K&L Bordeaux Expert Andrew Sheehan evaluating the 2025 vintage at En Primeur.

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 may not be the bombastic, blockbuster vintage, and it wasn't perfectly homogeneous in quality. But one thing is clear: many estates made wines that will go down in the books alongside their most legendary releases. And because pricing has, for the most part, been very fair, there's real upside here for the savvy buyer. When these are finally ready to drink, the ones bought today will look like very smart purchases.

Below are the wines I'd be moving on now. These stood out within their category and carry the strongest case for buying early, whether that case is quality, scarcity, price, or all three. There were far too many excellent wines in 2025 to name them all, but to mention a few more I'd happily back: Rauzan-Ségla and Figeac both made compelling, classically styled wines, Léoville Barton continues its remarkable run of form and value, and the Smith Haut Lafitte cellar delivered on both fronts, with a red of real depth and one of the whites of the vintage. These are the bottles I'd highly recommend adding to your collection.

The Wines

2025 Margaux, Margaux (Pre-Arrival) $525.00 ($Inquire)
One of the stars of the vintage and a wine that will be remembered among the legendary Margaux. From the estate's lowest grand vin yield since 1856, it's pure, floral, and utterly seamless. Measured against its own back vintages, the value here is obvious.

2025 Lafite Rothschild, Pauillac (Pre-Arrival) $525.00
99-100JS 98-100TWP 98-100VN 96-98JD 97JA 95-97RP Excellent pricing for a wine of this depth and balance. Seamless, refined, and built on the freshness and moderate alcohol that define the vintage. A classic vintage of Lafite at a price like this rarely stays there for long.

2025 Mouton Rothschild, Pauillac (Pre-Arrival) $459.99
99-100JS 98-100JA 97-100CK 97-99JD 97-99RP 96-98TWP 95-98TWI 95-97VN A record-high Cabernet component and, to my palate, among the best Mouton showings in recent en primeur campaigns. Long-lived, classic, and very sharply priced for a First Growth of this quality. A very compelling Mouton at an attractive price.

2025 Léoville-Las-Cases, St-Julien (Pre-Arrival) $167.99
97-100JD 98-99JS 98JA 96-98RP 96-98VN One of the highlights of the campaign. When Las Cases is at its best it stands shoulder to shoulder with the First Growths, and it did exactly that in 2025, at a fraction of First Growth prices.

2025 Pichon-Lalande, Pauillac (Pre-Arrival) $149.99
97-99JD 97-98JS 96-98CK 95-97TWP 95-97VN 96JA 94-96RP 93-96TWI Another super second performing at near-First-Growth quality, luxurious and dynamic this year. Seamless and refined with a long life ahead of it.

2025 Les Carmes Haut-Brion, Pessac-Léognan (Pre-Arrival) $114.99
99-100JS 96-98JD 96-98TWP 95-98RP 95-97CK 95-97VN 94-97TWI 96JA Singular and already seductive, with high Cabernet Franc and whole-cluster work giving it a delicate, floral character unlike anything else in Bordeaux. Few wines offer this much originality, and given the buzz, the price will likely catch up soon.

2025 Canon, St-Émilion (Pre-Arrival) $114.99
98-100TWP 98-100VN 98-99JS 96-99RP 96-98JD 97DC 97JA One of the most refined wines of the entire vintage and, to my eye, one of the surest things on the Right Bank. Chanel's run at this estate has been remarkable, and at this price it sits comfortably among the vintage's elite. An easy buy.

2025 Pontet-Canet, Pauillac (Pre-Arrival) $89.99
98-100RP 97-98JS 96-98JD 96-98TWP 96-98VN 97DC 96JA For fans of the estate, this will be one of the great releases: the structure of the legendary vintages with more balance and freshness. Under $90 for this pedigree is an automatic buy.

2025 Lafleur, Vin de France (Pre-Arrival) $975.00
97-99JD 97-99VN Tiny, profound, and endlessly complex, in the first vintage of its departure from the Pomerol appellation. One of the genuine highlights of the year, and a wine collectors will chase.

2025 Montrose, St-Estèphe (Pre-Arrival) $159.99
98-100RP 98-100VN 97-100JD 97-99TWP 97DC 97JA One of the wines of the vintage from an estate on a remarkable run of form. Firm and slightly austere in its youth, with mineral, tobacco, and spice over a core of real intensity, yet beautifully balanced throughout. An epic Montrose built for the very long haul and one of the most limited of the vintage.

- Andrew Shaheen, K&L Vice President of Private Client Services

Ready to secure your allocation? Browse our full 2025 Bordeaux futures selection at klwines.com, or read Ryan Moses's complete vintage picks.