The name is a plain description of the ground: beaux cailloux, the beautiful stones, a deep bed of gravel washed down in the ice ages and piled on the rise above the Gironde at Saint-Julien. Those stones drain hard and hold the day's heat into the night, which is why the estate has been a second growth since 1855 and has spent most of the last century in the first rank of Bordeaux below the five firsts.
In 1971 Ducru was in the hands of Jean-Eugène Borie, a fastidious owner who ran it through what is now regarded as one of its strongest runs of form. 1971 was the smaller and more concentrated of the vintages either side of it, with the Merlot faring particularly well.
The style here has always been about line and restraint rather than weight, and that is the sort of claret that ages longest. Fifty-five years on, this is a bottle to stand upright for a day and pour carefully off its sediment.
-
Producer: Château Ducru-Beaucaillou
-
Vintage: 1971
-
Appellation: Saint-Julien AOC
-
Format: 75cl
-
Region: Bordeaux, France
-
Style: Red
Where it is likely to be now. The fill level here is unusually high for the age, which is the single best indicator of a wine that has been left alone in a cool cellar — this has a real chance of still drinking well, though nothing at fifty-five years can be guaranteed.
Who it suits. For a fifty-fifth birthday, or a couple reaching their fifty-fifth wedding anniversary — a serious Saint-Julien with an unusually good fill for the year.
Condition. The label carries marks from decades in a cellar, and the wine sits between the very top of the shoulder and the base of the neck, which is a high and reassuring level for a 1971.
Provenance. Bought to order from a professional European merchant. We check fill, label and capsule when the bottle reaches us and photograph it before it ships.
Delivered in 7 to 10 working days, tracked. Transit cover can be added at checkout.
Sold as a collectible item, as seen. No guarantee is given on drinkability.
