Pocket Vintages - Wine Information and Reviews

Chateau Recougne Bordeaux 2010

One of the best value Grand Vin de Bordeaux around right now, and one of the wines regularly supplied by my local wine merchant as an entry level Bordeaux wine, costing about $13 a bottle.

This red bordeaux blend is 78% Merlot, 12% Cabernet Franc and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and the heavy predominence of Merlot makes it a smooth drinking Claret that pairs well with chicken, pork and tomato based pasta dishes.  It is not quite complex enough to do justice to a decent steak - you want something more heavily skewed towards Cab Sauv for that, but for the price you can't beat this wine. The 2010 vintage is drinking very well now and as you will read on my France Wine Vintages page, 2010 was an excellent year for Bordeaux wines!  Enjoy this great value delight whilst you can.

Chateau Pindefleurs 2009 Saint Emilion Grand Gru

This is a real stunner and a bargain at under $22 a bottle currently at Wine.com.  I just ordered a case, having tried a bottle from my local wine merchant here in Seattle, which was priced at $25 (still good value for money).

This wine is 90% Merlot, the rest Cab Sauv and Cab Franc.  It's is drinking very well now but will keep and improve another few years.  You many remember that 2009 was a great year for St Emilion (check out the vintage report here) and when I saw this Pindefleurs, I knew it was going to be good.

Deep and rich on the pour, a real mouthful with just enough acidity and tannins to pair extremely well with a steak, but still fruity enough to have a glass on its own.  I finished off the bottle on the second night, having stored in the fridge, and it was just as good second time round.