Bordeaux Mixed Cases
Our Explorer’s Cases are designed to showcase and introduce a country, region, style or grape variety in 6 bottles. While our 3 bottle Snapshot Cases are there to give you a bit more of an in-depth insight and comparison.
Bordeaux can justifiably claim to be the world’s premier wine region. While there are excellent whites and world-beating dessert wines from Sauternes it’s the reds, aka Claret, on which Bordeaux’s reputation rests. In our latest mixed cases, we’ve taken a trip around the different parts of the region to pick out a representative selection of the various reds it has to offer.
Bordeaux Red Wine Snapshot Case
From humble ‘everyday’ clarets to some of the most expensive wines in the world there are reds to suit every pocket and in our Snapshot Case we’ve picked 3 good value examples from across the region.
To start we’ve picked a good value, honest claret – Chateau Buisson-Redon, a straight AoC Bordeaux – made from a 60/40 blend of Merlot and Cabernet Franc which are the mainstay varieties of the Right Bank vineyards from where this comes. Soft and welcoming, part of it is aged in oak which adds a smoothness to its essential soft and plummy character making it a good, versatile everyday drinking wine.
For our second pick, we’ve stayed on the Right Bank but moved along to Saint Émilion which is known for its Merlot dominated blends. Château La Croix Ferrandat is made by the Union de Producteurs de Saint Emilion and is a soft and seductive, unoaked, wine that allows the rich plummy and brambly flavours, a hallmark of these wines, to really stand out. It’s mellow enough to easily drink by itself and it pairs well with red meats and cheeses.
To complete the picture we finish off in the Médoc on the Left Bank at Chateau Lacombe-Noaillac. The Médoc is the tongue of land, north of Bordeaux, between the Gironde estuary and the sea and here Cabernet Sauvignon is the predominant grape, the character of which is well demonstrated in this wine. It has a characteristic savoury edge that sits along the plump fruit and makes it great with roast and grilled meats.
So that’s our Bordeaux Snapshot case, a whistle-stop tour around the region.
- Chateau Buisson-Redon, Bordeaux 2018
- Chateau La Croix Ferrandat, Saint-Emilion 2018
- Chateau Lacombe Noaillac, Medoc 2016
Bordeaux Explorer's Case
Bordeaux is home to the world’s leading (and some of the most expensive) red wines and our 6 bottle Explorer’s Case that will take you on a vinous tour around the world’s premier wine region.
We start with a modest, but dependably reliable petit château, Beauregard-Ducourt, which comes from the Entre-Deux-Mers area between the rivers Garonne and Dordogne. It’s a subtly herby and softly spiced blend of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon which is very versatile and welcoming.
From here we move north across the Dordogne to Castillon and Château des Demoiselles which is a ripe and weightier blend of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon which has been barrel-aged for 12 months prior to bottling which gives it a layer of silky tannins to give the fruit flavours a good structure.
Next it’s on to the Médoc on the Left Bank north of Bordeaux and here we’ve picked the organic le Haut-Médoc de Haut-Bages Libéral. It’s an entry-level wine from the well-known Château Haut-Bages Libéral and is a great introduction to the spicy cedar and bramble fruits that are a hallmark of the Left Bank.
Going back to the Right Bank we visit Saint-Émilion and Château Boutisse where Merlot reigns supreme. This Grand Cru wine is full of red fruits, cinnamon and cloves. It’s now nicely mature but also has plenty of ageing potential.
Staying on the Right Bank, Chateau Les Graves de Viaud occupies 15ha of hillsides in the heart of the Côtes de Bourg. Their 'Terroir' is a blend of 40% Cabernet Franc, 35% Cabernet Sauvignon and 35% Merlot aged for 18 months in large oak barrels and from the excellent 2016 vintage.
For the final wine, we move to the Left Bank and move just south of Bordeaux to the Graves appellation and Vieux Château Gaubert. This wine is now right into the best of its drinking window and has developed a real complexity and savouriness on top of the ripe dark fruits and it’s quite a treat.
While there’s a definite style to Bordeaux reds the different areas within also give different nuances whether they be wines for drinking young or being allowed to mature and our Explorer’s Case aim to give a good look at those variations
- Chateau de Beauregard-Ducourt, Bordeaux 2015
- Chateau des Demoiselles, Castillon Cotes de Bordeaux 2016
- Haut-Medoc de Haut-Bages Liberal 2015
- Chateau Boutisse, Saint-Emilion Grand Cru 2016
- Chateau Les Graves de Viaud 'Terroir', Cotes de Bourg 2016
- Vieux Chateau Gaubert, Graves 2010
