What I read about Rougeard has me really wanting to try it. The $200 or so for a young entry level bottle is really pushing it in terms of price though, and for a wine spoken about in such rapturous tones, it has surprisingly low CT scores (mostly in the very low 90s). If I do buy a bottle, it would be a young entry level bottling, and I’d want to drink it now rather than wait 20 years. I’m curious to try the wine, but not curious enough to spend the $300+ required for an aged bottle.
So, in your opinion, do you think it’s worth buying an entry level bottling with less than 10 years of age for consumption now? Or, should I just not bother with something so young? If you don’t think it’s worth it, any alternatives?
If you have tried other Loire Cabernet Francs first I think you might get more from a first Clos Rougeard experience. For me personally its premium is partly dependent on its place in the context of other wines of the region. Objectively I am not so sure
Drink Baudry and skip ever buying Rougeard. While I have had a couple of amazing bottles of Rougeard, some others have been meh. It’s not worth the chase when the delicious Baudry wines are so inexpensive.
Just like Ch. Rayas in Chateauneuf de Papes and Soldera in Brunello di Montalcino, Clos Rougeard stands heads and shoulders above any other wine in the region. So if you want to experience the pinnacle of Loire Cab Franc then the answer is yes. BTW Clos Rougeard is a lot cheaper than Rayas and Soldera. For me, subjectively yes it is worth it, but as Jason says make sure you have tried a bunch of other top tier Cab Franc makers first so you will understand the difference
BUT… Charly Foucault the co-owner and vigneron died in 2015 so I think the last vintage he made was in 2014. So the combination of being the best and effectively no more being made has driven the price up a lot. So objectively the price is now inflated and it is no longer worth it. This is economic rationalist perspective.
Kind of depends on your personal situation really.
Check out a 10 year price history on something like the 2002 Domaine Rene Engel Clos Vougeot to see what happens when a wine maker dies and there is no more being made.
I’m not a huge fan of the basic clos at current price levels. I’ve found it be often variable, never profound, and prone to falling off a cliff as it ages. I’ve heard enough anecdotal reports from people whose taste I respect to feel confident that there are great vintages and bottles out there, but I’ve yet to hit one that speaks to me that way and I’ve had a whole bunch. My experiences with the poyeux have been much more impressive, and while cost is subjective, my sense is that it can outshine many similarly priced wines. I’ve never had the bourg and the white isn’t my style. I like Baudry a good bit and agree with David B that it scratches the same itch for a far lower price (and for me, also more consistently). For Loire cab franc, I’ve never had anything that compares to the Joguet bottles from the late 80s.
Imo, aged Rougeard is on a different satisfaction level when compared with other Loire cab franc. Even Loire wine producers, European wine merchants and restaurants are in agreement.
Having said that and having a bunch, vintages 2010 and older, bought at release at sub $100 per, I definitely won’t chase any at current pricing. It sure zoomed up in pricing over the last few vintages. But if I didn’t have any, I’d spring for a couple of bottles just to see what the fuzz is all about, and knowing what I know now about how well they age, will hold and wait for 20+ years to open (or at least bring to a group tasting where old bottles will be contributed and opened).
Having had older 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2004 in the last 5 years, and as recent as a huge vertical (1996-2010) 3 months ago, these aged bottles are clearly stand-outs as far as my Loire cab franc experiences is concerned. Nowhere have I had aged Loire CFs that are of the same level. Maybe close, but not the same level.
Long story short, if you need ‘em young, don’t bother.
I have similar issues with the Clos, which is what largely influenced my post. My two really great experiences have been with Poyeaux, but I’m not going to lay down that money very often.
The textural element is different with Rougeard. Sometimes it can feel more like Burgundy at first before it morphs in the glass. I don’t find that with other Loire cab francs, but then I also didn’t spend vast amounts on them either.
IMHO, there are relatively few “young entry level bottles” that are worth paying $200 for in order to drink them young. The truly great ones need age to show the magic.
The entry-level Rougeard is not worth it, you are just paying for the label.
Le Bourg is another matter entirely. It’s as good as Bordeaux first growths, and rarer, and has certainly earned the first-growth territory prices it gets now. Whether it’s “worth” it is up to the buyer though. If you’d pay $500 for a Bordeaux first growth then it’s worth it to pay the same for Le Bourg. If you wouldn’t… then it’s not.
There is no substitute with any other Loires. The nearest substitute is Cheval-Blanc.
Surprised you left out Les Poyeaux. I would posit that it strikes the balance of super high quality at a price that does not make you choke. I bought it in both recent vintages, 2015 and 2014, while passing on the Le Bourg. I recall you and I chatting about 2014 Le Bourg at $375 release, and passing.
I also bought Le Clos in both recent vintages. The 2014 easily bests anything else that I have had in 2014 Loire CF, but whether it was worth the $160 is a personal question. Maybe 2014 Plouzeau Franc de Pied, but that’s unicorn territory. I bought more Les Clos after trying it. Now that said, I also bought 2 cases of the incredibly delicious 2014 Raffault Les Picasses. A ridiculous value.
Every other classic old world region (except Beaujolais), the benchmark producer usually costs at least twice as much. Bordeaux, red and white Burgundy, Rhone, Barolo, Barbaresco, Champagne, Tuscany, Mosel…
I wouldn’t say that. I’ve had some very good Clos experiences that are still head-and-shoulders above other Loires. But maybe not when considering today’s (higher) prices. And the Poyeaux is nearly always a step higher, but not at Bourg pricing either.
Left it out only because I don’t have nearly as much experience with it as Le Bourg - when I got into these the price differential between the two was about ten bucks, so I tended to just load up on Le Bourg. But my impressions are generally in agreement it occupies a decent in-betweensy zone. That $375 on '14 Le Bourg is definitely a market-beating price right now but it’s actually more than the '14 first growths were going for, so not a difficult pass at the time…
Congratulations but when giving advice to somebody asking if something is worth the money, the relevant price is the market price, not the price you got somewhere because you’re somebody’s great customer or a super-savvy bargain hunter. Do a wine-searcher check, that is the entry fee.