As this is my first post, let me begin by saying how awesome this community is; I’ve learned a ton so far. I hope you don’t mind sharing some of your collective wisdom with me.
So here is my situation. I’m a diplomat living in China, where I will remain posted until 2024. Wine here is incredibly expensive, so buying here isn’t an option, nor is ordering online since I would get hit with crazy duties. Fortunately my new boss is a real oenophile and has arranged for us to make an annual (tax and duty-free, since it’s being purchased via diplomatic channels) group purchase with a Bordeaux wine merchant (here is a spreadsheet showing the full selection of chateaux/vintages and prices, for anyone who is interested). Because we’re organizing a group purchase, we have to go through this one merchant; I can’t go out and find another one whose selection I happen to prefer.
Because it won’t be practical to bring any wine with me when I move, I need to consume all wine before the end of 2024 (no cellaring for me for the foreseeable future, sadly…). We’re also only able to do this order once a year (as it’s a large administrative burden for our colleagues charged with clearing the shipment), so I need to buy at least a year’s worth of wine consumption up front.
I’m quite new to this hobby, totally new to Bordeaux, and I’ve actually never tasted a wine with 10+ years on it so I’m not even familiar with tertiary flavors. I’m therefore planning a purchase that will cover all the appellations, from a mix of traditional and modern producers, from a variety of vintages, in order to determine what I like before I make next year’s order. All this without breaking the bank (I’m aiming for an average cost of 40 euros per bottle).
Now, with all these constraints in mind–and I admit there are many, so thank you if you if you’ve read this far–here are my most burning questions:
- Is there any point in drinking young bordeaux (e.g. 2015/16) now and over the next few years, particularly classified growths, or would it basically be a waste?
- If it’s not a waste, are there any producers who wine drinks particularly well young?
- Would I be better off buying older wines (say, 2008-2010) from less illustrious producers, or younger wines (2012, 2014) from more renowned ones?
- 2013 is much cheaper. I gather it’s generally to be avoided but I was thinking of using it as an entry point to some more expensive chateaux. Is this approach bound to disappoint?
In terms of good QPR chateaux that have caught my eye, I’m looking at Chasse-Spleen, Sociando-Mallet, d’Issan, du Tertre, Poujeaux, Potensac, Branaire Ducru, Cantemerle, d’Armhailac, d’Arsac, Fombrauge, Gloria, Lafon-Rochet, Phelan-Segur, Prieure-Lichine, Croix de Gay–among others. But again my challenge is that for many of these producers, 2014 or 2015 is all I can get my hands on.
It’s very probable I’m totally overthinking all this and should just buy a bunch of wine and drink it (that’s what my boss is doing–he’s buying almost exclusively 2016 with the intent to drink them now, including top-shelf stuff like Leoville-Poyferre and Ducru-Beaucaillou). But this is a big purchase for me and represents the sum total of wine I’ll drink over the next year, so I want to make sure I do it right.
Thanks in advance for any light you fine folks can shed on my dilemma!