The 2025 Bordeaux En Primeur campaign has generated more questions than any vintage in recent memory—about quality, pricing, tariffs, and whether to buy now or wait. Here are the answers to the questions we're hearing most from collectors, with links to the full analysis where relevant.
I don't think Bordeaux 2025 compares to anything else, from the growing season to the En Primeur campaign. Harvests were as early as they've been since 1989 and yields were as low as they were in 1961. The solar vintage seemed to hint at 2022, but the result is something far more restrained. It's with these thoughts that I'd advise throwing all other vintage comparisons out the window and consider 2025 like this: there are a lot of remarkable wines that are very refreshing in style, complex in structure, and at prices that range from sharp to can't miss.
When speaking of Bordeaux, Graves and Pessac-Léognan are often left out of the conversation when discussing the Left Bank/Right Bank divide. This is a glaring omission. Some of the region's best wines and values can be found here—and in 2025, the appellation delivered at every level, from the grand crus to the everyday drinking wines, and from the reds to what may be the finest dry whites of the entire campaign.
2025 Bordeaux is one of the strongest vintages in recent memory, released at prices that may not last. The campaign is winding down, larger formats are going first, and the best allocations are already moving. Here is how to make sure you don't miss it.
Where the Left Bank impressed with structure and precision, the Right Bank was about texture. We spent the first half of our trip across the Médoc and Pessac-Léognan, and the wines were stunning. But the moment we crossed to the Right Bank, the whole character of the vintage shifted under our feet. Where the usual suspects of the Haut-Médoc and the Graves showed depth and promise, the Merlot- and Cabernet Franc-dominated wines of Saint-Émilion and Pomerol gave us something more generous—silky, expressive wines layered with minerality.
The 2025 Left Bank delivered across all four major appellations—but not uniformly, and not in the way recent vintages have prepared us for. Pauillac produced wines of extraordinary density off half the usual crop. Saint-Julien was the steadiest appellation of the entire campaign, top to bottom. Margaux, rescued by sixty millimeters of rain at exactly the right moment, was the appellation of the vintage. And Saint-Estèphe's clay gave the commune a tension the south had to chase. Here is what we found.
If you asked me to describe my perfect Bordeaux vintage, I'd say good concentration, purity, freshness, with moderate levels of alcohol. Balance and full ripeness, but with a sense of weightlessness and texture. That is very nearly exactly what 2025 delivered.
This is a fascinating time for Bordeaux. The wines are as good as they have ever been, and pricing for many releases has fallen to levels that remind us of campaigns from a decade ago. Few regions in the world can offer this combination of pedigree, quality, ageability, and value.
Artist Sandro Chia’s Montalcino estate Castello Romitorio has produced an exceptional bottling in the 2015 vintage. His son Filippo, who’s been working side by side with Sandro since 2005, reflects on the confluence of forces that made this such a special year for them, now 36 years since they first came to this historic site.
Read MoreWhen a wine scores 100 points in a vintage full of absolutely mesmerizing wines, we take notice! Roberto Giannelli’s 2015 San Filippo “Le Lucere” Brunello is a knockout. In this interview, he talks about perfect wines, perfect weather, and everything in between.
Read MoreWe plan our newsletter schedule months in advance, and, as such, could not have anticipated the unprecedented challenges the coronavirus has presented. This holds especially true for our friends in Italy. There is no guidebook on how best to approach situations such as this, so we huddled together to determine the best path forward. Do we continue with our plan to highlight the wines of Italy as scheduled or hold off for another day? Ultimately, we decided the best way we can assist our friends abroad was to continue as planned. Now feels like the perfect time to rally around one of the greatest winemaking countries of the world and celebrate the ties that everybody feels at a moment like this. Please join us as we highlight the wines of this remarkable region and the committed folks who make them possible.
Read MoreAs we begin to bunker down and try to stay healthy, what’s better than a giant pot of soup? Not much—unless you pair it with the lively Cerasuola di Vittoria from Gulfi. The perfect comfort food for rainy, weird times!
Read MoreAssistant Manager Illya Haase is known around K&L Hollywood as the go-to man for finding excellent wines under $15. He’s compiled a list of some of his favorite wines that’ll have you celebrating Wine Wednesday any night of the week.
Read MoreGreg recently returned from a trip to Italy and he brought back some great finds that will be coming into the store over the next few weeks. First to arrive is De’Ricci, a new direct import from Montepulciano. This is an exciting new producer - not only for us, but for the region as a whole. With an interesting past, as well as a promising future, this winery offers some really fun and delicious wines.
Read MoreItaly! The food, the landscape, the films, the fashion—and the wine! There’s much for a wine lover to swoon over in this land that was once named Oenotria by the Greeks for its many vines. Our Italy newsletter showcases some of the best and brightest on our shelves. Join us this Saturday as we celebrate a festa d’Italia in all three stores. Cin Cin!
Read MoreWith its Mediterranean climate and 4722 miles of coastline, Italy is a mecca for white wines. From north to south, there’s a vibrant seafood-based cuisine, and a litany of whites to accompany it. And now that we’re in peak summer, it’s a great time to branch out beyond Pinot Grigio (though we have a killer Pinot Grigio on this list, too!).
Read MoreGiven the impressive range and diversity of Italian wine, it is easy to forget that it’s less than three-quarters the size of the state of California. That Italy is able to pack so much into such a small area is a testament to both the country’s natural diversity and a culture that embraces that diversity.
Read MoreThe 2016 Farnetella Lucilla Toscano Rosso is a delicious wine—notes of deep red fruits with underpinnings of herbs and earth, plus great acidity and structure to stand up to your takeout pizza. But did I mention it’s $10.99? Friends, it’s $10.99.
Read MoreIf you put your ear to the ground, you’ll hear a lot of buzz around Tuscany’s 2015 vintage, especially around two wines in particular: Sassicaia just topped Wine Spectator’s top ten list with an illustrious slot at #1. Meanwhile, Solaia has raked in two 100-point scores from James Suckling and Robert Parker. These are from world-class winemakers at the top of their game, making the most of an exceptional vintage.
Read MoreLuca’s family has been there through the last 40 years of evolution in Montalcino, but are very rooted in Pierluigi’s original vision. His grandfather understood the importance of Sangiovese, and was an early ambassador for it. He prized the idea that the wine is born outside of the cellar, and that the Sangiovese Grosso grape is what makes Montalcino special. Luca says it’s “a wonderful grape, and we have the best expression of it in Montalcino.”
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