Chateau Ducru-Beaucaillou Croix de Beaucaillou 2010

Ducru-Beaucaillou is one of the great Second Growths of Saint-Julien, often called a “Super Second”, and the Borie family, led by Bruno Borie, have owned it since 1941. The name Beaucaillou means “beautiful pebble”, for the gravel of the vineyard. The grand vin has long been described as a Burgundian Bordeaux, a wine of finesse rather than brute power. La Croix de Beaucaillou has been bottled since 1995, and the family are loath to call it a second wine. It comes from a dedicated part of the vineyard, with blocks on the south bank of the La Mouline stream, and it is selected and blended to the same standards as the grand vin. The blend is Cabernet Sauvignon-led, with Merlot and a little Petit Verdot, and it’s aged for about 12 months in French oak, a good share of it new.

The result is a polished, perfumed Saint-Julien with the house elegance, and it’s more approachable in its youth than the grand vin. Expect blackcurrant, blackberry and cassis, with tobacco, graphite, crushed stone and cocoa, over fine, silky tannins and a long, balanced finish.