I sent in the following letter to the Decanter editor, but it wasn’t published in this month’s issue (although one from a fellow DWS classmate – Lisa Carley – was), so rather than have it go to waste, I’m posting it here.

If top collector Charles Klatskin isn’t buying certain 2005 Bordeaux futures on principle (Decanter.com: ‘Insane’ Bordeaux prices turn top collector away, July 12, 2006, Howard Goldberg), what hope do the rest of us ‘mere mortals’ pleading poverty have? Actually, quite a lot.

As a much more modest collector, but one not immune to the 2005 hoopla, I have sought out a few bargains and generally managed to stay close to the $500 budget I set for myself. Distilling reviews and advice from Decanter, Jancis Robinson’s website, along with Wine Advocate and Wine Spectator tasting notes and scores provided on my wine merchant’s website, I found a few gems, which seem to hold promise in both the appreciation they will find on my palate and provide on my pocketbook.

At $55.95 per bottle, my splurge was a single bottle of Domaine de Chevalier, one of the only wines I could afford from Decanter’s list of 5-star wines. More frugally, I picked up a case of Chateau Beaumont ($150.00/case) and another of Fonbel ($225.00), the latter of which, with a Parker score of 90-93, was a veritable steal at $21.95/bottle. This was rounded out with two bottles of Chateau d’Armailhac at $39.95, of which I have a bottle of the 2000.

While I don’t expect to get rich on any of these purchases, I am confident that these wines will provide great pleasure, if not the staying power of their more expensive counterparts. Of course, wealthier and less- principled collectors may have more stellar wines in their cellars. But, from my standpoint, if a rising tide lifts all boats and, by all accounts, the 2005 vintage was a heck of a tide, we should all be in good stead when it comes time to drink.