The Bordeaux September Releases, 2025
La Place de Bordeaux is a loose and – when looking in from the outside – rather opaque system of trading in the wines of this region. Hundreds of merchants, courtiers, négociants and châteaux come together in a rather nebulous network to move the wines around and ultimately out of the region, and into the cellars and glasses of consumers.
The current period is perhaps one of the most difficult ever for La Place, as high prices, high interest rates and a falling demand for wine have impacted its efficiency and value, and not even this loose-knit and therefore usually adaptable system has found smooth sailing on these economically choppy waters. As a brief window into this world, when I arrived at one of my tasting visits in July I had to wait for the estate’s general manager to finish their telephone call before we could begin tasting; on the other end of the line was a négociant explaining why they could not pay for wine previously ordered. A tense negotiation followed. I am sure telephone calls on a similar theme are now a daily occurrence in the region.
Nevertheless, when La Place does run smoothly it has offered, at the flick of a switch, access to a global distribution network. Not to mention the fact that – and this is key when it comes to this report – there is also some prestige associated with having your wine for sale on La Place alongside Bordeaux first growths and the top names of Pomerol and St Emilion.
This explains why, over the past few decades, La Place has increasingly traded in wines from beyond the Bordeaux region. Some are from small names seeking good distribution (and the identity of some of these domaines causes my eyebrows to rise) but it seems to me most are drawn here by the sense of prestige or occasion, in some cases holding back small volumes of older vintages to make a late release on La Place, rather than using it as a primary route to market.
The wines listed therefore include some of the world’s most renowned, from Napa, Argentina, Chile, Australia and Tuscany, many of which are now regularly released onto La Place each September. These are frequently joined by late and library releases from some of Bordeaux’s leading names, including Château Latour and Château d’Yquem. And while clearly none of these wines tickle my tastebuds like a good Cour-Cheverny (I mean, what does?), a month or two ago I stopped off in Bordeaux to taste this year’s international Beyond Bordeaux releases. I report on the wines here.
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