Parker 2005 retrospective
So the great 2005 review by Robert Parker is revealed, and we would like to congratulate those of our clients who took advantage of the Pontet Canet offer from the end of last week, as its upgrade to 97+ has seen an uptick in the bids in the market place and we expect to see further firming up in the coming days.
The results were a triumph for St Emilion. As well as grading individual wines, His Royal Bobness also gives each appellation a score every year, and St Emilion was graced with a 99 (this is actually spectacular – there are no regional vintage scores of 100) so it should come as little surprise to see some of the top producers having a field day. Elsewhere, especially on the Left Bank, the results were much more mixed.
The following charts represent only 100 point-scoring wines from a handful of upgraded producers.
As you will see, in the cases of Haut Brion and La Mission Haut Brion, the price of the 2005s moved in advance of the confirmation. There is now little left to play for as these wines are both now close to their 100 point peers.
Cheval Blanc was upgraded from 96 to 100 and although it has appreciated by about 10% of late, you can see there is still much further potential upside before it matches the 2010. The 2010 vintage score is “only” 94, so in an efficient world the 2005 would at least match a similar scoring 2010 for price. We recommend buying Cheval Blanc 2005.
Pavie has done its stuff. It will perform from here, but the extra uplift is already in the price.
Ausone represents a different opportunity. Its 100 score for the 2005 was ratified, but it does serve to highlight how cheap the 2003 is. The 2003 vintage score was a lowly 90, so some discount to the 2005 is justified, but 40% is in our view too extreme. Buy Ausone 2003.
The Lafleur is slightly different again. A very exciting upgrade once more, from 95 to 100, but in this case the price action was 6 months ago! You may recall that the excitement around the 2005 re-tastings was kick-started by an early tasting of the Mouton 2005. Along with Haut Brion, and La Mission Haut Brion, Lafleur was at that point cited as a potential beneficiary. It still trades at a 25% discount to the 2000, but given the move already made, and the premium normally accorded the Millennium vintage, we would leave Lafleur for the time being.
All the best,
APM