2009 Chateau Croix Figeac Saint Emilion Grand Cru

Bordeaux is wonderful and frustrating all at the same time for me.  The best wines of Bordeaux are incredible, but very often out of reach financially.  There are also many lower priced Bordeaux bottlings out there, but so many of them are overwhelmingly uninspiring.  What I've been finding over the last few years is that the sweet spot for values seems to be in my $16-30 price category and that the majority of the values are coming from the Right Bank.  One of these better values is the 2009 Chateau Croix Figeac Saint Emilion Grand Cru.

In your glass the wine is reddish purple and brings aromas of cassis, blackberry, and cherry fruit.  Underneath the fruit is a layer of very pleasant vanilla and fresh earth.  On the palate the fruit leans more towards black as well as red currants and their inherent sour notes.  The tannins are just a little bitter but well integrated.  Medium acidity provides some balance and gives this just enough structure to keep it from being flabby.  With a little bit of decanting, this is drinking pretty well in 2012, and it should keep getting better over the next couple of years.  At a price in the low to mid $20's, you're getting a very nice Right Bank Bordeaux that isn't necessarily everyday, but it wont break the bank either.

As far as pairing goes, I always love lamb with Merlot.  This would be a perfect pairing to my Roasted Rack of Lamb With Balsamic Demi-Glace http://acoupleofwines.blogspot.com/2009/12/roassted-rack-of-lamb-wbalsamic-demi.html

Cheers!              

Chateau Arnauton Fronsac 2009

Its time for another in my fall series of Bordeaux bargains. I've made it my mission this fall to discover great values from Bordeaux, and the latest one that I found is the Chateau Arnauton Fronsac 2009.

In your glass, the Chateua Arnauton Fronsac is purple red in color. Made from 98% Merlot and 2% Cabernet Franc grapes that are grown in some of the highest elevations in the right bank of Bordeaux, the wine brings aromas of blackberry and black cherry fruit with a subtle herbal element. In your mouth you get really nice black fruit that is consistent with the bouquet. The wine has a very silky mouthfeel with soft tannins, and the finish is not overwhelming but has some very nice length to it.

Overall, you get some really outstanding fruit for a Bordeaux. This is yet another very good offering from the 2009 vintage which is looking to be a real winner, and surprisingly this is pretty much ready to drink now given some time in decanter.

From a pairing standpoint, this wine wants rich stews or grilled red meats, and for my money, the silky mouthfeel and flavors of good Merlot are made for rack of lamb. Try it with this if you'd like a really good pairing http://acoupleofwines.blogspot.com/2009/12/roassted-rack-of-lamb-wbalsamic-demi.html

Cheers!

Chateau Larose Trintaudon Haut-Medoc 2005

After a long hiatus due to a nasty cold that had my taste buds and sense of smell pretty much out of order, its time to pick up on my series of Bordeaux bargains. Today's subject comes from the rather large region of Haut-Medoc, which can produce a pretty wide variety of wines that come from varying degrees of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot along with other Bordeaux varietals in small amounts for blending.

The Chateau Larose Trintaudon Haut-Medoc 2005 is garnet red in color and brings aromas of cassis and black cherry fruit along with a pleasant earthiness with some herbs and just the slightest bit of barnyard. In your mouth you get more cassis and black cherries that is balanced by some nice acidity and very well integrated tannins. The finish also brings a hint of sweet vanilla to go with the tannins in this full bodied, but not overpowering wine. Overall, you get a fantastic combination of fruit tempered with some subtle earth - just how I like my Bordeaux.

I drank this with red wine braised short ribs, and it made for a phenomenal pairing. It would also go well with grilled steak or rack of lamb, and at a price point of $15 for the wine, you can afford to splurge on your butcher's best.

Cheers!

Chateua Beaulieu Comtes de Tastes Bordeaux Superieur 2009

Bordeaux. It can mean so many things. To some it brings thoughts of wines that are unattainable for most. First growth Bordeaux are often hundreds if not thousands of dollars per bottle. Only industry insiders and the wealthy are really going to get a taste of most of these wines. Even second growth Bordeaux can be pretty darn expensive, but that doesn't mean that there aren't values to be found. In fact, the same argument could be made to a lesser degree about many other regions. Look at Napa - how many of us have actually tasted Screaming Eagle or Harlan Estate's best offerings? There are now probably hundreds of Cabs that cost more than $100 a bottle, and the same could be said for key regions in Italy and Spain. For some reason, though, either its just me or the wine world in general is obsessed with the high end of Bordeaux. Although we would love to get a taste of any vintage of Chateau Petrus, we don't have the thousands of dollars or the right well placed friends necessary to do it. So as things stand for us now, we're making it our mission to find bargains in Bordeaux. We may have to taste through a few bottles of bad wine to discover them, but discover them we will. We won't write about the bad ones, but we will be highlighting a number of Bordeaux bargains on A Couple of Wines over the next few months.

Today we are looking at a Bordeaux Superieur 2009 from Chateau Beaulieu Comtes de Tastes 2009, which comes from the the area of Salignac on the Right Bank. In your glass the wine is garnet red in color. Aromas of black cherry and blackberry fruit are there for your enjoyment along with some cola and fall leaves. On the palate, you are hit up front with black cherry fruit that dominates, but there is also some blackberry. After the fruit starts to fade, you get the fine tannins, which were very enjoyable after 45 minutes in decanter. The wine has a medium body with a very reasonable 13.7% alcohol. What really makes this wine interesting, though, is the finish which brings some mild but really nice earthy elements. Overall this is a very nice and well balanced wine for the $15 that we paid for it. I bought a few bottles of this, and it will be interesting to see how it develops over time. Given some time in decanter, though, this is a 2009 Bordeaux that you can drink now.

From a pairing standpoint, this would be great with traditional French fare such as Coq Au Vin or beef stew. It would also go very nicely with lamb or steak.

Cheers!

Chateau Croix-Mouton Jean-Philippe Janoueix Bordeaux Superieur 2009

For a guy who thinks of himself as pretty knowledgeable about wine and many wine regions across the world, I must confess that I still get overwhelmed when trying to find values from Bordeaux. I'm not sure why, but somehow I find the whole classification system and the many subregions within Bordeaux to be pretty confusing. The fact that by law they can hardly put any information on the label doesn't help matters either. Regardless, Bordeaux makes some incredible wines that can have rare combinations of power and finesse. They can bring beautiful fruit without all the weight that so many Cabernets and Merlots from other regions have. The earthy quality can be great, but in full disclosure I will confess that we don't love wines that get overwhelmingly earthy and especially don't like the wet animal smell that some Bordeaux wines exhibit.

The well known, classified growths are somewhat easier to figure out, but they cost a pretty penny. My goal over the next few months is to discover some really good Bordeaux values that can be had for under $20/bottle. This is the first in a series of Bordeaux under $20 reviews that I will be posting at least twice a month for the remainder of 2011.

The Chatuea Croix-Martin Jean-Phillipe Janoueix 2009 Bordeaux Superieur is made from 87% Merlot and 12% Cabernet Franc with 1 % Petit Verdot that is aged in 33% new French oak and the rest 1 year old oak. The wine was decanted for approximately 45 minutes before tasting. In your glass the wine is garnet red in color. The nose brings blackberries and black cherry with a nice, leathery element to it. On the palate the fruit is a little more subdued but absolutely delicious. The fruit you get up front is nicely balanced by the perfect acidity and fine tannins. The finish has some length to it and brings a subtle earthy element. For $15 a bottle this is one heck of a bottle of wine.

From a pairing standpoint, this is not over the top and has a medium body that makes it pretty flexible. It would work perfectly with Coq Au Vin or a nice stew, but would also go well with grilled red meats or an assortment of cheese.

Cheers!

Chateau La Bienfaisance Saint-Emilion Grand Cru 2005

Bordeaux is arguably the most famous and highly regarded wine region in the world. This is not to say, however, that I'm personally making a case for the wines of Bordeaux as the best in the world. In fact for the last year, I had to work very hard to find wines from this famed region that I liked that didn't cost hundreds or thousands of dollars for a bottle. I'm sure I would love Petrus or Cheval Blanc, but there just aren't quite enough zeros at the end of my paycheck to drink those.

So about six months ago, I made it a priority to find some Bordeaux wines that are affordable and good. I figured that if so many people felt that this region is so great, then I must be able to find some good values in it. At first it wasn't easy. I started by attending a Bordeaux tasting at a local wine retailer, and the results weren't so good. Most of the wines I tasted were major disappointments. There was one exception, though, and I just revisited this wine last weekend with a wonderful dinner of lamb tenderloin with a blackberry demi-glace and a wild mushroom risotto. That exception is a wonderful blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc from Saint-Emilion.

The Chateau La Bienfaisance Saint-Emilion Grand Cru 2005 is an intense purple red color in your glass. More modern in style, the nose brings black cherry, cassis, and a hint of chocolate. On the palate you get loads of cherry fruit with just a little bit of the cassis. Smooth, velvety tannins and some very nice acidity make this a beautifully structured wine that is right up my alley. I love wines that deliver delicious fruit flavor but also have structure and balance, and this fine offering from the Right Bank delivers on all accounts. This is a very good Bordeaux that is a steal in the $40 range. This wine is drinking very well now and should continue to improve with cellaring.

The wine paired beautifully with my lamb tenderloin with blackberry demi-glace, and would work very well with many French cheeses.

This is one of the first Bordeaux wines that I found that I love, but its definitely not the last. I'm going to have a lot of fun trying to find some more!

Cheers!

Chateau Phelan Segur Saint-Estephe 2004

Can it really be? Have I been writing this blog for seven months now without reviewing a single wine from Bordeaux? Bordeaux is not my favorite region, but I have no awful grudge against the region. I’m not pretending it doesn’t exist or intentionally ignoring what is arguably the most famous wine region in the world. The truth is that as a lover of Cabernet Sauvignon , I resolved a few months ago to try to find some Bordeaux wines that I love. I’ve been mixing a few into the rotation, but up until tonight, I’ve been drinking these on social occasions when I didn’t have the opportunity to take good notes. So tonight, here it is. My first official Bordeaux review. I’m not entirely sure that I’m head over heels in love with the Chateau Phelan Segur Saint-Estephe 2004, but I’m certain that I’d like to take her out on a couple more dates.

Chateau Phelan Segur in Saint-Estephe has been around for a long time, but in the 1970’s and 1980’s it saw some rough times with poor quality wines. Ownership changed hands in 1985 and the Gardinier family who took it over immediately worked to improve quality. They took the drastic step of recalling and/or refusing to sell the 1983, 1984, and 1985 vintages, and since then they have continuously improved the quality of the wine, which brings us to the 2004 vintage.

The Chateau Phelan Segur Saint-Estephe 2004 is a deep garnet red in your glass. The nose brings cassis, cherry, & plum with notes of herbs and leather. On the palate you get cassis, blackberry, plum, and just a hint of cherry. The wine has very nice acidity and mild, stony tannins that are in a really good place now in 2010. There is no one element of this wine that will knock your socks off, but it also doesn’t have any glaring weaknesses. In fact it has some very impressive structure, and it is a very well balanced, food friendly wine.

Overall, this wine is a nice value at a price point that ranges from the high $20’s to the mid $30’s. It paired really well with the porterhouse steak I grilled tonight, and it would also go very nicely with a beef or lamb stew.

Cheers!