The Chateau Les Ormes De Pez is an evocative Saint-Estephe blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Age will be kind to this Bordeaux, allowing the palate to round and develop. A touch of sweetness on the nose meets with rich cassis, herbs, and liquorice. On the palate, you will taste candied violets and juicy blackberry, with grippy tannings and a refreshing line of acid. A full-bodied Bordeaux from one of the top value chateau of Saint-Estephe, it finishes long and lingering.

Château Duhart-Milon is a fourth growth (Quatrième Cru Classé) estate in the Pauillac appellation of Bordeaux. Part of the Domaines Barons de Rothschild, the wine is made by the same winemaking team as Château Lafite. A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon with a substantial component of Merlot, the Grand Vin is matured for 18 months in approximately 50% new French oak barriques. Château Duhart-Milon is typically a sturdy solid Pauillac with firm structure and earthy savoury richness.

One of the very greatest estates of Bordeaux, Chateau Mouton-Rothschild is in the commune of Pauillac in the Haut-Medoc, 50km north-west of the city of Bordeaux. Its Chateau wine or ‘grand vin’ is among the world’s most highly-rated and expensive. Excluded from the highest rank (Premier Cru or First Growth) of the famous Bordeaux Classification of 1855, Mouton was finally promoted in 1973 after decades of lobbying by Baron Philippe de Rothschild, who ran the estate from 1922 until his death in 1988. Mouton was first in the region to bottle at the estate, rather than shipping its wine to merchants for bottling elsewhere. Since 1924 artists including Braque, Dali, Picasso, Henry Moore, Miro, Chagall, Kandinsky, Andy Warhol, Francis Bacon, David Hockney and Lucian Freud have been commissioned to produce artworks for the Mouton label. Since 1924 artists including Braque, Dali, Picasso, Henry Moore, Miro, Chagall, Kandinsky, Andy Warhol, Francis Bacon, David Hockney and Lucian Freud have been commissioned to produce artworks for the Mouton label. Mouton, uniquely among the First Growths, remains in the hands of the same family as it was at the time of the 1855 Classification. The vineyards are on slopes with gravel-based soils leading down to the Gironde estuary and total 75ha – 80pct Cabernet Sauvignon, 16pct Merlot, 3pct Cabernet Franc and 1pct Petit Verdot. The Chateau wine is (unusually) fermented in large oak vats and then matured in new oak barrels for between 19 and 22 months. Total production of the ‘grand vin’ is 20,000 dozen or less. There is a ‘second wine’, Le Petit Mouton, established in 1993. The ‘grand vin’ is noted for its flamboyance – exotic, powerful aromas of cassis, minerals, tobacco leaf and graphite, an opulent palate and impressive length of flavour.