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.
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.
Read MoreWhere 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.
Read MoreThe 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.
Read MoreIf 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.
Read MoreMost people know Spain for structured, age-worthy reds. Rachael Ryan makes the case for its other side — the vibrant Albariños of Galicia, the crisp sparkling wines of Penedès, the lively Txakolina of the Basque Country, and a new generation of chillable reds that beg to be served cold. Twenty bottles from $12.99 to $44.99, all built for summer.
Read MoreThe 2023 Sassicaia earned 100 points from Wine Advocate. It is one of the finest vintages from this estate in years — and this is the final round of pre-orders. That would be enough. But this newsletter also has three 94-point Barolo at prices only K&L customers see, Fèlsina back in stock at market low after a long absence, and Vigneti Repetto — K&L's newest Direct Import from Piedmont's Colli Tortonesi, introducing the "White Barolo" to our portfolio for the first time. Orazio Campoli curates the complete Italy lineup below. Shop the Italy Newsletter →
Read MoreThis summer, our NYC store is pouring 50 days of free tastings at 270 Madison Avenue. Mouton-Rothschild. Cristal. Pingus. Dal Forno Amarone. No ticket. No sign-up. Just show up between 2 and 5 PM, May 26 through July 23. Meanwhile, our buyers are sharing what they're actually drinking this season. Aaron Hughes on the domestic rosés worth the fuss. Ryan Woodhouse on six Sauvignon Blancs built for summer. Jonathan Goldstein on the spirits worth stocking right now. Half a century of buying relationships. This is what it looks like.
Read MoreK&L Domestic Wine Buyer Ryan Woodhouse makes his case for Sauvignon Blanc as the ultimate summer grape—and backs it up with six picks spanning Dry Creek Valley, Coombsville, Rutherford, and Mendocino Ridge. From a $14.95 everyday crusher to a 50%-off Beckstoffer vineyard gem, these are the bottles passing through his refrigerator this season.
Read MoreK&L Redwood City Tasting Bar Manager Aaron Hughes rounds up his favorite 2025 California and Oregon rosés, from a $14.95 Willamette Valley crusher to top-tier Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir rosé from Flowers and Marine Layer. All dry, all delicious, all worth your attention this season.
Read MoreK&L Burgundy Buyer Alex Pross calls 2024 one of the greatest White Burgundy vintages of the past quarter century—crystalline, precise, and built for the ages. Here's your complete guide to the best producers and pre-arrival offerings, from village Chablis to Grand Cru Montrachet.
Read MoreDomaine Marc Colin is one of the great family trees of modern Burgundy—the estate behind Caroline Morey, Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey, and Joseph Colin. The original domaine remains every bit their equal. The 2024 lineup covers the full Côte de Beaune—Saint-Aubin Premier Cru at $89.99, Chassagne, Puligny, and a Montrachet Grand Cru that earned 96–98 from Vinous. In one of the greatest White Burgundy vintages in a generation, these wines deliver at every level.
Read MoreDomaine Fontaine-Gagnard is one of Chassagne- Montrachet's finest value producers—and the 2024 vintage is their best argument yet. Led by Céline Fontaine and Frédéric Robert (formerly of Domaine Armand Rousseau), the estate crafts richly textured, mineral-driven White Burgundy that consistently outperforms its price. Critics agree: 91–96 points across the board. Village Chassagne at $79.99. Six Premier Crus at $129.99–$159.99. Criots-Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru at $499.99. In a landmark vintage for White Burgundy, these are the bottles to buy.
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