Brane Cantenac 2017 has been released at €46.80 per bottle ex-negociant, a 9.3% decrease on the 2016 release price of €51.60. It is being offered by UK merchants for £576 per 12×75, down 8.6% in sterling terms on the 2016 release of £630 per case.
Neal Martin (Vinous), who awarded a score of 91-93 points, praised this year’s vintage as “Classic Brane-Cantenac through and through.” James Suckling scored this year’s offering higher at 92-93 points, although he wondered if this wine was “better than 2014?” which he gave the same score to.
Due to frost, the volume of wine brought to market was 35% lower than last year.
Brane Cantenac came third in a poll of Liv-ex members’ top 10 value wines of Bordeaux 2017, albeit the value category stipulated an expected release price of below £500. However, today’s opening price is identical to the price implied by Liv-ex’s fair value methodology, which makes this a very finely balanced release. Those perusing back vintages will naturally be drawn to the 2014, which carries the same score as the 2017 but can be found in the market with a 23% discount to today’s opening price.
Alternatively, buyers looking for something with a higher score might consider the 2016, which appears to offer value, and, in the words of Neal Martin, is “a benchmark against which future vintages will be compared.”
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