I enjoy taking a look back back at what has 
gone before at this time of year and it actually reveals quite a lot about current trends as well as rising stars. I thought I would highlight some of the miles we have travelled in the world of wine and food over 2010 and share my thoughts with you.
Running both Bordeaux-Undiscovered and Interest In Wine I cover Bordeaux’s wines in all their glory from pocket pleasing tipples to the great Classed Growths.
Starting with the Grand Cru Classé you won’t be surprised to learn that my blogs on the Harvest Reports, En Primeur, Wine Investment and Pricing and Chateaux Profiles have received the most hits.
However there has been a growth in readership towards Blogs on Bordeaux grape varieties – past and present, Bordeaux wine making’s cultural and historical roots an
d posts on the AOCs.
Hot topics were Bordeaux from Valencia, Bordeaux Looks to Forgotten Grapes to Combat Global Warming and Old Grape Discovered in Bordeaux .
Chateau Palmer in particular attracted a lot of readers concerning its Historical 19th Century Wine which was made in the Hermitage tradition.
Interestingly some of the most popular blogs have been on the Grand Cru Classés that produce White and Rosé (The Rise of Rosé: Cru Classé Chateaux Make Rosé Wines as Demand Increases and Wine Investment: White Bordeaux).
Sauternes has come out of the shadows and Blogs on the Second Wines of the Cru Classés have also attracted a lot of attention. It seems that 
Bordeaux wine lovers are spreading their nets to encompass all that the region offers.
China and Hong Kong have also entered the hit stakes with Blogs on Wine Producing Regions in China, Indigenous Grape Varieties in China and China’s First Growths coming out top in this category.
The series of Blogs I wrote on Love Food. Love Bordeaux pairing wine with food based around the Bordeaux Wine Council’s (CIVB) advertising campaign aimed specifically at the UK went down well. Nine times out of ten, people drink Bordeaux with a meal and there is a lot of enthusiasm around this topic.
Other popular topics were Shipwrecked Champagne, the Bordeaux Wine Festival, The Kosher Wines of Bordeaux and The World’s Oldest Wine Barrel.
The “Discovering” series on new wines that I have tracked down always generates a lot of readers and this year’s wines were:
Chateau Ballan Larquette
Chateau Les Reuilles
Chateau Bel Air
Chateau Peynaud
Chateau Les Eymeries Rouge
Chateau Les Eymeries Blanc
Sancet, Cotes de Gascogne
Chateau du Touginas
The Top Ten Cru Classés most searched for were quite surprising – it seems that folk are trying to fill up their back vintage quota and hunt out a comparative bargain compared to the pricey 2009s:
Chateau La Fleur Morange 2005
Chateau La Lagune 2007
Chateau Pontet Canet 2006
Chateau Grand Puy Lacoste 2006
Chateau Climens 2007
Chateau Gruaud Larose 2007
Chateau Brane Cantenac 2006
Le Petit Cheval 2006
Chateau Mouton Rothschild 2006
Chateau La Tour du Pin 2006
The Top Ten wines at purchase level were the usual contenders (First Growths and Super Seconds) and the most popular vintages were 2009 and 2008. No surprise there!
As far as the trends in everyday drinking Bordeaux are concerned t
he main eye opener was that it was a Sauternes that topped the list of the most searched for wine:
Chateau Sainte Helene
Chateau Laures
Mathilde de La Fleur Morange
Chateau Chadeuil
Chateau Peynaud
Le Roc de Chateau Pellebouc
Chateau Ballan Larquette Bordeaux Clairet
Chateau Puyanche
M de Malle
Chateau Lamothe Vincent Rosé
I’m looking forward to 2011 and hope to continue writing about discovered and undiscovered wines and sharing them with you. I’d like to thank you for all your support throughout 2010 and both Sue and I wish you all a Very Happy New Year! Cheers!
