Chateau Kirwan was generous enough to host a fabulous tasting of the wines from Moulis-en-Medoc, Listrac-Medoc, Margaux and the Medoc.  Co-Owner  and publicist Sophie Schyler-Thierry – always stunningly dressed – met us at the door and escorted us into the tasting. As you can imagine, this tasting offered some of the best wines in Bordeaux [...]

I love all the wines of Bordeaux, yet there is something so unique about Graves and Pessac-Leognan. This blind En Primeur tasting was very exciting for exactly that reason! Latour-Martillac were excellent hosts, and as I wrote before, the hosting chateaux all scored very well so they must have known early on they had a [...]

Every year, the Grands Crus de Bordeaux (UGCB) organizes a welcoming dinner for journalists and members of the trade. This year, the event was generously hosted at Chateau Canon La Gaffeliere on the outskirts of the medieval town of Saint-Emilion, at the southern foot of the slope. The 19.5 hectare vineyard has a complex, outstanding [...]

  John Lewis Brown purchased what would be Chateau Cantenac Brown at the start of the 19th century, put his name on it, and designed the chateau in the Tudor style. The property changed hands several times until the latest to the famous Cognac producer, Remy Martin,  who then sold it to AXA, the insurance [...]

Do you see this beautiful chateau in the picture above? During En Primeur week, owner Paulin Calvet walked down these famous stone steps to greet me and walk me up the impressive entrance of his Chateau. During this week, journalists are divided into small groups to taste the wines of various regions each day. I [...]

“What a gorgeous chateau!” I am here, inside Chateau Lafton-Rochet, speaking with Basile Tesseron, the son of the owner. Other journalists from around the world are here to taste the 2011 vintage of wines from Saint-Julien, Pauillac, Saint-Estephe, and Haut-Medoc. These represent some of my favorite vintages in Bordeaux and overall, the quality is excellent. [...]

  “Welcome!” says vivacious yet petite Laure d’Aramon, nee Manencourt, who grew up at Chateau Figeac. The driver has just deposited me at this famous wine estate in Saint-Emilion and since I have a small collection at home, am very excited to talk about the wine and taste some classic vintages during dinner. At 8:00, [...]

…ah, the Bordeaux airport! I have just arrived via an eight hour layover in Madrid and am adjusting from Spanish to French. Sebastian , a smartly attired driver in a black suit suit awaits me with a sign. A wonderful feeling to see “D’Vari” printed on a placard after a 2o hour journey that began [...]

  Looks like paradise, yes? You are looking at a picture of the post-tasting refreshments at Chateau Fonreaud, Cru Bourgeois Superiieur in Listrac-Medoc. Fellow blind tasters included Stephen Brook, Janscis Robinson, Ian D’Amato, and many others.  At the moment of the picture, we had just finished the tasting of Listrac, Mouis, Medoc, and Margaux wines. [...]

The morning tasting at Cheval Blanc was a gorgeously orchestrated event, despite the controlled ‘media frenzy’ that is bound to occur whenever a new vintage of Cheval Blanc comes on the market. Tasters included journalists like myself tasting at En Primeur, as well as distinguished Masters of Wine and heads of the world’s leading auction [...]

Did any of you happen to read Neal Martin’s blog today on the eRobertParker.com site? I first met this eRobertParker.com wine columnist a few years back at one of the parties surrounding the tasting of the VDP “Grosse Gewachse” in Germany.  In person Neal is charming and a bit subdued, yet his columns are bold [...]

Henri Lurton in suit Chateau Brane-Cantenac celebrated its fabulous new vintage during En Primeur this past week, with the cities most notable names in attendence. This second growth chateau is a favorite among series collectors, and is among the first of all the chateaux in Bordeaux to invest in an optical sorter to ensure only [...]

Jean-Jacques & Florence Dubourdieu   So here I am in Bordeaux the Sunday before the beginning of En Primeur, where journalists will sample the new 2009 vintage. Already the word is that 2009 is a fantastic vintage, and as I had some great early tastes this week (and was warned not to write details!) I [...]