Château Ducru-Beaucaillou — Château Ducru-Beaucaillou 2017

In a blind tasting, the 2017 Château Ducru-Beaucaillou – a second growth from Saint-Julien with 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Merlot – was compared directly with the Greek Ktima Kokotos 2017 from Kokotos Estate (PGI Attika), which has exactly the same varietal composition. The Ducru-Beaucaillou spends 18 months in French oak and comes in at 13.5% alcohol, while the Kokotos matures for a full 26 months and reaches 14%.

Visually, the two wines differ noticeably: the Ducru-Beaucaillou leans much further into the violet spectrum but also shows more sediment already, so one shouldn't draw too many conclusions about relative aging potential from colour alone. What is genuinely shocking is how close the two wines are on the nose. Especially as they warm up a little, without the glasses side by side you'd struggle to tell them apart. The Ducru edges slightly more toward red fruit, while the Kokotos carries more smoky aromas. On the palate, there's barely a hair's breadth between the two cuvées: Ducru-Beaucaillou is a touch more filigree, while the Kokotos is more complex. On the finish, they hold equally long. Two wines that could hardly be better for their respective type – and both have the potential to improve further with time.

The 2017 Ducru-Beaucaillou holds an average score of 96.37 points on Global Wine Score, placing it 11th among dry red wines on Bordeaux's Left Bank – right behind Latour, Margaux, Haut-Brion, Léoville-Las-Cases and Mouton Rothschild, and ahead of both Lafite and Palmer. The fact that the Greek Kokotos stood eye to eye with it in the blind tasting and even had the edge speaks volumes about both wines. The Kokotos received at least 98 points; the Ducru-Beaucaillou, which finished just behind the Kokotos in the blind tasting, operates at the same level – 98+ points, with upside as it matures. In terms of price, however, the Ducru-Beaucaillou runs at roughly three times the cost of the Kokotos.