2005 Red Bordeaux

Essence is a beautiful blend of three Bordeaux vineyards oldest and most concentrated vines and is truly remarkable. Its very rare indeed a Bordeaux sneaks up on us and punches us between the eyes. Usually you see a slow and steady improvement as Chateaux improve their techniques in their Chais and vineyards. However last week, on a recommendation from one of our clients we blind tasted 4 star wines of the 2005 Vintage including Lafite and this little beauty. What was great was that all the wines were terrific, above all they have this amazing purity and richness thats not flashy but sumptuous and to a man we rated Essence as second just pipped to the post by the first growth.

In 2005 Ducru has included much more Merlot than usual but this has not produced the fruit bomb that some expected, but rather, immense elegance. The nose is serious and restrained providing little hint of the layers of luscious raspberry and blackberry fruit lying underneath. This has all the charm and chunkiness of classic St Julien but with an added seductiveness from the extra Merlot.. There is a lovely freshness to the wine along with complexity, balance and fine, supple tannins. The cellar master of 30 years thinks it is the best Ducru he has seen and who are we to argue!

Words can't convey how good this is. It is an extraordinary Margaux, with a perfume to die for and an astonishing level of concentration and complexity. The tannin levels are the highest ever here but you would never know; they are like velvet on the tongue cloaked with rich, suave and voluptuous forest fruits and crushed raspberries. The finish goes on forever with coffee, mocha and bitter chocolate hints enhancing the intense pure, creamy cassis. This is a classic Margaux that starts slowly and then just builds and builds to a deafening crescendo that engulfs the senses. This is a legendary Margaux.

This case is discounted by 10%. Price shown includes saving.

This case contains one 75cl bottle of each of the following wines:

1 x 2005 Ch. Petrus, Pomerol
1 x 2005 Ch. Mouton-Rothschild, Pauillac
1 x 2005 Ch. Lafite, Pauillac
1 x 2005 Ch. Latour, Pauillac
1 x 2005 Ch. Maragaux,  Margaux
1 x 2005 Ch. Cheval Blanc, St Emilion

This is a stunning wine, epitomising St Julien's breed and elegance but with an extra dash of generosity. A fabulous rich nose leads to a structured palate with a lovely weight of ripe, creamy raspberry and loganberry fruit with liquorice and toast hints. The fruit quality is outstanding, with real energy and freshness, topped off by a long, pure finish. The harvest was very late here so the Cabernet Sauvignon (60%) and Merlot (30%) were able to really blossom. Given their reasonable pricing policy this is one of the wines of the vintage for value as well as quality.

Unlike Right Bank Bordeaux properties, Special Cuveés are a rare phenomenon in the Médoc. Ch. Palmer do a limited XIXth Century blend (but that incorporates grapes from the northern Rhône as well) and though there have been occasional experimental releases from a few other châteaux there is certainly nothing we know of that compares with this very fine, limited production special cuvée from Ch. Sociando-Mallet - Cuvee Jean Gautreau.

Jean Gautreau purchased Ch. Sociando-Mallet in 1969 and rescued it from a period of inconsistency turning it into one of the most popular Cru Bourgeois on the market today. In 1995, driven by a quest for quality, Jean Gautreau and his team decided to select the fifteen best barrels from the vintage to make a special cuvée blend made with a higher percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon (approx. 80%) than the regular château bottling (approx. 60%). The total volume is only 1% of the production of the whole estate and hence is very rarely seen in the market 

The wines of Ch. Sociando-Mallet are traditionally weighty, firm and well-structured, rich in fruit with excellent ageing potential and Cuvée Jean Gautreau is simply a different expression of this style but with an extra step up in quality and ageability.

As Jean Gautreau says: "I have a superb terroir which I want to express in the wine. I try to make a classic Médoc for long keeping."

A result of the remarkable 2005 vintage, this wine offers the hallmarks of the year with excellent concentration of fruit, ripe yet structured tannins and a lovely freshness throughout. Eleven years on and this is starting to display some secondary characteristics, yet there remains a lovely core of black berry fruit, complemented with notes of bramble and damson.

A slight creaminess to the texture, there is great richness across the palate which holds through to a long finish. Great structu

Awesome. Showstopping. Remarkable. Palmer is all of these things in 2005. A stunning, full bodied expansive beauty of a wine, it is quintessentially Margaux with a Pomerol-like richness. It is silky and gorgeous with unbelievably pure, firm and precise fruit on the palate. With multiple layers of complexity, the finish was so long we could still taste it - without any exaggeration - 15 minutes after leaving the château. The 78-year-old former winemaker said the only vintage to compare to the 2005 was the 1945 and in his view the 2005 surpassed the legends of 1961, 1983 and 1989 at the same stage.

After the sensational 2004 Haut Bailly we were anticipating a rival, or an equal. We were wrong. The 2005 has everything that the 2004 has but cranked up by about 40%. Its intense multilayered flavours are exceptional. The wine is totally decadent and yet so precise. Packed full of typical Graves minerality, incredibly concentrated raspberry and cream flavours, sit alongside great acidity and massive tannins. Veronique Sanders said, 'This is the finest wine that we have ever made.' We say 'Buy as much of this as you can afford.'
Simon Staples, Asia Wine Director

According to Robert Parker, no less, this estate has over the last 30 years consistently produced wines of Third Growth quality. In 2005, winemaker Jean-Pierre Foubet has yet again displayed a sure touch in his handling of the fruit at Chasse-Spleen. A lovely plummy richness is backed by tannins which are very present and substantial but totally ripe, creating a very harmonious, balanced wine with an almost Margaux-like fragrance.

The winemaker at Lagrange is the brother of the winemaker at Léoville-Las Cases, so family Christmases must be quite a treat. Unusually for the Médoc, this ever-impressive wine has been made with more Merlot than usual (45%), rather than more Cabernet (46%). The yields are down to a lowly 40hl/ha, which bestows the wine with great concentration. The keynote here though is the incredible ripeness. The attractive nose is elegant and pretty, while the wine itself is pure and generous with polished blackberry fruit and real sex appeal. Another great wine from this Berrys' favourite.
Simon Staples, BBR Sales & Marketing Director - Aug 08

There is a completeness that is evident in 2005 Clarets, and this is what immediately strikes with 2005 Cantemerle. It has bags of fruit, tannin and acidity, all tied up in an impeccably-balanced, polished package. Sweet cassis fruit is accompanied by a spicy edge and a long, fresh lift. This is very pretty now but ideally wants another five years to really get going, and will easily keep for another five after that.
Tom Cave, Cellar Plan Manager

This wine is gorgeous, with a lovely perfumed floral nose of violets and black fruit supported by a pure, creamy and elegantly structured palate. Classy blackberries and cassis shine through with great precision, alongside minerality and firm tannins. The wines of this estate are renowned for their purity, but in 2005 they have taken on that extra richness that they required to make them truly outstanding.

Vieux Ch. Certan, Pomerol displays deep black-red, cherry-red at the rim followed by a bright berry fruit nose; succulence on the palate, lovely weight, depth and texture. Good density. Tannins are plentiful but ripe with a long finish. A real sense of minerality to the wine, clearly from a noble terroir.
The intelligent, fascinating and hugely talented Alexandre Thienpont has made a wine that perfectly reflects his personality in 2005. This is the Grand Cru Burgundy of Bordeaux. It is simply in a different class, even in such an exalted vintage as 2005. The nose is heavenly: very Merlot with orange hints to the fragrant aromatic red fruit. The palate then takes you to another dimension with its incredibly pure, silky, intense raspberry fruit supported by firm but very fine tannins. Roll out the red carpet for this one.

We drank this at our Cos dinner on 20th November 2009, with Jean Guillaume and a host of older vintages. We had 2003 and its the best 2003 I have tried in 3 years and better than at least 2 of the First Growths from that hot year. However as magnificent as his 2003 is the 2005 is on another ,higher, level. Its beautiful. Powerful, structured but seamless. Its very young of course but as the customer I was sitting next to remarked, "Where is the tannin?" . They are so fine and perfectly integrated with the glorious black fruit , whimsical acidity and non obvious alcohol it really is a glorious harmonious triumph. With the First Growths in 2005 at £5000 per case plus, qualitatively this is a steal.
Simon Staples - Asia Wine Director - 21-Nov-2009


Cos is polished and rich, with a fantastic acidity that will enable it to age majestically.  Made with 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, this is a wonderful, dense wine with earthy St Estèphe minerality amidst the incredibly rich fruit. General Manager Jean-Guillaume Prats thinks that 2005 might be as good as their legendary 2003 - but we definitely thought it was better. This fantastic wine is the first serious candidate for wine of the vintage.
Simon Staples, Apr-2006

Consistently one of our (and our customers’) favourite châteaux, Batailley produced a wine that is particularly sleek and elegant in 2005. This is a classic Batailley in every sense of the word and represents another huge leap forward for the property. Increasingly this feels like a Fifth Growth performing at the level of a Second or Third Growth.

Everything is there in spades: body, texture and fruit concentration. Very ripe Cabernet Sauvignon dominates, with beautifully ripe tannins, cassis and a spicy edge.