Quality Bordeaux for $15 and under is within reach

Much has been written about the great vintage of 2000 in Bordeaux and the wonderful wines you can put in your cellar if you are willing to fork over $50 to $400 a bottle.

But what about popularly priced Bordeaux wines, those costing less than $15?

The answer is that while the high-priced wine excels in quality, so do the less expensive wines of that vintage. They will not be the exquisite, top-of-the-line Bordeaux, but they generally will be better values than in previous years.

I asked the wine-tasting group to compare five Bordeaux wines. Price was not necessarily a good indicator. Here is what we found:

- 2000 Chateau Bire at $14.99. This wine had a steeliness to it, with an aroma of raspberries, pepper and oak. We tasted black raspberries on the palate. It was a simple, one-dimensional wine that could use another year or two in the bottle.

- 2000 Chateau Moulin de Landry at $14.99. This Bordeaux had an earthy, plum aroma. In the mouth, it was better balanced than the Chateau Bire, with a full body and longer finish.

- 2000 Verdillac Red at $9.99. This aroma's light cherry fruit separated it from the others. The fruit was unsweetened in smell, with hints of cedar. Made from cabernet sauvignon, merlot and malbec, it was well balanced with the best finish of the five. You can drink this wine today, and it's a great value for under $10. It finished first in our blind tasting before my experts knew the price.

- 2000 Chateau Saint-Sulpice at $9.99. This wine had layers of aromas -- green peppers, raw oak, orange peel and leather. The greenness would go away if you waited long enough. In the mouth, it was very dry with berry fruit as opposed to cherry. It had a long finish. The Chateau Saint-Sulpice finished a close second.

- 2000 Chateau La Commanderie de Queyret at $14.99. This wine tasted of cherries and lots of tannins -- those chemicals in wine that can give it character and can make your mouth pucker. It had a rather flat texture.

Note that the two wines under $10 got all the first-place votes. Yes, you can still find good reds under $10.

Surfing the shelves for values

- 2001 Gloria Ferrer Carneros Estate Chardonnay at $18. Aroma of pineapple and tropical fruit mingle with floral notes with this wine. Flavors of tropical fruits burst across the tongue, followed by citrus with oaky undertones and distinct notes of toast on the lingering finish.

- 2002 Chateau St. Jean Fume Blanc at $13. A blend of sauvignon blanc and semillion grapes, this wine offered clean smells of grapefruit and lemon in the aroma. The citrus carried through in the taste, softened by hints of ripe honeydew melon, making it a nice sipping wine with a soft, creamy texture.

- 2000 Sebastiani Sonoma County Cabernet Sauvignon at $17. The aroma of bing cherry and blackberry gave way to the lush flavors of black cherry and tea leaves in this elegant cab. Light tannins faded into a soft finish. Try it with a steak or sharp cheese.

- 2001 Sebastiani Alexander Valley Merlot at $24. This merlot had an especially dark color. The aroma offered fresh black cherry mixed with mocha and spice. Jammy fruits dominated by a deep black cherry flavor blended with some tannin and oak provided a rich wine experience.

- 2001 Sebastiani Sonoma County Chardonnay at $13. Pineapples, peaches, tropical fruits and hints of oaky vanilla aromas led to the apple, pear and oak flavors rolling over the tongue with this wine. It had a medium body with a hint of lemon on the end.

Questions can be sent to Frank Sutherland, editor, The Tennessean, 1100 Broadway, Nashville, TN 37203 or e-mailed to editor