2009 Red Wine

This property is a real hidden "gem", just a stone's throw away from the St. Julien appellation and stars such as Lagrange and Gruaud Larose. We're happy to keep the secret because it means more wine for us! Owner Francois Nony, whom we got to visit with during our recent trip to Bordeaux, delivers a great 2009. A blackcurrant and cassis-like nose leads to a classic Medoc earthy finish. This wine is well-balanced with a freshness of fruit that is a hallmark of this vintage. It should age well for 5-10 more years. A real bargain!

Listrac's deep gravel soils rival the best of the Haut-Médoc, and this prominent Listrac château makes its wine to a classified growth standard, with the flavors of new oak well-integrated into this dark purple, powerful wine.
-- Ben Giliberti

Throw this impressive, full-structured wine into a blind tasting of St.-Emilion Grand Cru, and don't be surprised if it beats out one or more of the big boys. It tastes considerably more expensive than its modest price would suggest. To the massive 2005 Côte Montpezat, which was one of our favorite petit chateaux of that great year, the 2009 adds an element of fruity succulence, which is the hallmark of the remarkable 2009 vintage. Deep ruby in color, with dark, roasted fruit, shaved cedar, and new oak prominent on the nose and on the palate, this concentrated wine begs for further cellaring, but is quite delicious now (decant 45 to 90 min. in advance).

Until the recent investments by leading St.-Emilion estates, Château de Pitray was the standard-bearer for the Côtes de Castillon. I have no doubt that its quality through the years was among the factors that attracted its well–heeled St.-Emilion neighbors. I purchased my first case of 1982 Château de Pitray at Calvert Woodley in 1983, and enjoyed every bottle over the next 5 years. As memorable as the '82 was, the supple, generous, gracefully oaked 2009 is immensely more impressive and delicious.
-- Ben Giliberti

Well structured, this has dry tannins over vivid black fruits. It shows acidity but also great juicy sweetness.

JADE JAGGER DESIGNS CROIX DE BEAUCAILLOU LABEL!

Calvert Woodley is proud to be one of a handful of retailers in the US selected by Chateau Ducru Beaucaillou to offer the newest brainchild of its innovative, art-loving owner, Bruno Borie.

Bruno commissioned noted designer Jade Jagger, daughter of Mick and Bianca, to create an elegant label for Croix de Beaucaillou, his superb "second wine." Bruno told Decanter magazine, "I really admired the work that Jade Jagger did … and we liked the idea of the daughter of a Rolling Stone working on Beaucaillou." Apropos when you realize that Beaucaillou means 'beautiful stones' in French.

The re-design of the Croix de Beaucaillou label will commence with the 2010 vintage but as a pre-cursor, Bruno and Jade have made available extremely limited supplies, in large format bottles, of the sensational 2009 vintage with the new label.

Quantities are limited!

Bruno has made it a personal project to raise the level of quality of Croix de Beaucaillou and he wanted to re-design the label to showcase the uniqueness of the wine. Not your typical "second wine," Croix de Beaucaillou is sourced from its own dedicated vineyards to give it a more consistent quality. It undergoes the same rigorous selection as the grand vin but comes from younger vines than Ducru which makes it more approachable at a younger age. Having now tasted the wine at the chateau two years in a row we can say without hesitation, "Mission accomplished!"