We are now contributors to Forbes and our first article for Forbes deals with an appropriately business-oriented subject: Bordeaux classed growths. But we have put a slightly different slant on it than usual. Rating the famous names as the best (which one tends to do when one tastes them looking at the label) is not so interesting.
A rare occasion to taste all the 1855 classed growths in one go gave me the opportunity to pick some of my favourites without too much being distracted by the fame of the name on the label. It was all a very rapid affair. All 87 of the 1855 classified growths (crus classes) in Medoc, Graves and Sauternes, were on the table. I had about an hour and a half to go through them. My strategy: taste quickly and efficiently and focus on which wines seemed best put together, gave most pleasure, and seemed most balanced. It was a bit like speed dating…
My just published article on Forbes goes into a bit of details. It explains some of the background to the classification. I also underline that you can find a lot of good value wines among the lesser known wines (and even outside the classification) provided name-recognition is not your primary buying criteria.
I list my 22 outstanding Médoc crus classés from the tasting, some of which are not well known at all. The price range of the wines is from 30 euro to almost 1000 euro. As a bonus I also list my top 12 of the Sauternes classified growths.
The article on Forbes starts like this:
Bordeaux is the world’s biggest source of top quality wines. But a Bordeaux wine can cost anything from a few dollars or euros to several thousand per bottle. In Bordeaux you can find the ultimate luxuries in the wine world but also some very good value wines. The “1855 classification” is very important for the business of Bordeaux wine. But it is not a classification that one should believe in blindly. A recent tasting of all the wines in the 1855 classification illustrated that well. And gave me some “good-buys” tips to share with you.
You can read the full article and get my list of best wines here: Top Bordeaux Wines, Ultimate Luxuries As Well As Good Value Producers And The 1855 Classification.
Welcome to BKWine and the Karlssons on Forbes!
