Bordeaux 2009 at Two Years: St Estèphe & Pauillac
It’s difficult not to get excited about St Estèphe. Whether it is the austere majesty of Château Montrose, the more turbo-charged rocket fuel of Cos d’Estournel or the spicy density of Calon-Ségur that gets your juices flowing, there is no doubt that each of these châteaux have, at one time or another, yielded wines which support very clearly their position close to the top of the of the Bordeaux hierarchy.
Having said that, you might now be disappointed to learn that neither Montrose, Cos d’Estournel nor Calon-Ségur participate in UGC activities, and so they are not represented within my notes published below.
The unanticipated benefit of their collective superiority complex is that it gives other châteaux a chance to shine, leaving Lafon-Rochet as the appellation leader for a day, and allowing a little of the limelight to fall on the commune’s very worthy cru bourgeois properties. We are continuously being told that, as the prices of many classed growth châteaux move further and further out of reach, those of us who find we are priced out of the market should turn to ‘lesser’ châteaux, and ‘lesser’ appellations, for our Bordeaux kicks. It’s an argument I have long rejected, as few wines can provide the same experience as, say, Montrose or Cos d’Estournel, regardless of what pleasure they may deliver and what good value they may be.
