2009 Les Allées de Cantemerle, Haut-Médoc

Staff Reviews

DO

David Othenin-Girard

David Othenin-Girard

Maximum pleasure for the absolute minimum price possible. This might literally be the best $20 you can spend in the store right now. Everything that's great about the 2009 for a fraction of the price of the big boys. Wonderful depth and fruit, but with the classic earthy quality we expect from Cantemerle. If I could I would be buying stacks of this wine and planning to drink it over the next 10 years, but it's so delicious today I end up taking it home by the bottle one by one. Either way, you cannot lose here if you love old-school Bordeaux.

JM

Jacques Moreira

Jacques Moreira

Dark crimson with hints of violet color. Wow... Tobacco, mushroom, cocoa, along with dark cherries and berries and sure enough...earth! On the palate, all of that, with black olives and cocoa more pronounced. The tannins and acidity are very much present without any sign of harshness. On the contrary, this wine is refined and elegant, surely showing the pedigree of a very classy 2nd wine from a classified cru.

Notes

This second wine of Château Cantemerle is primarily sourced from younger vine parcels from the esteemed estate. The wine has a similar profile to the Grand Vin, but is ready to drink within several years of harvest. That's now! A quick decant reveals generous fruit and and good terroir that is always welcome for under $20. The blend is 61% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Merlot,and 10% Cabernet Franc. Even as a second wine, grapes were individually hand sorted before fermentation, and the wine spent 12 months in 20% new French oak before bottling. Second wines also shine in 2009!