A gutsy, indulgent Bordeaux

These two clarets are stunning now, but they'll get even better with age, says Matthew Jukes.

Matthew Jukes
By Matthew Jukes
published

2005 Chteau Tour Baladoz, Grand Cru, Saint-Emilion, Bordeaux, France (£150 for six bottles, or £135 for a double magnum (300cl), Private Cellar, 01353-721999, www.privatecellar.co.uk).

There was a massive response to my recent house claret' review, so I thought that you might be champing at the bit for a few more indulgent red Bordeaux recommendations. This time I have moved up the price ladder a little.

I came across a superb offer from Private Cellar and called in two samples and both are superb. Firstly my featured wine, the delicious, juicy, meaty, silky smooth Tour Baladoz I love this style of red wine, with modern, honed fruit on the one hand and a nod to the old, gutsy style of claret on the other. Take note of the double magnums and place your order now.

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The other wine is 2005 Chteau Capbern Gasqueton, Saint-Estphe (£105 for six bottles) from the portfolio of the great Chteau Calon-Sgur. This couldn't be more different, with linear, upright, masterful cabernet taking the place of lush merlot.

Both are 2005s and you will already know that this is regarded as one of the great vintages of the last 30 years, which means that there is no hurry to drink either of these wines because, while they both look stunning now, they will run and run.

Matthew Jukes is a winner of the International Wine & Spirit Competition's Communicator of the Year (www.matthewjukes.com).

Matthew Jukes
Matthew Jukes

Matthew Jukes has worked in the UK wine business for well over three decades and during this time has written 14 wine books.  

Matthew regularly lectures, judges, speaks at wine conferences and runs masterclass tastings for both corporate and private clients all over the world. Matthew is also the creator of his ground-breaking initiative, the One Day Wine School, an indulgent day of tasting and learning first performed in 2006.

He has been the MoneyWeek wine correspondent since 2006 and has written a weekly column for the Daily Mail’s Weekend Magazine since 1999. His four highly-acclaimed, annual wine reports – the Burgundy En Primeur Report, the Bordeaux En Primeur Report, the Piemonte Report and the 100 Best Australian Wines – are published on his website, www.matthewjukes.com.

Matthew is one of the world’s leading experts on Australian wine and, with Brisbane-based wine writer Tyson Stelzer, runs an annual competition in Australia to find ‘The Great Australian Red’.  He was made Honorary Australian of the Year in the UK at the 2012 Australia Day Foundation Gala dinner. 

Matthew is a winner of the International Wine and Spirit Competition's Communicator of the Year Trophy.  His thoughts, recommendations and tastings notes are followed very closely by the wine world at large.

 

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