Closed for Christmas

Thank you for visiting the Justerini & Brooks buyers’ blog. Unfortunately the blog is taking a break for Christmas until the 4th of January. We would like to wish all our readers a merry Christmas and happy New Year. We’ll be back with more news from the vineyard, first tastings from barrel, market movers, auction results and growers’ reports in 2010.

Quelle surprise

The 2009 `Liv-ex Fine Wine Power 100` poll is out, and no surprises for the winner, Chateau Lafite Rothschild. The only shock is that Lafite was only in sixth spot last year...

The results are compiled by the Liv-ex boffins, who analyse data including the volume of trades on the exchange, the average Parker scores, average prices, annual performance and a weighted production (average price multiplied by the total production).

There are some fascinating results. Lafite accounts for a staggering 23% of business on the exchange, with the other first growths taking the next four places. Taylors, way down in 48th position has the highest average Parker score (97.2 points!). Petrus, DRC and Le Pin have the highest average prices, all exceeding 10K per case. Price performance is probably the most important statistic used, and it is Carruades de Lafite, not Lafite that leads the way (up 55%), followed by Duhart (33%) and completing a 1-2-3 for Domaines Barons de Rothschild, the Grand Vin, Lafite (up 26%). The only other contender in this category is Beychevelle, with a very respectable 23% rise.

For the full report, please follow the link below.

http://liv-ex.typepad.com/.a/6a00e55150c0be8834012876528b9f970c-popup

Alsace 2009 : An in depth harvest report from Domaine Weinbach

On his recent visit, Giles kindly inquired about our 2009 harvest at Domaine Weinbach and I am happy to share our impressions with you.

The potential of the new vintage is very high across our range of terroirs and grape varieties, with very healthy, beautifully ripe grapes and extremely pure aromas. The second half of August was hot and September was warm, both contributing to excellent maturities after the very mild weather conditions we had in April and May and despite a very damp July. August weather brought fears that total acidities would be too low but they are equivalent in most cases to the ones we experienced in 2005 and 2007 and the impression derived from the tastings is very fine. The maturities are optimal, both in sugar richness and in taste (phenolic) knowing that the grape skins were thicker than usual because of the lack of rain at the end of the season. In addition to their richness, the wines show freshness, juiciness and beautiful aromatic profiles. Because of the thick skins and dry conditions, botrytis (noble rot) was scarce and took time to develop in the most favorable terroirs. In return, it stayed incredibly pure and fresh. Due to its small proportion, ” tries ” (selections) needed to be extremely severe to produce tiny volumes of very high quality Sélections de Grains Nobles. Beautiful Vendanges Tardives, in of course much lesser quantities than 2005, were harvested showing great elegance of constitution.

The weather during harvest was a dream. We started on September 14 with our Pinot Noir: incredible colour, fruit and richness. We then paused for 10 days before picking Auxerrois and Pinot Blanc, Muscat, Pinot Gris and Sylvaner. On September 29, we harvested our first Riesling and Gewurztraminer (both Cuvée Théo). This started the “heart” of our harvest and until October 7, we picked all our remaining Pinot Gris (including Vendanges Tardives, Sélections de Grains Nobles and Quintessence de Grains Nobles), all our Rieslings (including a beautiful Sélection de Grains Nobles in the Schlossberg) except a plot in the Altenbourg and all our Gewurztraminer except Altenbourg, Grands Crus Furstentum and Mambourg. The night of October 7 saw the first (moderate: 7 mm) rain in almost two months. The temperatures all along harvest had stayed between 18°C and 27°C with not even a hint of morning dew which can sometimes have the same "diluting" effect as light rain. Then, a week and just a couple of more mm rain later, on October 14 and 15, Gewurztraminer Altenbourg (“regular” as well as Vendanges Tardives Trie Spéciale and Quintessence de Grains Nobles), Gewurztraminer Furstentum regular and Vendanges Tardives. On October 20, a rich Gewurztraminer Grand Cru Mambourg Vendanges Tardives and to conclude on October 28, a beautiful first Riesling Altenbourg Vendanges Tardives.

To conclude I would like to say that we have been blessed with a series of excellent vintages: our brand new 2009 but also 2007 and 2008.

Let us wish you and your families a Merry Christmas, a joyful holiday Season and all very good things in the New Year to come.

Laurence Faller,

Domaine Weinbach

J&B takes to the airwaves

We always said he had a perfect face for radio, and last night our very own Julian Campbell was the voice of authority, fount of all knowledge and general know it all on the Chris Evans Drive Time Show.

Chris wasn’t reviving `Freak or Unique` or `Fat lookalikes` as we had thought, he was having a very informed discussion about the merits of Cognac and Armagnac. If anyone would like to listen to the interview, please follow the link to the BBC iplayer. Julian’s slot starts about 1 hour, 12 minutes and 50 seconds into the show.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00p6tjx/Chris_Evans_08_12_2009/

Movers and Sheikhers

The Liv-ex 100 finished November up just 0.4% at 235.13; 14.7% up for the year. A modest gain after some really impressive months, but a gain none-the-less. So, what’s been trading at J&B in November? Well, we make no apologies; it’s been the usual suspects. Lafite and Carruades march on and Mouton continues to gather pace, but still remains several furlongs behind Lafite. There is still insatiable demand for 2007 Chateauneufs; whilst old and rare vintages from Burgundy get snapped up tout de suite.

The big question is - how will major economies respond to the Dubai crisis? Hopefully this won’t be the double-dip we all fear, but if it is, bargain-hunters will probably be disappointed; it’s unlikely that there will be a glut of distressed sellers emerging from the Middle East!

Familia Cassone Malbec moves to screwcaps

Lovers of Finca La Florencia Malbec, and there are a few of you out there, will be delighted to hear that the next shipment is arriving in January. Undoubtedly one of our very best value reds, now bottled entirely in screwcaps. Making life just that little bit easier!

The festivities are just around the corner.

Our Christmas list has hit doorsteps now so if you haven't received yours please feel free to call us on 0207 484 6467 and we will happily send you a copy. Proving particularly popular are a new addition to the list, our four mixed dozens, each comprising three bottles of some of our most popular current drinking gems.

Chateauneuf's overlooked vintages

Tasting with the affable Vincent Avril today was fascinating.

The final blend of 2008 Clos des Papes red looks very smart, silky pure and refreshing. He likens it to the 1999 which we tasted, too, this was drinking well - elegant moreish, and very fresh after 10 years so this bodes well for the 2008 which he thinks is better. The 04 Clos des Papes red is still very young but offers such vitality, ripeness and polish, a wonderful wine from this shamefully overlooked Chateauneuf vintage.

Julien Barrot at Barroche has made a lovely "signature" cuvee in 2008 rich velvety but fresh with almost Pinot like aromas, a real beauty. There will be no fiancee or pure in 2008 so all the goodness from those pure 100 year old grenache vines has gone into the signature blend, making it all the more special.

Barolo Vigna Giachini, Giovanni Corino 1998

Two bottles served with the most delicious oxtail stew demonstrated with considerable aplomb what fine Barolo Giovanni Corino makes, and how refined and rewarding Barolo from La Morra vineyards such as Giachini can become given patience. It was aromatic, hightoned and elegant with tannins that are just beginning to melt effortlessly into the hedgerow scented, bittersweet Nebbiolo fruit. Anyone with 98 Corinos in their cellar might like to consider having some out now. You won’t be disappointed.

Burgundy 2008 Part Deux - Days 4 & 5

Visits with Roumier and Mugnier reinforced the findings of our earlier tastings with Drouhin, Meo-Camuzet and Ghislaine Barthod, where we discovered many very fine Chambolles. Clos de Marechale deserves a mention, Mugnier's great vineyard work here(pictured) seems to get increasingly evident each year, the 2008 rivals Nuit's best. Musigny seems to be a Grand Cru that has excelled in 2008, examples from Roumier and Mugnier were glorious and that of Leroy outshone, on the day, their other vineyards Richebourg and Chambertin. Vosne, too, seems to have had its fair share of highs in 2008, Cathiard's wines were fabulous. His and Leroy's stunning Romanee St Vivants have mirrored the success of Frank Follin's earlier in the week. At Clos de Tart we had our usual, fascinating, tasting of the four components of the Clos de Tart blend. Embryonic they may have been, but the potential to be one of the vintage's most powerful wines is certainly there. Cecile Tremblay followed, a young grower who is already starting to excel. 2008 is clearly an excellent vintage for her and a step up from her 2007s. Chambolle Feusselottes and Chapelle really impressed but most surprising of all was, perhaps, the high quality of the two villages wines Nuits and Vosne. The final tasting of our two week long Burgundian visits was with Domaine d'Eugenie, and what a way to finish. Even more than Tremblay, this is a Domaine that has made enormous strides between the 2007 and 2008 vintages. With their brand new cuverie in place and the winemaking team finding their feet, they have managed to produce superb results, each wine/ terroir is very clearly defined and the expression of Pinot Noir bittersweetness comes through very strongly.

So the trip draws to a close. It has not been too tiring a journey, which says alot for the vintage. At their best the red wines are fresh and light in tannic structure rather like 2004 in their light tannic structure but much more elegant and with a totally different, considerably riper, fruit profile. The wines are not massive like 2006 or 2005, but they are so well balanced that they should age gracefully. Burgundy lovers will adore them for their purity and Pinot juiciness. The whites are flamboyant, exotic yet racy and will give great pleasure straightaway, Chablis, in particular, is a great success. It is a small vintage for red and white wine in terms of quantity, though there are one or two exceptions many Pinot producers made even less 2008 than the already rather small 2007 vintage.

Voyager Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot

We've always said the wines from Voyager Estate were superb. Continued investment in time and energy by the dynamic winemaking team only means they are getting better and better. Old bottles seem to develop a Bordelais sense of gentle, handsome refinement, whilst in their youth the wines are crammed full of sensual fruit and well managed tannins.

And Neil Martin agrees with us. The following tasting notes, published on erobertparker.com, come from a Margaret River expo earlier in the year.

"2004 Voyager Estate Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot 92
This is a great wine. A lovely, well-defined, sensuous bouquet with black plum, black pepper and a touch of antique snuff box coming through. Then mulberry developing with aeration. Ripe blackberry and plum on the palate laced with dried herbs, very Bordeaux-like with admirable harmony and focus. Elegant finish. Superb. Drink now-2018. Tasted May 2009."

"2001 Voyager Estate Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot 92
Another great wine from Voyager. A ripe nose with mint and camphor, a touch of sous-bois and cigar box. Very Bordeaux-like once again. The palate is full-bodied, firm tannins, quite masculine and tannic with an austere, almost aloof finish that seems to laugh in your face that you remain so loyal to the Left Bank. Excellent. Drink now-2014. Tasted May 2009."

2008 Burgundy Part Deux - Day 3

The french love affair with bank holidays means that it is always a battle to make appointments in November, particularly on Armistice day, fortunately however there was minimal interruption today - our winegrowers are made of sterner stuff, their strong work ethic seems to apply even to the beloved "jours ferriers." As a result we get to swan around the finest Crus of Chambolle Morey and Gevrey with a little interlude to Jean Marc Millot in Nuits St Georges. Each terroir /wine is so clearly defined and identifiable in 2008, this was more evident in the cellars of the charming Ghislaine Barthod than anywhere else. The villages was enormously impressive, as for the crus normally the Fuees is the outsanding example for me and it is extremely good but it is a close run thing with Charmes this year, the warm microclimate of the lower Charmes must have been well suited to the cooler conditions of 2008. Louis Remy's wines were excellent too, my strict jesuit education normally means I have a preference for the austere but profound Latricieres,though I have to admit this year to being seduced by Clos de la Roche, another warm micro climate thas has performed particularly well in 2008. As for Bruno Clair at the end of the day, well his wines left us pretty speechless. Clos St Jacques tastes like a Grand Cru, Clos de Beze is totally seductive and Bonnes Mares is arguably the best yet has Bruno finds his feet in this vineyard since it came back into the fold in 2006, it has been very pretty these last few vintages but the 2008 has more strength and depth than its predecessors whilst retaining the purity and definition of the vintage. Bravo Bruno!

2008 Burgundy Part Deux - Day 2

The Remi Rollin 2008s performed admirably well at 8.30am in the morning, they have the mineral streak that are so beloved of Pernand's wines with a hint more generosity and exoticism than the 2007s. The Sous Fretille is one of Burgundy's best kept white secrets and the 08 version will not disappoint its loyal followers. On to Burgundy's holy grail, Vosne Romanee. It may have been a bleary-eyed start to the day, but one can hardly complain with the rest of the day's schedule that includes Lamarche, Comte Liger-Belair, Etienne Grivot and Meo Camuzet. In 2008 Lamarche have gone up another gear from their very promising 2007s, Nicole is clearly making great strides with the winemaking since taking over fully from her father in 2007. Richebourg from Grivot was a stand out wine, great energy and finesse for this vineyard which can so often be explosive but rather cumbersome in its youth, however the piece de resistance for me, unsurprisingly I guess, was La Romanee from Comte Liger Belair. Tasting in the cellars under the Chateau de Vosne Romanee is always a treat but this was something else. The 2008 La Romanee is more expressive and open than any other I can remember at this stage whilst retaining its classic subtley and guile. Fine, floral, juicy and sophisiticated with a breathakingly long finish. 08 has really started shaping up nicely, it says alot for the vintage that there have been little or no disappointments but many high points. As with any vintage troubled by awkward weather during the growing season this won't be a vintage to buy any old where, but importantly for Burgundy lovers the growers who usually make good wine have done sowith some style this year.

2008 Burgundy Part Deux - Day 1

The balmy 19 degrees of two weeks ago seem like a long time ago. Burgundy is firmly back in line with the seasons, its cold, wet and windy. The weather does not stop this place being beautiful, though, its still a real treat to be here. Before decamping to the Cotes de Nuits we finish off the remaining Cotes de Beaune cellars that we did not manage to visit last time round. The day started with Follin and some thoroughly attractive 2008s, Romanee St Vivant was a real stand out and promises much for our visit to Vosne Romanee tomorrow. His even more seductive 07s followed, topped off by an excellent 2006 Chapitre (a vintage Frank considers to be up there with his best,surpassing 2005.)Frank has really proved himself an enormously consistent and talented winemaker over the last 5-10 years. We then briefly switched Cotes to Flagey-Echezeaux and Emmanuel Rouget, who for once had remembered his appointment and was at home rather than in a field somewhere shooting game as is so often his want. Some 2008 wines of great potential here, however the Cros Parantoux had barely started malo and was difficult to see into. The 2007s eclipsed the 08s, though. It reminded me what a great success Emannuel's wines were in 07, definitely up there among the vintage's creme de la creme. Some good wines have been made chez the short-clad Eric de Suremain, Rully Preaux was a beauty and the Clou de Chene would not look out of place in a flight of top Volnays, and ditto some excellent whites at Martelet de Cherisey, but Vincent Dancer (pictured) was the showpiece of the day for both Hew and I, even at villages level the wines have a depth, intensity and above all finesse that I think will be hard to rival. Vosne here we come.

Rhone 2007

The interest in Rhone 2007 shows no sign of abating. Our most recent offering of Vieux Donjon 2007 sold out within the day. Indeed, such as been the level of interest we have decided to re-offer many 2007's with our 2008 Rhone release on the 16th November. If you haven't already signed up to receive our mailers, you can do it now here, it takes a matter moments and is a sure fire way to ensure you receive all our emailed updates and releases.

More signs of recovery

One of the key barometers for the health of the wine market is the strength of auction sales. We have become accustomed to lofty figures being returned from the auction rooms in Hong Kong, however, New York and London results over the past twelve months have not provided a great deal of cheer.

However, yesterday’s sale at Christie's posted some very respectable figures. The total value of the sale exceeded £600,000, with almost 92% of lots sold. Highlights included an exceptionally rare case of Henri Jayer’s Vosne Romanee Cros Parantoux 1978, which achieved £36,800 and a case of Latour 1961, which reached £21,850. Both items sold to UK trade. A case of 1982 Lafite Rothschild topped £20,000 and unsurprisingly went to and Asian client. How many of these wines will actually be consumed in the UK, well, we can only guess. Many of the lots will inevitably end up with Asian collectors, but we should not make pejorative comments about the state of our own market – things are looking up!

Up up and away

The Liv-ex 100 recorded its seventh consecutive monthly rise, leaving the index at 234.25, up 1.9% for the month and 14.3% up for the year. Lafite continues to lead the way, but there seems to be renewed interest in Mouton. Could it be the Rothschild link? Who knows, but rumours that this is the new brand to follow in the influential Chinese market are rife. There also seems to be strong demand for La Mission Haut Brion 2005 after its 100 point showing at the Executive Wine Seminars blind tasting in New York.

Outside the Liv-ex 100, there has been some astonishing trading. One case of Clos des Papes 2007 sold for £1150, although whoever bought it must have felt pretty foolish as a case was offered soon after at £1000! Since Robert Parker's remarks about 2007 Southern Rhone, there has been a sharp upturn in demand. Well done to those who bought 2007s en primeur; wines from this red-hot vintage are becoming quite scarce and increasingly expensive to find…

Burgundy 2008 Tastings - Days 4 & 5

Our final taste of the Cote de Beaune, for this week at least, was with Patrick Javillier, Tollot Beaut and Drouhin. A pleasant end to the Cote, stand out wines were the Meursault Tete de Murger, Corton Bressandes from Tollot, and a beautiful flight of Chambolles from Joseph Drouhin. We leave Chorey Les Beaune for Chablis in the north where we visit Moreau Naudet, Vincent Dauvissat, Laurent Tribut and Brocard. The 2008s here are a little behind schedule, like those of the Cote de Beaune, because of slow malolactic fermentations, however they showed extremely well. It is quite simply an excellent Chablis vintage, they have a similar intensity, ripeness and exuberance to the 2008s further south but perhaps even greater concentration and certainly more finesse. Hew told Vincent Dauvissat he thought it was one of the best vintages he has tasted in his 25 years in buying Chablis, high praise indeed! Moreau Naudet has,thankfully, produced a Montee de Tonnerre this year and has produced a stunning range. Laurent Tribut has made his finest wines yet.

This year's Burgundy marathon is broken up by a week in the London office, next week Hew and I head back out to Burgundy, where we will be pitching our tents mainly in the Cote de Nuits.

Burgundy 2008 tastings- Day 3

Apparently down in Biarritz they were basking in sunshine and swimming in the sea yesterday, well its not quite as hot as that here but it has been another fine day in Burgundy, clear skies beautiful colours and a balmy 19 degrees. The picture shows the view through the gates of Bachelet-Monnot's fine Boutiere 1er Cru vineyard in Maranges.

It was a mammoth day that started at 8.45am and finished at 8pm, tough but then again tasting with coche dury into the night is not such a hardship.

We tasted mostly white wine, it is clear the vintage is a very good one for whites, riper and more exotic than 2007 though not always as fine but with similarly racy acidities.Quantities are much smaller however because of the north wind concentrating the grapes.

Difficult to pick a highlight as there were so many great whites, coche dury was excellent but to be expected, there were superb ranges from Sauzet and Pierre Morey too, but forced into a corner it was tasting with the bachelet monnot brothers, they are young but already making top flight wines, we expected good wine but nothing as great as their 2008s. The Batard was the best we tasted. Jobard was not far behind, Francois' son Antoine is making the wine here now and has clearly taken the wines to another level.

Burgundy 2008 tastings - Day 2

On the evidence of today these 2008 reds have really turned out rather well. Many have an exciting freshness that the best Pinots display with an acidity that is high but ripe, the tannins seem very fine too. Malolactic fermentations have been very slow in 2008, often this is a process done and dusted by the following year's harvest but many have still not finished and some have only just started,however this has made for some very pure, bright and deeply coloured wines. This was the case at our first tasting, the young Arnaud Mortet is further perfecting the fine style of Burgundy that differs so greatly from that of his father. Here many wines were still mid malo and backward but we did get a fair glimpse of what's to come, a very tasteable Gevrey 1er Cru and Gevrey Champeaux that had finished their second fermentation were totally seductive. The harvest will be a tiny one, though.

Contrary to Mortet, at Drouhin Laroze there is a relatively healthy size of crop, Philippe's vines were less affected by oidium that was so prevalent in some sectors of the Cote de Nuits. Some very drinkable, fine and really quite moreish wines here. Chambertin Clos de Beze, so often the surly one of Philippe's vast Grand Cru brood, was actually incredibly showy and had real "wow" factor. Next and we cruised gently up the hill to Rousseau. Eric Rousseau has been making less wine over the last 5 years but has raised the qualitative bar accross the whole portfolio of wines, Clos de la Roche impressed, Chambertin was majesterial. What a treat this tasting was.

On to Nuits St Georges and Robert Chevillon's uniformly delicious set of 2008s, Vaucrains was a highlight and on today's evidence just pips Les St Georges. Our new grower in Nuits as of last year is Gouges. With a brand new cellar and the accession of Christian's nephew, Gregory, to winemaking duties quality has improved greatly as of 2007, the style being much less tannic in its youth, more finesse. I was delighted to see 2007 was no fluke, Gregory's 2008s are even better, they were utterly spellbinding!

All in all a really good day, some surprisingly good Pinots. Burgundy owe the north wind that arrived in September 2008 alot of gratitude, this is when things turned for the better. "A miracle" as Eric Rousseau calls it "morale at the end of August was as low as my socks, but look how good the wines are now!!"

Burgundy 2008 tastings -Day 1

Standing in Jean-Noel Gagnard's cellars at 8.45am this morning seems like a long time ago. A long but rewarding day has passed.

Often intense but distinctly 'adolescent' when tasted from barrel, Caroline Lestime's white wines are serious, often backward and always take a couple of years in bottle to blossom. The 2008s, though, are a really impressive range that already show tremendously well, offering a great balance between "gras" and freshness, the Bâtard was sublime. A tour of the Marquis d'Angerville vineyards followed. Guillaume d'Angerville's commute to and from his vines is enviable, within minutes we were admiring the view from the sun-kissed Champans vineyard, followed shorty afterwards by a trip to the even higher, stonier Taillepieds, all the while the steep tilt of Clos des Ducs to the north stayed in sight. All were within minutes of each other yet so different, this is the essence of Burgundy. The difference between the terroirs was amplified further during our tasting of 2008s, each wine was very clearly defined. On the day Champans was the stand out, so seductively Volnay - Guillaume's accession to duties at Domaine the d'Angerville has definitely coincided with the big qualitative resurgence of this classic Volnay vineyard. Dominique Lafon was next and did not disappoint, he is such an enthusiast and perfectionist. 2008 is a small crop here for reds and whites alike (the smallest ever that Dominique can recall for his Volnay.) Exciting wines from top bottom, the Macons were quite possibly his best yet, the Meursaults and Montrachet were as smart as usual, the pick of the cellar,though, went to Perrières. Finally we braved the back streets of Beaune in search of the Hospices de Beaune cellars. Confronted by a vast chai like room of new wooden barrels of seriously embryonic wine, we picked our way through an interesting but not necessarily homogenous 2009 crop. The best red wines are powerful yet already highly flattering to taste at this very early stage. Tomorrow sees a change of Cotes as we head for Gevrey and Nuits.

The Mosel 2009: "Wonderfully Healthy and Golden Yellow in Colour"

We have been busy harvesting for two weeks now. Although we had a few rain showers last week, we are now experiencing a really golden October. It is quite frosty in the mornings but then wonderfully warm and sunny in the afternoons.

Thanks to a very selective harvest, we gain a fantastic quality every day, ranging from Qba through the finest Grand Crus to the Gold Capsule selection.

We have a little less quantity this year however qualitatively this harvest will turn out to be an excellent one.The grapes are wonderful healthy and golden yellow in colour.

We think that it will take us another week to finish a successful harvest.

Clos des Papes as popular as ever

Yesterdays offer of the 2006 vintage saw huge demand and we sold our entire parcel from this cult Chateauneuf domaine in a matter of hours. We apologise if you didn't manage to secure an allocation, and would urge you to sign up to our mailers at http://www.justerinis.com/ for instant notifications of future releases.

The Bordeaux circus rolls into town

Today, the Union des Grands Crus swapped their Chateaux for the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden. This annual event has become an enlightening tasting as it often presents the first opportunity to taste a vintage from bottle. This year was the turn of the 2007s. Widely rubbished before the barrel tastings, some Chateaux defied the miserable conditions and with an extraordinary amount of hard work in the vineyard and no lack of skill in the winery, have produced some half decent wines - but how are they showing now?

Well, the pick of the reds are elegant and refined, with pure fruit cores; they will be attractive early drinkers. Those who extracted too much have made unbalanced wines with tough tannins, but in the main, winemakers have been gentle and have produced simple but charming wines. The stars of the show included, Pontet Canet, Pichon Lalande, Pichon Baron, Léoville Barton, Langoa Barton and Beychevelle. These were really well made wines that will reward medium term cellaring.

The real winners in 2007 though are the whites. The dry whites from Pessac-Léognan are aromatic, concentrated and possess lovely crisp acidities. Highlights included, Carbonnieux, Domaine de Chevalier, Smith Haut Lafite and Picque Caillou. The sweeties are quite exceptional too. There is ample botrytis, richness and complexity - all framed by delicious racy acidities. Suduiraut, Doisy Daene, Doisy Vedrines, de Fargues and Coutet all shone, but a particular attention should be drawn to Climens, who have made a blockbuster to rival Yquem. Berenice Lurton has made a wine of mammoth proportions; a truly exceptional Climens!

So, in summary, the best reds are charming, balanced wines with fine structures, which will reward early drinking. The whites are outstanding; if you haven’t already bought them for your cellar, then hurry…

Robert Parker: France 2009 and Rhone 2007

A recent news letter from Robert Parker extolling the potential of the French 2009 harvest, and the realised (and bottled) greatness from the 2007 Southern Rhone vintage. We will be re-offering a selection of 2007 Rhones with our 2008 Rhone release.

"2009 in France
Having been in France in late August and early September, this is going to be a potentially great vintage in virtually every wine region. In thirty years of visiting France in the fall, and seeing how vintages unfold, I don't remember a better set of climatic conditions than those that occurred in the critical months of August and September as well as the early part of October, 2009. Burgundy, Loire, Alsace, Bordeaux, the northern Rhône and probably the southern Rhône as well appear to have had phenomenal vintages, which is certainly good news. If there is going to be any weaknesses, it may be because of the severe drought France suffered, which was abated somewhat in certain areas by some late rain in September. That may have caused some hydric stress and tannin issues with some wines, but we won't know for sure until the wines are tasted in the spring of 2010.

You can't buy enough of the 2007 Southern Rhônes
As my report that will be coming out the end of October states, from top to bottom, this is the greatest vintage I have ever tasted in any viticultural area. Most consumers who have already tried some of the generic 2007 southern Rhônes have already seen what they are in store for given the fact that these wines are well above their humble pedigrees. At the top level are the great wines of the finest appellation of the southern Rhône, Châteauneuf du Pape, but Vacqueyras, Gigondas, and Rasteau are the real value picks as almost every domaine in Châteauneuf du Pape that has a noteworthy reputation is already sold out. The wines are just hitting the distribution channels in the United States and Europe, so move quickly. Despite the worldwide economic woes, these wines are disappearing at a rapid pace."

The smiles say it all...

Our recent sojourn in Bordeaux has been quite enlightening. Chateaux owners are positively beaming at the prospect of their 2009s. Our time in the Medoc included engagements with two of the most influential Chateau directors, Frederic Engerer and Paul Pontallier (right).

Chateau Margaux has enjoyed a wonderful summer, with hot, exceptionally dry conditions. The harvest was the longest on record, starting on the 8th of September for the Pavillon Blanc and finishing today! (15th Oct). Paul was deliberating over which vintages to pour at `la gerbaude`, the traditional end of harvest party. Sugar levels are historically high in 2009, with some parcels of Merlot hitting 15.5% and 16%. Cabernets are a more modest 13%. If there's one problem with the vintage, it's that the dry autumn has resulted in smaller yields than we had hoped for. 36-37hl/ha, slightly below 2008.

Frederic Engerer explains that 2009 is an 'extreme vintage' at Chateau Latour. It is undoubtedly a great harvest, but he expects a `tumultuous` time during vinification. 'Everything is so extreme - concentration, alcohol, even acidities'. Alcoholic fermentations will certainly be lengthy. Cabernets look 'fabulous', but alas the yields are low. Frederic recorded temperatures of 28 degrees on the 28th of September. This extreme heat in September has resulted in tiny, concentrated berries with very little juice - he expects a crop slightly smaller than 2008 (itself a very small harvest).

Piedmont 2009 : "Harvest is finally over"

We were very worrried about the rain we had in the middle of September, but we soon got happy again seeing as afterwards the sun started shining and we had warmer days. Even today, while I write this, I'm wearing a t-shirt sitting outside and it's 25°!

The last few grapes were picked by our crew without any hurry or overly stressful selection - the grapes were healthy and fully ripe.

It looks like this is going to be another (!!) great harvest for Barolo, perhaps with a little too much alcohol, but definitely with good acidities and balance.

The last tank of nebbiolo was pressed on Sunday. For the first time we fermented longer than usual, we left it for a week on the skins..."just a week" some might say, but for us it's a "record". We tried to keep the temperature lower than usual, about 28°, and for longer. We will see the results soon as the juice is almost dry now.

Luckily this year we haven't had any arrest of fermentation, all tanks are turning dry naturally and some have even started their malolactics already.

We never inoculate with powdered yeast, preferring to create a "mother yeast" that we carry on for the whole vintage. I think that is a very good natural way of working and of giving your wines a special "familiar" taste every year.

Now that the crazy action is over we start to realise just how much work we have done and how many hours we have worked. Sleeping till 7,30am now feels like a total luxury!

This morning we racked the Dolcetto from one tank to another. It has such a nice aroma of violets and cherry that you almost want to eat it!

Just a few more day of moving stuff around, racking, then putting the new wines in barrel, turning the heaters to help malolactic fermentation and.....finito!!!!!!!!

Wines in the Press: Mas Doix, Salanques 2005

It might not be outrageous to suggest that Spain, the country with more land under vine than any other, is also the country that is pushing winemaking boundaries faster than anywhere else. Whilst Rioja has its new wave of modernists , Toro, Rueda and Priorat have all seen considerable investment of late and are producing world class wines that don't necessarily cost the earth.

It is no coincidence that Spain happens to be one of the fastest growing areas on our list.

One such wine that has recently been featured in Decanter Magazine's in depth look Spanish wine's exciting new hotspots, is the Mas Doix, Salanques 2005.

Five Stars - 18.5/20

"This is a small, family winery harvesting individual plots at just 500-1000kg/ha (versus a legal maximum of 6000kg/ha). Salanques is made mainly from Garnacha and Cariñena with 15% Merlot, Cabernet and Syrah. It has lovely dark, concentrated fruit aromas, big (but not excessive) extraction and generous fruit and tanin balance, with a long, rich finish. Drink now-2015."

The Mosel - Fritz Haag's harvest is about to begin.

The grape harvest is now imminent.

The weather in September was very nice and a lot of sunlight made the grapes ripen perfectly.

Small berries, golden yellow coloured, promise to give an excellent vintage. Due to the rainfall during the last days, we have decided to start harvesting this weekend and are pretty excited how the wine will turn out.

Patrick Javillier gives us his thoughs on Meursault 2009

News from Meursault and it seems they too have harvested a very fine set of wines in 2009. Here's what Patrick Javillier had to say about the vintage:

"The weather conditions in spring and early summer were favorable to the occurrence of oidium and downy mildiou. Because of this we have had to be very vigilant in administering any interventions. Fortunately our vigilance paid off and we have harvested a very healthy set of grapes.

The summer has seen very hot days alternated with cooler days. A few periodical thunderstorms and cool nights have allowed the grapes to reach maturity with superb balance. The vines did not suffer from drought, even with the hot days, for every one to two weeks we have had stormy rains that have washed down the soil. The cool nights have allowed the crop to preserve it's fresh aromas.

The 2009 vintage wines in red and white harvested at 95 - 100 days to flower, should be free from over-maturity and should have a balance of sugar and acidity with remarkably fresh and elegant flavours .

The tasting in a few months should confirm that these rare qualities are present."

Pomerol 2009 - Harvest complete

We have now finished the harvest and are astonished with the quality of the vintage.It has been a very long harvest, in two periods:

- The first one for the younger vines and gravelly soils of Pomerol before the rain of September 19th and 20th;

- The second, from September 25th until October 6th for the older vines and clayey soils in Pomerol, and the Merlot of Saint-Emilion, followed by the Cabernet Franc from both appellations to end.

Some tanks have already been drained and pressed, and we are finding extremely complex wines with a creamness that could be a typicity of the vintage.

Despite the high level of alcohol, there is a freshness, giving great balance in the wines, held tight together by a certain structure of ripe and round tannins.

The only disappointment is the small yield. We were expecting more wine, but the warm and sunny early fall along with dry winds concentrated the berries.

I can clearly say that it is the most amazing quality I have seen so far, and some people in our team who have been around for much longer than I have claim the same thing.... Il semblerait que nous soyons en face d'un très grand vin de garde!

Vosne-Romanée 2009 - "A beautiful crop"

The 2009s have finally been pressed, we are starting to rack off the wines and put them into barrel. What a healthy and beautiful crop of wines we have just made! Exceptional maturity has allowed for very agreeable vinifications that were simple in the extreme! The goal was to make the best of the great grape maturity we had without extracting too much, to obtain that real velvety character of our wines and to retain their drinkability. They will now be in their barrels for between 13 to 18 months, depending on their evolution during elevage. We can now take a short breath before starting to think of racking the 2008s, with a view to bottling them in the coming months. Its also necessary to get back into the vines, to start preparing for the 2010 vintage!

Frenzy for 2006 Italians

Yesterday saw the release of the eagerly anticipated Masseto 2006, the `Petrus of Tuscany`. The flagship wine from Tenuta Dell Ornellaia clearly made the most of the wonderful conditions in 2006 and merited a whopping 99 points from Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate.
Next to come will be the equally hotly anticipated Gaja 2006s. This magnificent vintage has produced great wines throughout Italy and Gaja’s Barbarescos are no exception. Keep your eyes peeled and be swift to avoid disappointment.

La Tour du Rhône - Day 5

Friday 2nd October - Condrieu, St Joseph and 2008 Vintage summary

Andre Perret could be domaine of the week, having produced the most impressive and consistent range of 2008s we have tasted. Few are simultaneously adept at red and white winemaking, Andre (pictured) achieves both with aplomb. The whites are superb - as racy as 2002 but with greater ripeness, none of the whites were chaptalised, both Clos Chanson and Coteau de Chery rival the Chave and Colombier whites for wine of the vintage. Grisieres will not be bottled separately this year so the regular St Joseph red cuvee has benefited enormously from its old vines, a ripe refreshing and perfectly proportioned wine with complexity of flavour.
Francois Villard makes wines in a totally different style to Perret, they are later picked and richer. His two stand out whites were the Grand Vallon and the Deponcins Condrieus, less expressive than Perret's, but full-bodied and very intense. The Vins de Pays Contours de Deponcins, was also very impressive and could look excellent value. As for the reds, Francois has been extracting less and reigning back on the new oak the last few years to great success. The two very fine, elegant Cote Roties, Gallet Blanc and Brocarde, were the pick of the reds here.

Its been a less exhausting week than anticipated, which is always a good sign. Following a great vintage is never easy and with challenging conditions in the summer of 2008, the vintage will no doubt have its detractors. This is not a homogenous year when just any old producer could have made good wine nor is its a big rich "trophy" vintage, however the important point is that there are enough good wines that will give plenty of drinking pleasure, from the serious producers. The reds will drink relatively early but the best will certainly last well into the mid term (5-7 yrs.) Less rain fell in the south than the north during the summer and, bar the northern sector of Chateauneuf where there was a hailstorm in September, the wines are a shade more consistent, however the top wines undeniably come from the granite slopes of Cornas and specific parts of the Hermitage hill. The whites are of excellent quality, particularly those of the northern rhone.

Alongside the 2008s we tasted the 2007s in bottle. I was delighted to find that these were every bit as impressive as from barrel, my tastings reconfirmed that this is a truely great, must-have, Rhone vintage.

La Tour du Rhône - Day 4

Thursday 1st October - More Hermitage, Crozes and Côte Rôtie.

Today the 2008s of Domaine du Colombier and Bernard Faurie particularly surprised me, they were much more complex, intense and riper than I was expecting.

After a tasting of 2008s with Marc Sorrel, who looks like he will put all of the "Greal" components into the one standard Hermitage cuvee , we head for Domaine du Colombier. Here a garrulous Florent Viale greeted us, we joked about the disproportionate amount of hairdressers operating in Tain, 12 on the last count, and then moved onto the serious business of tasting. Whilst 2009 was a "hands in pockets" vintage, he proclaimed, 2008 was a lot harder. He employed 30 pickers as opposed to the 18 he normally uses. "Conditions were not favourable in 2008 but the results are honourable," was his summary. The reds are good, the white Hermitage is outstanding and nudges the Chave version very closely for top wine so far this trip. I enjoy Faurie's red Hermitage blend every bit as much as Colombier's, if anything it has a shade more vitality aligned to the ripe fruit that both display. Crozes will be one of the patchier areas in 2008 I suspect, particular where vines are grown on moist clay soils. Pochon has made some lovely whites and improved the potential of his standard wine by adding the old vines Curson into the blend.

In Côte Rôtie it looks as if Clusel Roch will keep the 2008 Les Grandes Places as a separate wine, though the final decision has not been made. I think its good enough to stand alone but if they do blend it in, the straight Côte Rôtie could make for a good buy. The 2008s of Bernard Burgaud seems to be up there with those of his rivals, he put it down to "hard work, good weather in September and a bit of luck." Fresh and elegant but with enough body and fruit maturity, an excellent effort. Whilst at Rostaing the distance between Côte Blonde and the rest of the wines is clearer than ever before. The La Landonne was its usual surly, backward self, but there is good power and complexity there.

As for 2009 its obviously early days, but the growers I saw today seem as happy with the quality of their 2009s as those in the southern Rhône. The only difference is that the size of the crop in the North is thankfully quite good, whereas in the South it will be a small vintage.

Tomorrow St Joseph, Condrieu and Lyon St Exupery!

La Tour du Rhône - Day 3

Wednesday 30th September. Cornas and Hermitage.

It is becoming clear that 2008 is a "granite year". The well drained granite slopes of Cornas and the heavily granitic parts of Hermitage have produced the vintage's top performers so far.

At our first visit Jean Louis Chave discusses with us the paradox of the hot sunny vintages that produce big alcoholic, critically acclaimed wines and the cooler, sometimes more difficult vintages that produce lower alcohol wines that are the ones you actually want to drink. 2008 whites here are stunning, the most magical we have tasted yet, his reds are pretty smart too. All purity and vivacity, no big blockbusters.

Up the treacherous Cornas slopes to Allemand's cellars . As Thierry puts it " Cornas is great in a little vintage". A heavy selection has been made in 2008 resulting in yields of 20 hl / ha, about 9 hl / ha less than usual. All cuvees will be blended into one wine. It was typically inky in colour but more generous and smoother than usual, and very sensual. It does however still show a good bit of backbone and mineral intensity. Bravo!

At Chapoutier the stand out wine is l'Ermite white, which further confirms how extremely good some of the whites are in this vintage. The red l'Ermite is quite useful too - it is certainly the pick of their reds.

We leave plenty of time for our last visit - the excitable Mathieu Barret of Domaine du Coulet can talk the hind leg off a donkey. We taste whilst admiring his new cement eggs, ala Pontet Canet - fermentation vessels that make very precise wines. "Ah we are in Burgundy" he says of the first 08 barrel. Certainly true aromatically but there is more grip here than you would find further north. There will be only one Cornas bottling this year. It is impressive and certainly surpasses the general quality of this vintage. As successful as Allemand, perhaps a shade better. We re-taste his 07s which are even more stunning than from barrel. This domaine goes from strength to strength, and it will soon be considered one of the greats of the Rhone, not just of Cornas.

Tomorrow more Hermitage, Crozes-Hermitage, then onto Cote Rotie.

La Tour du Rhône - Day 2

This morning we headed into the wild hills of the north sector of the Cotes du Rhone to Mondragon, hunting an elusive Chateaunneuf called Bois Pointu made by Charles Blagden and Eric Michel of Cros de la Mure. Last year was an excellent debut vintage - beginners luck? how would they cope with the more challenging conditions of 2008? Exceptionally well is the answer. Being biodynamic did not make life easy because of early season disease, however the benefits are that later in the season the grapes ripen much more quickly. A sensual fragrant and really quite intense wine, very long flavours, in a light to medium bodied style. Seductive Grenache rather like its close neighnour Rayas. Absolutely loved this. Stardorm awaits this small Chateauneuf producer.

Back south towards Vacqueyras and Gigondas, where the 09 harvest is still continuing particularly in Gigondas' high, late-ripening Dentelles to Montmirail hills. The new vintage sounds like a small one, 20hl/ha have been reported in parts. Clos des Cazaux and Cayron offered us good, fragrant 2008s, juicy and rewarding wines that will drink relatively early. The tranquility of Gigondas village centre is briefly interrupted by a grower on his tractor belting noisly past as he returns home from the vines, its midday and nothing gets between a frenchman and his lunch! That's our cue to leave.

Beaucastel is next, stunning whites particularly the regular Chateauneuf and the Roussanne Vieilles Vignes, they show a freshness and finesse you would not normally associate with the southern Rhone "meridional." Not much red has been made, yields of 10hl/ha versus the usual 25hl/ha. Beaucastel red took me by surprise totally - rich very nearly jammy and structured which is at total odds to the rest of the 2008s, a wine of broad shoulders that should impress tasters. Further South in Bedarrides Vieux Telegraphe finished the 2009 Chateauneuf harvest yesterday and they too verify it is very small, half a crop in parts. In 2008 they have made 30 percent less than usual due to a mixture of difficult flowering, a concentrating north wind in September and a severe selection in the vineyards and winery. The result is a classic mix of Vieux Telegraphe composure and complexity, its not flashy but it never is. It grows on you , very moreish, all red, sloe and bullace fruits no raisin or animal here. An accomplished effort, should be a good mid termer. Finally to Versino, no Felix here in 2008, all of the old vine juice went into the straight Chateauneuf and this has made it, for me, joint wine of the day with Bois Pointu. Complex, smooth, spicy and ripe, not big but far from weak, it should be good value too. Jean Paul thinks the wine is soft like 1996 but richer, similar in structure to 2004. End of the day. Up north here we come.

La Tour du Rhône - Day 1

Monday, 28th September

Don't let the title concern you, the J&B buying team haven't taken to the bicycle just yet, though that might have been preferable to the beaten up Mazda Hertz tried to force on us at Toulouse airport.

An early start this morning as we headed along the windy roads of the Rousillon hills. Our destination was Clos des Fées. The beautiful, tranquil almost otherworldly scenery surrounding their village, Vingrau, is truly something to behold. The difference between here and the low plains of the Roussillon is stark, not only in terms of beauty but also in temperature. A distinct chill in the air attested to this. 8.30 am and my mouth was awash with old vines carignan, grenache and syrah. The cellar/garage is tiny. How they produce 3000 cases here is a miracle. Vintages are pretty consistent up here, so not surprisingly 06, 07 and 08 were all impressive. 07 was the richest and silkiest, 06 much more serious and classic with 08 somewhere in between, and perhaps the most lifting of all. These wines really show what greatness the relatively unchartered waters of the Roussillon hills can achieve.

We leave uncharacteristically on time and bat east accross the Roussillon towards Pezenas - a quick pit stop to see our old friends at Domaine Montrose. Having seen the success of their flavoursome and elegant looking rosé magnums, they seem to have caught the large format bug. They now produce some quite stunning looking jeroboams - we'll be shipping these in as early as we can in 2010.

After a minor disagreement between myself, Hew and the rather authoritarian French lady on our navigating system that takes us through some less than salubrious parts of Montpellier, we end up at Mont-Redon in Châteauneuf-du-Pape a little late. We taste a fantastically fresh white 2008 Châteauneuf. The red is admirably complete with good body, fruit and freshness. It does not have the power of 07 but will prove to be a very good drinker. We revisited the red 2006 Châteauneuf, a vintage I adore, but this seems to be going through a closed phase and needs to age for a good two years or so. We also took a fresh look at the 2005, and how this has come on. Brooding and surly for years this is now sumptuously rich, velvety and starting to drink very well indeed.

Across the village to our next stop, Pierre Usseglio. There will just be one red Usseglio Châteauneuf in 08 - but what a beauty. Ripe, floral, teaming with lush opulent fruit. Once again there is not the density or raw power of some more recently celebrated vintages but you certainly wouldn't turn this back in a restaurant. And it's no weakling either showing a nice touch of stuffing that should see it through to the mid term.

Onto our final tasting at Pegau where there was a flurry of activity as usual. A throng of Far Eastern tourists, German private customers and two weary British merchants all waiting in anticipation. Laurence Ferraud eventually arrived, closely followed by a tractor with 09 grapes from one of the last parcels to be picked. It seems that most in Châteaneuf are finishing harvest today, in glorious baking-hot sunshine. We watched as the 09 Pegau grapes were transferred to vat, and when offered by Laurence a testube of free run 09 grape juice Hew accepted with remarkable alacrity. Luckily he left some for me - nectar. Juicy sweet and packed with fruit.

2008 followed and while there will be no Da Capo a decision is yet to be made on the Laurence. The regular cuvée will please Pegau followers enormously. Classic, not heavy with plenty of fruit and savoury character in equal measure. After dropping off our bags at the hotel we headed back to Mont Redon for dinner. We were greeted by 100 delirious, singing and dancing portuguese pickers who were celebrating the Féte de Vendange, the last day of harvest. We escaped before being caught up in an increasingly raucous congo. Over dinner we tried some excellent bottles with the Fabres and Abeilles, who run Mont-Redon, the highlights of which were an excellent red Châteauneuf 1998 that is really starting to open up beautifully after so many years in the doldrums and an incredibly rich and spritely 1967. Mont-Redon make honest pure wines, they aren't flashy and don't get big press but they are wines you get immense pleasure from drinking. And what more can you ask? Well, an early night for one thing... more Châteaneuf, Gigondas and Vacqueyras awaits tomorrow.

The rise and rise of Carruades

If you analyse the top investment wines over the last five years, there's no doubting that there have been some meteoric risers - none more so than Carruades de Lafite. To put it in context, Carruades has outperformed Gold and any of the major world indices over this time period. The Lafite brand is the darling of the newer and increasingly important parts of the Asian market and the insatiable demand has driven prices to extraordinary levels. Only a year or so ago we surmised that Carruades had hit the ceiling at £1000/case. How wrong we were; now most vintages trade at circa £2000/case.

So to be very tabloid and vulgar about it, what does £2000 buy you. Well it probably doesn't even fill the tank on the latest luxury yacht, or pay a premiership footballer's salary for a day, but it can buy you a case of Mouton Rothschild 2002 or 2004 and there'd still be change for dinner at one of London's Michelin starred restaurants. Alternatively, and rather extraordinarily, you could buy over seven cases of the wonderful 2008 Grand Puy Lacoste, one of our star Pauillac buys from the acclaimed 2008 vintage.

It has never been our position to dictate what represents value to our clients. After all, we are all individuals and we each assign a different worth to nearly everything we buy; we merely select and point out wines based on our tastings. But if you purchased Carruades with the intention of drinking, you might like, given the astronomical prices, to reconsider your position. If you are a stockholder or simply a follower of the fine wine market, you may be interested to see our purchase prices listed below:

Carruades de Lafite 1996 - 1800GBP/cs
Carruades de Lafite 1998 - 1620GBP/cs
Carruades de Lafite 1999 - 1620GBP/cs
Carruades de Lafite 2000 - 1890GBP/cs
Carruades de Lafite 2001 - 1710GBP/cs
Carruades de Lafite 2002 - 1620GBP/cs
Carruades de Lafite 2003 - 1620GBP/cs
Carruades de Lafite 2004 - 1755GBP/cs
Carruades de Lafite 2005 - 1485GBP/cs
Carruades de Lafite 2006 - 1350GBP/cs
Carruades de Lafite 2007 - 990GBP/cs

Carruades de Lafite 2008 - 1035GBP/cs

Should you wish to sell, please don't hesitate to contact our broking team on 020 7484 6408 or contact jacqueline.barfoot@justerinis.com

Bordeaux 2009: Further reports from the frontline

A couple of further reports that we received on Friday last week from two of Bordeaux's up-and-coming younger generation of winemakers. Published verbatim.

"The growing season was exactly what every winemaker would like to have every vintage, sunny, hot (but not too hot and dry ( with just a bit of rain at the beginning of August).

We started to pick our young merlots (situated on the foot of the slope) on Tuesday; we have just received our first analysis from the lab that shows very high degrees (between 14 and 15°) which is similar to 2005. The color index is also high, but what is interesting is that the level of acidity is also very good (not too low). These conditions show that this vintage looks really great.

We will finish picking the merlot (situated at the foot of the slope) tomorrow then we will start the merlot on the slope (limestone and clay) next week. The weather forecast is good until next Wednesday at least.

The quality of the grapes is very sound. The first juices taste very good (very fruity and intense), the color will come very quickly. The extraction will be sweet but long (time in tanks will be longer than usual).

We don’t expect to pick our cabernet franc and sauvignon before the 5th of October." Jean-Antoine Nony, Chateau Grande Mayne, St Emilion.


And from Jean-Jacques Bonnie at Malartic-Lagraviere in Pessac-Leognan:
"To start with, we had a rainy winter which enabled the water reserve to fill at the perfect moment for it. Then the spring was nice and dry when it was needed, to start the vegetative cycle of the plant in good conditions and more importantly to be fine when flowering. This made this flowering quick and therefore homogeneous. This homogeneity then lasted until now, the harvest period. The summer has been dry and the sun shining with no temperature excess and the cool nights that are good for balance. We had 40 mm of rain between the 16th and the 20th of September; just what the plant needed to keep accumulating aromas and tannins and taking them to ripeness. Since the 20th the weather has been sunny and will stay that way until at least 1st of October (as far as the weather forecast goes!).

For the whites, the aromas are very dense and pure and the acidities are present enough for the balance of the wines. For the reds, the grapes we taste are showing an amazing potential with a lot of taste. The little water we had for the plant to keep working and the very nice weather since then and for the next few days give us a very wide smile on our faces!! The wines will show density, ripeness and silky tannins: very pure and dense fruit with a brilliant balance.!

A Harvest with Elio Altare

It seems like I just need to ask for it and the cooler weather comes! We basically had dry tropical weather till last Sunday, then suddenly from Monday rain rain rain…

A little bit of rain is fine, but when it starts pouring down, well, that’s not too good.

Luckily we did a very serious green harvest in July/ August so the grapes are quite healthy and strong. I’m sure there will be problems for those that didn’t work properly this summer!

We were basically running to the vineyards as soon as it stopped raining, trying to work as fast as we could and trying not slip on the mud! At some point, in one vineyard the tractor got stuck and we had to pull it with the caterpillar. We picked a bit more barbera last week and, afraid of the bad forecast, we started picking nebbiolo from the Arborina vineyard on Friday.

This is probably the earliest ever in Altare’s history, but it's better having the grapes in the cellar than hanging on the vines under the rain. While picking in the afternoon, it started raining. Since we work under Elio’s slavery we even had to pick under the rain for about an hour, but then our 60-80 year old pickers revolted and we had to stop...we cant afford to lose them right now!

No picking during the weekend, just lots of cellar work, pressing, racking, moving stuff around, preparing shipping and deliveries. There are lots of tourists around as well - Piedmont is very appealing and attractive this time of the year, the landscape starts changing colour and the air smells like sweet must, its addictive!

A Harvest in Piedmont: In Pictures

The Altare team shown here picking Barbera in the Larigi Vineyard, before the rains came.

Our author, Silvia Altare

It's worth noting the steepness of the vineyard and the age of the picking team. Aspect and experience are key to the wonder of Larigi.

Upcoming buying trip: The Rhone Valley's 2008s

Next week sees the buying team of Hew Blair and Giles Burke-Gaffney visit the Rhone valley. Starting off with a visit to Clos des Fees in Roussillon, they'll move up through Châteauneuf-du-Pape visiting amongst others, Usseglio, Pegau, Versino, Beaucastel and Vieux Telegraph. Leaving no wine untasted they'll head North to visit our plethora of producers in St Joseph, Côte Rotie, Hermitage Cornas and Condrieu.

They will be posting daily on the 2008's they taste: decanting their thoughts regularly for you to read.

Watch this space.

Bordeaux 2009: Everybody's Talkin'

That there is a great deal of excitement about the potential quality of the 2009 harvest in Bordeaux is in no doubt. Such is the fervour that even the Weekend FT felt it necessary to carry the story on their front page.

We have been speaking to certain prominent winemakers in Bordeaux and the view is unified. Barring any major weather fronts in the coming two weeks 2009 has great potential.

Ben Kennedy, who now works for Luc Thienpoint at Clos des Quatre Vents in Margaux, told us that "quality is excellent. Ripening is even and there is no kind of advance or delay in one grape or another so the harvesting can be done in a nice neat order". He also noted that their 2008's are looking "excellent" in barrel with "stylish, moreish fruit that is even more pronounced than five months ago"

The rain at the weekend patently came at the perfect moment. According to David Launay at Gruaud Larose the "vines suffered quite a bit before (the weekend) due to the drought. Thanks to the rain (about 15mm during the weekend), the vines are back to work, accumulating more polyphénols in the berries with a better extractability". He harvested his "babies", the young vines, yesterday in "ideal" conditions.

It's fortunate they did get some rain as prior to that the vintage seemed to be teetering between the greatness of 2005 and the heat stress of 2003. Luc Thienpoint's grapes had skins that had begun to "slacken and dimple", not necessarily a quality issue, but perhaps a concern for yields. Harvesting 48 hours after the rain allowed the moisture to penetrate the soil, travel up the vine and fill out the berries. Their early merlots are in and they are delighted with them.

Across the river in Pomerol where things always happen a little earlier much has already been harvested. Jean-Michel Laporte of La Conseillante summed up the situation thus:

“2009 shows a lot of similarities with 2005 in terms of growing season: very nice and warm summer, with a few days of rain permitting the vines to continue to ripen in very good conditions, without any water stress. But it will certainly be a bit more complicated to achieve the winemaking. The potential is truly exceptional, but the high sugar level (i.e. future alcohol) requires us to be very careful with the extractions. On the other hand, the cool nights from the summer preserved the acidity of the berries, so we can expect a good balance in the wines we are going to make.

We finished picking the Merlot grapes yesterday at La Conseillante, and a small plot of Cabernet Franc. We are very early here on the Pomerol plateau, compared with our neighbors of Saint Émilion, and of course with the Médoc estates. Our clay and gravels soils always mature faster, and our climate is a bit warmer than on the left bank as we are farther from the ocean. First part of the job is done, we now need to transform the trie… It’s really exciting as the first tastings of juices, or even the first fermenting tanks, are already full of color and fruit forward. In terms of winemaking, I prefer to ferment the wines at lower temperatures than usual, to preserve the fresh notes and to regulate the yeast activity. Extraction, by pumping-over only, will essentially take place during the first part of the vatting, to avoid to get dry tannins from the seeds.

Next step will be next week, when we’ll harvest the remaining Cab Franc. But I already can tell that 2009 is definitely a very promising vintage.”

Follow all the action during the coming crucial two weeks right here on the buyer's blog.

Do believe the hype…

Another day and another conversation with a deliriously happy Bordelaise wine-maker. The phrases `Cheshire cat` and `grinning like` spring to mind.

Comparisons with the 2005 vintage have already started - and most of the fruit is still on the vine. The vintage seemed to be heading more towards a 2003, such has been the heat and the drought of 2009. One rarely finds vignerons pleading for rain in September, but the summer has been such a scorcher that the vines were almost in danger of hydric stress (quite a change from 2007 and 2008). Their prayers have been answered with several heavy showers over the weekend. The vines are refreshed and look in great shape. The Météo looks fine for the next few days, so we could be witnessing another historic vintage in the making…

Under the hammer

A glance at the auction results from Christie's recent New York sale merely serves to confirm that even in these gloomy times there is a thirst for exceptional lots from great vintages. The top three lots all broke their pre-sale estimates, with Bordeaux and Burgundy dominating the top ten.

The highest price was achieved by a case of Château La Mission Haut-Brion 1947 which achieved £43,452 smashing its pre-sale high estimate of £30,400. The second dearest lot was three magnums of Château Cheval-Blanc 1947 which raised £36,210 on a pre sale estimate of £24,300 - £36,500. The third largest lot was two magnums of Romanée-Conti which achieved £28,968 on a pre-sale low estimate of £24,300.

Harvesting in Vosne-Romanée

The 2009 harvest finished Tuesday lunchtime, a day earlier than expected, largely thanks to the exceptional quality of grapes we have picked. Do we have in front of us a great or immense vintage?? Time will tell but I have certainly never seen such a beautiful quality of crop in the ten years since I took back control of winemaking at Domaine du Comte-Liger Belair.

Saturday we attacked the Vosne Romanée 1er Cru Aux Reignots, immediately followed by La Romanée. This was the rhythm nature gave us. After midday on Saturday the Vosne Romanée Clos du Château had been totally engulfed by the picking team and all was harvested within an hour and a half, which allowed us to follow by picking Vosne Romanée 1er Cru Les Suchots that afternoon, too. Sunday morning and we headed for Vosne Romanée La Colombière, then after this the team had to be separated in two, some to harvest Vosne Romanée 1er Cru Les Chaumes, others Nuits Saint Georges Les Lavières. There was no harvesting on Sunday afternoon, our usual practice at the Domaine, to honour, more than anything else, the day of our lord and to thank him for having given us such wonderful fruit. Monday morning we attacked a parcel of Vosne Romanée premier cru Aux Reignots and Vosne Romanée premier cru Hauts Beaux Monts that we delivered to Domaine de la Romanée Conti for the charity auction "Climats de Coeur" (http://www.climats-du-coeur.com/) followed by the different parcels that are used for the Domaine's Vosne Romanée. Finally that day we picked Vosne Romanée 1er Cru les Petits Monts and le Nuits Saint Georges 1er Cru Aux Cras. The harvest ended on Tuesday with Echezeaux and Vosne Romanée 1er Cru Aux Brûlées.

Everything is now in the cuverie. The juices are lovely - rich, with a balanced acidity, the colours are starting to come out and show their brilliance ...so everything is going well .. Some cuves are starting to give the impression that fermentation is just beginning. You'll find out more very soon!!

Broking News

Our magnificent summer cellar is making waves in all our major markets - well how often do we see private cellars of this size (in excess of one million pounds!). The Thursday scramble will continue for a few more weeks yet...

In terms of the wider market, we are seeing some fairly bullish buying. This is backed up by the London based wine exchange, Liv-ex. The Liv-ex 100 had its best month for more than two years in August, gaining 4.6% to 225.5 and it’s the fifth monthly rise in succession. This is led by the Lafite stable. Insatiable demand in the Far East has pushed most vintages of Carruades towards the 2K mark, making it more expensive than many vintages of rival First Growths Mouton, Margaux and Haut Brion. The Grand Vin is enjoying similar success; we defy anyone to find a vintage of Lafite that starts with a two. Top vintages such as '82, '96 and '00 are reaching new highs and we think it won't be long before the '05 is back at 8K+ a case. Is this a bubble waiting to burst or is this just the start? Who knows? China is a huge market and maybe we are only scratching the surface…