The wife and I were gifted this bottle. We don't want to drink it until we, uh, are "trained." We've tasted at least 20 Bordeaux, but they are all under $100. We really enjoyed La Fleur Peyrabon 2019 and Grand Puy Lacoste 2018. Could you all please help us with ideas on what to try next?
We're thinking of trying Château Pichon Baron Pauillac (Grand Cru Classé) 2018.
Thanks in advance! 🙏
by dresserplate
25 Comments
Don’t overthink it. Look up tasting notes. And enjoy
3×5 squats 3×5 deadlifts 3×5 overhead press 3×5 bench press
Wind sprints to exhaustion
Repeat for 10 years then open your almost barely mature 2015 Lafite and enjoy
Forget you own it for at least another 10 years
Train by waiting 20 years
Start with some of the 2nd & 3rd growths
You might be overthinking this. Ultimately, wine is an alcoholic beverage, and a social one at that. It’s meant to be drunk and enjoyed (despite the annoying “investment” strategy that has proliferated in the last 20 years).
But if you really want an answer, I’d do the following:
– Drink another high-quality 2015 Pauillac for a baseline for what the region + vintage tastes like. Think more elegant styles like Pichon Lalande (Pichon Baron is excellent but brawnier, like Latour), Pontet-Canet, or Duhart-Milon.
– Drink their second label, Carruades de Lafite (warning: NOT cheap), to get a sense for their house style — any vintage will do as these wines are generous younger than the grand vin
–
All this said, I’d give this wine a few more years of sleep before drinking…
Train yourself to hide it for a while. Practice clearing space in your cellar. Get a few reps in on some other wines.
Patience is key. Meditate on the meaning of time. Consider all the water under the bridge since these grapes were kissed by the sun. And then wait for that much time again. In the meantime just drink whatever pauillac you can. Unless you’re very wealthy in which case just buy a 2005 and a 1982 now to compare, and open next weekend with some cheese and plenty of water.
Great vintage, drink some soda / sparkling water before to have a cleaner palette
IF Drink now breathe for 2.5 – 3hrs
Otherwise 5-10years more in bottle aging will gradually be better
Pour it into your mouth
You shouldn’t be opening that wine it’s way too young wait another 5-10 years
It’s just fermented grape juice man. Enjoy it as you please.
For me, and that’s how I had my first 1st growth, is to have it in a lineup of other Bordeaux, then it’s the best to see the differnces. However I wouldn’t put only very high labels, I’d put 1 2nd label of some decent chateaux, some 4th, 5th growth and maybe one second
Just keep doing what you are doing for 10 more years before even beginning to think about drinking this
Same goes with Pichon Baron, just no. Don’t throw your money away.
Just drink it. Cook a meal, enjoy company with one another, and drink the damn wine.
Store it correctly while she ages.
1,000 pushups and drinking 2 bottles of Caymus before getting out of bed every morning.
Weirdest post I’ve seen on Reddit in 2025.
Make love to Cleopatra.
Just set up a charcuterie board and drink it. No need to overthink it, it’s just wine at the end of the day
everyone is clowning on you for this but there’s nothing wrong with wanting to develop a taste for wine before digging into something really good, especially considering how long that bottle will last if stored properly
My first (and only) lafite I got to try was a 97. I drank it side by side with a known home favorite from the grocery store. So interesting to have a wine that you consider “good” to be shown to be sad. Made the Lafite seem other worldly. The finish lasts 1min vs 10 seconds from the typical wine.
I visited Pichon Baron 2 years ago, a beautiful vineyard and incredibly knowledgeable staff. Their wine is superb, even their 3rd growths are great.
The truth is, just make sure you have a good underpinning for BDX- right bank vs left bank, GCCs, a few different regions. Don’t overthink it. Also just make sure it’s a memorable experience- but that’s more of a suggestion about indulgences broadly.
Wait 15 years
Trained???????