Not everything ![[wink.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/0/04707e6a7bbb03e0153e349d8a9270d30e1e9525.gif "wink"){kind=small}
Do you know anything about this?
Pavillon de La Reine, Pauillac
https://m.klwines.com/p/i?i=1530077
What a fascinating find Craig. Perhaps Covid slowdowns have led this hotel to sell off their excess? K&L has gobs of the stuff.
I have almost the identical story with Napa and BDX. Like some of the napa you listed (Momento Mori, Mayback etc), and our stops in BDX right bank are the same. My aha wine was also a Baron! Our cellar now is gradually becoming BDX (and burgundy) dominated.
I would highly recommend Brane Cantenac - a fantastic wine with a fraction of NAPA price. Cos d’Esturnel is also great, tho needs a lot of time.
Try 2018 Domaine de Chevalier. While not directly Napa style, nor is it Paulliac, i find its strong dark fruits and sheer power might be enjoyable for a Napa guy.
At sub-100 dollars its also downright cheap in my opinion.
That was my gateway drug to Bdx.
You post is an interesting one, as you like Cabernet and apparently more modern-styled wines, yet you are focused on one appellation that is generally quite traditional, Pauilliac. I love Pauilliac for that reason, most of the traditional Chateau have avoided the universal bent of many peers, or the intrusion of Rolland. I think Pontet Canet is the most obvious exception, you should look to that wine. For me, it’s one that I avoid. I think Mouton would appeal to you as well, especially in years like 2015 and 2018, but it is rather expensive. I’d look to other appellations for what you seem to be seeking. Leoville Poyferre (St. Julien), Lascombes (Margaux), Domaine de Chevalier (Pessac-Leognan), Cos d’Estournel (St. Estephe), for example, would be good choices. If you remain fixated on Pauilliac, lean to ripe years like 2018, 2015, 2009, etc. Clearly you enjoyed the 2015 Pichon Baron, so there you go!
4 Likes
Others here are far more knowledgeable than I am, but if you’re looking for something between traditional Bordeaux and Napa give Chateau Marquis D’Alesme a try. $50-$60 and I doubt you’ll be disappointed.
Wow, thank you to all. Here I was expecting 2 maybe 3 comments, with a decent probability that they would be snarky “stay in Napa you knuckle dragger” type responses 
. But I am pleasantly surprised.
Thank you all again, I clearly have some “due diligence” in my future. Good for me but not so much for the Amex.
And if anyone were to find their way to San Diego, look me up so we can pop some corks, cheers…
I think one thing that’s quite different in Bordeaux is how many lower priced estates make wine that can age wonderfully for decades. We’ve been talking about Chasse-Spleen on another thread. The most recent aged bottle I had was a great 1983. I bought the 2016 and 2019 for $36 and $38. You can get great wines for $100, $200, $500 and up, but I would not ignore the Crus Bourgeois.
There’s also a surprising amount of excellent early-drinking Bordeaux in the $15-30 range. I usually look for stuff from Pessac-Leognan as they often have some of that regional character but there are plenty of other options.
5 Likes
Not sure about that. Certainly, if you want to spend a fortune on wine, you can do so in Bordeaux (just change all the Pauillac recommendations you have been given to Lafite, Latour and Mouton). But, Bordeaux probably has more excellent $40-50 wines than do most wine regions of the world.
1 Like
I agree with this, and there are several more that are in the $50-$70 dollar range that are also excellent wines. We picked up a 2018 Haut Bages Liberal at Costco a few weeks ago for $42 or so. Excellent wine, and something a Napa Cab drinker would like, IMO. I would add Malartic-Lagravière to the list from Pessac, especially in a ripe year like 2015. I have read that they have changed consultants in the last few years, and have not had any vintages post-2016 yet, so the style may be changing.
This. Bordeaux is a much greater value proposition than Napa, especially with the wines cited in the OP.
I still have my doubts that in two years the OP will be a pure Napa Cab drinker. Pichon Baron is pretty mainstream excellent Bordeaux. Since he likes it, he is going to like an awful lot of left-bank Bordeaux, esp. given the prevalence of vintages like 2015 these days as a result of climate change. I think he is going to have a great deal of fun exploring Bordeaux and I just hope that he tastes widely and learns what he likes rather than limiting himself before tasting widely. He is going to have a lot of fun and I would not be surprised if when he goes back to California Cabs all of a sudden he may like things like Mount Eden.
I am looking at a local wine store list of 2019 and 2020 Bordeauxs priced from $40-60 and see:
2019 Chateau Du Tertre - Margaux $42.00
2019 Chateau Lafon Rochet - St. Estephe $42.00
2019 Chateau Lagrange - St. Julien $45.00
2019 Chateau Branaire Ducru - St. Julien $49.00
2019 Chateau Giscours - Margaux $52.00
2019 Chateau Gloria - St. Julien $54.99
2020 Chateau Pedesclaux - Pauillac $40.00
2020 Chateau La Lagune - Medoc $42.00
2020 Chateau Echo de Lynch Bages - Pauillac $43.00
2020 Chateau Phelan Segur - St. Estephe $47.00
2020 Chateau Branaire Ducru - St. Julien $48.00
2020 Chateau Croix Beaucaillou - St. Julien $50.00
2020 Chateau D’Armailhac - Pauillac $50.00
2020 Chateau Lagrange - St. Julien $55.00
2020 Chateau Talbot - St. Julien $59.00
I would not be shocked if he would like each of these.
2 Likes
Troplong re-traditionalized its style starting 2017.
I agree with the Malescot recommendation. It’s always my first thought of a gateway Bdx for CA drinkers. However, I’m not persuaded the OP really needs a gateway based on what he says he is enjoying. I’d just keep tasting across the region and see what jives.
1 Like
Since we are talking Pauillac, let me toss out a total sleeper:
Chateau Fonbadet.
The 2016 is excellent!
The 2018 can be found for under $35.
Mr. Levenberg turned me on to this Chateau.,
What a great thread, so many different ideas and good thoughtful discussion. As much as I like Bordeaux, I don’t drink much these days. Last year I opened 4 bottles (and one was a Sauternes)?! How can that be? And yet this discussion is tempting me. Get thee behind me Berserker-Satan!
There is just way way too much good wine out there.
For the long haul Ch Batailley is another excellent Pauillac value. (I can’t vouch for recent vintages as i stopped buying futures etc a few years ago due to age).
I reached out to a local wine store owner and he has agreed to put on a semi- private (two other friends will join) tasting and he is going to pour us a bunch of Left Bank options. Probably around 12 or so wines that he carries in house.
We are going to do it blind so I don’t hold any preconceived notions going in. Looking forward to it!
I will circle back and share my thoughts.
Cheers All…
4 Likes
That’s excellent. Please do post your impressions here, I’m sure you’ll get plenty more feedback and recommendations tailored to your palate.
How awesome! What great service - it’s stuff like this that keeps wine retail alive and vibrate. Hopefully you and your friends will find some things to buy lots of and support the store.
1 Like
Yeah for sure. I’m at the point that when I call him, he knows my voice and asks what I want.