Declassified Bordeaux Wines by Tom Cannavan
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Declassified Bordeaux. For decades it has been a phrase that gets claret lovers excited: the prospect of buying a Bordeaux wine from a famous classed growth estate, at a fraction of the usual price. The concept is that Château X decides not to bottle some of their production, so instead bottles it under the more anonymous, generic appellation for their region, to be sold at a considerably lower price. Why would they do such a thing? Well, the wine may be made from fruit where quality wasn’t good enough for the Grand Vin, or fruit from very young vines not yet suitable, or perhaps – though unlikely – they just had too much Grand Vin quality wine for their needs.
These are what’s known as declassified wines. The will appear as generic Pauillac, Margaux, or another exalted appellation, usually offered for sale with a fair degree of nodding and winking, the source of the wine never revealed but hints that it is from one of the appellation’s greatest terroirs. Just as likely is that it will come from more than one address within the appellation’s boundaries.
The grandest of all are the first growths, where the Grand Vin will sell for £600 per bottle, but they will also have a ‘second wine’ fetching £100+ and possibly a third wine, still going for £60 or £70. So what exactly is in a ‘declassified’ Bordeaux offered for £20 or so? Well, the bottlers will never give that information, so I guess we will never know. The proof of value will be in the drinking.
Maison Sichel
Maison Sichel is a very important player in Bordeaux. Not least because they own Château d’Angludet and co-own 3rd growth Château Palmer, both very highly respected estates in Margaux. They are also a significant négociant business. Négociants will buy grapes to make wine, or wines to bottle under their own labels. So Sichel has fingers in many pies and contacts in many estates across the Bordeaux region. They have bottled the three wines below, all from the 2023 vintage.
You will note that labels do not use the term ‘declassified’, but simply state that the wine comes from an area that is home to prestigious estates. So which famous names – if any – lie behind these declassified wines? You will find speculation online and there are clues that can be followed – like the Saint-Emilion being certified organic, which narrows the field – but I have no idea and, as far as I know, nobody outside of Sichel and the contributing estates has either. To evaluate these wine remove any rose-tinted glasses and consider what is in the glass, not what might be.
The Wines
Bordeaux, France, Dry Red, Cork, 12.5% abv
90/100 Tom Cannavan
£24.95 finewinedirect.co.uk
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Home territory for Sichel who own Château d'Angludet, this is predominantly Cabernet Sauvignon blended with Merlot and weighing in with a mere 12.5% alcohol. It has a brighter, slightly racier feel than the Paulliac tasted alongside. Cherry and raspberry spans red to black fruits, a delicately spicy oak background. In the mouth it is savoury and quite chewy, the tannins grip while the fruit stays in a similar spectrum suggested by the nose, dark glossy cherry and some clove spice with acidity leading to a clean, gently peppery finish.
Bordeaux, France, Dry Red, Cork, 13.5% abv
89/100 Tom Cannavan
£24.95 finewinedirect.co.uk
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Deep and youthful crimson colour, this has vinous aromas of blueberry and plum, a cherry aspect too. Oak is very much in background, just an edge of leafy cedar to this. In the mouth it is fresh and taut thanks to racy acidity and a tight tannin framework, the fruit just doing enough to balance. It's a savoury and arguably slightly lean wine, though in many ways that touch of austerity is classic in a young Pauillac. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.
Bordeaux, France, Dry Red, Cork, 14.5% abv
90/100 Tom Cannavan
£24.95 finewinedirect.co.uk
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A typical Right Bank blend of 80% Merlot plus 20% Cabernet Franc, I liked this despite its 14.5% alcohol, normally a little more than I prefer. It is sumptuous in its inky depth of colour and black fruit, linked with spice and cedar. On the palate the grip of the tannins suggests this will cellar, and perhaps decanting or drinking with some meaty protein will show it at its best now. Rich, full-bodied, the ripe black fruit buttressed by those tannins, acidity and barrel smokiness it's a big mouthful of certified organic red and a good expression of the appellation. One thing to note: in Saint-Emilion there are literally hundreds of 'Grand Cru' estates, the title much less meaningful than in Burgundy, or indeed in the Left Bank's 'Grand Cru Classé'.
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