Bordeaux Book Sip by Sip by Nicolle Croft

a personal story over 30 years, wine guide to visiting what is important in the region and finding good value in this exceptional wine terroir. Gail Barnett Copyright Its been 30 years since I arrived on the quayside in Bordeaux city, weary from my travels in this funny tin can of a car (a 2CV) …

My Top Five Restaurants in St Emilion for foodies (and wineys)

The pretty village of Saint-Emilion is known around the world for its medieval monuments and cobble-stoned streets - and of course its famous red wines (it is called the 'hill of a 1000 châteaux'). It receives around 1 million visitors per year. The medieval village at nightfall nestled into its valley As in any 'touristy' …

Branaire Ducru, St Julien – a wine that has marked my life

There are some wines that seem to accompany our lives, even if it arrives a bit by chance. Branaire-Ducru is one of those wines that seems to have just been there during those important moments of my life. And it is exactly the type of wine I love. Its classy (one can taste its wonderful …

Futures Bordeaux 2019, time for a change?

With the cancellation of the usual primeur tastings first week of April this year wine buyers and journalists have received their barrel samples of the new vintage by the post. And it seems to have worked, as tasting notes have been written and communicated all over the world - despite the fragile nature of these …

Bordeaux Book Sip by Sip by Nicolle Croft

a personal story over 30 years, wine guide to visiting what is important in the region and finding good value in this exceptional wine terroir. Gail Barnett Copyright Its been 30 years since I arrived on the quayside in Bordeaux city, weary from my travels in this funny tin can of a car (a 2CV) …

2018 Bordeaux here we come

2018. Nature has made it good, perhaps very good. It is still in the barrel, aging, developing, sleeping, growing in density, becoming smoother more refined. Its elements of tannin, fruit, acidity beginning to mesh together in harmony due to the gradual micro-oxygenation that is taking place through the wood's grain. But it is still a …

How to find Good Value in Bordeaux

This text comes from my book which is about to be published 'Bordeaux Sip by Sip - getting to the heart of Bordeaux Wine'. The label is almost all wine enthusiasts have to go on. They look for any clue that might lead them to a good wine, something that they have heard of, or …

Where best to buy wine when touring Bordeaux?

Bordeaux is not California or anywhere else in the wine world where cheapest prices are found at source. In Bordeaux the châteaux do not sell their wine around the world, they sell it on exclusively to a specialised wine merchants based in the city of Bordeaux (négociants) who do all of their commercial work for …

2017 Recap of value and pricing

Thoreau said "the price of anything is the amount of life you exchange for it". Well prices for 2017 seem to be about equal to 'good' vintages that have already matured in bottle and are closer to the exciting time when they are 'ready to drink' and you can pull the cork such as 2006 …

Seventh Heaven in Bordeaux? as we taste the 2017s

Sevens are notoriously unlucky here in Bordeaux. There has been one outstanding vintage ending in a seven but that was back in 1947. Everyone has heard of the catastrophic very late frosts that hit at the end of April last year when vegetation was well developed (2 weeks in advance than normal). But what is …