WTN: To make Alex R. happy

It is always a special delight to find an impressive bargain in wine. It’s an even greater delight to find that bargain in a place renowned for its extremely expensive wines.

Bordeaux, the home of the vaunted Classified Growths, has achieved astonishing prices for those same growths. As highly prized as they are, they’re simply out of the reach of the common wine drinker, and the wines a bit lower down the ladder have been accelerating in price as well. Difficult to find any of the old reliable chateau names that won’t break the bank these days.

But the hankering for Bordeaux reds continues…so what to do, what to do?

One thing you can do is look for a bottle of Chateau Bel Air l’Esperance Bordeaux AOC 2008. It’s a wine that, as the baseball players might say, “hits well above its weight.” With the humble Bordeaux Appellation (although the property is in the Cotes de Bourg) and the accompanying humble price (under $10; cited in one store at $8.99), you probably won’t expect much. You’ll be surprised.

Surprisingly fruity, with ripe berry flavors but well within the cassis-currant frame of Bordeaux, the wine is light to medium bodied and, when young, carries some hefty tannins at the finish. I ascribe the current imbalance to youth though, and would expect it to moderate as the wine ages a while…and remember, we’re talking about a sub-$10 wine here!

There’s enough fruit here (without being the least bit gobby or over-ripe or Californian) and a subtle but solid stony, grainy minerality underneath, that the tannins will soften before the fruit and structure goes away. This wine harkens back to some of those wonderful ‘petite chateaux’ Bordeaux of the 1980s, available in great profusion at great prices and drinkable enough to want to buy them by the case lot.

Another thing that harkens back to those 1980 Bordeaux? The 12% alcohol by volume listed, which makes it a good dinner companion. It’s rather refreshing to find a wine with such modest alcohols and such big flavors, actually.

Chateau Bel Air l’Esperance is one of quite a few of the “new breed” (or maybe they’re the old breed coming back?) of the modestly priced, easily drinkable, nicely structured Bordeaux being championed by Planet Bordeaux. Wines like this may just bring back the days when people were drinking Bordeaux instead of just collecting it. And wouldn’t that be lovely!

Continue reading on Examiner.com A Bordeaux bargain: Chateau Bel Air l'Esperance 2008 under $10 - National French Wine | Examiner.com http://www.examiner.com/french-wine-in- ... z1UZkNf1bO

It’s a wine that, as the baseball players might say, “hits well above its weight.”

Nice article, but I;ve never heard a baseball player say that. Boxers say it (or "punches above weight").
But good article and I think Cotes du Borg and Cotes de Castillon might be the 2 best appellations for under $12 Bdx rouge. Though of the more well-known communes I think Graves has some good cheapies (as someone-Ryan?- pointed out here recently.

Thanks, Dale.

As to the hitting above his weight comment, yes, that's often associated with boxers (and makes sense); but I've also heard it applied several times to baseball players, signifying that they were smaller, wiry guys who were hitting like the sluggers...more than expected in a tighter package. Hey, I just throw 'em out there sometimes; and occasionally they work. (That said, I'm not big on sports analogies anyway.)

As to the Bourg, I'd sure agree with you: I've had some pretty tasty wines from there over the years. Don't know if that's due to soil,honestly, or possibly the hillier terrain, as I'm not that familiar with the specific terroir. All I can judge is the results, and as I've said, I've had some good ones.

Castillon I don't have much of a handle on. Graves, I agree, has some outstanding wines, but I've found the less expensive ones can tend to be on the lean, harsh side.

I didn't mention this in the original post but the Bel Air l'Esperance is a blend of 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, and 20% Cab Franc. I think it was the CF that put the chewy stuff in the middle of this one.

The name rang a bell, and so I can second Hoke on this one:

Chateau Bel Air l'Esperance, Bordeaux 2008
Reasonably nice fruit, a bit boring at first with no tone or accentuation, but after openning for a while, shows much better tone, with pleasantly tart fruit, and cedar notes. * * (2 stars) [12/30/10]

Definitely another well-made Bdx for everyday drinking (almost an oxymoron these days). Must say though that the 2008 Des Proms (Graves) I posted about blows this out of water for a couple bucks more.

Not to go on a rant here but I really have a problem with amateur tasters online that criticize any Bordeaux that isn't ripe motor oil as being poor in quality - like Hoke says, that isn't what claret is supposed to be!

Tangental, reflective side note: it occurs to me that most folks here probably think of me as a Bordeaux man first and foremost, which would be a valid conclusion based on how much I post and talk about Bordeaux. But it isn't actually my first love: I am, first and foremost, an Italophile.

And it's even better now, Ryan!

Thanks for chiming in with your tn. Always nice to have another perspective.

And I entirely agree that this style of Bordeaux is much more of what I have always thought Bordeaux to be. That might be because it goes back to when I was drinking Bordeaux much more copiously than I do now.

Honestly, the major reason I drifted away from Bordeaux as a primary wine was as much about the style changing as it was about the price increasing. The tangent lines sort of came together eventually, and by then I'd already found alternate loves (like you, lots of Italian, but also Austrians for whites and Rhones for red). I'm still there.

But when I can find wines like this, and at $8--9 dollars regularly!, I'll be drinking more Bordeaux (if only because my wife loves the stuff).

While I know that Alex must be correct in saying that there are Bdx values to be had, it often seems like a challenge to find them. Many wine shops have a variety of inexpensive to mid priced Bdx wines from the more fringe appelations. In buying them randomly one gets everything from great values to thin, green, probably very commercial wines. And while reviews like this one are helpful, the producers available in my local market may not be widely distributed and vice versa (especially considering some of the better wines might be from small places). I do need to try more of these wines, though.

I agree with you, Joe. Outside of the great growths and selected others, distribution of Bordeaux has been dismal in the US. Well, disposition of "good" Bordeaux, anyway. Partially because it is competing with home-grown product; partially because of the palate preference change insitgated by that new world home grown product; partially because the Bordeaux import market for the modest wines was ceded to the mega-importers who quite frankly couldn't give a damn whether what they are bringing in is quality or swill as long as they make a profit off it.

But a large part of that dearth of the good modest-priced Bordeaux is, quite frankly, the fault of the Bordelaise themselves. They didn't adapt to the new world, they were lame to totally awful at marketing their product---in many cases it seemed they resented having to stoop to marketing the great Bordeaux, and invoking that particularly Gallic arrogance expecting the customers to simply be grateful and accepting that they deign to let them have their product didn't play very well with a lot of people.

They also, for a long time, were unwilling to band together in groups (which is now changing, most notably with the advent of Planet-Bordeaux and Sweet Bordeauc and their initiaitves and websites). And they were missing the boat for a long time on using the Interwebz and, lately, Social Media, and the newfashioned methods and technology.

In short, stodgy and resistant to change and adaption. The only thing they attempted to change was price---thinking that the rising tide of the Great Growth prices would float their boat for them, and finding out it didn't. Meanwhile, that home-grown stuff was stealing their thunder, at a lower and damn-near-irresistible fighting variety price point and much more easy/early drinkability (which California was in turn trumped on by Chile, Argentina and Australia to great effect).

Alex would like to make it simple and blame everything on the US importers though. In part, yeah, because maybe there were easier wines to make money on, sure. But the Bordelaise didn't help themselves very much. Thankfully, a lot of that has changed. I've had about four or five really good and nicely priced Bordeaux reds this year, more than I've had for the previous several years. Hope it continues, if only for the selfish reason that I can go back to drinking the now old-fashioned non-gobby, leaner, less-spoofed and moderate priced region that I used to drink more of.

I always maintained that Bordeaux left me; I didn't leave it. Now I feel like Bordeaux is coming back to me again. And I'm glad for that.

Hoke, thanks for making me happy

You wrote:
"Alex would like to make it simple and blame everything on the US importers though"

Honestly, I never said that that was the sole reason.
I mostly agree with the intelligent criticisms you voiced (so to speak) of the Bordelais.
Dale is also right to mention the southern Graves.

If I were younger I might entertain constituting a portfolio of petits châteaux and flogging them in America.
I think there's much scope there.

Best regards,
Alex R.

[James Roscoe]

If I were younger I might entertain constituting a portfolio of petits châteaux and flogging them in America.
I think there's much scope there.

Best regards,
Alex R.

I think that this is an excellent business plan. I would not be surprised to see more inexpensive Bordeaux coming into the US in the next ten years.

Hoke, thanks for making me happy

You wrote:
"Alex would like to make it simple and blame everything on the US importers though"

Honestly, I never said that that was the sole reason.

I know, Alex. I just enjoy teasing you a bit.

I think that this is an excellent business plan. I would not be surprised to see more inexpensive Bordeaux coming into the US in the next ten years.

TEN YEARS! James, who in hell has ten years to spend waiting?

[James Roscoe]

I think that this is an excellent business plan. I would not be surprised to see more inexpensive Bordeaux coming into the US in the next ten years.

TEN YEARS! James, who in hell has ten years to spend waiting?

Stop acting like an old fart!!! Cheer up! You are only as old as you type on the net!!!!

Some of us are old farts which allows us to bitch about anything our heart's desire. Accept it graciously or else.

[James Roscoe]

Some of us are old farts which allows us to bitch about anything our heart's desire. Accept it graciously or else.

Just because you are an old fart do you need to act like one? One needs to learn to be an old fart graciously. I think rule number one is to not complain about time (or is that the main thing you complain about?) Now you have me confused Lou!

Some of us are old farts which allows us to bitch about anything our heart's desire. Accept it graciously or else.

Just because you are an old fart do you need to act like one? One needs to learn to be an old fart graciously. I think rule number one is to not complain about time (or is that the main thing you complain about?) Now you have me confused Lou!

I could have ruled the world if everyone was so easily confused as you James. Remember levity will let you survive to live another day. I have no idea what the fu-- I meant by what I just wrote.

[James Roscoe]

No wine tonight. I am easily confused.