For Orders and more information. Please contact Theo Sloot via email or callling 01865 301144

Although we have access to all the major Chateaux, The Oxford Wine Company specialises in hand picked, value for money wines from up and coming producers that are primarily for drinking rather than investment.  However, we regularly supply all levels of wine en primeur (including first growths) so if there are any wines that you particularly want to buy (either for long term maturation or investment) please contact Theo Sloot on 01865 301144 or email theo@oxfordwine.co.uk for recommendations, availability and price.

BORDEAUX EN PRIMEUR 2007

Prices will be released during May and the first weeks of June.  These will be updated weekly as the wines are released – please let us know your interests as soon as possible as stock is limited and in high demand.

Don’t let anyone put you off 2007 Bordeaux, even if the reds require yet more careful selection than last year.  We’ve dealt with that and there are splendid wines at all levels.  It is another excellent white wine vintage, including the sweet wines.

I compared 2006 with 2001.  This year many have drawn parallels with 1997.  Before you say ‘Yuk’ I would stress that 2007 would have been a lot more like 1997 – in 1997.  Since then the quiet revolution in vineyard management has occurred and the result is a far better vintage than was conceivable 10 years ago.  The excellent quality of 1997 white Bordeaux, including Sauternes, was largely forgotten in the fuss surrounding the light, often green and grossly overpriced reds from the Left Bank.  It is to be hoped that the same does not happen to them this year because, once again, there are issues over PRICING.

Interestingly many of the viticultural problems of 2007 were similar in 1997.  For example poor weather during flowering gave rise to prolonged and uneven fruit set.  This meant bunches contained grapes at different stages of development. At vendange time, whenever you pick, some grapes will be unripe or some will be overripe and even rotten.  The corrective is to go through the vineyard as soon as possible after flowering, and cut off all bunches showing irregular development, a titanic, extremely costly, task but carried out by all the most quality conscious estates.  Another problem last year was mildew, (result of bad weather).  At two points weekend treatments were required.  Family-run and switched on estates watched carefully and treated on Sundays.  Those properties with salaried staff taking their weekends for granted did not and suffered accordingly.  All this (and more) made for a small crop.

That does not bode well for a drop in prices, desirable for us if only because of the sudden weakness of the £ against the Euro.  In 1997 the Bordelais were castigated for their greed in demanding prices even higher than those of the outstanding, but supposedly exorbitant 1996s, for products that were blatantly inferior.  They duly failed to sell them, to the satisfaction of many!

We don’t yet know what prices will be this year, although the first releases, (a few Sauternes, some Crus Bourgeois), do not foreshadow the sharp reductions many have called for, indeed demanded, with an arrogance which seems to me as great as that of the snootiest chateau owner.  There is a belief, most strongly held it seems in the USA, that the vocation of the great chateaux is, or should be, a charitable one:  the provision of great wine for the world’s wine lovers that the latter can afford.  One does not hear similar demands made of the makers of Ferraris or of the Hauts Couturiers but the chateaux are businesses just like they are, their duty is to their share holders and indignant talk of morality in this context is irrelevant.  If we can’t afford, most of us, the top stuff, and remember we are talking about 150 estates out of nearly 14000, then we should drink something else uncomplainingly, just as we drive Fords and wear M & S clothes! Drink what you can afford in the same spirit, chosen from the selection of lovely wines below, and remember the world has always paid a premium for what is perceived as the best and the shorter the supply the greater the premium, (see Stradivarius violins). If the Bordelais miscalculate the demand you may have a chance in the future, if not of drinking Lafite, at least of having a satisfying crow at their expense!

If we can get over our disappointment at not being able to afford the very best wines this year, which will include Mouton-Rothschild, Laville Haut-Brion and Troplong-Mondot, then we will be able to enjoy some of the very good stuff which will come out at £120 to £250 a case.  No greed, no excessive profit here, merely a just return for all that dedication, applied intelligence and knowledge.

While in rant mode I would like to finish off with a prod at another area of nonsense being served up about Bordeaux profiteering: the question of the actual profit margin.  Calculations about this never say anything about the YIELDS on which they are based.  It hardly needs pointing out that the production of a vineyard has a ceiling, determined by the AOC decrees, and you can’t just build another winery and double production because there happens to be enough demand, as you might in the case of Ferrari.  The great vineyards rarely get anywhere near the maximum permitted yields and all were very far from it in 2007.  Château Margaux, I was informed, achieved 27hl/ha, just over half the permitted yield.  Of this, 32% went into the Grand Vin, so roughly 9hl/ha, about the same as Yquem, and equivalent to a glass of wine per vine (or about 480 bottles per acre).  The more extravagant, and highly publicised, estimates of profitability are certainly not based on figures as low as these, more like four or five times the amount I reckon!

A propos the actual wine: Saint-Emilion seemed to have the most disappointments while neighbouring Pomerol was far more consistently good.  This is hard to explain although it was put to me that the terroir is more variable in Saint-Emilion.  Margaux is inconsistent with successes weighted very much to the top end, with one or two exceptions.  The other communes of the Médoc fared better, with Pauillac possibly leading, although all the Léovilles do honour to Saint-Julien!  Pessac-Léognan whites are good, although claims that they are better than 2006 are mistaken.  Sauternes and associates are delicious. Pessac-Léognan reds vary but there are a number of successes, not always where you might expect them.

Nigel Reay-Jones

Nigel Reay-Jones is our man in Bordeaux. Originally trained (Oxford 1965-72) as a biologist (good for spotting bugs in the vineyard), NRJ has lived in Bordeaux for 20 years and done most things you can get up to with wine and vines.  He now has a wine importing business leaning heavily on close contact with the Real Thing and holds the unfashionable belief that Bordeaux wine can represent the best value for money in the world.

THE VALUE FOR MONEY SELECTION 2007

Please note that all prices are quoted “in bond” and are exclusive of duty and vat which are payable at the time of delivery to you in 2010.

We are unable to sell wines on a non duty paid under bond basis

For Orders and more information. Please contact Theo Sloot via email or callling 01865 301144.

Ch Les Grandes Chênes (Médoc) - £115.00
Les Grands Chênes has been in the public eye for years now and has inevitably become more so after being acquired by Bernard Magrez (of Pape-Clément, Fombrauge, La Tour Carnet etc., etc.) Huge investments have been made, all the right things are being done, it was reclassified Cru Bourgeois Supérieur in the much disputed 2003 classification and the 2007 is perfectly representative: elegant, firm, plenty of ripe fruit (unlike many of higher pedigree), admirable ripe tannins.  The vineyard is just 11ha, the grape mix 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Cabernet Franc and 50% Merlot, becoming the norm these days with the increased use of Merlot in the Médoc.

Ch Belle-Vue (Haut-Médoc) - £95.00
Parker has just awarded this one 89-91 and Decanter has given it four stars, so yet another one under international scrutiny.  It shot into recognition following its acquisition by Vincent Mulliez in 2004.  The wine is generally distinguished by a lovely colour, elegant, blackcurranty fruit and great charm.  Plenty of modern technique is in evidence in the 2007 which is tender and juicy with very ripe tannins, and all that with a 35 day maceration.  The vineyard is a modest 10ha, on 7-10m deep gravels, planted with 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot and a high 20% Petit Verdot.

Ch Richelieu (Fronsac) - £104.00
Not so well known but stood out for me among the Fronsacs considered to be above the norm this year.  The Château does chambres d’hôtes if you fancy staying there.  A dense ruby robe is followed by a rich mixture of oak and fruit on both nose and palate.  This is another wine of charm which will drink well in 3-4 years but will certainly keep much longer than that.  The vineyard is distinguished by its blue clay soil mixed with limestone and is planted with 74% Merlot, 23% Cabernet Franc and 3% Malbec.

Ch Monbrison (Margaux) - £164.00
This was considered capable of producing wine on a level with the Crus Classés up until the early 90s but is thought not quite to have kept up the standard under the new (and very enthusiastic) ownership.  However I found it well above a number of distinguished neighbours this year and it will not be priced in proportion. Black fruit and cedar characterise the palate and I see that Neil Martin of the Parker stable gave it 87-89, better than Giscours and Kirwan among others!  The vineyard is a modest 13ha, planted with 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot.

Ch Croix de Beaucaillou (Saint-Julien – 2nd wine of Ducru-Beaucaillou) - £204.00
La Croix needs little introduction as it is the well-known second wine of Ducru-Beaucaillou. It usually represents good value for money.  In fact since 2005 much of it comes from  specific parcels of vines, rather than being de-selected grand vin so it is more like Les Forts de Latour than a true second wine. The 2007 contains an exceptional 95% Cabernet Sauvignon but the wine is ripe, with no hint of greenness, very well balanced with supple tannins and plenty of fruit, in fact real Saint-Julien.

Ch Tour Sieujean (Pauillac – also recommended last year) - £131.00
I recommended this one last year. As the wine is just as good I am doing so again and repeat what I said then: It is a great pleasure to be able to recommend a new vineyard, and no one else has got it - yet! Tour Sieujean left the Cave Coopérative in 2002.  2003 isn’t bad, 2004 has more structure and class and in 2005 it hit the jackpot and has repeated the success in 2006 (and 2007!). The vines (6ha) are near Pichon and Batailley, the winery is very well equipped, the owners enthusiastic, and so are we:  an intense purple/ruby colour, aromas of cherries and black fruit with elegant oak, a fresh, utterly clean palate with lots of fruit, surprising concentration, ripe tannins and excellent balance….and look at the price! The grape mix is 30% Merlot and 70% Cabernet Sauvignon.

Ch Franc Maillet (Pomerol) - £138.00
This consistent, reasonably priced Pomerol has succeeded again in 2007 and came out in my top ten of the 66 wines on offer at the Pomerol Syndicate tasting.  As it will certainly be in the bottom 10 for price it must be good value for money!  The wine exhibits a deep ruby-purple robe and the nose integrated fruit and oak, notes of cherries and plums on the palate lead into a long finish with supple tannins.  Thoroughly well balanced, ripe wine, the product of much work from the enthusiastic and intelligent Monsieur Arpin.

Ch Dubourg Grand Cru (St-Emilion – from the maker of Ch Haut-Gaudin) - £83.00
If ever there was one to support this is it!  One of OWC’s favourite Bordeaux wines is Château Haut-Gaudin, part of Les Vignobles Bernard Dubourg and made by Bernard’s son Benoît, one of the best young wine makers in the Entre-deux-Mers.  Château Dubourg is another bit of Les Vignobles but actually belongs to Benoît, who bought the 2.4ha of vines, on deep gravel, two years ago, quite a risky venture given the high cost of land in Saint-Emilion.  The wine was a success from the first vintage in 2005, all the wine being sold long before bottling.  Now Benoît has Grand Cru status and the wine is made with more structure for better ageing potential.  Nevertheless as you would expect, the fruit is abundant and ripe, the wine deeply coloured and above all very good value for money at the reasonable price he asks for it.

Ch Caillou Cru Classé (Sauternes) - £159.00
Sauternes is gorgeous this year (Climens is great wine) and there was hardly a poor wine to be tasted (well there were a couple that lagged behind the rest).  I have chosen Caillou because of the reasonable price demanded and because it is so elegantly aromatic, in the Barsac manner.  Although choosing the easier-to-sell appellation Sauternes for the wine, the vineyard is indeed in Barsac. A delicious citrousy nose preludes a palate with the essential balance between sugar and acidity, not fabulously rich but with a concentrated complexity characteristic of the vintage.  The 2007s are not great sweet monsters but the best ones have an intensity of flavour that will allow discussion in the same breath as 2001. 

TOP WINE RECOMMENDATIONS ON REQUEST

We have access to all the major Chateaux – if you require recommendations regarding the best wines of the vintage or general investment advice please contact theo@oxfordwine.co.uk for information on availablity and prices.