I have compiled a list of select "Blue Chip" Bordeaux that should be part of any serious wine collection. The featured producers are Château Haut Brion, Château Lafite-Rothschild, Château Latour, Château Margaux, Château Mouton-Rothschild, Château Ausone, Château Cheval Blanc, Château Petrus, and Château d’Yquem. I chose these nine châteaus for this “First Growth” report because they represent the top echelon of Bordeaux collector wines; they are what are commonly referred to as the “Big Eight” plus Château d’Yquem. The selected vintages have nearly always increased in value on the auction market because of their high demand.
With thirteen vintages listed for Château Latour, it is the estate with the most (post 1961) 95+ point vintages from Robert Parker. However, with only nine vintages, Château Lafite-Rothschild attains 100 points for five of its nine wines. The estates with the highest average scores across three review sources (Parker, International Wine Cellar, Wine Spectator) include 2000 Margaux (RP 100, IWC 98, WS 100), 1989 Haut Brion (RP 100, IWC 97, WS 100) and 2001 Yquem (RP 100, WS 100). Other top scoring wines include 1990 Margaux, 1982 Mouton-Rothschild, (1961, 1982, 2000, 2003) Latour, 2000 Lafite-Rothschild and 1989 Petrus. As it is still early, there are not yet final scores available for the 2005 vintage wines; however, the current ranges are exceptionally high, significantly inflating that vintage’s average retail price.
Classifications
Châteaus Haut Brion, Lafite-Rothschild, Latour, Margaux, and Mouton-Rothschild (as of 1973) are classified as First Growths from the 1855 classification of Médoc (Left Bank). Château d’Yquem is the only sweet white wine to be classified as a Premier Cru Supérieur from the 1855 classification of Sauternes and Barsac. In Bordeaux’s Merlot-based Right Bank, Châteaus Ausone and Cheval Blanc garnered the top classification, Premiers Grands Crus Classés A, in the 1954 classification of St. Emilion. Although Château Petrus (from Pomerol) has never been classified, it is generally considered of the same class as the established First Growths.
Analysis Parameters
The following chart includes summary data pertaining to vintages from 1961 to 2006. In order to be selected, the wine must have rated at least 95 points or more from Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate or Bordeaux. Wines are listed in descending order of points from Parker. In the column headings, RP represents Robert Parker’s publications, IWC represents Steven Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar, and WS represents the Wine Spectator. All scores, maturation ranges, and prices date from August 2007. Auction averages are compiled from Vinfolio’s on-line wine store (or 23nd Edition of the Wine Price File), and retail averages are compiled from wine-searcher.com as integrated into Vinfolio’s on-line wine store. All prices are based on 750 ml bottles.
Summary Chart: 1961 to 2006
