2009 Cantemerle, Arrosee, Bernadotte

01/06/10

With many chateau owners still in the Far East after last week's Vinexpo Asia-Pacific, we may have to wait till next week for any of the bigger releases from 2009. In the meantime, we have three more of our must-buys on a tight budget.

An underachiever for years until bought in 1997 by May-Eliane de Lencquesaing of Pichon Lalande, Bernadotte, is now unlocking its potential as part of the Roederer portfolio. May-Eliane admired the terroir because it neighbours Pauillac and indeed part of the land is Pauillac. What she also saw was that the best vines weren't always planted in the right places. So there has been an increase in Merlot to take advantage of the clay undersoils, which is one of the reasons Bernadotte has done so well in the dry 2009 vintage. Never overstressed, the vines produced almost perfect grapes, making an outstanding wine of power, minerality and beautifully managed tannins, all supporting concentrated fruit. All picking is by hand and extraction is light, so the wine is enjoyable relatively young, even in a brilliant vintage like this.

Grand-Puy-Lacoste was one of our favourite Pauillacs of the vintage but despite the fact that it is likely to be one of the better values in Pauillac amongst its peers the release price is still likely to be in excess of £500. That makes the second wine, Lacoste Borie, all the more attractive. It offers forest fruits, toasty oak and good weight, and will be delicious young.

This morning Cantemerle, a perennial Uncorked favourite. 'This blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, with the Cabernet dominating, looks to be the best they have ever produced, even eclipsing the 2005. Dense purple in color, with extraordinarily elegant floral notes intermixed with raspberry, black currant, cherry, and spice box, it is medium to full-bodied, not massive, but again, very seamless, with beautiful precision, sweet tannins, and an endearing fleshiness and depth of flavor that are neither heavy nor fatiguing. This wine will be relatively approachable in 3-5 years and drink well for 25-30. 92-94 points*.' - Robert Parker, erobertparker.com

Also released are a very successful Chasse-Spleen and L'Arrosee, a superb vineyard which is on the up since its purchase in 2002 by Roger Caille who founded express transport services for banks.

View all 2009 Bordeaux en primeur