Wine Club 10 November

Esme Johnstone, that crafty old fox at the helm of From Vineyards Direct, has been at it again. He slipped into Bordeaux in early October just as the harvest was finishing (the whisper being that 2018 is a cracking vintage, BTW) and found himself pretty much the only Brit in town. Producers and suppliers all had wine to sell and — apparently — only one person to sell to: Monsieur Johnstone de Londres.

As a result, Esme came back to Blighty with bucketloads of tasty tipples. He was astonished to be offered such fine vintages at such decent prices since wines of this age and of this quality have all but disappeared from the market. We are the beneficiaries of E.J.’s canniness, and if you’ve been pondering what to sluice the festive fowl down with this Christmas then I would suggest that you ponder no further.

Famously, 2000 was a 10/10 vintage and one in which the big names sell for stratospheric prices. Ch. Lafite, for example, is an eye-watering £1,380 a bottle. Claret-lovers on a budget, though, should not despair but take instead a gander at the 2000 Ch. Moulin Eyquem (1) from the Côtes de Bourg. This immaculately well-run estate sits on the banks of the River Dordogne, diagonally across from the vineyards of Margaux, and produces Merlot-dominant wines of real style. Come Christmas, this will be perfect. Pity poor Théodore Mostermans, the owner, though: until Esme persuaded him otherwise, he was keeping his stash of the millennial vintage for family and friends only. £11.95 down from £12.95.

The 2006 Ch. Dudon (2) from the Entre-Deux-Mers is a first-rate example of another fine vintage (-albeit not quite as fine as 2000). The estate is in the hands of Jean Merlaut, who has an impeccable pedigree, being the long-time owner-manager of mighty Ch. Gruaud