… it (nearly) is now! This may be the final weekly roundup of en primeur releases from the 2009 Bordeaux campaign. Bar a few highly-feted but very rare right-bank wines almost everything is out now. Take a look to see which of the remaining wines takes your fancy. I have been buying wine for en [...]
Category Archives: En Primeur
Too many to mention…
Friday 18 June 2010 – 10:46
We should have been careful what we wished for! Having spent weeks worrying about when the en primeur campaign would get started, it’s completely manic now, with new wines every few minutes. Anything specific would be out of date by the time you read it. Instead take a look at the list of released wines [...]
Finally – it’s all happening
Wednesday 16 June 2010 – 14:03
Those readers who already receive our email updates will know that the 2009 Bordeaux releases are coming thick and fast now. If you have any interest at all get signed up straightaway or there’s a danger you’ll miss the party. Since this morning two Majestic favourites have come out: Chateau la Lagune and Chateau Talbot. [...]
New en primeur releases
Monday 7 June 2010 – 14:13
We’re still waiting for the really big guns to release, but there is now a steady stream of excellent wines from Bordeaux, starting this week with wines from the left-bank communes of Margaux, St Julien and Pauillac as well as a St-Emilion and a Pomerol. Between them there is quite a contrast in styles, but each was excellent in [...]
This week’s interesting new releases
Friday 21 May 2010 – 13:35
As the week ends the wait for new releases of Bordeaux 2009 is getting tense. To ease that tension we have several really creditable wines to offer. Each comes from a stable of wines headed by a superstar but itself is much less sought-after and hence very good value: Chateau Ormes de Pez is made [...]
Chateau Batailley releases
Tuesday 11 May 2010 – 10:36
Finally an en primeur release of one of the top wines, one that we are very confident about and unhesitatingly recommend. Chateau Batailley is an archetypal Pauillac – blackcurrant-scented with a fresh mid-weight character. Key to its attraction is this freshness. It is a drink rather than an academic exercise after all. To view all [...]
At last … here we go
Wednesday 28 April 2010 – 13:12
The first of many email updates for customers interested in Bordeaux en primeur has just gone out. For those who don’t know en primeur is the system used by Bordeaux châteaux to sell their wines well before bottling, and is often the best (and cheapest) way to buy your claret. This year for the first time our [...]
A gentle start to the en primeur campaign
Tuesday 27 April 2010 – 12:02
We are still waiting for an indication of when the big guns of Bordeaux will start releasing their 2009 clarets for sale. However, to get the ball rolling we’ve got the first few wines for sale now on the Lay & Wheeler website. There are two high quality wines from Sauternes, and a number of [...]
Vintage Roundup
Friday 2 April 2010 – 15:50
The en primeur tasting week is a bit like Christmas. It dominates the few weeks before the big day then, suddenly, it’s already passed. This year in particular the days seemed to fly by as the wines, although hefty, were easier to taste than other years. Only on Thursday did my palate judder to a [...]
Haut-Brion and other Graves
Friday 2 April 2010 – 11:09
After a fun dinner and a late night at old Majestic favourite Chateau de Sours (thanks Martin) we started Thursday very early, with an 8 am appointment at Haut-Brion. Chateau-Haut Brion itself is marooned in the outskirts of Bordeaux, and a strong smell of roasting coffee from the factory next door surrounded the estate. Most [...]
Majestic
Richard Weaver
Gary Bates
Jeremy Palmer
Clayton Smith
Giles Cooper
Nick Dagley
John Abbott
Amy Hetherington
Emma Pook
Simon Larkin MW