The 1960s

Sixty years of marriage is a diamond wedding. Sixty years of life is the birthday usually organised by the children rather than by the person having it. Born in 1966, married in 1966, either way this is the decade you want.

1961 is the reference point. A spring frost cut the Bordeaux crop by more than half, and what survived was concentrated in a way growers spent the next twenty years talking about. 1964 and 1966 followed with reputations of their own, the first warm and open-handed, the second firmer and slower to come round. Port was declared in 1963 and 1966. Piedmont made Barolo in 1961 and 1964 that the old houses still hold back, and Sauternes from 1967 is worth knowing about if the year happens to fit.

Bottles of this age are collectibles first. We do not guarantee that they will drink well, since nobody honestly can, and pretending otherwise would be the quickest way to lose your trust. What we can give you is the fill level, the state of the label and capsule, and the cellar it came from, all confirmed before the bottle ships. Photographs and a condition report on request, written by a person rather than generated by a form. Delivery is 7 to 10 working days, tracked.