Back With Bordeaux
It's good to be back, past the grind of another semester and back to drinking and thinking about good wines. As I was getting caught up in the past week with some wine-related reading, I was delighted to see that Bordeaux wines have been the focus of more than a few people writing about value wines lately.
The Wall Street Journal wine writers, John Brecher and Dorothy Gaiter, for example, wrote this past week about the terrific red wines they found from the 2004 vintage in Brodeaux for around $20 or less. And, Wine Enthusiast has a feature this month on Bordeaux bargains.
Coincidentally, I recently spotted a favorite white Bordeaux, in a wine shop, that I have not had in a couple of years now. In light of the press attention focused on Bordeaux, I decided it was a good time to try this wine again -- a Chateau Thieuley from the Entre-deux-Mers region of Bordeaux. I'm happy to report this white Bordeaux remains a fantastic buy at about $15 a bottle.
Made with sauvignon blanc and semillon grapes, Chateau Thieuley hits all the right notes that fans of great sauvignon blancs love to hear. I enjoyed terrific aromas of grapefruit, lemon and even peaches. It's just such a delcious, well-balanced white for a very good price.
Many lovers of sauvignon blanc tend to overlook these fabulous wines in favor of lush sauvignon blancs from New Zealand or flinty, mineral-laden wines from the Loire. But there are terrific whites to be found in this region between two rivers (the Dardogne and Garonne) south of the Medoc. To be fair, a lot of mediocre wine has come from this region in the past, but those days are achangin.
So, as the better-known lables from New Zealand edge farther into the $20 and $30 range, keep in mind that there are some pretty darn good, affordable sauvignon blancs waiting to be discovered from places like Entre-deux-Mers and South Africa.
The Wall Street Journal wine writers, John Brecher and Dorothy Gaiter, for example, wrote this past week about the terrific red wines they found from the 2004 vintage in Brodeaux for around $20 or less. And, Wine Enthusiast has a feature this month on Bordeaux bargains.
Coincidentally, I recently spotted a favorite white Bordeaux, in a wine shop, that I have not had in a couple of years now. In light of the press attention focused on Bordeaux, I decided it was a good time to try this wine again -- a Chateau Thieuley from the Entre-deux-Mers region of Bordeaux. I'm happy to report this white Bordeaux remains a fantastic buy at about $15 a bottle.
Made with sauvignon blanc and semillon grapes, Chateau Thieuley hits all the right notes that fans of great sauvignon blancs love to hear. I enjoyed terrific aromas of grapefruit, lemon and even peaches. It's just such a delcious, well-balanced white for a very good price.
Many lovers of sauvignon blanc tend to overlook these fabulous wines in favor of lush sauvignon blancs from New Zealand or flinty, mineral-laden wines from the Loire. But there are terrific whites to be found in this region between two rivers (the Dardogne and Garonne) south of the Medoc. To be fair, a lot of mediocre wine has come from this region in the past, but those days are achangin.
So, as the better-known lables from New Zealand edge farther into the $20 and $30 range, keep in mind that there are some pretty darn good, affordable sauvignon blancs waiting to be discovered from places like Entre-deux-Mers and South Africa.
posted by JD at 12:08 PM
2 Comments:
I agree with you. I find that more and more the posts I label Sauvignon Blanc are Bordeaux, and bargain Bordeaux at that. It seems like a lot of people think that you've got to pay a lot to get good Bordeaux but these are white blends (quite elegant to mix Sémillon with Sauvignon I think) with tremendous value for the money. Nice write-up.
Glad you're back! Just in time the other value for the money event this week: WBW 33.
Cheers!
Thanks, Marcus and Richard.
Marcus, I'm on board, and with pleasure. I'm afraid I have not had time to get out and search for something new, so I'm going to retaste and rereview a monster of a wine that meets your criteria (I've got half a case left). Just as well, in case anyone missed my earlier thoughts on this wine. I'll be in touch!
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