Best Bordeaux 2019 wines: Best value whites
With this year's en primeur campaign nearing the end it's a perfect opportunity to seek out 2019 wines that are both high quality and offered at great value prices, see the top white wine picks as recommended by Jane Anson....
Weather conditions in 2019 produced a number of highly-recommended wines across the Bordeaux region, with Jane Anson describing it as ‘an attractive vintage’ for dry whites in Pessac-Leognan and Graves and finding sweet wines ‘to be not only rich and concentrated but also precise, with high aromatics and balanced overall’ in Sauternes.
Scroll down to see the best value en primeur 2019 white wine tasting notes and scores
Overall, Anson said there are ‘some great white wines to choose from – and as ever some truly excellent dry whites’. But given that red wine production dominates, it’s sometimes harder to balance quality with lower prices.
Pessac and Graves
Best Value: Ferran, Peyrat (excellent quality in the Graves, look out for it), Clos Floridene, Brown, Larrivet Haut-Brion, Saint-Robert.
Down in the Graves region Anson also suggests looking for Clos d’Uza, a new project to watch between the Guignard brothers and Jean-Luc Thunevin, with a full 94% Cabernet Sauvignon.
Sauternes
Best Value La Tour Blanche, Domaine de l’Alliance, Equisse
Prices
Similar to the red wines in Anson’s report, she explained that a score of 94 points is a ‘strong buy’ marker but said there’s plenty of value to be found with lower-scoring wines.
Using prices for wines already released during this year’s campaign, and comparison data from last year’s 2018 wines for those not yet out, we’ve compiled a list of wines all scoring between 96 and 88 points and priced under £25/$30 for sweet wines and £20/$25 for dry whites, per bottle in bond.
Within the list of 21 wines, there are four priced £10/$12 or under, and six wines priced £15/$18 providing a number of wallet-friendly options for en primeur purchases.
96 points
Domaine de L’Alliance, Esquisse, Sauternes, £25
94 points
Château Bastor-Lamontagne, Sauternes, £19.33
Clos Haut-Peyraguey, Sauternes (1er Cru Classé), £24.94
Château Suduiraut, S de Suduiraut, Bordeaux Blanc, £20
93 points
Château La Tour Blanche, Sauternes (1er Cru Classé), £29.98
Clos Floridène, Graves, £12.33
Château d’Arche, Sauternes (2ème Cru Classé), £23.56
92 points
Château Suau, Sauternes, £19.50
Château Doisy-Daëne, Grand Vin Sec, Bordeaux Blanc, £12.17
91 points
Château Ferran, Pessac-Léognan, £9.79
Château Rahoul, Graves, £15.16
Clos Marsalette, Pessac-Léognan, £13.17
Domaine de la Solitude, Pessac-Léognan, £14.55
Château Brown, Pessac-Léognan, £17.50
90 points
Château de Rochemorin, Pessac-Léognan, £15.80
89 points
Château de Cérons, Graves, £9.67
Château Saint-Robert, Graves, £12.50
88 points
Château La Grande Clotte, Bordeaux Blanc, £17.13
Clos des Lunes Lune d’Argent, Bordeaux Blanc £8.19
Château Haut Selve, Graves, £12.51
All prices were correct at the time for either the 2019 or 2018 vintages. Actual prices for wines not yet released may vary.
See the best value en primeur 2019 white wine tasting notes and scores
Search all Bordeaux 2019 En Primeur ratings published so far
Read Jane Anson’s full report on Bordeaux 2019 wines
Back to the main Bordeaux en primeur page
Domaine de L'Alliance, Esquisse, Sauternes, Bordeaux, France, 2019
I love this, it's the most beautiful tightrope balancing act of sweet nectarine flesh with intense lime and lemon zest. One of the best Sauternes...
2019
Domaine de L'AllianceSauternes
Château Bastor-Lamontagne, Sauternes, Bordeaux, France, 2019
Named after Chevalier de la Montaigne, a councillor of the Bordeaux Parliament in the early 18th century, Château Bastor-Lamontagne is now under the ownership of...
2019
Château Bastor-LamontagneSauternes
Clos Haut-Peyraguey, Sauternes, 1er Cru Classé, Bordeaux, France, 2019
This is liquid silk, extremely luscious in this vintage, with orange zest on the finish adding a welcome point of bitterness. Harvest September 30 to...
2019
Clos Haut-PeyragueySauternes
Château Suduiraut, S de Suduiraut, Bordeaux Blanc, Bordeaux, France, 2019
Another well-controlled, sappy and energetic white wine from the Suduiraut stable. This is from old vines on the estate, and has a tang of minerality...
2019
Château SuduirautBordeaux Blanc
Château La Tour Blanche, Sauternes, 1er Cru Classé, Bordeaux, France, 2019
Pink grapefruit and citrus hits you right off on the nose, a lovely mix of sweet and tart. The silkiness of the palate becomes clear...
2019
Château La Tour BlancheSauternes
Clos Floridène, Graves, Bordeaux, France, 2019
This is delicious, a serious step up from the Reynon within the same stable, and speaks to the influence that terroir has on a wine...
2019
Clos FloridèneGraves
Château d'Arche, Sauternes, 2ème Cru Classé, Bordeaux, France, 2019
A highly attractive wine, full of silky rich fruits that are balanced by ginger and saffron spice, white truffle and a mouthwatering finish. Concentrated and...
2019
Château d'ArcheSauternes
Château Suau, Sauternes, Bordeaux, France, 2019
A Barsac wine that has been delivering increasingly precise, well measured and enjoyable wines over the past few vintages, here another success. Not quite as...
2019
Château SuauSauternes
Château Doisy-Daëne, Grand Vin Sec, Bordeaux Blanc, Bordeaux, France, 2019
Bright, zippy, successfully navigating away from being tart. This is a single-varietal Sauvignon Blanc, but this is a family that knows exactly how to handle...
2019
Château Doisy-DaëneBordeaux Blanc
Château Ferran, Pessac-Léognan, Bordeaux, France, 2019
Delicious zingy white packed full of white flowers and creamy citrus, with a real zip and lift through the finish. Great quality, with a zing...
2019
Château FerranPessac-Léognan
Château Rahoul, Graves, Bordeaux, France, 2019
Well controlled, enjoyably balanced white from Vignobles Dourthe. Expect carefully extracted juicy citrus with an enjoyable lift on the finish. Not huge concentration but an...
2019
Château RahoulGraves
Clos Marsalette, Pessac-Léognan, Bordeaux, France, 2019
As with the red this has trademark glamour and a creamy texture. It works extremely well, giving a white that has lift and freshness but...
2019
Clos MarsalettePessac-Léognan
Domaine de la Solitude, Pessac-Léognan, Bordeaux, France, 2019
Lighter framed than the Domaine de Chevalier, but still with a juicy frame and mouth-watering finish, light and fresh but with staying power. Good stuff,...
2019
Domaine de la SolitudePessac-Léognan
Château Brown, Pessac-Léognan, Bordeaux, France, 2019
A bright and fresh white wine; with plenty of white flowers and citrus. This is well made, carefully handled and full of joyful fruit. 3.19pH,...
2019
Château BrownPessac-Léognan
Château de Rochemorin, Pessac-Léognan, Bordeaux, France, 2019
Apricot and nectarine aromatics, ripe fruit markers, with fresh acidities rising through the centre - this is a mouthwatering and easy to enjoy white.
2019
Château de RochemorinPessac-Léognan
Château de Cérons, Graves, Bordeaux, France, 2019
Fruit-forward on the nose with hints of green apple and lemon peel. Lively with a nice persistence.
2019
Château de CéronsGraves
Château Saint-Robert, Graves, Bordeaux, France, 2019
Another gourmet take on the vintage, with soft, well brushed nectarine and apricot fruits, edged by white flowers on the finish. Fermented in barrels with...
2019
Château Saint-RobertGraves
Clos des Lunes, Lune d'Argent, Bordeaux Blanc, Bordeaux, France, 2019
A little grassier, more Sauvignon led than the Lune d'Or, although the actual percentage in the blend is barely different. A well sculpted, classic Bordeaux...
2019
Clos des LunesBordeaux Blanc
Château Haut Selve, Graves, Bordeaux, France, 2019
A white to look out for in the Graves appellation, this has an appealingly unfussy balance of fleshy nectarine and citrus fruit alongside bright acidity...
2019
Château Haut SelveGraves
Château La Grande Clotte, Bordeaux Blanc, Bordeaux, France, 2019
Interesting white produced in Lussac St Emilion; so a red wine appellation - there are very few of these in the St Emilion satellites, despite...
2019
Château La Grande ClotteBordeaux Blanc