Eating Well - David LansingNov. 2006

Right Bank Bordeaux : 6 Affordable Bordeaux Reds To Try

Whenever I have a hankering for a nice Bordeaux, I grab my trusty Magic 8 Ball and head for my favorite wine shop. Hmmm. This one has a nice label and is only $12. Is it any good? “Very doubtful.” Okay, well then what about the one with Rothchild on the label? That must be good, right? “My reply is no.” How about the one labeled Bordeaux Supérieur? “Ask again later.”
Okay, I don’t really use a Magic 8 Ball to choose a Bordeaux wine but I know a lot of people who feel they might as well do just that. Short of ponying up a hundred dollars or more (sometimes much more) for a premier crus (vineyards officially recognized as having the best soil and thus ordained “first growth” by the French government) from a somewhat familiar sounding chateau like Margaux, Lafite-Rothchild, or Latour, how does one go about picking out a decent Bordeaux at an affordable price?
Let’s start with geography. Roughly speaking, the Bordeaux region is divided in two by the Gironde River. On the “left back,” you’ll find most of the big boys, including those just mentioned, with their Donald Trump pricetags. These are big, heavy cabernet-dominated blends that almost demand a decade or longer in the bottle before they really show themselves. Our advice? If you happen to come across a ’95 or ’96 Latour in the “closeouts and discontinued” bin of your local purveyor, go for it. Otherwise, forget about it unless you’ve already decided that your children can pay for their own college education.
The better bargains are to be found on the east, or “right bank,” near St.-Emilion and the neighboring areas of Côtes de Bourg, Côtes de Castillon, and Fronsac. Some of the best value Bordeaux wines come from these appellations, though even here it can be difficult to know what, exactly, you’re paying for. But if you’re willing to experiment a bit (knowing in advance that there will be disappointments), there are any number of inexpensive Bordeaux wines out there to choose from. With some caveats.
First of all, don’t expect Bordeaux wines to taste like their New World cousins, even if made from the same grape. The French aren’t really big on fruit-forward wines. Instead, people often talk about the woodsy, “green leaf” taste in Bordeaux wines as opposed to California “fruit bombs.” But realize that oftentimes a poorly made domestic wine will hide behind a big grape-y mouth feel and lots of alcohol to disguise their lack of complexity; in comparison, their French cousins often seem austere, yet leave behind more ghostly hints of forest and herb and earth. In short, they seem, to us, more cerebral. Plus we like the fact that they’re usually lower in alcohol.
Secondly, the labels can be incredibly confusing. How do you know if you’re drinking cabernet sauvignon or merlot? You don’t. Beginning with the 2005 vintage (which won’t be available for a couple more years), wines from the St.-Emilion region can put the varietal of the grape on the label, but until then, just know that you’re usually getting a blend of merlot, cabernet sauvignon, and cabernet franc (with possibly small amounts of malbec and petit verdot added as well).
Probably the best thing you can do to select a value Bordeaux is become friends with your local wine merchant. He or she can get to know your personal likes and dislikes and make appropriate suggestions for sampling. That’s how I came across the wines of Terra Burdigala. This is an interesting wine company out of Bordeaux that makes its own wines and distributes others, all with a nod to using sustainable farming practices. Terra Burdigala—which is the ancient Roman name for the region of Bordeaux—uses only organic manures and grasses to balance the vineyards’ nutritive requirements and avoids chemical fertilizers and weed killers.
“I work on phytotherapy, on how to cure the vine using homeopathy, which is something fairly close to biodynamic principles,” says Stephane Derenoncourt who, along with partner Francois Thienpont, started Terra Burdigala in 2001. “It’s also important for us to find out what types of trees or bushes we can plant around the vineyards to attract insects that are beneficial to vine growing,” he adds. “The goal is to reach a balance that allows the vine to regulate itself with a minimum of human intervention.”
Terra Burdigala represents a growing list of Bordeaux winemakers who share their values and while some of these wines can be a bit difficult to find, several—Manoir du Gravoux, Chateau Peyroutas, and Les Cimes, for instance—have relatively good distribution and are well worth seeking out.
The Bordeaux Wine Bureau, eager to prove that French wines are a lot more affordable than most Americans think, recently launched a public relations blitz spotlighting 100 “classic, contemporary, and affordable” Bordeaux wines priced $8-$25 as selected in a blind tasting. I don’t know how classic the $8 bottles were, but there are, indeed, some good bargains to be had (check out the complete list at http://bordeauxwinebureau.org/top_100.html). Below are our own recommendations.

6 Affordable Bordeaux Reds To Try

1. Manoir du Gravoux, Côtes de Castillon ($18). Fruitier than a traditional Bordeaux with lots of black cherry.
2. Chateau Peyroutas, Saint-Emilion ($25). Subtle, chocolate flavor with a slight woody taste.
3. Les Cimes, Montagne Saint-Emilion ($20). Medium bodied with wild strawberry and cherry character.
4. Les Charmes de Chateau de Pic, Côtes de Bordeaux ($13). Fruit forward with moderate tannins and leathery finish.
5. Chateau Haut-Corbin, Saint-Emilion ($25). Blackberry and apricots with enough tannin to handle a steak.
6. Chateau Mont-Perat, Côtes de Bordeaux ($19). Chocolaty, silky wine made primarily from merlot grapes.