Chateau Garage

On Thu, 24 Feb 2005 23:28:40 GMT, Timothy Hartley

If the grapes come from the district, then it certainly is a "true" St. Emilion. Now, whether the wine is "over extracted and full of plummy fruit (is that bad?) without the subtlety of a really great wine" is a question of style. And, the price is exactly why the garagistes arose--because they could offer quality wine at prices not inflated by snobbery.

I'd rather drink the wine that tastes good to me. If it costs $25 instead of $250 and I can drink it this year instead of holding it for ten or more years, so much the better.

An interesting column by James Suckling in the most recent WS regarding a "gunslinger's dinner" in which everyone brought wines which were served with appropriate courses of the meal, but blind. The wine voted worst of the meal forced the supplier to pay the restaurant tab. Incredibly, a 1970 Pomerol from Trotenoy finished last (undoubtedly over-the-hill) and a 1989 Ch. Petrus was runner up for worst. Much lesser wines proved, with the label unseen, to be much better.