming of the three Leovilles, it exhibits a dense purple color as well as a sweet bouquet of mocha, black chocolate, creme de cassis, licorice, and toasty oak. Full-bodied with gorgeous upfront fruit in addition to impressive levels of melted, well-integrated tannin, it should be at its finest between 2015-2035." 93 points - The Wine Advocate, Issue 176 "Saturated ruby-red. Deeply pitched aromas of black cherry, currant and coffee. Sweet, silky and full, but with lovely ripe acidity to frame the dense black fruit, mocha and mineral flavors. Showing a glossy aspect to its fruit that is exhilarating, even if this deep, fairly tannic wine is a bit sullen at present, despite showing excellent back-end breadth. This is a full 13.5% alcohol; the petit verdot component reached 14.5% potential alcohol in 2005, said Cuvelier, who describes 2005 as "a year of sun but not surmaturite." 93 points - Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar, May/Jun 08 "A beautiful, fruity wine with great black flavors, rich acidity, the tannins playing the essential bass counterpoint. The dryness from the structure only comes through right at the end." 93 points - Wine Enthusiast, June 20, 2008 "Dark ruby red in color, with aromas of currant, blackberry, toasty oak and light cappuccino. Full-bodied, with ultrafine tannins and a beautiful, caressing aftertaste. Touches every part of the palate. Outstanding, but slightly disappointing after such a great showing from barrel. Best after 2009. Tasted twice, with consistent notes. 18,915 cases made." 92 points - Wine Spectator, March 31, 2008
2008 Chateau Pape Clement (Pessac-Leognan) »FUTURES«
$ 99.99Not far off the quality of the monumental 2005, Pape Clements 2008 was cropped at a lowly 30 hectoliters per hectare. The final blend is 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 42% Merlot, and 3% Petit Verdot, and there are approximately 7,500 cases. The 2008 displays a dense purple color as well as a classic northern Pessac-Leognan nose of truffles, asphalt, scorched earth, charcoal, creme de cassis, spice box, and spring flowers. Super-pure and medium to full-bodied with stunning concentration, admirable purity, slightly more acidity than usual, and formidable depth and length, given the sweetness of the tannins and the ripeness of the fruit, this wine should be approachable in 4-5 years, but the vintages crisp style suggests it will last for 25-30 or more years. The flagship estate of one of the most remarkable men in France, Bernard Magrez, it counts Michel Rolland as their guru-in-chief. The viticultural work is meticulous, with de-leafing and crop-thinning, all the grapes are hand-harvested in small plastic crates, and are destemmed by hand by more than 200 people - unheard of anywhere else in Bordeaux. The wine receives a Burgundian-like punch-down treatment, a month-long maceration, and the wine is moved by gravity (rather than traumatic pumps) through all the different steps of winemaking. It is aged on its lees for nearly a year. For over a decade now, the result has been one of the greatest wines of Bordeaux, clearly a wine of first-growth quality. 94-96 Points, Robert Parkers' Wine Advocate, Issue#182
2008 Chateau Ducru Beaucaillou (Saint-Julien) »FUTURES«
$ 99.99In Bruno Borie's words, the 2008 Ducru Beaucaillou is well above 2004, with much more structure than 2007, and more sensuality than 2006." I would add that it is even better than that, and as profound as the 2005. Approximately 33% of the crop made it into Ducru, which came in at 13.1% natural alcohol. This 85% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Merlot blend reveals a dense opaque purple color as well as a gorgeously sweet bouquet of spring flowers, crème de cassis, blackberry liqueur, licorice, espresso roast, and spice. A testament to the density and richness of this wine is the fact that no oak is apparent in the aromas or flavors. The wine is unctuously textured, but analytically, it has a good level of total acid and sound pH. This fabulous offering will age effortlessly for 30-40+ years. Bruno Borie deserves accolades for the remarkable things he has accomplished at Ducru Beaucaillou over the last few years. 96-98 Points, Robert Parkers' Wine Advocate, Issue#182 The term wine future refers to buying wine shortly after it is made at the winery, but before it is bottled and shipped. Buying wine futures allows you to lock in a significantly discounted price relative to what the wine will sell for on general release. When the wine arrives at B-21, customers who purchased futures will be notified that the wine is ready for shipment. 2008 Bordeaux will begin arriving in 2011.
2005 Chateau Certan De May (Pomerol)
$ 109.99"Blackberry and green tobacco aromas, with hints of coffee bean, follow through to a full body, with big, velvety tannins and a complex finish of dark chocolate and berry. Chewy and muscular, yet caressing and pretty. Best after 2015. 2,000 cases made." 94 points - Wine Spectator, March 31, 2008 "This property has returned to form following a listless period of irregularity that began after a brilliant succession of top wines in the eighties (1982, 1985, 1986, and 1988). Perhaps the finest wine since that outstanding quartet, the deep ruby/purple-tinged 2005 offers up scents of menthol, black cherries, raspberries, cassis, coffee, and a hint of new saddle leather. Full-bodied and powerful with a firm structure and high, but sweet, well-integrated tannin, this is not a Pomerol for near-term gratification. Anticipated maturity: 2017-2035." 92 points - The Wine Advocate, Issue 176
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