Parker scores Bordeaux
It took a small private dinner in London, in the company of six high profile Bordeaux buyers and one Medoc producer, to have the wine world on full alert.
The reason? Decanter reports that Robert Parker, the world’s most influential wine critic, was releasing his scores for the Bordeaux 2010 vintage and updating his scores on the 2008 vintage.
Put simply, a high Parker score sells wine, which is all you need to know.
So what has Mr. Parker made of the 2010 vintage? Parker argues that the wines will enjoy “astonishing longevity” on the back of high alcohol, fresh acids, lower pHs and huge tannins.
He also argues that 2010, like 2009 and 2005 may be the “three greatest Bordeaux vintages I have tasted in my career.”
At this early stage, nine Châteaux have scored a possible 100 in 2010, those are: Ausone 98-100; Beausejour Duffau Lagarosse 96-100; Haut Brion 98-100; l’Eglise Clinet 96-100; Lafite (98-100); Latour (98-100); Mouton Rothschild (97-100); Petrus (98-100) and Pontet Canet (96-100).
For those interested, Decanter.com has the full list of Parkers scores.
Madoff wine collection to be auctioned
Morrell & Company will auction 58 lots of wines and spirits owned by the convicted fraudster Bernard L Madoff on 18 May.
The collection is estimated at $15,000 and Morrell’s catalogue says the wines ‘were seized by the U.S. Marshals Service for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York in the case of the United States v. Bernard Madoff.’
It adds that ‘the proceeds from the auction will be deposited in the United States Department of Justice Asset Forfeiture Fund to compensate the victims’ of Madoff’s ‘multi-billion dollar fraud.’
Madoff is serving a 150-year sentence for running a Ponzi scheme that was the biggest fraud in Wall Street history.
Personalise Laphroaig 10-year-old
THIS Father’s Day, spoil your dad with his favourite dram and treat him to a bottle of Laphroaig 10 Year Old. Order by June 12 and the team at the Islay distillery will include bespoke text or a greeting as part of the traditional label. For no additional cost, buyers can submit a message of up to 3 lines at 30 characters per line: that’s 90 characters for wit, sentiment, or just your dad’s name.
Alternatively, why not treat him to the brand new Original Cask Strength 003 – the whisky that sells out rapidly every year! John Campbell, Laphroaig’s Distillery Manager, said: “It’s as near as you’ll get to getting the keys into one of our famed warehouses on Islay, and filling your own.”
The distillery shop, online at www.laphroaig.com/shop, offers a number of alternative gifts sourced from suppliers local to the distillery such as Laphroaig-infused cheese, Islay Woollen mill scarf, hand-made pottery, and even Islay handcrafted soap made with Laphroaig!
