Bordeaux En Primeur 2016 “2016 is another fantastic vintage following on from the brilliant 2015. As a lover of strong cabernet blends, and the power of great Pauillac and St Estephe, 2016 may end up being my favourite of the two, but it is more likely that in the long term both will have some really stand out wines to offer. There are some gorgeous right bank wines too, so everyone should be happy! Anyone wishing to lay down wines for a long time should make sure they are well stocked in the great vintages. 2016 joins 2005, 2009, 2010 and 2015 in the list of must-have years.” James Davy, June 2017 The Davy’s buying team visited Bordeaux in early April for the annual Union des Grands Crus tasting – a hectic three days of visits, to dozens of Châteaux, tasting hundreds of wines. After the excellent 2015 vintage and initially unpromising weather conditions in ’16, it seemed too much to hope for another good year. Few could have predicted how things would turn out at harvest time, with sudden rains bringing a near perfect balance to the hot, dry summer. 2016 has a whiff of the miraculous! Equally good as, but quite different in style to the 2015 vintage, our tastings from cask suggest 2016 is a year of elegant, classical wines, with beautiful aromas and fine, ripe tannins, elevated by very fresh acidity. The wines hark back to the style of Bordeaux seen twenty years ago…but with all the added benefits of modern vineyard and wine making techniques. Approachable (because of those silky tannins) but with very long ageing ability, 2016 should offer tremendous enjoyment for many years to come. Saint-Estèphe Château Clauzet 2016, Case of 12x75cl IB £150.00 Château Clauzet is owned by Baron Maurice Velge. He first purchased a couple hectares of vineyards in St. Estephe from Château de Côme, in 1997, followed a little later by Château Clauzet and its 6 hectares, then gradually increased to the current 23 hectares. The vineyards are neighbours of Lafite and Cos d’Estournel and have very similar soils, deep gravel and gentle slopes thus providing good drainage. Wine maker José Bueno worked for 23 years at Baron Philippe de Rothschild with Chateau Clerc Milon and Chateau d’Armailhac. The viticulture is organic. “Deep and full extraction on show here, yet again proving that this is a vintage in St-Estèphe where the winemakers have got a lot of leeway to play with. A big wine held in balance, with cassis, black cherry and some attractive charcoal and menthol. Things close in on the finish, but it just holds off from becoming drying. Drink: 2025-2040” Decanter Magazine, April 2017 Château Meyney 2016, Case of 12x75cl IB £245.00 Château Meyney is a St Estèphe that has the particularity to be located at the centre of a single block vineyard of 51 hectares. Looking down the Gironde, the estate is protected from frosts due to the proximity of the estuary. The vines are an average age of 35 to 40 years, divided between 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30%Merlot and 10% Petit Verdot. “The 2016 Meyney has quite an opulent and flamboyant bouquet, which is something I do not expect from this Saint Estèphe. It seems to calm down in the glass and attains more delineation and poise. The palate is sweet on the entry with impressive precision, quite linear in style with blackberry, graphite and smoky notes, leading to a finish that offers satisfying persistence. Excellent.” 90-92pts, Neal Martin, April 2017 “Solid and incredible depth reminds me of the Meyneys of the 1960s that were so structured and incredible. Full- bodied yet polished and refined. Super structure.” 95-96pts, James Suckling, March 2017 Offered for sale ‘En Primeur’, in bond. Price shown is per case (12x75cl bottles) and excludes UK duty and VAT which will be charged at the prevailing rate when the wine lands in the UK. Onward delivery not included. En Primeur prices not available in conjunction with any other discounts or offers. Château Ormes de Pez 2016, Case of 12x75cl IB £250.00 Ormes de Pez is one of St-Estèphe’s leading Cru Bourgeois and was bought by Jean-Charles Cazes in 1936 from Chateau Lynch-Bages. 32 hectares of vines are planted with 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc. Wines are matured in one to two-year-old barrels for 12 to 18 months. “Powerful and structured with lots of blueberry, blackberry and currant character. Full-bodied, tight and tannic yet polished and beautiful. Fantastic. Juicy.” 93-94pts, James Suckling April 2017 Château de Pez 2016, Case of 12x75cl IB £297.00 Château de Pez, is a Cru Bourgeois located in Saint-Estèphe and is the most ancient Bordeaux vineyards alongside Calon Ségur. Created in the 15th century, it enjoys ideal exposures on the hilltops and has been carefully renovated after it was acquired by Louis Roederer in 1995. The wine is usually rich and dense and merits prolonged ageing. “The 2016 de Pez appears to be benefitting from a long-term replanting program at the estate. This is a blend of 53% Merlot, 42% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3.5% Petit Verdot and 1.5% Cabernet Franc. The IPT is quite high at 80, and there is 13.9% alcohol. It has a pure and comely bouquet with black cherries and blackcurrant pastilles, just a touch of crushed violets that emerge with time. The palate is really quite lovely: very well balanced with a fine line of acidity, quite saline in the mouth, perhaps the finest tannic structure that I have encountered during many years of tasting this Saint Estèphe, with a long persistent finish. Maybe this is the “dark horse” of the appellation this year. Drink: 2022-2050″ 92-94 pts Neil Martin, robertparker.com, April 2017 Offered for sale ‘En Primeur’, in bond. Price shown is per case (12x75cl bottles) and excludes UK duty and VAT which will be charged at the prevailing rate when the wine lands in the UK. Onward delivery not included. En Primeur prices not available in conjunction with any other discounts or offers. Dame de Montrose 2016, Case of 12x75cl IB £312.00 The second wine of Château Montrose, that boasts of the Medoc’s best vineyard sites and is often considered to be the most reliable and longest-lived wines in the region. Since the first vine were planted in 1815, only three families owned the property before it was purchased by Martin and Olivier Bouygues in 2006, who reconstructed a spectacular 10000 m² of vineyard and built a modern cellar. “Exceptionally deep blackish crimson. Not especially expressive on the nose but really deep and intense on the palate Very dense for a second wine but with a good raciness and energy. Rather elegant and flattering without resorting to sweetness. Quite cool on the end. Lighter and less dense than the grand vin. Drink 2024-2039.” Jancis Robinson MW, April 2017 Pagodes de Cos 2016, Case of 12x75cl IB £384.00 Tasting en primeur at Cos d’Estournel is a memorable experience, with groups of tasters ushered stand around long, beautifully lit tasting tables, somewhere between an alter and the VIP area of a very smart nightclub. The grand vin looks to be one of the wines of the vintage but the Pagodes has also won praise. Far more accessible on tasting at this stage, with super-fine tannins. ‘This is a serious wine representing 55% of the overall production, with the other 45% in Cos (‘not one drop into a third wine or bulk’ says director Aymeric de Gironde). Extremely dark black cassis fruits and graphite show the power of St-Estèphe clays. Fresh, bright and well structured (3.61pH, 65IPT), this is bristling with fruit and silky tannins, and may even close down for a few years. A blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 46.5% Merlot, 3% Petit Verdot and 0.6% Cabernet Franc from vines averaging 35 years old, aged in 30% new oak.’’ 92 pts Jane Anson, Decanter Offered for sale ‘En Primeur’, in bond. Price shown is per case (12x75cl bottles) and excludes UK duty and VAT which will be charged at the prevailing rate when the wine lands in the UK. Onward delivery not included. En Primeur prices not available in conjunction with any other discounts or offers. Pauillac Château Lafon - Rochet 2016, Case of 12x75cl IB Lafon-Rochet has a great location, adjacent to Lafite Rotshchild and Cos d’Estournel in Saint Estephe. Since the Tesseron family, the quality of the wine has improved a lot. Later harvest and higher use of new oak has made the wine from Lafon - Rochet more powerful and they are today getting more attention. “Plenty of fruit and concentration to this wine, and it’s buttressed by the tannins. Muscular and intense. Full- bodied yet reserved and tight. Excellent.” 93-94pts, James Suckling April 2017 Château d’Armailhac 2016, Case of 6x75cl IB £195.00 Château d’Armailhac has been under the ownership of Baron Philippe de Rothschild since the 1930s. Classified as a fifth growth, the property only produce one wine that is seen as great value and is generating more and more interest amongst wine lovers. “The 2016 D’Armailhac is a blend of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 28% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot that was picked between 27 September and 14 October…..typical d’Armailhac in terms of the opulence and flamboyance with lush black cherry and boysenberry fruit…immense purity here with some lovely blue fruit appearing on the finish.