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 [...]
Category Archives: En Primeur
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 [...]
The Right Bank
Wednesday 31 March 2010 – 16:44
We have crossed the river and started the morning with Cheval Blanc and Ausone followed by the generic tastings in St-Emilion and Pomerol. Wines with higher proportions of Cabernets and those that have managed to retain freshness by not harvesting too late and gentle extraction showed best. Cheval Blanc was particularly fine with real poise [...]
Bordeaux 2009: Left Bank round-up
Tuesday 30 March 2010 – 17:57
After a full-on day, it was time reflect on our tastings in the Médoc as we drove across to just north of Libourne. Certainly our impressions thus far suggest that we have a great vintage on our hands, with Cabernet Sauvignon leading the way in the Northern Médoc. Having tasted this morning at Château Calon-Ségur, [...]
A Cabernet year
Tuesday 30 March 2010 – 14:22
I’m dashing between tastings at the moment so won’t report in full, but just from our tastings so far it’s becoming clear that on the left bank at least 2009 is definitely a Cabernet year. That isn’t to say that Merlot isn’t good, but generally Cabernet has performed better and this is being reflected in [...]
Reflections
Tuesday 30 March 2010 – 6:11
On reflection the tastings yesterday become more and more interesting. Yes, we saw what will undoubtedly become great wines, but even at the top of the league there was variation. The problem, if we can call it that, was that winemakers had just so much time to decide what to do – not all of [...]
First tastes of the first growths
Monday 29 March 2010 – 17:34
It would have been hugely disappointing if today hadn’t provided fireworks. The 2009 vintage in Bordeaux is being billed as one of the best ever, and we had hourly appointments at some of the world’s most sought-after estates. Not everything was as (I) had expected. In 2003 the hot summer gave a certain uniformity to [...]
Majestic
Richard Weaver
Gary Bates
Jeremy Palmer
Clayton Smith
Nick Dagley
Bethany Guard
Becky Leach
LudovicSurina
William James
