Bordeaux wine. Left bank, right bank, phylloxera, Yquem, $5 bottles, $20k bottles, claret, st. emillion, margaux, holy crap how difficult can it get? To us, the regular guys on the street slash wine drinker, really difficult. I have been reading and studying about Bordeaux for over 10 years and I am still just scratching the surface. There is no way to explain the mess that is Bordeaux in one blog posting, so I think I'm gonna dedicate a few posts to it. Plus, we are talking about some of the greatest wines in the world, so trust me, it's worth it.
So, here is what I am gonna do. Today, I am gonna ramble about a general look at the region. Than, I am gonna have a left bank entrance (gonna explain later what this means), a right bank entrance (ditto), definitely a dessert wine, and the last one will be about the greatest wines from Bordeaux.
A high percentage of the juice made in the region is red. Most of the red wine is blended using Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Malbec. There is no rule about percentages, everyone is on their own. And since they are French and don't want us to know what is going on, they don't put the blends on the labels. See, French appelations are based on the regions. If you go to your local store and get yourself a bottle of St. Emillion (if you never did, go get one, it's delicious), that means the wine is from the village of St. Emillion. Or if you buy Pomerol it's from Pomerol. You think you get it? You don't get it. Then, you have Chateau appellations. Then, you got regions. Then you talk about Crus, and it starts getting difficult.
What is a Grand Cru? Or a Premier Cru? What is a second label? Or a third? Fourth? Classee? I am gonna try and explain them the easiest I can. In 1855, a bunch of drunk, French wine officials got together and after spending a week in a tavern came up with "Bordeaux Wine Official Classification". Every few years this classification gets updated. In a particular appellation, let's say Pauillac, they decided which particular plot of land best represents the region. In this case Chateau Latour. So this is the first growth. Then, they decided which are second best and called those Premier Cru. And so on. Now, when you think you get it they come up with second labels. See, a Chateau who is a Grand Cru (or first growth), sometimes buys another plot of land, which happens to be right across the street, but since they can't sell that as Grand Cru, they tweak the label a little bit and sell it as a second label. For example Chateau Margaux's second label is Pavillion Rouge du Chateau Margaux. And if they make some money selling it, and believe me they do, they buy another plot of land and make a third label. Sometimes a fourth and a fifth.
Here is an interesting little known fact about Bordeaux. Between 1875 and 1892, Bordeaux vineyards were wiped out by a little, sap-sucking bug called phylloxera. The French bought vine roots known as rootstock from America, and literally all the vines that exist today are a product of the those American roots. How about that? That fact always cracked me up.
So, maybe this will make Bordeaux a little easier. The wines are some of the best in the world, some of the oldest and with most tradition. They should be enjoyed by every wine lover in the world, but sometimes their price doesn't allow us to. I once had a chance to try a glass of Chateau Petrus 1982. That's it, I can't think of anything to compare that with.
Next week, left bank. Phew
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