Archive for the
‘Investment Wine’

The first of the four first growths was released this morning in the shape of Château Lafite Rothschild 2022. It is being offered by the international trade for £7,140 per 12×75, a 23.1% increase on the 2021’s opening price (£5,800 a case). Even with the increase in price on 2021 (as has been the norm for the 2022 vintage), the price still compares favourably with 2018 and 2016.  This is one of those wines that performs well year on year and we have taken are full allocation as usual.

Neal Martin (Vinous) scored the wine 96-98 points and said ‘perpetually the most deceptive of First Growth, one should not doubt its long-term potential’.

Several critics were quick to compare 2022 to Lafite’s greatest vintages. James Suckling awarded the wine a barrel range of 99-100, celebrating this vintage’s similarity to 1986 and its ‘purity and precision.’ In his words: ‘It’s really about being Lafite here.’ Similarly, Lisa Perrotti-Brown scored this vintage 98-100, calling it an ‘intellectual triumph’ that is ‘classic great Lafite.’

William Kelley (Wine Advocate) gave Lafite a barrel range of 95-97+, deeming it the ‘most tensile of the first growths this year.’

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Another big wine released yesterday. Château Pontet-Canet 2022 is being offered by the international trade for £1,077 per 12×75, an 21% increase on the 2021’s opening price (£890 a case). With very high critic scores this year compared to other vintages and still at a discount to 2016 it could be a popular wine on the secondary market a few years down the line due to it’s definite popularity.

Neal Martin (Vinous) awarded the wine a barrel range of 94-96 points, praising the ‘fine balance’ and ‘long residual peppery note’ on the finish. Admitting that he has ‘not pulled any punches’ for recent vintages that have strayed from the style of Pauillac, he notes that the 2022 Pontet-Canet is ‘safely within the appellation’.

Other critics were also interested in regional style, with Lisa Perrotti-Brown (Wine Independent) calling the wine ‘Pauillac in all its powerful, energetic glory’. She scored it at a range of 97-99 points.

Jane Anson (Inside Bordeaux) rated the wine at 94 points, highlighting the ‘vivid plum colour, violet reflections [and] chewy tannins’, that hit the palate immediately.

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Château Calon Ségur was released today. It is being offered by the international trade for £1,220 per 12×75, up 24% on the 2021’s opening price (£984 per 12×75). Often a very strong performer on the secondary market and a big following internationally, a wine that we will be taking our full allocation of.

Neal Martin (Vinous) awarded the wine a barrel range of 94-96 points, calling it ‘tight at first’ but praising the ‘classically styled’ palate once the wine opens up. He describes it as ‘uncompromising’, warning that ‘patience will be required’ for the wine to reach its full expressive potential.

William Kelley (Wine Advocate) awarded the wine a barrel range of 96-98 points. He noted that it ‘is another superb wine from this historic Saint-Estèphe third growth that began a comprehensive renaissance the better part of a decade ago’.

James Suckling scored it a similar range of 95-96 points. He noted that it was ‘traditional and typical for Calon with the tannin structure. A little closed today. But serious structure’.

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Today saw the release of Château Brane-Cantenac 2022. It is being offered by the international trade at £720 per 12×75, up 27.7% on the 2021’s opening price. One does have to bear in mind that the yield at Brane-Cantenac was down 40% on the previous vintage. Furthermore, the 2022 vintage according to the critics is the best vintage of the last decade – This perhaps explains the higher price.

Neal Martin (Vinous) awarded the wine a barrel range of 96-98 points, deeming the 2022 Brane-Cantenac ‘blessed with haunting poise’. He points out the ‘hidden depth’ that has come to be a signature of the estate, predicting that ‘it is a wine that 15 to 20 years down the road, you are going to treasure’.

William Kelley (Wine Advocate) scored it 95-97 points and noted that ‘this is a terrific 2022 that may rival or even surpass the 2019 if it realizes all its potential in bottle’.

James Suckling gave a barrel range of 96-97 points to this ‘long and very linear red for Margaux, with intense freshness and energy’.

Jean-Marc Quarin rated this ‘wonderful’ wine 99 points, his highest score given to Brane-Cantenac En Primeur.

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An exciting release today from the Mouton Rothschild stable – with Château d’Armailhac playing their hand. The estate received it’s highest score to date by Neal Martin with 93-95 points.

A wine that enjoys an international following – wines from d’Armailhac typically increase with value with age, rather than relying on critic scores.

Neal Martin (Vinous) awarded the wine a barrel range of 93-95 points, praising the ‘gentle and discrete crescendo’ of the finish. He predicts that ‘it will surely be irresistible once it reaches its peak’. In his words: ‘you’ve been warned’.

James Suckling gave it a range of 96-97 points, calling it ‘one to watch’ thanks to its ‘tight and racy palate that shows persistence and verve’.

Jean-Marc Quarin awarded the wine 95 points, praising its ‘very aromatic, fine, fruity, subtle, pure, floral and liquorice nose’.

William Kelley (Wine Advocate) scored it a lower 92-94 points. He noted that it was a ‘layered and concentrated wine that’s deep, lively and seamless’.

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Today we saw the release of Carmes Haut Brion from Pessac Leognan. This wine has become a cult favourite in recent years – and is certainly one we wish we could get higher allocations of.

It is being offered by the international trade for £1,320 per 12×75 – significantly up on the 2021 wine by 39.2% – however this wine has high scores, low volumes and world wide demand that always increases in value at an alarmingly quick rate.

Neal Martin (Vinous) awarded the wine a barrel range of 96-98 points, calling the palate ‘just beautiful’ and loaded with ‘mineral-laden dark berry fruit’. He describes the 2022 Les Carmes as replete with ‘sculpted tannins’ and having a ‘seamless’ finish. In his words: ‘I am not inclined toward hyperbole, nevertheless, this is the best Les Carmes that Guillaume Pouthier has overseen’.

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Chateau Palmer 2022 from Margaux was released today and was offered to the international trade for £1,788 per 6×75, a 25.7% increase on the 2021’s opening price (£1,422 a case).

Chateau Palmer was listed in the Top 10 wines from the 2022 campaign from the English Wine Trade – and priced with the 25% increase, we feel this is at the very limit of what is acceptable and will be taking a smaller allocation than usual of this superb wine.

Neal Martin (Vinous) awarded the wine a barrel range of 96-98 points, praising the wine’s ‘tannic backbone’ that lends a ‘sense of verticality’. In his words: ‘do reserve a bin for your cellar for this and let it gather dust for at least a decade’.

‘A monumental achievement’, says Lisa Perrotti-Brown (Wine Independent) who rated the wine at 96-98+. She writes that, despite needing ‘a lot of shaking and swirling’, the wine is ‘supported by a skyscraper structure’ of tannins and enjoys a finish of ‘epic length and depth’.

Jane Anson (Inside Bordeaux) was only slightly more reserved, scoring it 96 points and deeming it a ‘serious, structured’ wine with ‘everything turned up pretty high’.

‘A magnificent wine in every way’, writes Antonio Galloni (Vinous), who called it ‘one of the most surprising wines of the year’.

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Today we saw the release of Right Bank powerhouse – Ausone. A wine famously hard to get hold of from Saint Emilion – the wine is being offered at £3,400 per case of 6 – which is a 13.3% premium on the 2021 wine.

Low availability on the market, high critic scores, this is a great wine for the long play for an Investment Wine Portfolio.

Neal Martin (Vinous) awarded the wine a barrel range of 95-97.5 points, calling it ‘intellectual and persistent in the mouth.’ He expresses some hesitation, though, wondering if he ‘had witnessed this Saint-Émilion demonstrate its full potential’ – hence the atypical barrel range score.

James Suckling gave it a barrel range of 97-98 points, describing this ‘young Ausone’ unlike any other he remembers and calling it ‘full-bodied with flamboyant fruit and energy’.

Jean-Marc Quarin scored the wine 99 points, calling it ‘ultra meticulous on the palate’.

Meanwhile, William Kelley (Wine Advocate) scored it at a slightly lower range of 94-96+ points. He said that ‘given its imposing levels of structuring extract, it will require patience’.

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Château Duhart-Milon 2022 was released this morning. It is being offered by the international trade for £756 per 12×75. This is a 12.5% increase on the 2021 vintage – The smallest price hike of the big gun releases so far. Prices for the 2022 vintage across Bordeaux are generally up due to low yields and high quality wines.

Kelley (Wine Advocate) scored the wine 91-93 points, noting that it had a ‘velvety palate’ and concluded ‘with a youthfully firm finish’.

James Suckling gave it a barrel range of 95-96 points, calling it ‘full-bodied yet compacted’, with ‘fine and intense tannins’.

Jean-Marc Quarin also awarded the wine 95 points, praising its ‘very aromatic, fine, fruity, subtle nose’.

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Carruades de Lafite was released this morning. It is being offered by the international trade for £2,256 per 12×75, an 13.9% increase on the 2021’s opening price (£1,980 a case). This looks like great value as it is the cheapest vintage on the market. According to the fine wine trading platform, Liv-Ex, Carruades de Lafite is 94% correlated with age – 2022 En Primeur offering the best value.

Neal Martin (Vinous) is yet to score the wine. Although his Bordeaux report and scores are due later this afternoon.

Antonio Galloni (Vinous) scored it 92-94 and deemed it a ‘real showstopper.’

James Suckling gave it a barrel range of 96-97, describing it as ‘nervy’ with an ‘intense center palate.’

William Kelley (Wine Advocate) awarded it a barrel range of 91-93 points and described it as ‘bright and velvety’.

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