Wine: 2006 Canon
Region: Bordeaux
Sokolin Price: $54.99/btl
Rating: 90 RP
Right now in the wine business, it's all about 2009 Bordeaux Futures. If you've been following our site or subscribe to our Bordeaux Futures email list, you know by now that the 2009 vintage will go down as one of the greatest and that there will be huge worldwide demand for the 2009s. As a result, the critics and industry experts are expecting very high opening prices for the first growths and the super seconds too.
Robert Parker recently said, "Forget the first-growths. They have become luxury products, and possess the same prestigious image as Rolls Royce, Bentley, or Aston Martin cars, Roger Dubuis or Berguet watches, or haute couture from Chanel or Christian Dior."
If prices for the 2009s open up as high as some are predicting, smart Bordeaux buyers will look to previous vintages for better value and will scoop up these bottles quickly. To get in before the prices rise on back-vintage Bordeaux, buyers will have to act very quickly. High 2009 Bordeaux Futures prices will likely translate into higher back-vintage Bordeaux prices as buyers look for any value that remains.
One such Bordeaux wine that immediately came to mind and that we consider a must-have-smart-buy is the 2006 Canon. Although it's a young wine and rather tight, it has all the classic Bordeaux elements. Upon opening the wine and decanting, we experienced a bouquet of dark fruit, saddle leather, smoke and spice. On the palette, it has a medium body with a very nice concentration. The wine is elegant in its youth and has abundant quantities of dark cherries, tobacco and sweet fruit. At the same time, the wine has the right amount of tannin and acidity to let you know that it will evolve wonderfully for the next 20 years.
We paired this wine with a pan roasted Long Island duck, stuffed with apples, oranges and glazed with orange marmalade. We used the duck fat to make some incredible Yukon gold potatoes. The pairing was good, but got even better as the wine continued to open in the decanter. We ended the meal with a smile.
Finally, you should be pleasantly surprised by the price of this wine. To be honest, we had to double check the price because we couldn't believe what a deal it is at only $54.99/btl, but it's true! If you are a Bordeaux drinker, this is an ideal purchase! You should only have to cellar this wine for a few years before it's drinking even better.
Our recommendation: Pick up some of this wine today while prices for recent Bordeaux vintages are still reasonable. Once the top named 2009 Bordeaux Futures are released, any value-oriented back-vintage Bordeaux that's left on the market will quickly disappear. The 2006 Canon is a smart Bordeaux buy!