For The Love Of Port

The issues with the region are complicated, but it basically boils down to this: The good wines cost a lot of money; its English-speaking audience is aging; the dominant grapes, cabernet sauvignon and merlotThe issues with the region are complicated, but it basically boils down to this: The good wines cost a lot of money; its English-speaking audience is aging; the dominant grapes, cabernet sauvignon and merlot, are out of fashion relatively speaking; and the region, unlike, say, Burgundy, lacks charismatic representatives to talk up its appeal., are out of fashion relatively speaking; and the region, unlike, say, Burgundy, lacks charismatic representatives to talk up its appeal.

I will disagree with his statement on why BDX has fallen on hard times. You've got a region that charges a ton of money for wines they make by the tens of thousands of bottles and they priced gouged when a new market emerged. They use an out-dated system to sell by and cherry pick blends/barrels for reviewers to taste that aren't always what they bottle. Now they expect everyone to come running back to daddy now that he's lost his trophy wife. Sorry, they've made their bed and now they need to sleep in it for a while and learn their lesson.

Andy Velebil wrote:

...The good wines cost a lot of money

I will disagree with his statement on why BDX has fallen on hard times. You've got a region that charges a ton of money for wines they make by the tens of thousands of bottles and they priced gouged when a new market emerged. They use an out-dated system to sell by and cherry pick blends/barrels for reviewers to taste that aren't always what they bottle. Now they expect everyone to come running back to daddy now that he's lost his trophy wife. Sorry, they've made their bed and now they need to sleep in it for a while and learn their lesson.

That one stuck out to me as biggest BS. Certainly, BDX has been the genesis of red wine for many starting out on their wine journey, but their wines do not cost the vineyards more to make. The property is paid, there's little advertising and they could pre-sell everything if they wanted to if they did not want to be pigs about it. I still buy BDX, but not from the big names I could buy from 15 years ago... Merlot and Cabernet are both relevant grapes by themselves or blended. Most don't think of BDX in terms of the grape alone, but more of the producer and terrior.

Andy Velebil wrote:

The issues with the region are complicated, but it basically boils down to this: The good wines cost a lot of money; its English-speaking audience is aging; the dominant grapes, cabernet sauvignon and merlotThe issues with the region are complicated, but it basically boils down to this: The good wines cost a lot of money; its English-speaking audience is aging; the dominant grapes, cabernet sauvignon and merlot, are out of fashion relatively speaking; and the region, unlike, say, Burgundy, lacks charismatic representatives to talk up its appeal., are out of fashion relatively speaking; and the region, unlike, say, Burgundy, lacks charismatic representatives to talk up its appeal.

I will disagree with his statement on why BDX has fallen on hard times. You've got a region that charges a ton of money for wines they make by the tens of thousands of bottles and they priced gouged when a new market emerged. They use an out-dated system to sell by and cherry pick blends/barrels for reviewers to taste that aren't always what they bottle. Now they expect everyone to come running back to daddy now that he's lost his trophy wife. Sorry, they've made their bed and now they need to sleep in it for a while and learn their lesson.

Hats off, Andy! Well said.

After reading the article, I actually found a lot to like about Asimov' perspective. I was also fortunate enough to "cut my teeth" on aged second growth (and a few first growth) BDX's as well as aged nebbiolos.

I agree that food often brings out the best in these wines. As an example I opened a 2000 Chateau Hourbanon Cuvee Remi last night. I paid $35 for this wine back in 2010, but it could have been purchased as low as $17 in 2012. On pop 'n pour and tasting intermittently from a decanter over the course of several hours, this wine tasted flat and unremarkable, albeit with balanced structure. However, once I started chasing bites of NY steak with this wine, the wine came to life and distinct notes of cherry fruit were obvious on the palate. But if I cleared my palate with some seltzer water and bread and then returned to the BDX, it tasted flat again.

But, why do I want to pay $17-35 for a wine that only tastes enjoyable with steak when I can buy any number of classically styled rioja reds (Cune, Lopez, Rioja Alta, Faustino, etc.) that taste equally good with steak and taste good to drink on their own!!!…or the Argentinian, Portuguese or Southern French reds.

I disagree that Cab Sauv and Merlot are out of fashion. I think Merlot is out of fashion with casual wine drinkers, and Cab Sauv has fallen out of favor with Somms, but outside of those instances, I think cab and Merlot are charging, esp. in Washington state and California.

Its funny though, for someone who likes and understands BDX, bordeaux wines only comprise 10% of my wine cellar and the majority of those are $20 bottles that I bought early in my wine buying hobby. BDX is one of the last categories from which I will buy an expensive bottle (Bordeaux Blanc excluded).

I think if the concerns that Andy mentioned were addressed, then I'd be more apt to buy $50-100 red BDX. But for now, I'm buying reds from other regions.