Product Description

When Robert M. Parker, Jr.'s Bordeaux was first published in 1985, it was greeted with tremendous enthusiasm by such legendary authorities as Hugh Johnson and Michael Broadbent. Time, Newsweek, Business Week, Esquire, and People magazines soon joined in the praise, and the book became a huge commercial and critical success. In England, it won the prestigious Glenfiddich award.

Since that time, Parker has published eight other books for wine lovers, many of which have received critical awards -- Burgundy, The Wines of the Rhône Valley and Provence, four editions of the Wine Buyer's Guide, The Wines of the Rhône Valley, and an updated edition of Bordeaux in 1991 -- as well as his highly respected newsletter, The Wine Advocate, and bi-monthly columns in Food & Wine magazine. With each book, his audience has expanded to the point where not only American wine consumers but also those in France, England, Japan, Sweden, and Germany have quickly learned to trust his palate. In 1995, Parker became the first American in the wine field to receive La Croix du Chevalier de l'Ordre Nationale du Mérite (The Cross of the Knight of the National Order of Merit), one of France's two highest honors, conferred on him directly by President François Mitterrand. In 1998, he won the James Beard Award for Outstanding Wine and Spirits Professional. Clearly, it can be said that Robert Parker is America's foremost wine professional.

With this third edition of the classic that launched him, Parker strives to maintain his unprecedented independence, objectivity, clarity, and enthusiasm in reporting on the vintages of Bordeaux and provides the prodigious comprehensiveness for which he is known. Not only has he added tastings for the vintages in the intervening years between this and the last edition but he has also retasted and reevaluated many earlier vintages. His accessible and direct style welcomes both the seasoned wine collector and the eager beginner to the pleasures of fine wine and France's most illustrious châteaux.

Organized by appellation, Bordeaux moves alphabetically from one producer to the next, providing essential information and an overview of the property and its owners, listing each vintage, and including numerical ratings and detailed tasting notes of most of that chateau's wines for the past thirty-seven years. At the end of each tasting note, Parker estimates the "anticipated maturity" -- the range of time when the wine should peak in flavor and balance -- and each entry concludes with a summary of the chateau's older vintages. Throughout these extensive commentaries and tasting notes, there is never a doubt that this is the most complete consumer's guide to the wines of Bordeaux ever written.

Who is making Bordeaux's best and worst wines? What has a specific château's track record been over the last thirty or forty years? What châteaux are overrated and overpriced? Which are underrated or underpriced? Always with an eye toward the consumer, Parker distinguishes true value from perceived value.

While the bulk of the book is given over to these ratings, the opening and closing chapters of the book provide readers with a true sense of the changes in the region and its vintages. Such critical issues as: Who most influences winemaking styles?, What role does technology play in modern wine production?, and What impact do second labels have on the quality of the first? are tackled here. Parker also lovingly describes the growing conditions in the region year by year, spending considerable time discussing the 1995 vintage, which he terms "the most consistently top-notch vintage since 1990." In addition to this, Parker reassesses the Bordeaux Classifications, the effects of the soil on the grapes, and the different winemaking processes. He then rounds out this incredible volume with a User's Guide to Bordeaux Wines, practical travel and dining information for wine-touring trips, a complete glossary of terminology, and a quick reference index of the entire book.

As the first book to discuss the 1995, 1996, and 1997 vintages in detail -- vintages that are being hailed as the Best of the Century -- the third edition of Bordeaux is the best tool to use in making both purchasing and consuming decisions. From the wine writer The Sunday Times (London) calls "the world's most experienced and trustworthy palate," Bordeaux provides all the information today's consumer needs in order to select the perfect bottle.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #805529 in Books
• Published on: 1998-11-02
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 1584 pages

Amazon.com
When connoisseurs speak of wine as a long-term investment that can appreciate in gustatory (and monetary) value for decades, they usually refer to red Bordeaux, France's biggest and longest-lasting wine. But as the cachet of Bordeaux continues to attract legions of wine fanatics across the globe, the 90s have seen Bordeaux prices skyrocket. The importance of informed buying has never been more acute, and Parker's guide is simply the best available. Updated from the original 1985 edition, the third edition of Bordeaux is organized along the same lines as the region's wine classifications. After introducing the style, history, and techniques specific to each principal appellation, Parker discusses the featured châteaux in detail--from the techniques of the vintners to the peculiarities of the all-important terroir. Parker's ratings for the tasted vintages, based on the 100-point scale he popularized through The Wine Advocate, are the real crux of each winery's listing. Performing all his tastings in "single blind" style--where each wine is judged without knowledge of the price or producer, and only in context with similar wines--assures a measure of independence in the tastings. Big-name wines are often deflated, and many "also-rans" from the landmark quality classification of 1855 finally win their deserved recognition.

The third edition naturally highlights the series of (mostly good) vintages that Bordeaux has seen since the release of the second edition in 1991, but it also includes updated tasting notes on the vintners and vintages Parker has revisited since that time. His opinions command such worldwide attention that, given time, either your palate or your wallet is bound to benefit from keeping up with Parker's advice. --Todd Gehman

Review
The Washington Post An ombudsman for the wine consumer.

Card catalog description
Who is making Bordeaux's best and worst wines? What has a specific chateau's track record been over the last thirty or forty years? What chateaux are overrated and overpriced? Which are underrated or underpriced? Always with an eye toward the consumer. Parker distinguishes true value from perceived value. While the bulk of the book is given over to these ratings, the opening and closing chapters of the book provide readers with a true sense of the changes in the region and its vintages.

Customer Reviews

The best wine book
I consider this to be by far the best book on Bordeaux. While I do not agree with Parker or just about anyone else regarding the rating of Italian wines, Parker is right on target in his ratings for Bordeaux. I find it interesting that Parker is a fan of the rich and opulent micro wines coming out of Pomerol and St. Emilion. There are strict Bordeaux traditionalists that don't care for these wines. I think they are great and agree with Parker. They simply add another dimension to the many styles of wine being made in the greatest wine producing area of the world. Parker is extremely consistent and the only other taster that comes close is Stephen Tanzer. The Wine Spectator and James Suckling are pretty good, although I think they overrate too many wines in subpar vintages. Ironically, Spectator is not a big fan of the decadent wines Parker likes from the right bank.

The Best Bordeaux guide
One reviewer noted that this really comes closer to a buying guide than anything else. I suppose that is true, but it is much more, also. It is easy enough to write histories of Bordeaux, and many are very entertaining, such as D. Markham's work on the 1855 Classification. But when most of us pick up a recent Bordeaux work, isn't it more helpful to hear more than "Chateau Lafite is a first growth and has produced good to excellent wine in x, y and z vintages, and many others." This is a book that takes a stand. And quite frankly, Parker's Bordeaux palate is as good as anyone's in the world. You don't have to agree with everything he says on every wine to recognize a master at work.

Informative but not the Gospel
This book is comprehensive and informative and should be added to the library of any serious wine lover. However, it is important to bear in mind that Robert Parker has very definite views on what a great Bordeaux wine should be! Wine, of course, is very much like art - the beauty is in the eye of the beholder! It goes without saying that if you enjoy your wines black and tannic and undrinkable for the first 15 years then Robert Parkers famous points system is for you! It is probably better to ignore his points system altogether as a wine with 85 points could well be vastly superior to a wine with 95 points , depending on whether you are looking for elegance rather than inky blackness. It is also worth noting that wines such as "Cantemerle" are sometimes penalized by Parker for being light coloured and elegant rather than a blockbuster heavy wine (such as Latour). Hachette produces a much better wine guide which presents a more balanced view on wine appreciation. It helps undo the damage which is rife in America - many wine consumers feel obliged to serve only wines with 90+ points , thereby missing out on an ocean of extemely delicious and elegant wines which Parker only rates with 85 points.

Good drinking!