One nice burg, and one BDX

For Christmas the wife and I want to get one btl of BDX and one Red burg, rather than give presents to each other.

Neither of us has ever had a nice bottle of either.

I have intentionally kept my focus on cali and oregon, as I dont need a deeper rabbit hole to descend.

But I do have to admit I am curios as to why so many people prefer these over their american counterparts.

So knowing that I dont know one darn thing about either, and with a budget of 800-1000 for both bottles, I would appreciate some suggestions (including where to buy them, as in I know if you suggest it I can buy it).

I suppose if I were to weight the choice I would prefer a better burg than bdx, but equal more or less is OK…I dont want to go the other way and get an outstanding bdx and a mediocre burg.

I would like to secure these either this week or early next and obviously vendors from cali or the NW would be preferred to the east coast.

I am even open to a beserker that has something in his cellar that meets these objectives that they wanted to part with.

Thanks in advance for the help.

Hi Mark,

I’d either do a nice white burg for $300 to $400 like an 02 Raveneau Valmur and a great Bordeaux like 86 Margaux or an 89 Bordeaux like Lynch Bages and search for a great 93 or 91 burgundy. 93 Roty Charmes or Rouget Echezeaux comes to mind.

Just had a thought, I wonder if you stay with good 1er cru Burg and super-second Bdx if you could get both a 1990 and a 2010 of each to see what 20 years difference makes with excellent vintages, e.g. Jadot Clos St Jacques and Leoville Las Cases, and still stay within budget.

For BDX, I think some of the best bang for your buck in your price range can be found in:

82 Gruaud Larose
89 Montrose
89 Lynch Bages
89 Palmer

For Burg (again in that price range), I personally would go for Dujac Clos de la Roche, Hudellot Noellat RSV, Fourier CSJ or Roumier Bonnes Mares.
Vintages which may show approach-ably now are 00, 06 and 07.

Rousseau csj 2000. Drinking beautifully now. Can’t go wrong.

I second the 1989 Lynch Bages:
http://www.klwines.com/detail.asp?sku=950222

The 1989 Montrose would be my personal choice, but it is a bit more funky as is the Gruard Larose, both gorgeous wines drinking great right now.

You may also wish to consider the 1990 versions of Lynch Bages and Montrose. K&L carries the 1990 Monstrose (and the '82). Warmer year, more fruit forward. Clearly Bordeaux but cleaner fruit.

In my experience I find that many, though not all, 1982 and 1990 Bordeaux are closer to their perfect drinking windows than many 89s which may need more time. Any of the following are terrific and within your price range:

1982 Cos d’estournel
1982 Pichon Lalande
1982 Gruaud Larose
1982 Grand Puy Lacoste
1990 Grand Puy Lacoste
1990 Lynch Bages
1990 Pichon Baron
1990 Angelus
1990 Clinet
1990 Leoville Poyferre
or if you want an '89:
1989 Pichon Lalande
1989 Angelus

dunno about Burgundy

As for where to buy – check out www.wine-searcher.com – plug in your wine choices and viola, retailers that have those wines appear, along with current pricing. Happy Hunting!

Thanks guys…have the bdx more or less picked out…any more suggestions on the burg?

Here’s a good Bdx at http://www.premiercru.net (a big San Francisco retailer)

1982 Grand Puy Lacoste $239 and it’s “in stock” (but just a bottle or two!)

I would only recommend two other Bdx they have, as being old enough to be reasonably mature, but they are both “pending arrival” which could mean months and months.

I don’t see any reasonable older Burgs there, not surprisingly, as the supply is much more limited and they tend to sell out quickly. An auction site is probably the only route. I have had good luck with older bottles from http://www.brentwoodwine.com but their weekly European auction closed today. They will open another on Friday and I’ll try to remember to take a look at what they might have on offer.

***How to best SERVE a good Bdx and Burg is another topic, and MUST be appreciated to get the wine to perform properly! More on that later too. In general, they are not as soft and open as most California wines, so they need extended breathing time and a quite cool serving temperature to best present their fruit. I greatly prefer the slow-O approach, where one pulls the cork about 5 hours ahead of time. I take out a small exploratory taste to enlarge the surface area to silver dollar size, put the bottle in a very cool place, and WAIT! This much better preserves the complexity and vitality of an excellent older wine compared to decanting, which may “blunt” those features…

As most of your drinking has been young, new world wines, at least for the Bordeaux, you might consider a younger wine. Lots of choices available, for example, 2009, 2001, 2000, 1998, 1996. I would think wines from those vintages would be more to your liking. Many people tasting older wines for the first time do not really enjoy them.

Sort of why I was softly pushing the 1990s. The 1990 Lynch Bages is lovely. IMHO, the 2009 vintage will not provide the “whole” experience of drinking a high-end Bordeaux.

I got the 1990 lb from a generous forum member

Come to the ocean and we will pull corks. Gas cheaper than either Bordeaux or Burgundy.

We had the 96 Baron while in SF 6 weeks ago, nobody couldn’t like that wine.

Is she aware of the second part??

Senor Hudson -

Can I make another recommendation just to modify your request a bit? I think spending $400-$500 per bottle raises expectations to a ridiculous level. I’m certainly not immune to that and I drink Bordeaux all the time. Just had a 2003 Haut Brion that was a complete disappointment - not that it was a bad wine, but that it was only a good wine, which makes it a ridiculous QPR.

You can find magnificent, mature Bordeaux in the $200-$250 range, as you are probably noticing now. I think you would be better of getting two of those rather than spending too much coin on one bottle. That way you get to try two top-tier, mature Bordeaux, perhaps side by side, which lowers the risk of a disappointment, an off-bottle, a corked bottle, etc. And then you never go back to try them again! Since you got a '90, I’d recommend you find a comparable '89 or '82.

As for Burgs, I have no advice. I am a complete neophyte with respect to that region.

Oddly enough Robert, thats what I was thinking. We usually do a prime roast anyway, and keeping it to bdx may be a better option. I will try and seek out one of those others you posted.

Thanks guys

Glenn, you pick a weekend you guys are free, the wife and I will head up that way and buy you guys dinner.

Keep an eye out for good weather!

Keep in mind too, that there is really no “typical” red Burg, or red Bdx for that matter. The weather is much more variable than in California for instance, so each vintage tends to have its own style, and then add in the variations in producer style, and finally the surprisingly great differences introduced by differing vineyard sites! For instance, a Gevrey is not much like a Chambolle, and both are different from a Vosne. Likewise in Bdx, a Pauillac is not a Margaux, and neither is much like a Left Bank St. Emilion or Pomerol (where the grape varities used are also largely different).

So all of this adds interest too. It’s bigger than a rabbit hole, more like a bear cave!

I would get something with some age on it. If you want to see what Bordeaux and Burgundy is about, you really won’t do so with a young wine.

As for Bordeaux, one suggestion that is well below your budget is 2001 Ducru Beaucaillou. I had it at the winery a few weeks ago and it is drinking wonderfully. It costs about $100-$130 or so.

With the money you have just saved, splurge on a half bottle of d’Yquem. Nothing like it in the world. Should set you back $150-$250 depending on vintage. Bassins in DC has the 2011 (which is wonderful) for $199 a half bottle.

For Burgundy, if you have enough in your budget left over, get Mugneret-Gibourg 1999 Clos Vougeot. It is $545 at Crush. Have not had this, but the 1999 Echezeaux by them was out of this world.

If you want to spend less, look for d’Angerville Volnay - maybe Clos de Ducs or Taillepieds or Champans from 1999 or 2002.

Or, forget the Bordeaux, for get the Sauternes, forget everything and blow the entire wad on a Truchot Clos de la Roche, my very favorite wine (although thankfully at much cheaper prices). Morrell and Co. has the 1993 and 2002 at $845. I think I paid somewhere between $60-$75 for the 2002. It will change your life.