Bordeaux faces a new scandal

In February 2002 the police raided a dozen of producers as part of a fraud investigation involving as much as 8000 to 10000 hectolitres of wine destined for export to Belgium and Holland. Jacques HEMMER, a wine distributor, is accused of fraud and of misleading advertising. He sold thousands of bottles for an estimated amount of 1.9 million EUR under false names and vintages, diluting the original wine with wine from the Languedoc-Roussillon region. The merchants - including the majors CORDIER, GINESTET and DULONG FRERES - are claiming that they received the wines in good faith from Hemmer, whom they are suing. Hemmer has admitted adding small quantities of different categories of wine to the bottles, but said that he had done it to give the blend deeper colour and more body, and that the quality was not affected. "The negociants never complained about the quality of the wine I supplied", he said. (source:  Decanter magazine)

New boss at COS D’ESTOURNEL…

Michel REYBIER, active in the food sector and more specifically in the French "delicatessen" business (Cochonou, Justin Bridoux) is the new owner of the famous 2nd growth Chateau COS D’ESTOURNEL (Saint-Estephe). Jean-Guillaume PRATS, the son of the former owner remains COS' Managing Director.(source l’Amateur de Bordeaux) 

And future projects for the old boss!

Bruno PRATS, Jean-Guillaume's father (ex Cos d'Estournel) newly retired in a quiet residence on the lake of Geneva in Switzerland, nevertheless remains extremely active. He recently initiated, in association with the port producer SYMINGTON the production of an above average quality but moderately priced red wine in the Douro valley in Portugal. Interesting to note that together with Paul PONTALLIER (Cos d'Estournel's enologist) he also is involved in a new wine project in Chile.(source Vinum)

Joint venture

Saint Emilion's Grand Cru Chateau Dassault owned by the DASSAULT family, the famous constructor of the French military Mirage fighter jets, recently initiated a joint venture with VINA SAN PEDRO, one of Chile's most important wine producer. The mid term objective of the venture is to produce one of the best red wines in South America. According to Dassault's wine maker Paul CHATONNET, the first bottles of this brand new label should come out by the end of 2003. (source l'Amateur de Bordeaux)

…And another one!

Baron Philippe de ROTHSCHILD and CAVES DU SIEUR D'ARQUES are joining efforts to produce a new Syrah / Cabernet / Grenache varietal wine at Limoux (150 miles South-East from Bordeaux). The wines will be made in accordance with Bordeaux's traditional precepts. (source  Vinum)

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Wines made of wood?

In Paris, the OIV (Office International de la Vigne et du vin) in one of its recent directives now authorises the adding of oak chips at specific phases of the growing. This new procedure could rapidly become the rule. The European Commission however recently stated that in this case they would probably largely follow the OIV's recommendations. (source  Vinum)

Useful etchings

An increasing number of chateaux are having their bottles etched on the back. The main advantage of this measure is to fight the ever increasing cases of fraud. But it also helps to recognise the bottles as they lay on their shelves preventing unnecessary removals. An excellent idea!

 (source : l'Amateur de Bordeaux) 

Questionable?

A curious story happened last year to René GABRIEL, the founder of the excellent German speaking wine magazine - Weinwisser. Like his fellow professionals he took part during March 2000 in the traditional 1999 " beauty contest " pre-tasting in Bordeaux. That's the place where all the smart guys (like R. Parker Jr.) deliver their first impressions on the quality of the latest vintage. Like several of his colleagues he noted favourably Mouton Rothschild 1999 (18 points out of 20 - or an equivalent of 90 / 100) bringing emphasis to the wine's sheer delicate and subtle elegance. A few months later, on another occasion, GABRIEL tasted the wine again. He was really surprised to find a great change in the wine within such a short period of time. He compares the 1999's overall quality to Mouton 1987 (a rather poor vintage) and obviously concludes that it cannot deserve to rank anymore among the best Medocs. He lowered consequently his score by a full point to 17 / 20. Shortly after he returns to the Chateau to taste another time the wine. And he found it even worse: 16 / 20! Expressing his concern to Mouton's recently appointed wine maker Gérard LINAIRES, he was then extremely surprised to hear that since the pre-tasting the blending had significantly changed: from 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Merlot and 4% Cabernet Franc to less Merlot (10%), more Cabernet-Franc (10%) and a new adding of Petit Verdot (2%) 12 months later! Are the conclusions issued by dozens of "smart guys" after the traditional spring pre-tasting relevant anymore if at the end the wines delivered to us are completely different? Is this just one only case or are these practices widely spread? In this case Bordeaux is really shooting itself a bullet in the foot!

Nouveau owner

Chateau La Tour Carnet, one of the most charming estates in the Medoc region

has been recently acquired by Bernard Magrez who also owns Pape-Clément and Fombrauge. La Tour Carnet is a Classified 4th Growth with 48 ha of vines. The property produces a second wine labeled "Second de Carnet". (Source : l'Amateur de Bordeaux)

Crus Bourgeois classification

The " Journal Officiel " - France's official gazette has published the French government's decision of a new classification for the Médoc's Cru Bourgeois. The classification will be divided in three categories: Cru Bourgeois - Cru Bourgeois supérieur - Cru Bourgeois exceptionnel (no need to translate here…). The classification will be reviewed every 10 years by a jury of professionals under the supervision of the Chamber of Commerce of Bordeaux. This should increase transparency and help wine enthusiasts in their quest for better quality wines. (source: l'Amateur de Bordeaux)

A new theory explaining the rise in the fine wine's prices? 

Many among us have been shocked by the outrageous prices reached by the finest Bordeaux wines. Since 1996, prestigious names have seen their market value multiply at least by 100%. Many plausible theories have been presented to explain the phenomenon and a particularly convincing one is the recent interest of net-worth investors willing to switch a part of their poorly performing stocks into uncorrelated risks and possibly better performing assets. Therefore, various financial institutions within the last two years have launched many wine funds. A few examples: AWM Fine Wine Fund, run by Ascot Wine Management from Geneva. The Fund, which holds assets of around USD 13 million has three share classes: Bordeaux Crus, Burgundy Crus and World Crus. The conservative Swiss bank UBS also started a EUR 30 million wine fund in 2000 investing primarily into Bordeaux and Burgundy Grand Crus. The French Société Générale followed suit last year launching a EUR 25 million Fund called SGAM Premier Cru offering the possibility for investors to subscribe to some top selected 1998 - 1999 and 2000 Bordeaux growth wines. At the product's maturity in 2003, investors will have the choice either to get their cash back, hopefully with a premium, or a mix of cash / wines. There are other wine funds globally: Kempen's Orange Wine Fund, which is listed on Euronext Amsterdam, and two Australian firms, Wine Investment Fund and International Wine Investment Fund. These Australian Funds invest mostly in public companies that have substantial wine assets, not in the bottles of wine themselves. Beside of that wine futures have also started to trade in Paris. The amount of money invested in top Bordeaux growths through the Wine Fund's family can roughly be estimated at EUR 70 - 100 million (USD 60 - 90 million). In regard to the Bordeaux wine market, which is worth approx. 1 to 2 billion EUR, it is not a huge amount of money. But investments are mainly concentrated on the region's best 50 - 80 names, which represent only 10% to 15% of Bordeaux' total exports. Obviously, this had a significant impact on prices due to the narrowness of this segment!

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