MALESCOT SAINT EXUPÉRY 
has been released at £252 per 6 bottles IB. We were all really impressed by this – it was clearly one of the stand-out wines from Margaux in 2016. Neal Martin gave it 94-96/100 and called it ‘sensual and voluptuous‘ but with great delineation and precision on the finish. It is, he maintains, ‘one of the best Malescot-St-Exupéry that I have tasted.’ We concur and, at this price, it’s not bad value either. This comes very highly recommended.
From Saint Julien comes another of our long-term favourites – CHÂTEAU LAGRANGE. The grand vin is out at £210 per 6 bottles IB. Neal Martin absolutely loved this giving it 94-96/100 and calling it, ‘a great Lagrange’ that ‘almost “zings” around the senses, barely able to contain the energy.’ He felt this was ‘superior to the 2015‘ and ‘may well rank as the finest produced.‘ The perennial value buy FIEFS DE LAGRANGE is also out at £210 per 12 bottles IB. Neal loved this too (90-92/100) calling it, ‘full of joie de vivre‘ and commenting that, ‘you cannot really go wrong with Les Fiefs.‘ One to buy in Magnums for parties. The Lagrange white 2016 ARUMS DE LAGRANGE (95 per 6 bottles IB) seemed to us to have fared better than many of the whites from the Graves this year and also comes recommended.
Both the Lagrange releases sit towards the top of our price estimates this year but the estate was badly frosted in 2016 and volumes were down 40%, so these price increases are understandable (it’s also worth noting that this release is still cheaper than the 2009 and 2010). For the quality, these remain great value wines that we heartily recommend.
CALON SÉGUR is also out at £382.50 per 6 bottles IB. This is undoubtedly a stunning wine and will be one of the most sought-after of the vintage. Neal Martin gave it 95-97/100 and called it ‘easily the best Calon-Ségur that I have tasted from barrel‘. Tim Atkin concurs, suggesting it could well be Vincent Millet’s best effort to date (98/100). We were quite simply bowled over by it and can’t recommend it highly enough. The only sadness is that volumes were down significantly in 2016. We have managed to satisfy all our pre-orders at the opening release price but sadly we have very little left. If you are interested, I highly recommend you get in touch immediately and we will do our best.
Also out is Calon’s second wine MARQUIS DE CALON at £228 per 12 bottles IB. This now includes fruit from some newly planted (2007-2010) Cabernet vines which lends the Marquis a darker fruit core and added gravitas. Jancis scored it 17+/20 which is mighty impressive for a deuxième vin. Another from Saint Estèphe is the top Cru Bourgeois PHÉLAN SÉGUR, released at £417 per 12 bottles IB. We weren’t completely sold on this when we tasted it and at this price it looks relatively expensive.
From the right-bank also comes CHÂTEAU ROUGET at £229 per 6 bottles IB. It’s a bit over our price estimate, so at the toppy end of the spectrum, but this is always a highly dependable estate and still fits the bill for a high-quality Pomerol that doesn’t break the bank.
As ever, you can keep up to date with everything from #Bdx16 on our Recent Releases page.