How to understand Bordeaux wines - part 2 - Pessac-Leognan and Graves

The Graves region is on the Left Bank south of the city of Bordeaux.  A small portion of the total Graves region, the part closest to the city of Bordeaux along the river, was designated as an elite appellation called "Pessac-Leognan."  The soil in the Graves region is characterized by small stones and gravelly soil.  The wines produced in Pessac-Leognan and Graves evoke the subtle aroma and flavor of the gravel and stones from which they come.

Only one chateau in Pessac-Leognan, Chateau Haut-Brion, was included in the famous 1855 Classification which designated the most elite chateaux in Bordeaux.  The wine produced by Chateau Haut-Brion is still considered stunning for its flavor, complexity and character.

The Graves appellation holds the distinction of being the only part of Bordeaux where most chateaux make both red and white wines.  Although many wine drinkers think of dry white wines when they think of Graves, white wine is slightly outproduced by red wine.  For red wines, Cabernet Sauvignon is the dominant grape, but many wines include generous amounts of Merlot and/or Cabernet Franc.

Besides Haut-Brion, famous producers in Pessac-Leognan include Chateau La Mission-Haut Brion, Chateau Pape-Clement, and Chateau Haut-Bailly.  Other elite producers of red wines are Chateau La Louviere, Domaine de Chevalier, Chateau Bouscaut, and Chateau Smith-Haut-Lafitte.

In Graves, white wines are made from blends of Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc grapes.  Semillon adds richness, body, depth, and the ability to age gracefully.  Sauvignon Blanc adds acidity and freshness of flavor.  The white wines from a noted producer, Chateau Carbonnieux, have a bright, minerally vibrancy and a satiny mouthfilling texture when young, and it develops a rich, honeyed character after several years of aging.  Other top white wine producers include:  Chateau Couhins-Lurton, Chateau Pape-Clement, Chateau La Louviere, and Chateau de Fieuzal.

Unfortunately, the prices of the wines produced by the top chateaux exceed our $25 per bottle limit by a substantial amount.  Therefore, we'll concentrate our search on identifying the best of the "petit chateaux" in Pessac-Leognan and Graves.  Although not as esteemed as the top chateaux, it is possible to find many very good to excellent wines among the petit chateaux.

I'll raise our limit to a "list price" under $40 because it is possible to find some $30-40 wines on sale and discounted below $25 a bottle.  The sales are not frequent but they do occur occasionally.  In fact, when these wines do go on sale, it provides one of the best opportunities for building up a collection of excellent wines.

I'll identify and describe potential candidate wines from Pessac-Leognan and Graves over the next few days.  Then I'll move on to the Right Bank.  It's not possible for me to describe the characteristics of individual wines for all recent vintages.  Therefore, I've decided to focus on the 2005 vintage which was the most recent "great vintage" and for which detailed evaluations are available.  In addition, all of these wines are still widely available for purchase.

There is a French saying, "Grands millesimes, petits vins -- petit millesimes, grands vins."  Basically, it means that, in great vintages, the petit chateaux often provide some of the best wine drinking (for the dollar), whereas in less successful vintages, the prices of wines of great terroirs soften considerably and become more affordable, and you can grab a taste of wines that are unaffordable in the better years.