My recent experiences with the La Chenade and Dalem got me to thinking re
cellaring the satellite appelations. For budgetary reasons, these make up a
good 30% or so of my Bordeaux purchases. From good vintages, I've consistently
done very well with some of the better wines from Fronsac (such as Fontenil, de
Carles, & La Vieille Curé), & to a slightly lesser extent Canon-Fronsac, over
10 year+ periods. I have trouble coming up with the equivalent successes from
Lalande de Pomerol or Côtes de Bourg (with the exception of Roc de Cambes &
maybe Tayac's Prestige) -most seem to peak within a couple years of release,
and slide fairly precipitously after. The best of the Côtes de Castillon and
Montagne/St. George St-Émilion wines seem somewhere in between.

Looking at my '98s and '00s, my inclination is to drink up the Lalande-Pomerols
(except Fleur du Bouard, which seems to have plenty of structure), drink the
CdC and Montagnes within a few years, and keep the Fronsacs tucked away (once
Roc de Cambes started costing as much as Poyferre, I stopped buying, so I have
no Bourgs). I realize that generalizing by vintage and appelation is fraught
with dangers, but one must start somewhere. Do these generalizations jibe with
others' experiences?
Dale

Dale Williams
Drop "damnspam" to reply