That’s funny I wanted to say that too, early in the thread, but thought that would be too obscure, to throw in here.
The best 2nd’s I’ve ever had would be 90 Pensees, 82 Les Forts, a Flor de Pingus (vintage I can’t remember, maybe 2001?), and Napanook (various vintages).
However none of these are really priced at all like what I would hope for deuxiemes. So for practical purposes they mostly dont matter to me anymore.
I’ll give some credit to Clos du Marquis, which for a fairly long time was a good early drinking lighter version of LLC, that was fairly priced. Then at some point it escalated higher.
The best I have had was a 1970 Forts de Latour about a year ago. Second was a Ridge Jimsomare 1984 several years ago. More recently, I was really impressed with a 2011 Ridge Klein.
Mark… I’d listen to Leve on this one The property was included in the 1959 Classification of the Graves region. You cannot classify a second wine. Plus, as Soren pointed it, the estate was making wine at the same time a clear, second wine was being produced at La Mission Haut Brion.
If de Montille VR Malconsorts (with the Cuvee Christaine being the first wine) counts then that would be my first choice. Probably not within the spirit of the question (and certainly not priced like a second wine).
The first Alter Ego de Palmer, 1998, was released with some mystery about what it actually was.
“No no, not a second, more like a different expression…”
While the Palmer was equal parts CS and Merlot (and a little PV), the Ego was 70% Merlot…
-It was/is a second wine, and priced as so. And a good one I hear.
Something else regarding a few of the Bordeaux wines mentioned, for example, Alter Ego, Clos du Marquis, Forts Latour, Croix de Beaucaillou and Pensees de Lafleur, these are not really second wines. They are produced from specific parcels and are not made from young vines or declassified lots. That is why those wines and a few others are truly very good wines. I’d wager if a new classification was made today, all those wines would have been included.
For what it’s worth, the family considers Pensees de Lafleur to be more of a true Pomerol wine than Lafleur, due to its high percentage of Merlot.
2 names, which have not been mentioned, that are second wines, Pavillon Rouge and Le Petit Mouton. They are now at the top of their game. Quite pricey, making them difficult to buy, at least for me, but they are really very good wines these days.
I’ll jump in with Dame de Montrose and Chappelle de la Mission too—both have been very good. Clos du Marquis (if we decide to consider it as a second ) is up there too, though a bit less consistent for me. I second Craig’s point as well on pricing for that one.
I understand that. However, unless you think a burgundy has to be declassified to count as a second wine, they both should either qualify or not qualify. Etienne thinks that there is a quality difference across his holdings in Malconsorts and so makes two different bottlings and says the CC is higher quality than the regular bottling.
Is Faust technically a second wine? I’ve had a few bottles that were very nice, not for the awfe crowd. I agree about Napanook it used to be an every year buy, but the price has gone up too much.
Best value? Mondot. If I recall correctly, it’s heavy on Cabernet Sauvignon and light on Merlot, a rarity for the appellation.
Gravette de Certan, Dame de Montrose: pricier but also provide a lot of value for the price. The 2010 Montrose might be the best $50 left bank I’ve had.
Also: Petite Eglise, Petit Lion de Leoville las Cases. Hard to find at a reasonable price, but I’ve gotten some bargains at auction. Great aging wines.
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The property was included in the 1959 Classification of the Graves region. You cannot classify a second wine. Plus, as Soren pointed it, the estate was making wine at the same time a clear, second wine was being produced at La Mission Haut Brion.
) is up there too, though a bit less consistent for me. I second Craig’s point as well on pricing for that one.