Tag Archives: old

Ducru Beaucaillou: its reputation surpasses its ranking

Let’s start exploring some individual chateaux in Bordeaux with excellent reputations. Of course the wine does most of the communication on behalf of the chateau but it is always interesting to know the history of the estate and the philosophy behind the winemaking.

I’ll start with Ducru Beaucaillou because I’ve been wondering about this estate for some time. It is a Saint Julien second growth wine. It has an excellent reputation for being incredibly consistent throughout the last century. In fact, Ducru Beaucaillou has had an excellent reputation within and outside of France since the 18th century. Some say that Ducru Beaucaillou is of higher quality than a second growth. While prices of the wines reflect the chateau’s reputation, they are not nearly as high as those of first growth wines. It is widely recognized that Ducru Beaucaillou is a great deal amongst the top Bordeaux wines. SoDivin has 17 different vintages of Ducru Beaucaillou from 1918 to 1998.

The estate is now managed by the third generation of the Borie family. In 1953 the Borie family was one of the first chateaux to hire the famous enologue Emile Peynaud to guide them in the vines and in the cellar. Peynaud is widely regarded as changing enology in France. He explained scientifically and mathematically each step of the vinification process which demystified the winemaking process. The Borie family benefited from Mr. Peynaud’s knowledge early on in his career. This and a strong attachment to traditional winemaking methods outlawing chemicals and very high standards in general have built Ducru Beaucaillou’s reputation over the decades and centuries.

The vines are comprised of about 50 hectars of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot, and 5% Cabernet Franc.

It is worth exploring this chateau with a reputation that surpasses its 2nd growth ranking.
Here are links to the Ducru Beaucaillous that SoDivin has in stock:

1918 DUCRU BEAUCAILLOU
1955 DUCRU BEAUCAILLOU
1964 DUCRU BEAUCAILLOU
1966 DUCRU BEAUCAILLOU
1970 DUCRU BEAUCAILLOU
1971 DUCRU BEAUCAILLOU
1972 DUCRU BEAUCAILLOU
1975 DUCRU BEAUCAILLOU
1976 DUCRU BEAUCAILLOU
1978 DUCRU BEAUCAILLOU
1982 DUCRU BEAUCAILLOU
1983 DUCRU BEAUCAILLOU
1986 DUCRU BEAUCAILLOU
1990 DUCRU BEAUCAILLOU
1992 DUCRU BEAUCAILLOU
1997 DUCRU BEAUCAILLOU
1998 DUCRU BEAUCAILLOU

Choosing and Drinking Old Wines

Vintage wines and alcohols carry with them all of the history through which they have lived. To drink a wine or alcohol that has lived through one’s lifetime or historical events is moving in itself, and then to drink the wine is a great discovery with surprises each time. An older wine is like an older person, it is more subtle, less vivacious, but is more complex and if you take the time to listen to what it has to say you will be greatly rewarded.
Drinking a very old wine or alcohol is a very rare experience as it is estimated that only 1% of all wine has the potential to improve after more than 10 years old. This is because not all wines and alcohols are created equally. Many factors contribute to a wine’s ability to last a long time. In the vineyard the soil and grape variety have certain innate qualities that instill the tannins and acid necessary to sustain a wine for many years. In addition, the climate in a given appellation changes year to year which varies the quality of the grapes, which in turn determines whether the finished wine product will have a long life in the bottle or not. There are many decisions during the vinification process that can add the components necessary to lengthen its life as well. And during the aging process, oak barrels further infuse tannins into the wine. When all of the conditions in a given year are ideal to create an excellent vintage and therefore an outstanding wine, the wine will have a very long life. Wines from the best appellations and best chateaux in the world in an exceptional year can last up to 100 years or more. The longer the life of the wine, which can be predicted very early on in the vinification process, the more gradual the arc that leads to its long peak period and equally gradually descends toward the end of its life. It is always ideal to drink a wine during its peak period and concerning these illustrious wines with such a long life, the peak can last decades. The wines will evolve and change and even when they have lived longer than a few human generations and are past their prime, they can still have structure, surprising aromas, and secrets to tell.
So, which wines to choose?
•    Red Bordeaux wines are amongst the wines with the greatest potential to live an interesting, long life. I recently tasted a 1926 Montrose that still had very good structure and aromas of jammy red fruit. If you want to taste a very old red Bordeaux it is best to study up on the vintages to know which ones have staying power.
•    Sauternes, those sweet whites from Bordeaux that hide so much power and complexity in the pretty golden packaging. Sauternes can age even longer than red Bordeaux, but beware that though they are from the same wine region, the quality of the vintage is not necessarily the same as for reds in a given year.  Sauternes need “noble rot” in the vineyard to get their unique complexity and aromas.
•    Vintage Champagne can take on interesting qualities thanks to the carbon dioxide bubbles that can add richness over time.
•    Fortified wines such as Port and Madeira have very long lives that can last up to a few centuries. In the SoDivin cave we have a few bottles of Madeira from 1745 that may just be good to drink.

It must be said that no matter how favorable the tasting notes of a wine may be, do keep in mind that the older the bottle, the greater the risk that the wine could no longer be good. But the gamble only adds to the excitement and their charm.

Rare and Vintage Wines, Reactive Service

SoDivin is a collection of the most revered, sought after wines from the most prestigious chateaux in France:

We are the only wine boutique that specializes exclusively in rare and vintage French wines and alcohols. The depth and bredth of our cellar is impressive: 110 vintages, hundreds of the top chateaux and everything is ready to drink. Our customer service is on par with the product we sell. We understand that such luxururious wines require individual knowledge and individual attention and reactive customer service. We ship all over the world within 24 hours of receiving your order: 19th and 20th century wines with 21st century service.

SoDivin Recommends Old Champagnes

Champagne incites celebration and pleasure like no other wine in the world. For our greatest moments in life, commemorations, winnings, weddings, milestone birthdays, retirements, and numerous other special moments, we reach for Champagne to mark the occasion with its effervescence that can’t help but lighten our spirits. It is both the symbol of a grand occasion and the grand occasion that calls for such a festive wine.

Behind the celebration and laughter though, Champagne is serious wine and serious business. Champagne is a specific wine from the Champagne region, and not a style of sparkling wine. The soil and the grape varieties grown there produce a sparkling wine with its own distinctive character and method of production. One of the particularities of Champagne gives the producers a great deal of control over the final product that they release: Champagne can be blended not only by grape variety but by vintage as well. A non-vintage Champagne (to which a vintage is not attributed) is a blending of many different years, each having their own characteristics, to make the final Champagne that the blender desires. 75% of Champagnes sold are non-vintage. They can be fun and festive and very good but the best grapes are reserved for the vintage Champagnes; all of the grapes are from one year which is declared on the label.

Vintage Champagnes are serious, complex wines that can be aged for decades. Champagnes are not often thought of as wines that one lies down but just as any quality wine, they do get more interesting with age. One of the greatest wine tasters in the world, Michael Broadbent, is passionate about old Champagnes and has tasted several even from the 19th century, giving some of them his highest rankings, toting their excellent structure and distinct aromas. The carbon dioxide bubbles can add richness over time that is distinctive in older Champagnes. One doesn’t need to go back to the 19th century to experience all that an older Champagne has to offer. Drinking a wine from a year that is important in one’s life (wedding anniversary, birthday, for example) is always moving. Drinking a Champagne, with all of its notions of festivity, from an important year will only add to the poignancy of the grand celebration.

The best Champagne vintages post World War II until 2000:
1945
1952
1959
1964
1971
1982
1985
1988
1990
1996

Other vintages can be very good as well. You can find tasting notes for specific wines on the SoDivin website.