Some value picks and last chance surprises
Look what the negociant found at the back of the cupboard
It's all out there now; the release of the Thienponts' Le Pin and L'If earlier this week sounded the closing salvo of the 2018 Bordeaux campaign. It's time to take stock, see what's left, and spot the real values of the campaign; and we've also received some surprise late allocations of a few wines we had until now marked as sold out.
For sheer value-for-money, Angludet is top of our list this year, elegant and ageworthy, punching above its pricepoint. Capbern is a steal. On the left bank, Lafon-Rochet, Branaire-Ducru and Reserve de la Comtesse are stars in St-Estephe, St-Julien and Pauillac respectively. From Pomerol, we especially rated Jeremy Chasseuil's brilliant Feytit-Clinet.
From our last chance list, Denis Durantou's fabulous Pomerol L'Eglise-Clinet has slipped through the allocations net and made it to an Uncorked public offer for the first time ever. Dark, broooding and majestic, Haut-Brion does not come cheap but it is a remarkable wine set to age for decades, vying with Mouton-Rothschild at the top of our list for sheer quality. And we now have a little bit extra of my own personal pick of the vintage, Pichon Lalande.
It's been an unusual campaign, partly defined by the absence of the single most influential critic, Neal Martin. He is recovering well from heart surgery, and is going to Bordeaux to taste in September. It will be interesting to see how the scores he eventually releases impact on the prices of these wines. We wish him all the best for his continuing recovery. /NT
Last chance (all prices below are for 6x75cl)
Beau-Sejour Becot (St-Emilion) | £276 | 95-97pts LP
Duhart-Milon (Pauillac)| £328 | 95pts JA
Clerc Milon (Pauillac) | £365 | 96pts JA
Leoville Barton (St-Julien) | £379 | 97pts JQ
Leoville-Poyferre (St-Julien) | £408 | 97pts JA
Troplong Mondot (St-Emilion) | £459 | 97pts JA
Pontet-Canet (Pauillac)| £520 | 98pts JQ
Lynch-Bages (Pauillac) | £534 | 96-98pts LP
Pichon Longueville Lalande (Pauillac) | £828 | 99pts JA
Carruades de Lafite (Pauillac) | £1140 | 92-94pts LP
L`Eglise-Clinet (Pomerol) | £1308 | 95-98pts AG
Palmer (Margaux) | £1445 | 99pts JA
Haut-Brion (Pessac-Leognan) | £2450 | 97-99+pts LP
Mouton-Rothschild (Pauillac) | £2556 | 97-99+pts LP
Top value picks (all prices below are for 6x75cl)
Capbern (St-Estephe) | £95 | 91-93pts LP
Les Cruzelles (Lalande-de-Pomerol) | £105 | 91-93pts LP
Lacoste Borie (Pauillac) | £114 | 89-92pts AG
Marquis de Calon (St-Estephe) | £120 | 92-94pts LP
Quinault L`Enclos (St-Emilion) | £145 | 92-94pts LP
Angludet (Margaux) | £156 | 93pts JA
Echo de Lynch-Bages (Pauillac) | £175 | 91-93pts AG
La Petite Eglise (Pomerol) | £182 | 91-93+pts LP
Lafon-Rochet (St-Estephe) | £192 | 92-95pts AG
Reserve de la Comtesse (Pauillac) | £201 | 92-94+pts LP
Branaire-Ducru (St-Julien) | £231 | 93-96pts AG
Feytit-Clinet (Pomerol) | £294 | 93-95pts LP
Larcis Ducasse (St-Emilion) | £297 | 96-98pts LP
Brane-Cantenac (Margaux) | £312 | 94-95pts JQ
Domaine de Chevalier Rouge (Pessac) | £325 | 94-97pts AG
AG Antonio Galloni, vinous.com
LP Lisa Perotti-Brown, robertparker.com
JA Jane Anson, decanter.com
JQ Jean-Marc Quarin, quarin.com
Halves & magnums £6 extra per 4.5 litre case; other formats on request
View all wines released so far
Offered subject to confirmation; for shipment 2021
