Allemand
J.L. Chave
Jamet
Teetering on, or maybe over, the edge
Burlotto
Cappellano
Bartolo Mascarello
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Jamet has almost constantly delivered great experiences when i had them. Both young and old. So would probably be my answer.
Everything above 100€ is a pretty expensive bottle for me. But it is all about perception and how you consume wine i guess. I could certainly afford 3-4 100+ bottles per month, but i just found a lot of wine in the 30-100 category that brings me a lot of joy for different occasions. I am based in EU so some of the wines in my less than 100€ category would probably cost above 100 for people in the US to be fair.
“Worth it” brings in subjectivity. But I get the spirit of the question. You’re asking for a relatively expensive, somewhat singular wine that consistently delivers. Or perhaps where has the market inflated the price of a wine that still tastes better than its peers, creating a sense of value.
For me:
d’Yquem (always)
Allemand
Jamet (some years I genuinely like Jamet better than Allemand)
Latour
Rougeard
Selosse
Prévost
Collin
E-O VP and BdN
I personally do think Raveneau Chablis are sufficiently special for an occasional splurge
Lopez de Heredia whites and rosé
Quintarelli
Conterno’s Monfortino
Conversely, wines I’ve had that were demystifying or poor values might include
Petrus
Veuve Cliquot La Grande Dame
Sine Qua Non
Rinaldi
Cayuse
Marcassin (especially the chard at $500)
Rousseau (limited experience but the couple I’ve had didn’t make me rush to buy
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I just had the 2013 and was very disappointed. It has a great nose, but I found it fat and heavy on the palate. I felt like I needed a wedge of lemon and an ice cube. My bottle was courtesy of a friend on the list and at list price, thankfully.
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Frasqueira Madeira from good producers.
Thank you for writing this post for me, palate twin.
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I agree in part. There have been a couple of times in the past where wines I have thought were good and not great really appreciated. For example, I had some Carruades de Lafite from 2000 that I sold because the price went well beyond the <$30 I paid for it. I did not think the wine would be of the quality to match the price. So, I kind of traded it for some halves of Yquem. Certainly, I would do things like this again.
But, right now, I am a senior retired from work, have no mortgage, my kids are on their own, etc., and my net worth changes by the day more than the value of any bottle of wine I own. If we want to go to France, we go (will be there in May-June). I bought a few bottles of 1990 First Growth for $60 on futures. I drank one with friends a couple of months ago and plan on drinking the others.
Also, given the size of my cellar, if I were to sell any wines right now, they would likely be less expensive ones. I am more likely to sell multiple bottles to buy fewer more expensive ones than to sell one bottle to buy several less expensive ones.
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If you have any 1978s, drink them.
For wines that always deliver, I would start with wines from Truchot, Yquem, and Mugneret-Gibourg. I don’t drink that much DRC, but what I have had has always been great. From Bordeaux, I would put at the top of the list Haut Brion, Leoville las Cases and Montrose.
From California (and with enough age), I would put on the list of wines that usually deliver Ridge Monte Bello and Geyerville and Chateau Montelena Estate. Have only had a few Mount Eden Cabernet, but from what I have tasted these should definitely be on the list as well.
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And Dunn and GdL
For me, I would not put GdL on the list, at least after about 1985.
Petrus 1989
Rinaldi Barolo 1971
Marcassin Chardonnay 2008
Rousseau Chambertin 1991
As good as it gets for me
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I think each person’s choices are valid. And each of us probably has a place where we would reach a trade off that makes sense to us. And honestly, it’s a no lose situation whichever way a person chooses.
I have a few bottles left of wines that have informed and shaped my choice to spend a ridiculous amount of hours, effort, and dollars to become adept at a craft that left me time for little else for about a decade of my life. They are markers of where I came from and why I do what I do. About the only thing that would induce me to sell them would be a financial emergency involving my family. (Not all of them are big name or big dollar bottles by any means)
Each choice we’re going to make is definitely going to be different from each other, but as long as it makes sense to the person then it’s a valid choicez
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Don’t get me wrong, I’d happily drink any of those bottles with you!
Is the ‘89 Petrus really worth the current market price of $4,000 though? When you could have La Mission at $900 or Pichon Baron at $300? I had an ‘88 Petrus ($2300) just two weeks ago that was a lovely bottle, I scored it 94, but the 2000 VCC on the table was significantly more enjoyable. And an ‘11 Allemand Reynard was WOTD over both among 3/3 experienced tasters.
I’m sure a ‘71 Rinaldi ($700ish) would be more interesting than the 03s and 05s I’ve had that tasted more like amarone.
Marcassin ‘09 chard was as rich and flamboyant as it gets, but I’ll take Aubert any day (prefer those wines anyway) at 1/4 the price.
Multiple people with more experience than I submitted Rousseau as a producer who is worth it to them. I’ve not had a Chambertin or Beze yet, especially not a ‘91, but the Gevrey and Mazis I have had made me feel like one was paying for the label, having tasted better expressions of each. As with many things in wine, sample size matters.
I’ll add that I got to try an 89 Clos de Mesnil recently that, while good, left me thinking I wouldn’t pay anywhere close to the market price of $2k.
Value is such a subjective concept, especially as it pertains to those formative experiences with wine. My first haunting burgundy was a GC lieu dit from Harmand Geoffroy, the Clos Prieur. It probably is still less than $100, but I’d pay many multiples to have another bottle that hooked me like that one did, the taste memory still in my mouth the following day. If that happens on a more expensive bottle, well, perhaps it would be worth it to you. Cheers!
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mg?
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Until recently many people considered that Rousseau had the big 3 and their other wines were inferior. I don’t necessarily subscribe to that belief but if I wanted to experience Rousseau Mazis and GC AC wouldn’t be the wines I’d choose.
91 Ruchottes was absurdly good last year. I think ruchottes and CDLR have dramatically improved in quality of late, but the prices have come up too. You used to be able to buy CDLR for 250-300 as recently as 1-2 years ago but it’s more like $1000 now. Last year I opened 13 CDLR at noretuuh and people really liked it.
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This thread and BD raffle thread from last year have me considering what to do with the unicorn juice I won from this years raffle. The bottle variation risk, combined with my lack of knowledge on Burgundy (I have yet to taste most premier cru, let alone any grand cru) has me thinking about selling or trading for a higher quantity of bottles which will introduce me to more producers/vineyards. My average cellared bottle is $100 and I have only a few bottles worth over $300 so a $3000 bottle is way outside my comfort zone!
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I’ll give the same advice I did last year; selling or bringing it to a dinner/event where you’d get to taste other top wines are both viable options. I think that wine will need quite a few years to show well.
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You and I had quite the debate last year. Never expected to have the opportunity myself.
This suggestion, I agree with. Bringing to a group tasting where I could taste other great wines would be great, really don’t have those kind of tasting opportunities though.
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There are probably opportunities out there if you seek them out.
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