Chateau Potensac 2008

The 2008 vintage, from Bordeaux, has been largely forgettable to me, but for some reason there have been a few stand out Medocs. Many of these have been surprisingly modest in price, with the 2008 Chateau Potensac being nicely indicative.  With a blend of primarily Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon,  with a good amount of Cabernet Franc, the wine comes through with rich dark fruits, mainly blackberry and black cherry, nicely varied earth flavors, and a hint of bread and espresso.  This is not the most amazingly complex Bordeaux,  nor the one you will remember forever,  but it is balanced, rich, and definitely of quality, and it shows the potential to improve for, perhaps, another decade.

Chateau De Ferrand 2008

I want to be honest up front with this one, the 2008 vintage in Bordeaux is one of my least favorite of the last ten or so, but, having said that, the 2008 Chateau de Ferrand is a solid, enjoyable wine. It carries a lot of the hallmarks of a Saint-Emilion red and has an intriguing, dominant pomegranate flavor, which sounds irritating,  but was truly pleasant.  Be sure to decant this one as it is young and a bit tight, but I do not think it will improve all that much with time, at least not enough to justify cellaring for long.

Chateau Les Trois Croix 2006

The 2006 Chateau Les Trois Croix is a Fronsac appellation Bordeaux. Its most definining attribute, to me, is being a good (though not great) wine from a mediocre vintage that is very approachable, and drinking really well right now (but by that same token I would not let this sit past 2013). I highly recommend picking up a bottle; the price is right and, like I said earlier, it is drinking well right now, basically it is easily enjoyable.