I’ve bought plenty of Bertheau Chambolle Musingy for under $60. Pretty darn classic to me.
Cadence & Andrew Will are Washington Bordeaux blends which are more classically styled. Woodward Canyon is a Cabernet that tastes like Cabernet instead of vanilla etc.
Analemma is a really exciting producer on the Columbia Gorge. They have their own estate vineyard coming to maturity, but are in the meantime making beautiful wines from the Atavus vineyard which is cool climate & high elevation. Their Pinot Noir is actually a Swiss clone, so all I can say is that is is unique and brilliant in a high acid way. They harvest part of it for Rose
My <$60 Mostly-Traditional Bordeaux List:
-Tour St. Bonnet (really cheap, very old school)
-Lanessan
-du Tertre (a bit fruity, but ages well and is great QPR)
-Lagrange
-Gloria
-Cantemerle
-Carbonnieux Rouge and Blanc
-Chauvin (restrained by St. Emilion standards of today)
-Domaine de Chevalier Rouge (I got the 2005 for $49, the 2006 for $38 and the 2009 for $60. Getting more modern?)
-d’Issan (prices are highly variable from vintage to vintage, but usually <$60. Not 100% sure of the style these days)
-Boyd Cantenac
-Sociando Mallet
-Magdelaine (just bought the 2011 for $50 and the 2001 for $54, but can be hard to find below $60)
-Branaire-Ducru (can be hard to find below $60 in the prized vintages)
-Louviere
Cadence & Andrew Will are Washington Bordeaux blends which are more classically styled. Woodward Canyon is a Cabernet that tastes like Cabernet instead of vanilla etc.
Analemma is a really exciting producer on the Columbia Gorge. They have their own estate vineyard coming to maturity, but are in the meantime making beautiful wines from the Atavus vineyard which is cool climate & high elevation. Their Pinot Noir is actually a Swiss clone, so all I can say is that is is unique and brilliant in a high acid way. They harvest part of it for Rose and make a sparkling Blanc de Noir. The vineyard really shines with Gewurtztraminer. It is vibrant & exotic, but has a strong acid backbone. They have Mencia in the ground for their estate.
Syncline also in the Gorge doing Pinot, Gruner & a few others from there. They are making compelling Rhones from all around Washington. Their Mourvedre was what made me a true believer for WA Mourvedre. Another one which puts acid first.
Gramercy- Another one making a more restrained style in Washington. 2011 was a very cool vintage here & their 2011 Columbia Valley Cab was one of the most compelling domestic Cabs I’ve had in a long time. Another producer who expresses the grape rather than the barrel.
Lioco- they look for cool sites around California & make beautiful acid driven Chardonnay & Pinot. They make an amazing Carignan/Petite Sirah blend with all the power & none of the weight those grapes can express.
St Innocent makes classic Oregon Pinot Noir & a few whites along with a hard to find sparkler.
I don’t know if I gave a great style description here, but I like acid, tannin & mineral to be alongside fruit in wine, so they all hit that.
I’ll throw this CNDP into the mix, since its traditional, meets the price point test, and can age
Vieux Donjon
I wish Vieux Telegraphe still could sneak in under the price bar!
Most of the Bordeaux suggestions are from the left bank, so to provide some balance, I’ll proffer up a traditional right bank that meets the price and aging tests: Grand Corbin Despagne. It has the legs of a long distance runner.
Nice thread.
For me, if you’re talking about classics to cellar you’re talking about wines with a real track record. I’d exclude Crowley, J Christopher, and Matello. I think Cameron hit $60 last year and probably won’t dip back down. Otherwise a great list.
I’d add Eyrie Estate (and Original Vines Chardonnay) and the Cristom ladies, which sadly are priced like the Cameron.
Michael
pricing is obviously relative but these should make the cut and to me are fantastic examples
boisson vadot meursault
laurent tribut chablis
benoit ente puligny
Boisson Vadot’s Meursaults are above $60 now sadly.
i saw hdh recently had some of the 05 pierre boisson bottling for $30 which is what i would expect to pay in europe. im sure its there for those who look.
I had this wine last night from a friend’s bottle. It was really good.
Well, since Pichon Lalande is now selling for $33, I’ll pick that.
Agree with all Anthony said. My only quibble is the jury is still out on how well Gramercy, Analemma and Syncline will age as they are all fairly new wineries (< 12 years old). I’ve had some Gramercy and Syncline bottles at 7-8 years that portend good aging potential, but only time will tell.
In the same boat as these three I’d add Kerloo, a WA producer focusing mostly on Rhone varietals. Similar description as the one for Gramercy above, but the aging potential is still in question as the first vintage was 2007 IIRC.
Solid list! Silly of me to have forgotten to name La Louviere!
With respect to “real track records”. Jay Sommers has been at it since 1996 (J. Christopher), Marcus since 2002 (Matello) and Tyson since 2005 (Crowley). All of them have winemaking experience prior to their label start-ups. I’d say their track records are strong as is the overall quality of the wines I cited. Whether or not the individual wines are “classics”, that’s clearly personal opinion.
As a reference, PYCM didn’t start as a Burg label until 2005 and Dublere in 2004. Lioco (Cali) didn’t start until 2005, Analemma (WA) in 2010, etc. It’s easy to forget the explosion of producers over the past 10 - 20 years.
RT
I would add the followings:
Domaine de la Butte Bourgueil Mi-Pente
Yannick Amirault Bourgueil La Petite Cave
Chateau d’Aurilhac
Chateau La Vieille Cure
Chateau La Confession
Chateau Cantemerle
Chateau Lanessan
Château Fleur Cardinale
Chateau Gloria
Château Smith Haut Lafitte Le Petit
Rene Rostaing Côte-Rôtie Cuvée Classique
Felton Road Pinot Noir Bannockburn
Henri Jouan Gevrey-Chambertin Aux Echezeaux
Domaine des Sénéchaux Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Damn! Now you are calling me out? I am pretty sure you have seen me in Lycra a fair amount lately.
Most of my answers are already taken but I didn’t see
Cristom (full range)
Charvin
Louis Michel (even the GCs sometimes)
Xavier Chateauneuf du Pape Cuvee Anonyme
Tensley Syrah Colson Canyon Vineyard
Chappellet Cabernet Sauvignon Signature
Antoniolo Gattinara Osso San Grato
G.D. Vajra Langhe Freisa Kyè
Billaud-Simon Chablis Grand Cru Les Preuses
Sigalas Assyrtiko Santorini
Thanks for taking to write that, Anthony. Very compelling. Sounds like we have stylistic similarities, so I will seek some of these out if they are available locally.
B21 locally carries the 2011 Gramercy syrah at $55, the 2009 Andrew Will Champaloux Vineyards Horse Heaven Hills Cab for $70 and 2011 Woodward Canyon Cab OV for $100.
Only two to add and not sure they fit exactly as I don’t know that I they qualify as classics. But they are under $60 and wines I purchase every vintage.
Terre Nere Guardiola
Calluna