1950

What we would buy, and why

Buy Right Bank or buy fortified; a 1950 Medoc at this age is a gamble even in apparently perfect condition. Expect 400-900 euro for a good Pomerol with a named cellar behind it, and insist on a fill into the neck or very top shoulder - at seventy-six years old, mid-shoulder means the cork has been letting air in for decades. A declared 1950 Port at 300-500 euro is the steadier gift: fortified wine stands up to age far better than claret does.

1950 in the world

On 2 October 1950 a small newspaper strip called Peanuts ran for the first time, and Charlie Brown walked into the world. That same summer the first Formula One World Championship began, at Silverstone.

Best bets for 1950

• Pomerol 1950 - Vieux Chateau Certan or Trotanoy; the Petrus is a five-figure bottle and not the point
• 1950 vintage Port from a declaring house such as Graham's, Fonseca or Taylor's - robust, sediment-heavy and far likelier to be alive than a Left Bank claret
• Sauternes 1950 from Climens, Suduiraut or Rieussec, roughly 250-450 euro and generally holding better than the dry wines
• Bas-Armagnac 1950 at around 300 euro, for a buyer who wants something that cannot really be too old

How we grade a bottle

Fill level, label, capsule and cork, then provenance. Every bottle is checked by hand by people who have handled thousands of old bottles, and we write down the flaws as well as the good news. What the fill levels mean · How to choose a birth-year wine