Myths of Bordeaux Wine
 
1) All Bordeaux is expensive
Bordeaux is split, roughly, into 5% of top, sought after, classified wines such as Haut Brion, Angelus, Le Pin etc, that can reach upwards of EUR3,000 per bottle. Even less rareified, but still renowned, wines such as Leoville Les Cas can easily reach into the several hundreds of pounds per bottle. But 95% of wines from this region are very reasonable, sold at under EUR10 a bottle.
 
2) All Bordeaux should be lain down
If you have paid EUR3,000 for a bottle of wine you had better hope it can be cellared and enjoyed in 40 years time! But this is certainly not true for many, many wines from the region. Personally, I think even many of the winemakers themselves make this mistake and promote their wines as if they should be left for 10 years minimum. The 'lesser' terroirs (ie the majority of them) will be ready to drink immediately in smaller vintages (such as 2007), and within five years in even the best vintages (2005).
 

3) Bordeaux is only red wine
In fact, only 30 years ago, the region was almost evenly split red and white. Today it is 89% red wine and 11% white (of which 8% is dry white and 3% is sweet). The white wines today, particularly from Pessac Leognan, are highy sought after internationally.
 

4) All Bordeaux prices vary widely from year to year
Again, it is the 5% of classified wines that vary their prices. The smaller chateaux in the less well known appellations have no ability, or desire, to vary their prices depending on the perceived value of the vintage.

5) Bordeaux quality varies widely from year to year
There are still, undeniably, vintages that are better than others (again, the example above of 2005 versus 2007), but modern techniques in the vineyard and cellar mean that there is much less variation than there once was. And almost all chateaux, certainly those with money, can deal with pretty much every weather condition Mother Nature can throw at them. I think a clearer way to look at vintages is to divide them into early drinking (ie often more consumer friendly) and later drinking (so potential investment vintages).
 
6) Bordeaux is closed and off-limits to non-professional visitors
The biggest change over the past five years has been in the welcome to tourists and non-professional visitors. Bordeaux was just selected Best Wine Tourism Destination in the world by users of TripAdvisor in the US!
 
7) All Bordeaux should be decanted
I would decant a young, big wine that ideally should be left a little longer before drinking. That way you can get the oxygen into it and open it up a bit. Old wines with deposits can also be decanted... but there is a limit, after which it becomes potentially harmful. If you have a very old wine, decanting it could destroy the delicate aromas.