Bordeaux Results at Last!!!

We had our taste-off for our wining wines in the Bordeaux series and what an exciting tasting it was! As a recap, we had four tastings with each tasting representing an appellation in Bordeaux the winning wines for each appellation went through a final taste-off and we now have a favorite Bordeaux in our tasting group.

First lets meet the final contestants; From St. Emilion and our first tasting in the Bordeaux series we had Chateau Faugeres, 2004, for $24. From the 2nd tasting of Pulliac we had Carruades de Lafite, 2002 for $40. And from our Lalande de Pomerol/Pomerol tasting we have Chateau de Bel-Air, Les Pensees, 2003, Lalande de Pomerol for $20. And last but not Least from our Pessac-Leognan tasting we had Chateau Cruzeau, 2003 bought for a steal at $14!

And the winner is.................

1st: Chateau Cruzeau, Pessac-Leognan, 2003 for $14!!!!!
2nd: Carruades de Lafite, Pulliac, 2002, $45
3rd: Chateau Faugeres, St. Emilion, 2004, $24
4th: Chateau Bel-Air, Les Pensees, Lalande de Pomerol, 2003, $20

Stay tuned for our next series of tastings where we will be focusing on Pinot Noir from Oregon, California, Burgundy, and New Zealand!

Bordeaux Winetasting Series

The old tasting group has started up again with a bang! We are doing a series of tastings focusing on Bordeaux and exploring some of the regional differences that it has to offer. We started off with St. Emilion and will eventually move through Pauillac, Pomeral and Graves. The winners of each region will be tasted against each other in a final Bordeaux tasting. By doing this we hope to learn more about each region and how they differ from each other and even come up with a favorite Bordeaux sub-appellation.

Bordeaux Basics (Click Here to view map)

Bordeaux is the largest "fine wine" producer in the world and provides a standard of quality that many winemakers around the world try to emulate. The whole region is dedicated to wine from vineyards to restaurants, hotels, and tourism. All Bordeaux reds must be made from Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petite Verdot, and Malbec. Carmenere is also allowed but almost never used because since Phylloxera it has rarely been replanted.

Bordeaux is split in to 3 regions by the Dardogne and Garonne rivers: The Right Bank, Left Bank, and Entre Deux Mers (between two seas). The whole of Bordeaux has 37 controlled appellations each defined by their differences in soil and climate, the main components of Terrior.