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Médoc Musings
An answer to greed in Bordeaux
by Charles Laverick, cl@tastings.com
It is mystifying to me that Bordeaux consumers still slavishly put stock in a ranking of the region's wines that was based on what was being produced nearly 150 years ago. While the 1855 classification still serves to line the pockets of a number of proprietors at under-achieving châteaux, it is hopelessly out of date as a guide to what is happening today. This fact is tacitly recognized by the fact that the Union de Grand Cru, an organization of the region's finest producers, numbers among its ranks not only Left Bank and Sauternes properties that were never ranked at the time, but a number of "unranked" Médoc producers, including a clutch of Cru Bourgeois.
While Robert Parker and others will occasionally point to the Cru Bourgeois properties as the source of fine values, they are usually dismissed in the same breath as wines that will best be drunk within a year or two of the vintage. It is implied that in order to get a Bordeaux that will cellar well you should keep looking at the Cru Classés. In my own experience, this is simply not the case. I cannot tell you how many times I have been disappointed by big name Bordeauxs from vintages such as 1989 or even 1990 over the last couple years. Like it or not, Bordeuax, on the whole, simply doesn't age like it used to. Yields are much higher and the wines are being made in a more forward style that caters to the international marketplace. Furthermore, the critical demands of the futures system have created an environment in which producers are trying to make wines that are more attractive to taste within six months of the vintage.
This leads me to question the point of dismissing wines because they don't have extended aging potential. Too often the premium paid for a wine that supposedly does keep will simply not be rewarded. Additionally, the vast majority of these wines will not be squirreled away in perfect cellars for the next 20 years. Those consumers not engaged in speculation, in the main, will drink them within a year or two of purchase. This is a well-documented fact.
This issue and my feelings about it came home to roost at a luncheon sponsored by the Union de Grand Cru last year. At a table with my colleague, Marc Dornan, and other notables such as Michael Broadbent and Steven Spurrier, a wide range of wines from premier vintages dating back to 1982 were poured. Among them were a number of Cru Classés, including some "super-seconds." Almost by universal agreement, the best wine on the table was not a $400 rarity, but a humble bottle of 1990 Château Greysac.
I followed last year's experience up with a lengthy visit to Greysac this spring. What I found was an honest operation, with an honest (interestingly, Italian) proprietress, that produces honest wines. There are none of the usual pretensions and it is obvious that they are "comfortable in their own clothes." I tasted a range of wines back to 1982 just to see how they were doing. To my admitted surprise the 1996, 1995, and 1990 all had a number of years of development ahead of them, while only the 1982 was getting a bit long in the tooth (not unlike nearly all 1982s, by the way).
The performance of the 1990 the previous year was clearly not a fluke. Now remember, Greysac is not even among the very best of the value wines. It is a property that generally produces very good wines and consistently produces outstanding wines in outstanding vintages. It is also well under $20. Now I don't know how many $15 bottles you know that are capable of not only drinking well in youth but also developing for 10- to 20-years, but I don't know of many. As an added bonus, Greysac and wines like it are widely available in the States.
This is just one case study of the values to be had in Bordeaux, but it is indicative of others. It is the type of honest Bordeaux that I grew up with and it is comforting to know that it still exists. The choice is yours—you can try to outbid the crowd on a bunch of overrated, overpriced, over-hyped wines or you can buy some real Bordeaux—to drink. If you have some 1990s in your cellar, try them with a bottle of 1990 Greysac. The Greysac is not hard to find and the auction markets will just love your other wines. An excerpt of my Greysac vertical follows:
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