Bordeaux 2018: Where does reality in bottle meet hype from barrel?

By Panos Kakaviatos for wine-chronicles.com  24 January 2021 From barrel, I had characterized 2018 Bordeaux as a vintage for “Hedonists and Intellectuals”. Over the course of the last few months, including several visits to Bordeaux during official lockdowns in France, I tasted 2018s on location, after recent bottling. Some bottles had been sent to me to […]

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Various Médocs 2018

By Panos Kakaviatos for wine-chronicles.com  24 January 2021 Here we have a “catch-all” review of Médoc wines, given COVID19 restrictions to taste from bottle. Tasting notes of course vary, as much ground is covered, from inland Moulis and Listrac, to Haut-Médoc wines that “see the river”, such as Sociando Mallet. Among the 1855 Classified Growths, tasted […]

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Fine signs for Bordeaux 2019

Let’s start with some top Cru Bourgeois By Panos Kakaviatos for wine-chronicles.com 15 July 2020 As you may recall, back in May, I dubbed Bordeaux 2019 the COVID19 vintage. That was not meant to decry quality, but rather to set context. And as I wrote back then, my intention was not to add hype, but […]

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Wine snapshot: Château Sociando Mallet 2003

By Panos Kakaviatos for wine-chronicles.com  11 May 2020 Welcome readers to my first wine snapshot: a weekly feature. Each Monday, I will do a profile of a single wine that I like. And we start things off on Monday 11 May with the fine Château Sociando Mallet. With impeccable gravel over clay and clay limestone […]

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Médoc/Haut-Médoc/Moulis/Listrac: 2018 from barrel

by Panos Kakaviatos for wine-chronicles.com 26 April 2019 Some lovely wines from the northern Médoc in 2018. A huge pity for the absence of the great Château La Lagune, as hail devastated the vineyards in 2018. I was able to taste the others that made wine in 2018, with oenologist Christophe Coupez in Pauillac (we […]

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#Bdx17: The Médoc, part II

Assessing Haut-Médoc, Listrac-Médoc and Moulis-en-Médoc By Panos Kakaviatos for wine-chronicles.com 21 May 2018 This section on #Bdx17 from barrel focuses on three Médoc appellations not as famous as those in Part I but known for quality wines at generally lower prices. Certain wines here indeed could constitute bargains… in the longer run. And as we […]

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2015 Bordeaux from bottle, part 1: Mostly Médoc wines

Margaux shines brightest By Panos Kakaviatos for wine-chronicles.com  17 November 2017 – revised, with new video intro, below. How good are Bordeaux 2015 from bottle? Based on two days of tasting top Médoc wines in early November this year, I would say quite good. It does not seem to reach the heights, on a more […]

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Médoc 2016 from barrel

Mags of Château Potensac and Château de Lamarque, among other good deals! Bordeaux 2016 barrel tasting notes 10 May 2017 By Panos Kakaviatos for wine-chronicles.com As seen already, the northern Médoc did very well especially from barrel. Budget conscious buyers will find cru bourgeois level wines with high quality. Including for example Château Potensac, which was […]

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