1996 Château Les Ormes-de-Pez, 375ml

Château Les Ormes-de-Pez, which means the elms of Pez, is a Cru Bourgeois in St.-Estephe. The estate dates from 1792. It was carved out of part of Château de Pez after the French Revolution, which resulted in the division of many estates. The Cazes family bought Château Les Ormes-de-Pez in 1930 and the family still owns and operates it. Jean-Michel Cazes, who managed the property until turning it over to his son in 2006, was also an insurance executive who managed wine holding for the insurance giant AXA. The Cazes family also owns Château Lynch-Bages. The 82-acre estate typically produces about 15,000 cases annually. There is no second wine. The wine is typically about 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc. Robert M. Parker Jr. has noted that “Les Ormes de Pez is a popular wine, due in large part to the wine’s generously flavored, plump, sometimes sweet and fat personality…The wine rarely disappoints.

Saint-Estèphe is in the northern Médoc, on the left bank of the Gironde River. Although it has no First Growth estates, its five Second, Third, Fourth and Fifth Growth châteaux are notable, and, in recent decades, have become favorites with reviewers and consumers. Some reviewers also note that the appellation is today making excellent Cru Bourgeois wines, which frequently offer good value. There are 3,404 acres of vineyards and a variety of soil types, from gravelly soil to soil with significant sand or clay. The two Second Growth Châteaux in St.-Estephe are Cos d’Estournel and Montrose. The Third Growth Calon-Ségur is widely admired. The principal grapes grown are Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, with small amounts of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.