One advantage of having a sizeable crew here this year is that we can cover much more ground. Conflicting appointments between Latour and Le Pin resulted in The Antique Wine Company needing to be in Pauillac and Pomerol at the same time, so I tasted at Chateau Latour.

Once again Frederic Engerer has fashioned some fabulous wines in 2010. The third wine, simply called Pauillac is predictably the least complex of the trio and has a higher percentage of Merlot in it – 53% versus 47% Cabernet Sauvignon. As a result, the wine was very accessible, with easy tannins and sweet, jammy black fruit. 89 points. For a third wine it is truly excellent. However, it is not for sale En Primeur. You will have to wait until the wine is in bottle in order to purchase it.

Above: Plowing the biodynamic (experimental/test) parcel at Chateau Latour

Les Forts de Latour was a considerable step up in stature. This wine really has its own identity and is easily the quality of a good Second Growth. Indeed, the philosophy at Latour is not necessarily to make a second wine that is more accessible than the Grand Vin. The approach is to make the best possible Les Forts - in its own right.

The 2010 result was a powerful, dense Les Forts that was a little bit austere compared to Lafite’s Carruades. There is a very high percentage of Cabernet in the wine and it was muscular and tannic with good primary cassis fruit and no lack of acidity. This is a wine built for the long term. 93 points.

As for Latour itself, this was also a prodigious vin de garde with high alcohol, compact, ripe tannins and really expressive, layered, black fruits and minerals. Made from a blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Franc, the balance here is brilliantly judged and there was not the slightest hint of oak. Equally, this was not as immediately appealing as Lafite or perhaps as open as Haut-Brion. But for those who love a great, classical Latour (one that expertly expresses its terroir), it will not disappoint. 96 points.

Below: Jing Dong, of our London and Hong Kong offices, taking careful tasting notes at Chateau Latour

From Latour, I took the team back to Pomerol and to the Union des Grands Crus tasting. Having heard Stephen enthuse about both Vieux Chateaux Certan and Le Pin, I was keen to see what the rest of Pomerol had to offer.

In general, I was extremely impressed by these wines which backed up Stephen’s initial positive assessment. Although some of the wines we tasted didn’t quite have the terroirs of Le Pin and VCC, it is clear that Pomerol in general had done very well in 2010.

The pick of my bunch were Chateau Clinet (95) and Chateau Croix de Gay (95) which outpointed both Chateau La Conseillante (94) and Chateau Gazin (91). I felt that the latter two were clearly good but lacked the near perfect concentration and depth of Petit Village and VCC.

Also quite good was Chateau Beauregard (94) which seems to be punching above its weight with the 2010. Sadly, Chateau La Pointe was a little on the lighter side although the 2005 we tasted at lunch was much better - weighty, impressive and delicious.

Over the next few days we’ll also be publishing a full re-cap of our week in Bordeaux, so check back here frequently.

Post by Julien Froger

(Julien was previously Director of AWC’s Bordeaux Office and currently based at AWC’s Hong Kong office).

The Event -

This report follows a fascinating evening of tasting and analysis which covered recent Top Investment Wines and was held in Monte-Carlo, the tax-advantageous wealth haven on the Cote d’Azur.

The thirty-two attendees were comprised of clients of Monaco Asset Management and local clients of The Antique Wine Company.

The purpose of the tasting was to study the investment performance of wine as a commodity, while simultaneously offering an opportunity to taste some fantastic wines.  At The Antique Wine Company it remains our view that whilst fine wine represents an impressive investment vehicle, ultimately, great wines deliver pleasurable experiences. It is those experiences with family and friends which are often just as important as a wine’s ability to provide financial gain. What better place to enjoy some fine wine and discuss its investment potential than in a wealth management environment?

The line-up included four of the five First Growths (Lafite, Latour, Margaux and Mouton) along with the world’s finest white wine (Chateau d’Yquem), an exceptional example of Domaine de la Romanee-Conti Echezeaux and Chateau Cheval Blanc. Additional wines included Carruades de Lafite, Chateau La Mission Haut Brion, and a 100 point rated vintage of Chateau Pavie. Bordeaux vintages included 2000, 2005 and the recently released 2008.

Tasting Format -

Our head of purchasing, Berenger Piras, acted as sommelier for the evening and prepared the wines approximately 2.5 hours before the event. With the exception of the Domaine de la Romanee Conti Echezeaux, all the wines were double decanted in advance. The Echezeaux was tasted but not decanted in order to avoid any excess exposure to air.  The wines were presented by Stephen Williams, our Managing Director.

The Rules of Engagement -

The wines were tasted in pairs. After delivering a short presentation on The Antique Wine Company and our Fine Wine Investment Services the ‘rules of engagement’ were explained. In this competitive tasting format, tasters could earn points for guessing (or calculating) the correct Return on Investment which would have been generated had the wine been purchased en primeur and then sold on the market today.

 
To enhance the competition, a bottle of 2005 Chateau Margaux was put on the line for the winner!

Guests tasted their way through the pairs, with some tasting notes, the opening en primeur price, and information on the various estates and vintages being provided. A few subtle clues here and there aided with the calculations. After the final wine was tasted we revealed the answers and guests marked their sheets accordingly. The winner scored an impressive 40 points!

Guests were then asked to vote on their favourite ‘palate’ wine (the wine they enjoyed drinking the most), which also revealed some surprising results...

Votes and Answers –

Please click here to enquire about the availability of these wines or to request additional information.

Surprising Conclusions -

The favourite wines of the night (by taste) were the 2002 DRC Echezeaux followed by the 2000 La Mission Haut Brion and 2003 Cheval Blanc in a tie for second place.

The 2002 Lafite Rothschild was the best performing investment wine with an increase of 1106% since release.

Correlation between taste and investment performance -

The tasting showed that there was very little correlation between the ROI and the Parker scores for this sample set. Two of the three 100 point wines actually ended up at the bottom half of the results sheet in terms of ROI (the Pavie at 203% return and the d’Yquem at 186% return). Interestingly, the two highest performing wines in terms of ROI, Lafite Rothschild (1106%) and Carruades de Lafite (712%) were scored modestly on the Parker scale at 94 points and 91-93

points respectively. This is no doubt due to the distortion caused by the Chinese market for Lafite.

The standout wine of the tasting was clearly the 100 point rated 2000 La Mission Haut Brion. In terms of ROI it came in third place (at 564%) and it was tied for the second most popular wine of the evening by taste. Our view is that La Mission continues to challenge the First Growths year after year in terms of quality. Be this as it may, it is still often overlooked by investors who are only focused on the ‘First Five’.  This tasting really highlighted the investment potential of this wine, particularly given that it currently sits at an undervalued position in the marketplace. Fortunately, for savvy investors who are interested in the potentially 100 point La Mission 2009, we still have this wine available for acquisition in small quantities.

What did we learn? -

All of the wines at the tasting performed well from an investment perspective. Mouton Rothschild was the ‘poorest’ performer and it still showed 99% ROI over a four year period! Selecting blue chip wines and carefully analysing the market for undervalued options is the most lucrative route to ensuring solid financial returns.

The corollary between taste, critical acclaim and investment performance is clearly not direct. This shows the diversity of individual preferences, style and quality. These complexities are what continue to make the world of wine so intriguing.

To discuss or purchase wines from this tasting, or if you have questions about other fine wine investment opportunities, I can be reached at our London offices via email or phone +44 (0) 20 7359 1109.

Will Buckland, Wine Investment Analyst
The Antique Wine Company

Palmer, Latour and Haut-Brion

Horsing around at Latour…. See below for the inside track on Latour’s new secret weapon.

After a quick, but nonetheless good lunch at Rauzan-Segla, it was a short journey across the road to our next appointment at Palmer, one of Margaux’s undoubted superstar chateaux. It may have been a short trip but, for me, it was a big leap in quality. At the top end, this is turning out to be a fascinating and intriguing vintage.

There’s no question in my tasting notes that Palmer is one of the firm front runners of all the wines I’ve tasted today. For a kick-off Alter Ego, (its second wine) was hugely impressive and already temptingly drinkable . However, centre stage was completely occupied by the Grand Vin.

Frankly, the Palmer 2009 is a stunning wine, which rates a handsome 19/20. The blend is 41% Cabernet and a substantial 52% Merlot and a significant 7% Petit Verdot, which is most unusual. On the palate, it is rich, sweet, dense and seamlessly elegant (as Margaux should be) with intense black and red fruits and remarkably supple tannins. The oak is 50% new, but the fruit is so vibrant that the oak barely registers. The finish is awesomely long.

For me, Palmer’s drinking window could open sooner rather than later. But will it age? Yes, I think it almost certainly will – because of the acidity and tannin that underpin the wine. This could be another 1990 in the making. Except that this is even better.

The other question to answer is whether 2009 is shaping up as a great vintage? The word in the tasting rooms of the Medoc is that it is looking that way. It’s certainly shaping up as something unusual and exceptional. It’s ripe but not like 2003 because it has more freshness. Nor is it like 2005 because of the fleshy ripeness of the tannins. When it comes to vintages, comparisons with previous years only take you so far. In other words it’s something else again.

However, it wasn’t easy either. According to Sabrina Pernet, Palmer’s Technical Director, the most challenging aspect was when to pick. ‘We had to wait a bit for phenolic ripeness for the tannins to soften, which was a little scary because the potential alcohol was getting worryingly high. But it all came right because we waited and it worked perfectly. The tannins are beautifully ripe this year.’

Off to Latour

It was tempting to stay longer at Palmer to talk more about the vintage. But we had a 3.00 appointment at Latour. Naturally, one doesn’t want to be late for Latour so we made a quick getaway, which was just as well as there was a bit of a bottle neck in St Julien. Thankfully, we arrived at Latour right on schedule.

As ever, the vineyards and chai looked immaculate as we were shown into the tasting room. The 09 Pauillac – Engerer’s third wine was good, but no match for its second wine Les Forts de Latour. Already, rumours are circulating that Parker has rated this the best ever Les Forts. I wouldn’t be surprised.

What did surprise me was that Sonia Gerlou of Latour told me that this was one of the most difficult and complicated harvests that Latour has ever completed. It had to be done very quickly using an army of 200 pickers. Time was of the essence. In contrast 2005 was a breeze, she told us.

However, the result for both the deuxieme and the Grand Vin in 2009 are without question seriously prodigious efforts and are right up there in the pantheon of great Latours.

The latter in particular is a Latour de force, which has been treated to 100% new oak. There were concerns about the levels of alcohol, but what saved the day was the high acidity. Certainly, there is a remarkable freshness and ripeness to the wine, which almost seem at odds with each other. But tasting is believing.

Just 38% of Latour has gone into the Grand Vin, so selection has been rigorous again. Indeed, only 8,000 cases have been made, which is very, very low – even for Latour. As for the cepages – it is 91% Cabernet Sauvignon and 9% Merlot – no Cab Franc or Petit Verdot made the cut.

On the palate? Well the nose seems to have been lifted from Margaux, such are the aromatics. But look out for the cedar and lead pencils, plus the creamy cherry and cassis fruit and sexy sumptuous tannins. The balance is poised and pinpoint, perhaps because Engerer has kept the alcohol firmly in check at a manageable 13.7%. And there’s a sheen and polish to this wine. Frankly, it’s pretty faultless and registers another 19 points out of a maximum 20.

So we left on another high. But as you’ll see from the picture, what also caught my attention at Latour was a magnificent nag called Olympe who was dutifully ploughing the rows between Latour’s hallowed vines just in front of owner Francois Pinault’s pad and the historic tower at Latour.

Why a horse in this age of the latest gizmo technology? According to her boss Bertrand, she is one of three horses now fully employed at Latour. And the reason is simple. They do less damage than tractors to the environment and to the soil. ‘Tractors compact the soil and create more erosion. Olympe does no damage at all,’ Bertrand told me. A case of back to the future at Latour, where clearly not everything is ultra high-tec. Personally, I think it’s fabulous to see such traditional, tried and tested approaches to viticulture and vinificaton making a comeback.

Meanwhile, tomorrow morning, look out for my latest blog on Haut-Brion and La Mission Haut-Brion. They’re worth the wait….