Wine Collecting 101: Super Second Bordeaux
Audio Brief
Show transcript
This episode explores Super Second Bordeaux, defining these exceptional wines whose quality often rivals or exceeds their historic 1855 classification.
There are three key takeaways from this conversation. First, significant value exists beyond the 1855 Bordeaux classification, with many producers delivering First Growth quality. Second, understanding a château's style and appellation helps choose wines matching preferred tastes. Third, most Super Seconds are built for longevity and require considerable cellaring.
Châteaux like La Mission Haut Brion consistently produce wines rivaling First Growths today. Former Fifth Growth Pontet-Canet and Third Growth Palmer have also elevated their quality through meticulous farming, now competing with top estates. These examples show quality is dynamic, not fixed by historical rankings.
Super Seconds offer diverse styles. Château Pichon Lalande and Château Palmer provide elegance and finesse. In contrast, Château Montrose and Château Pichon Baron are known for powerful, structured, and long-lived wines. Consider appellation characteristics, like Saint-Estèphe for power or Margaux for finesse, when selecting.
Many Super Seconds are crafted for the long term. Wines from estates like Montrose and Pichon Baron, especially from Pauillac and Saint-Estèphe, demand 15 or more years to soften tannins and develop complex aromatics. Proper cellaring unlocks their tremendous potential.
These Super Seconds represent some of Bordeaux's most compelling wines, offering exceptional quality and value for discerning collectors.
Episode Overview
- This episode defines and explores the unofficial category of "Super Second" Bordeaux wines, which are producers that perform at or near a First Growth level despite their original 1855 classification.
- The host provides a detailed breakdown of the most widely recognized Super Second châteaux, organized by their respective Left Bank communes: Pessac-Léognan, Saint-Estèphe, Pauillac, Saint-Julien, and Margaux.
- For each château, the discussion covers its history, classification, vineyard composition, winemaking style, and notable vintages, offering a guide for collectors.
- The episode highlights how modern investments in viticulture, technology (like gravity-flow wineries), and stricter fruit selection have elevated these estates to their current prestigious status.
Key Concepts
- Super Second Bordeaux: An informal term for a group of Bordeaux wine estates that were not classified as "First Growths" in 1855 but are now considered to produce wines of a similar or sometimes superior quality. Many, but not all, were originally classified as Second Growths.
- The 1855 Classification: The historical ranking of Bordeaux wines that serves as a reference point. The concept of Super Seconds demonstrates how an estate's quality can evolve significantly over time, sometimes surpassing its original rank.
- Left Bank Terroir: The discussion is focused exclusively on wines from the Médoc and Pessac-Léognan on the Left Bank of Bordeaux, highlighting the characteristics of different communes like the power of Pauillac versus the elegance of Margaux.
- Evolution in Winemaking: Many of the featured châteaux have achieved Super Second status through significant modern improvements, including adopting organic and biodynamic farming, renovating wineries, and implementing stricter grape selection.
- Style Diversity: The episode contrasts the different styles within the Super Second category, from the powerful, tannic, and long-aging wines like Château Montrose and Pichon Baron to the more elegant, finessed, and aromatic styles of Château Pichon Lalande and Château Palmer.
Quotes
- At 0:06 - "What is a Super Second Bordeaux? Well, these are wines that were not classified as a First Growth in the 1855 classification of Bordeaux, but which have outstanding quality and in some vintages can even rival or surpass some of the First Growth producers." - The host provides a clear and concise definition of the episode's central topic.
- At 4:12 - "It's an extremely age-worthy wine, and so this is one where you may want to take a flyer on an older vintage as it's known to be extremely long-lived." - The speaker gives practical advice on collecting Château Montrose, emphasizing its need for long-term aging.
- At 9:54 - "Perhaps not surprisingly given its proximity to Latour, Château Léoville Las Cases has a reputation for having powerful, concentrated wines that often need decades of aging to soften and show their best." - The host connects the wine's powerful style directly to the terroir it shares with a famous First Growth neighbor.
Takeaways
- When collecting high-end Bordeaux, look beyond the strict 1855 classification. Châteaux originally ranked as Second through Fifth growths, like Pontet-Canet, can offer quality that rivals the more expensive First Growths.
- Match your wine purchases to your drinking timeline. Powerful and structured Super Seconds like Montrose and Léoville Las Cases require decades of cellaring, so if you plan to drink them sooner, seek out older, back-vintages from the secondary market.
- To experience the diverse styles of top-tier Bordeaux, explore producers from different communes. For elegance and finesse, look to Château Palmer (Margaux) or Pichon Lalande (Pauillac), while for power and structure, consider Cos d'Estournel (Saint-Estèphe) or Pichon Baron (Pauillac).
