Are there any compelling Bordeaux?

Canon, Talbot, Cantemerle, Figeac were potential buys back in the day. Maybe they spoof this stuff now, but I really wouldn't know.
 
For sweeties, Rousset-Peyraguey I think make some pretty nice Sauternes. They are hard-core "natural" however which leads to some silliness of bringing in "natural" sulfites from an Indonesian volcano for their sweeties. I won't pretend to understand that, but their sweet wines are great (I didn't have a good experience with their dry white Bordeaux, however).

Tire Pé makes some lovely, fresh, un-oaky reds, including a varietal Malbec which was pretty nice. I prefer their very basic, cheapest red DieM, however. It's really refreshing and moreish.

Another "naturalist" that to my tastes seems pretty classic in style is Vieux Pourret in St. Emilion.

David Poutays of Clos de Mounissens makes some un-oaky, really lovely, "natural" Bordeaux that has to be labelled VdT.

And then there is one producer who isn't natural or bio or anything like that but who still IMO makes pretty classically styled reds: Gressier Grand Poujeaux.
 
The dynamics are interesting. Clarets have gravitated toward being more like California Cabernet Sauvignon which tends to be a turn-off. EXCEPT, the pricing on Clarets compared to California Cabernet Sauvignon tend to bring Clarets back into favorable standing comparatively, at least at the higher end level.

A conundrum that leaves both categories less than scintillating generally speaking (acknowledging there are exceptions to this axiom).

A former big fan of Clarets and California Cabernet Sauvignons, I am now rarely a buyer.

. . . . . . Pete
 
Are there any Sauternes and Barsacs that people can recommend. I tried an '89 Rieussec which I liked immensely. Are there still chateaus in Sauternes and Barsac that make wines in that style?
 
originally posted by Yule Kim:
SauternesAre there any Sauternes and Barsacs that people can recommend. I tried an '89 Rieussec which I liked immensely. Are there still chateaus in Sauternes and Barsac that make wines in that style?
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Rieussec
 
I had an 88 de Fargues last night with pab (about which he may contradict me shortly) that was quite lovely. Sadly their prices are pulled up by their big brother but if you can find one with some age they are usually quite nice.
 
Not all is lost in Bordeaux. Small producers like Ch“teau Le Puy in Côte de Francs, biodynamic and unspoofed, should be better known in the US. They also make a Cuvée Barthélémy, 'sans soufre'.
 
I had a wonderful, extremely elegant, lightfooted Ch Madeleine 01 yesterday. Raspberries, earth, cedars , fragrant and fresh. All is not lost.
 
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