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2019 Château Valandraud

Removed from a professional wine storage facility; Purchased upon release; Consignor is original owner

Ends Sunday, 7pm Pacific

RATINGS

99Jeb Dunnuck

...offering up a kaleidoscope-like bouquet of black and blue fruits, scorched earth, chocolate, gravelly earth, spicy oak, and sappy flowers. Deep, rich, full-bodied, and wonderfully concentrated, it has insane purity of fruit, brilliant tannins, a stacked mid-palate, and just has everything in the right places.

98James Suckling

Vivid and focused with brightness and clarity of fruit. Dried flowers, too. Full-bodied with layers of fine, soft tannins that spread across the palate and show class and refinement. It goes on for minutes. A beautiful bottle.

96The Wine Advocate

Full-bodied, fleshy and sensual, it's broad and enveloping, its lavish core of fruit framed by ripe, polished tannins and succulent balancing acids. Seamless and integrated despite its ripe, hedonistic style...

95Wine Spectator

Richly textured, featuring cashmere-like waves of dark plum, cassis and blackberry compote flavors that glide through and are laced with light violet, anise and black tea notes.

91+ Vinous / IWC

...generous and oaky bouquet with blueberry and blackberry commingling with vanillary scents. The palate is medium-bodied with sappy red fruit, velvety-smooth in texture, lending it a modern sheen, overtly oaky although i feel there is sufficient fruit behind it.

16+ Jancis Robinson

Very rich, ripe fruit with a suggestion of dried fruit.

PRODUCER

Château Valandraud

Château Valandraud is an unclassified Bordeaux in the Saint-Emilion appellation and it is considered one of the original “vins de garage.” Unlike most historic estates in Bordeaux, Valandraud is a relatively young estate, having been founded in 1989 by Jean-Luc Thunevin and his wife Mureille Andraud. The couple started with a tiny 1.5 acre plot and have since added more vineyards for a total of 11 acres, which means it still remains extremely small by regional standards. In wine world jargon Valandraud is known as a “microchateau” or “garagiste” producer. Valandraud’s first release was 1991. Its Grand Vin is typically a blend of 65% Merlot 30% Cabernet Franc, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Malbec. Up to 20,000 bottles are produced annually. A former wine merchant and restaurateur, Thunevin has been called “highly talented” by Robert M. Parker Jr., who applauds Valandraud as “enormously rich, concentrated, and beautifully well delineated.”

REGION

France, Bordeaux, St.-Émilion

Saint-Émilion is on the east side of the Dordogne River. At 13,400 acres it is one of Bordeaux’s largest appellations, and perhaps its most picturesque. It is also home to what has been called “the garagiste” movement of upstart, tradition-defying winemakers who produce artisanal wines in styles that are unconventional for the appellation. The village of Saint-Émilion dates from the middle ages and it sits on low hills, surrounded by ancient walls. Like its neighbor Pomerol, Saint-Émilion was not included in the famous Bordeaux classification system of 1855. But a century later a ranking system was put in place, and unlike the classification system for the Medoc, the Saint-Émilion system is reviewed every ten years, meaning that estates can be upgraded or downgraded. There are three rankings: Grand Cru Classé, Premier Grand Cru Classé B and Premier Grand Cru Classé A, with the final ranking being the best. Such legendary Saint-Émilion estates as Châteaux Ausone and Cheval-Blanc are Premier Grand Cru Classé A, along with Châteaux Pavie and Angélus, both added to the classification in 2012. Wines in this appellation are primarily Merlot, mixed with Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon.

VINTAGE

2019 Château Valandraud

"Valandraud is unquestionably Bordeaux's finest success story to date...(it has) become the micro-treasure sought by...wine collectors throughout the world." - Robert M. Parker, Jr