The Guinaudeau in London's West End

Last Tuesday Justerini & Brooks welcomed Julie and Baptiste Guinaudeau from Château Lafleur to London. Our charming guests hosted a masterclass tasting in our Mayfair premises followed by an exclusive dinner in our private dining room in St James’s.

Baptiste Guinaudeau led the masterclass tasting. We began with Château Grand Villages reds from 2008 and 2009, along with a Château Grand Villages white from 2013. For those not au fait with the Guinaudeau’s home property in the commune of Mouillac, these wines offer incredible value for money and plenty of class. The new and exciting Champs Libres Blanc followed - 100% Sauvignon from Sancerre clones, grown on pure limestone and made in tiny quantities – it showed tremendous breed and complexity.

’ G’ Act 2, from the 2010 vintage, is the second vintage of this project. It hails from various plots in the Fronsac commune. Baptiste explains that the blend is the reverse of Château Lafleur being 60% Merlot and 40% Cabernet Franc and the soils are pure clay and limestone, so similar to the best sites in St Emilion. The 2010 displays outstanding potential and shows the skill of the Guinaudeau team in making wines that gives unbridled enjoyment. Les Pensées de Lafleur, the second wine of Lafleur was represented by the 2008 vintage; classic, refined and intellectual, a great Pomerol with a long future ahead of it. Completing the tasting was Château Lafleur 1998 – a monumental and brooding wine that was slow to unfurl, but gave a sense of incredible presence and class as it did. 

At the St. James’s dinner some of the UK’s biggest private collectors joined Baptiste and Julie Guinaudeau for an evening that showed just what remarkable wines these are. The two 2013 white wines (as shown at the tasting) got even better with time in the glass, retaining their freshness but achieving even more complexity as they opened up. A brace of Pensées de Lafleurs followed: 1999 was seductive and mature, 2000 was simply out of this world and got the whole room talking. It was firm, young, yet packed with an utterly bewitching profile which kept evolving and expanding. The final flight was three vintages of Château Lafleur. 1998, which released its dark ample profile in the glass. If the Pensées 2000 is a modern classic then the ‘grand vin’ from 2000 will turn out to be a legend. A 100 point wine, it is stunningly poised and aristocratic, with a beauty that can just be glimpsed, but begins to slowly reveal itself in the glass. And then the star of the night – Château Lafleur 1989. For me certainly one of the greatest Bordeaux I’ve ever drunk. A combination of richness and class that is extremely rare. Full of layered nuance that never stops expanding, and a length of flavour that went on and on. It’s a wine you think about the following day, and one you will never forget.

 

Hew Blair, Chairman

Germany's 2013 Rieslings - Top quality, tiny quantity...

It is very hard to travel out to a region with the intention of tasting the latest vintage without having heard or read somebody’s views on it. These days there seem to be no end of people desperate to evaluate a vintage as early as possible. Everyone wants the first scoop, regardless of whether the wines are in a state that allows fair evaluation. During this most recent trip I even heard of notes being published from cloudy, still fermenting tank samples. Now I may be wrong, but it seems to me that unless you are a highly practiced winemaker, this is surely simple conjecture? Be that as it may, many had put forth their views and as a result my mood as I prepared for my trip was somewhat pessimistic. To put it bluntly I feared painful teeth and tart, rather aggressively acidic wines. 

But let it be known here, straight away: my fear was unfounded – there are some very good wines in this vintage. Indeed there are some that rank in the realms of truly excellent.  Make no mistake, no-one is suggesting that this was an easy vintage. In fact, as late as the start of October many growers feared a truly disastrous vintage.

The village of Oberhausen, in the Nahe.

Refreshingly, none of the growers I saw tried to pretend that October was a delight. There was no golden autumn here. There was plenty of warmth, but it was accompanied by plenty of rain. The conditions were perfect for the spread rot, which would have been fine if ripeness had already been a fait accompli. But as it was, the final days probably caused more than a few local grey hairs as ripeness, acidity, and botrytis (the last bringing with it a rapidly decreasing yield) converged upon a sweet spot with lightning speed.  Blink, and you would have missed it.  

The problems started at flowering. After a cool, damp start to the year, a protracted flowering started later and lasted longer than usual. In many places it was still going on right up to the end of June. Such a delayed, stop start beginning to the season laid the (rather unstable) foundations for the vintage, producing uneven clusters of grapes that were going to require ripening well into late October. July and August provided a crucial fillip being hot and relatively dry, but come September cooler weather had returned, notably during the nights. By late September acidity levels were high, ripeness seemed a long way off, and neither situation looked like changing any time soon.

The view from the top of Wehlener Sonnenuhr, looking downstream to
Graach and then Bernkastel, in the distance

So far so bad, eh? Well, it certainly seemed that way, and yet somehow I saw an enormous amount of wines to get excited about. I should caveat this by acknowledging that the growers I saw represent the crème de la crème of Germany’s winemaking talent, but truly growers from all regions reported their own surprise at what a successful and balanced set of wines they had turned out. Certainly this is a vintage of high acidity, but not so high as to make the wines either difficult to taste or difficult to enjoy. And while acidity levels are definitely higher than in 2012 and 2011, they are actually slightly lower than in 2010. Furthermore, the type and character of the acidity seems completely different to 2010 being riper, less nervous and less concentrated. The wines have edge and a certain driving focus, but it seldom comes across as aggressive, in spite of marginally lower than usual Oeschle levels.

How is this balance so? Put simply, the presence of high levels of extract with very complex minerality seem to have bonded with these high levels of tartaric acidity to form a tripod of structural elements that against all the odds have created wines of high focus and balance. These are not Rieslings which drip with sun-drenched fruit. They are built on more earth-bound lines than that. But that is not to say they have no fruit - many have wonderful fruit of sometimes startling clarity, but it is invariably set amidst scenes of high minerality and palpable extract. Savoury,  salty notes compete with clear golden fruit and botrytis, when it is present, is almost exclusively of the very fresh, clear and pure type.

I have no doubt that it would have been a very easy vintage in which to make bad wine. Talking to people across the regions it seems there are no shortage of wines which have required excessive de-acidification resulting in flat wines that lack energy. Growers had to make the correct decisions not just at harvest, but right the way through the season. If you didn’t put the work in from day one,  this was a vintage which would really show it. If your vines weren’t in exceptional condition come October you were in for some serious problems. Furthermore, come harvest, at breakneck speed you had to make the right call as to what and how many wines you were going to attempt to make. At JJ Prum, Katharina decided that to make a range of Spatlese she would have had to pick wines with acidities and unripe fruit profiles that simply would not have made for harmonious wines. As a result it was a brief tasting at this great estate; we started with an estate Kabinet, moved straight up to four Auslese and finished with a pair of Auslese Goldcap. What they’ve made is glorious, how much they’ve made is not.

For virtually all the growers I saw the greatest problem this year is quantity. Yields for growers in the Saar, Mosel and Ruwer are down by approximately 50%. In the Nahe, perhaps the region least affected by the weather gods, they are down about 20%. In the Rheingau, depending on where your vineyards were, you had between 20% and 40% less wine. The biggest reason for these figures was the accelerated onset of botrytis. Come harvest, day by day, growers saw their yields decreasing as grapes shrivelled in front of their eyes.

The Helden vineyard in Niederberg, with Brauneberger Juffer Sonnenuhr
in the distance

So how will it go down in history? One thing that is clear that this is a vintage for Riesling lovers. From recent vintages there are elements from 2004 and 2008, some 2010 and maybe a touch of 2012 too. It will appeal to people who enjoy wines with mineral, cool fruit characters, but also those that love Germany’s diversity, for amongst all these factors, including the presence of much botrytis, the specific characteristics of site are particularly well articulated. It should appeal to lovers of the Grosses Gewachs, built as they are in the mould of the 2004s, or 2008s, with alcohol levels perhaps a degree lower than 2011 and half a degree lower than 2012, and highly complex mineral flavour profiles. And it will appeal to those who are interested in buying focussed, filigree and classically styled ‘pradikat’ wines with strong mineral personalities, very clear fruit, high ripe acid levels and the core density to last an extremely long time in the cellar.

The run of top quality Germany vintages continues. Lovers of these great wines have arguably never had it so good.

Julian Campbell

Buyer, Justerini & Brooks.

Introducing Peay Vineyards

A stunning new UK exclusive from the true Sonoma Coast (and coming soon)

It is no mean feat finding Peay. The road you take from Geyserville twists and turns its way across high barren ridges and through densely wooded valleys, traversing a tectonically crumpled stretch of land as you head west, straight towards the Pacific Ocean– it is not a road where you can easily make up lost time, as I found out on my visit there in February 2013.  A mere four miles from the Ocean, surrounded by dense forest, on a slightly undulating ridge, sits the Peay Estate Vineyard; a one hundred year old clearing originally used to grow apples by local loggers. It is a fairly extreme place, right out on the limits, where vineyard pests can include bears.   And it’s home to one of the great Sonoma Coast vineyards.

Back in 1996 Andy and Nick Peay set out on the hunt for a parcel of land on which to grow their own grapes to make their own wine. Their search led them to a little travelled area in the very north of Sonoma that many at the time said was too cool to fully ripen grapes.  Having been raised on great European wines, this was music to their ears; just the sort of place to produce wines of purity, restraint and tension.   Keeping a keen eye out for the presence of moss and ferns, sure fire indicators of the presence of water, and fog, they finally located the 21ha parcel that today is home to their specific clonal selections of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, plus Syrah and a little Marsanne and Rousanne.

Planting took place in 1998, all done by Andy and Nick. The first harvest was made in 2001 (though all of this was sold to the likes of Williams Selyem and Failla). In the intervening years Nick had met and started to date Vanessa Wong a winemaker raised in San Francisco. Vanessa’s CV included stints at with Chateau Lafite, Jean Gros in Burgundy, and more recently at Hirsch in Sonoma, before working as winemaker at Peter Michael. By the time wedding bells rung in 2002 Vanessa was firmly ensconced as winemaker at Peay. 

Vanessa’s philosophy stems entirely from her decision on when to pick the fruit. She is a meticulous collector of data, making notes on everything from bunch formation to cane lengths, bud break and leaf nutrient samples. The aim is simple to give her and Nick the greatest possible picture of what is going on in the vineyard at any given time. Vineyard work is carried out by hand by a small team of 8 full time workers (a rarity and luxury that allows the people working the vines to really know the vines “our workers touch each vine over 13 times per year” they proudly state). Once harvested the grapes are transferred to the Peay’s own purpose built winery 40 miles away in Calistoga. From this point in the winemaking can best be described as gentle. The aim is simply to transmit the particular qualities of their land, through the prism of great Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. The result is wines of great refinement, nuance and clarity. 

The 20 hectare Peay vineyard itself sits on a ridge in a clearing just four miles from the chilly Pacific Ocean, one ridge removed from the actual coast.  When you’re located so close to an ocean, fog comes to be an unavoidable feature of life.  The Peay vineyard sits just above the inversion layer, and therefore just above the fog line, cooled by ocean breezes yet just out of the dangerous damp of the fog itself.  Whereas further inland the heat from the valley floor radiates warmth more strongly to the lower vineyards, out here on the coast, the cool coastal winds mean that the lower you are, the cooler you are. At Peay they feel their position just on the edge of this cooling fog gives rise to the very idea conditions for producing wines of nerve,  refreshing acidity and purity. Concentration is achieved through careful vineyard management, which in turn is shaped by some very careful clonal selection. The wines are split into two camps, those that come exclusively from the Peay vineyard and those that contain a small percentage of fruit from other sites on the Sonoma Coast. Both are cared for with the same passion and zeal.

We’re delighted to be importing these fascinating, cool climate wines. It is the first time they have ever been seen on these shores, just in time for their stunning 2012 vintage. They are set for release at the end of May 2014, so please do watch this space. In the meantime, you can watch this short video presented by Nick Peay about the vineyard.

Vintage Report: Bordeaux 2013

A refreshing vintage…

Refreshingly honest some might say. There was no hyperbole, no attempt at finding a silver lining; everyone admitted that 2013 was a ‘challenging year’. It may sound euphemistic, but no-one pretended that it was anything but hard. The spring, well there wasn’t really a spring, it was more of an extended winter, was three degrees colder than the norm, which hampered flowering, causing widespread coulure and millerandage. Providence, Hosanna and Quinault L’Enclos were so badly affected that they haven’t produced a wine at all. On average most vines flowered three weeks behind schedule, breaking one of Denis Dubourdieu’ s golden rules for a spectacular vintage. After a cold and wet June most vigneron had long given up any hope of a spectacular vintage and would quite happily have just taken a crop of any sorts.

July brought some much needed heat and sunshine. It was the hottest July since 1991, even eclipsing the scorching 2003 vintage. The July heat allowed the vines to play some much needed catch up as well as breaking down the methoxypyrazines in the grapes. As a result the fruit has little to no bitter, peppery notes, which greatly adds to the wines' appeal. August was generally good with more warm weather and little rainfall. Just when it seemed that there was some reason for cautious optimism, a pattern of tropical weather conditions hit the Gironde. It would be an exaggeration to call September a monsoon, but it was humid, with high daytime and night time temperatures. This accelerated ripening, but also posed a constant threat of rot.

The harvest was always going to be late, but some Chateau had little choice but to harvest before full phenolic ripeness was achieved. The risk of heavy rain and botrytis proved too big a gamble. Heavy rain hit in October, but large parts of the northern Medoc escaped unscathed. Most grapes were harvested with low potential alcohols, something that Bordeaux hasn’t experienced for a long time and something many will find very alluring. There were stories of Hypermarkets in the Gironde being devoid of sugar – certainly, many winemakers decided to chaptalize, but even after chaptilization, alcohols rarely exceed 13%.

There are many lightweight wines in 2013. We’d be surprised if the vintage as a whole appeals to American critics. It is characterised by low alcohols, high acidities and pure, lightweight flavours. The best wines from the most favourable terroirs are utterly charming. They possess noble flavours and are very refreshing. If you don’t like the massive style of some recent vintages or if you don’t want to wait decades before you can drink your wine, then these will appeal.

It is always good to end on a positive note, and the dry whites are very good and the Sauternes and Barsacs are potentially excellent. It is always perilously difficult to assess sweet wines in their infancy, but these seem to have wonderful potential. The humid conditions that caused such headaches for red wine-makers, produced widespread botrytis in Sauternes’ Semillons and Sauvignon Blancs. The wines possess noble, complex, crystalline flavours and bright acidity. They should turn out to be wonderful wines that will rival the extravagant 2001s and 2007s.

Bordeaux day two - The rollercoaster continues

After the peaks of Monday there was a pretty scary descent into the right bank UGCs. Let’s focus on the positives. Gazin and Conseillante are very good and Clinet continues to improve its style. The St Emilion tasting was altogether forgettable, except for some notable absences. The Nicolas Thienpont wines were nowhere to be seen (yields are so low at these estates, they decided to pull out of the Union tasting), so it was back in the bus for an unscheduled tasting at Pavie Macquin. Larcis Ducasse was surprisingly subdued, but Pavie Macquin and Beausejour Duffau are both quite striking. We bade farewell to the right bank and programmed the sat nav for Pessac Leognan.

Prince Robert of Luxembourg and Jean-Philippe Delmas greeted us at La Mission Haut Brion. A draconian selection has meant that for the first time they have bigger yields for the whites than the reds. The reds are both rather grand and the whites are drop dead gorgeous. Delving deeper into the commune we found a delicious Domaine de Chavalier a glossy Smith Haut Lafitte and some lovely dry whites, most notably: Malartic Lagraviere and Picque Cailliou. However, the UGC tasting was not plain sailing - many of the reds were charmless or worse…

On to Margaux. The new cellars, designed by Norman Foster are under construction so we tasted with Paul Pontallier in what is apparently France’s largest privately owned orangery. It certainly is a mighty fine building and a suitable place to taste a very refined and graceful flight of wines. At neighbours, Chateau Palmer, by contrast, we found something more voluptuous, sexy and juicy. There was also time for a quick visit to Clos des Quatre Vents. Luc has sold the estate to a Chinese company, but stays on to lend his considerable knowledge. The CD4V is charming and elegant, but lacks the depth of recent vintages. We also tasted a quite unique Chinese icewein from near the North Korean border made by the new owners of Clos des Quartre Vents! In short, it has been a day of peaks and troughs…

Bordeaux day one - UGC Week, Bordeaux 2013

If we started our stay in Saint Emilion with a sense of pessimism, this was soon replaced by more sanguine thoughts after a day tasting at the very best estates on the right bank. This was indeed a challenging vintage, but no-one said otherwise. A spring with average temperatures three degrees below the norm meant that flowering was severely delayed. Merlot was affected by coulure and Edouard Moueix explained that Providence and Hosanna were both the victims of millerandage and consequently won’t be produced in 2013. The poor and late flowering has reduced yields to levels we normally associate with Burgundy and the Rhone. July was scorching and greatly helped the evolution of the vines, but this was always destined to be a late harvest. 

As one would expect from the likes of the Guinaudeaus, Denis Durantou, Alexandre Thienpont, Alain Vauthier and all the other superstars that we visited yesterday, they quickly understood the nature of the vintage and vinified gently, respecting the fruits' limitations. The results are a revelation. One word that keeps being mentioned is ‘soyeux’, and these are silky, pure, precise, elegant, fragrant wines. They are feminine and charming and will provide so much enjoyment over the medium term. No-one is pretending that they are blockbusters in the mould of the 2000s, 2005s, 2009s and 2010s, but I’d wager that these will give far more pleasure in the first 20 years of their evolution than many of their more illustrious counterparts. It’s hard to pick favourites amongst such company, but Pensees and Lafleur were both otherworldly and although this is a vintage where terroir is vital, there will be some inexpensive wines that shine: Les Cruzelles, La Chenade, Saintayme and Montlandrie from Denis Durantou were all spectacular. Next stop on the bus - Graves.

- Tom Jenkins, Bordeaux Buyer

A week in Piedmont - 2010, 2009 and Barolo "Classico"

Last week was one of the most enjoyable and exciting trips to Piedmont I can remember having. My schedule was fuller than ever before, including 20 of the region's top producers and upcoming stars. There were as many new faces to meet as old and plenty of wine to discover. At a time when Italy is in the doldrums, Piedmont seems to be positively buzzing. Not only is demand and quality of wine sky-high, but also the region is teaming with budding young winemakers. What a difference to 30 years ago when Barolo was being given away for free with more sought-after bottles of Dolcetto.

My main purpose was to taste 2010 Barolo, but first 2009. Understandably less homogenous, hot vintages are often pigeon-holed as bad and incapable of lasting very long. However this is an injustice. 2003 makes the case strongly. The successful ones still provide delicious drinking today, offering exotic vintage traits together with fresh, clear fruit flavours that keep you coming back for more. Who'd have thought it? And so it is likely to be with 2009. I tasted many this week. They were aromatic, seductive and eminently drinkable now already. They will probably not be in as fine fettle as the 2010s or 2008s in 25 years’ time but who cares? 10 years plus is well within their capabilities and at least we will have something to drink while we wait. Gaja's Sperss, Giuseppe Mascarello's Monprivato, Vietti's Castiglione were highlights. Marengo, Scavino and Azelia also excelled. 2008s, 2006s and 2004s have not really awoken yet and 2007s are still seductive but it would be a shame to approach the best right now.  Thankfully we have vintages to drink in 2003, 2005 and 2009.

2010 is the vintage on everyone's lips, though. I will spare the meteorological report, we have had quite enough of "weather" in the UK already this year, but in short 2010 was a very late vintage characterised by a late, poor flowering with resulting low yields; a cool and wet start to the summer; a return to good weather in September with big day night temperature differences that built freshness and aroma in the grapes; culminating with fine October weather in the run up to and during harvest at the end of the month. The wines are crisp and offer a refined intensity. The tannins are evident but distinctly sweet, smooth and weave deftly through the fruit. They give the initial impression of a gentle austerity which precedes long, floral and fruity notes. These are hallmarks of great Nebbiolo. There is a deep concentration in the wines but they remain streamlined, restrained and alpine-pure. As impressive as they are to taste however, to getting the most out of drinking them will require great patience. A benchmark vintage for laying down. I tasted with the good and the great: amongst many others the three Gs - Conterno, Mascarello and Rinaldi; Altare; Clerico; Giacosa; Vietti; Voerzio and Scavino just to name drop a little. Brovia and Elio Grasso were two firsts for me that greatly impressed. However the 2010 range that I kept comparing everything back to was Azelia. This is an estate that has been making bigger strides in quality than any other over the last few years. Their 2010s are simply brilliant and among the vintage's very best wines.

Surrounded by old, dusty bottles at almost every estate I went to, the one thing I was consistently reminded of during each tasting was how Barolo was traditionally always a blend. The pinnacle of production. Crus are a relatively recent phenomena and designed to not only be brilliant but also reflect the special characteristics of an individual terroir. Most Domaines worth their salt make a Barolo blended from Crus, as it was traditionally in the past, rather than use it as an outlet for young vine production or a hiding place for wine unsuitable for the Cru ine. In general considerably more of these blended Barolos are made than the individual Crus, the quality gap to the Crus is therefore often much smaller than the much lower prices suggest. Scavino's Barolo "Classico" as they call it, their ode to tradition, is one of the finest examples. I was struck by the quality of their 2010, its complexity, impeccable balance, vibrancy and completeness. Progression has brought Piedmont a long way in a short time but let’s hope the best of tradition is not forgotten in the process.

Burgundy by Village Tasting

On Monday evening the doors of the Caledonian Club were opened with a typically ebullient Scottish welcome for Justerini & Brooks’ ‘Red Burgundy by Village’ tasting. More than 150 guests, some old friends, au fait with the riches of our Burgundy portfolio, some uninitiated, joined us to taste over 60 wines arranged by commune.

It was wonderful to see so many enthusiasts enjoying the superb wines on display. Giles, our Buying Director, had carefully selected a range of wines to show off the breadth and depth of our offering. Despite Burgundy being flavour of the month, a label it has proudly worn for several years now, we were still able to showcase a multitude of gems from our stocks. Many samples hailed from 2007 and 2008 – harvests that were not without complication. However, these unsung vintages ably display the skill of our winemakers and the strides that Burgundy as a region has made in the past decade or two. They are also years that are rather flattering to drink right now! In some cases, discerning collectors had already relieved us of our 2007 and 2008 examples, so 2009, 2010 and 2011 stepped into the breach. The 2009s and 2010s are still displaying their youthful, fruit characters and are clearly class acts. The 2011s showed brilliant purity and silky textures and promise to be very fine drinkers in years to come.

In the Cote de Beaune, there was a fascinating match-up between Volnay and Pommard. Volnay, so often held aloft as being more charming and less bucolic than its neighbour, certainly had its work cut out. The Pommards from de Montille, in particular the Rugiens 2008, dispelled the theory that all Pommard is rustic and requires decades of cellaring. This was without doubt one of the stars of the tasting and narrowly eclipsed the also excellent 2008 Volnay Mitans and the 2009 Volnay Taillepieds from the same producer.

Nuits St Georges from Etienne Grivot, Robert Chevillon and Henri Gouges all shone. This commune is so much more than a poor neighbour of Vosne Romanee. They may be without Grand Crus (for the time being), but Vaucrains, Cailles, Pruliers and Les St Georges are all serious contenders. For those who find some of the prices in the Cote de Nuits a little scary, there is still plenty of value to be had in this village.

Alas, so many Vosne wines sell out en primeur, but we were still able to open examples from Francois Lamarche, Etienne Grivot and Bruno Clair. The Lamarche Malconsorts and the Grivot Suchots  are fabulous 1er crus that deserve to be in the most discerning of cellars. Bruno Clair’s excellent Champs Perdrix is a little beauty. With two barrels of Petit Monts in the blend, this is a very fine Vosne and excellent value.

The star of the Chambolle commune was Joseph Drouhin’s 1er cru Baudes 2008: feminine, ethereal, elegant Chambolle just as Bacchus intended it to be. Our new boy, Perrot Minot shone very brightly on the Morey St Denis table. Their 2010s are sumptuous and stylish and, although the prices are a bit eye watering, they are worth every penny!

As one would expect, the Gevrey Chambertin table was a swamped for most of the evening (hardly surprising when you have names such as Denis Mortet, Bruno Clair, Louis Remy, Drouhin Laroze and Joseph Drouhin exhibiting). There were two mini flights of the Grand Crus, Latricieres Chambertin and Chambertin and Chambertin Clos de Beze – the perfect way to finish a tasting! In truth, impressive as the Grand Crus were, most deserve much more time. The 2007 Latricieres from Louis Remy was delicious and approachable, but perhaps the picks of the commune were the excellent 2008Bruno Clair Cazetiers and the magnificent 2008 Mortet Gevrey 1er cru. Denis’ son Arnaud really has emerged as one of the most talented young winemakers in Burgundy; it’s well worth picking up some of his 2008s while you still can!

Many thanks to the Caledonian Club for being so hospitable and to everyone who attended and helped to make it such a wonderful event.

Harvest report from Voyager Estate - Part two

We have nearly completed our Chardonnay harvest with only one small block remaining. The vineyard team have been steadily handpicking each morning for the past 10 days and, have brought in some of the most outstanding Chardonnay fruit we have ever seen. 

The flavor development and concentration at such low sugar levels has the team very excited by the potential quality of the harvest. The Chardonnay fruit is all hand harvested and whole bunch pressed, with the free run juice being transferred to French oak barrels for natural fermentation.

This season has seen the introduction of some larger format oak barrels in the form of puncheons which we are using on our Chardonnay and Shiraz. The 500 litre puncheons will offer us the textural benefits of barrel maturation with slightly less oak influence on the resultant wine.

We have commenced the fruit intake of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon, with the first hand pick of Semillon completed this morning and some machine harvested fruit coming in this evening. This is the point where the vineyard and winery teams split into two shifts, as we begin working day and night  to harvest these varieties. The machine picking is done during the cool of the evening and early morning, to ensure these aromatic white varieties are at their freshest and most vibrant.

The weather conditions are close to perfect with a continuation of warm days and cool nights the norm for the week ahead.

It is certainly looking like one of the strongest white wine vintages for a long time -  I think some really special wines will be made!

Harvest report from Voyager Estate - Part one

Our first harvest of Chardonnay on the 3^rd of February was the earliest start to harvest we have experienced at Voyager Estate.

The Chardonnay vines have been tracking early all season and the very quick flowering in November set the scene for a potentially early start to harvest.

The ripening weather has been warm to mild with no excessive heat and, the nights have been very cool – perfect conditions for the steady ripening of the white fruit.

If the pleasant mild conditions hold, we should see our Chardonnay fruit steadily harvested over the next 10 to 14 days. This nice steady ripening allows us the luxury of handpicking small select parcels at perfect levels of ripeness.

The early flavour development at very low sugar levels has been amazing and, the grapes are retaining excellent natural acidity.

The Chardonnay fruit is all handpicked and chilled down overnight before whole bunch pressing and is then transferred to barrel for fermentation.

Early days, however I cannot recall our team being more excited by the quality of fruit we are seeing at the moment!

Vintage Report: René Rostaing’s 2012s.

Producing some of the very finest wines from the Rhône valley, René Rostaing, winemaking for 43 years has acquired star status. He very generously spent some time with us to talk about his views on the most recent vintage and gave us an insight into his wines.

What has 2012 been like in the Rhône?

- Rhône 2012 from the very beginning looked like another classic vintage. After a normal summer, without any excessive heat, we harvested around the 20th September. The ripeness was even throughout thanks to low yields (around -20%), not to mention the berries were healthy as well. We had good weather conditions with only one day of rain that didn’t impact the grapes.

What were you most pleased about in 2012?

- All the grapes enjoyed the same conditions equally and reached the optimum of their potential.

What are the characteristics of this vintage?

- The wines are at first noticeable by their fruit which is strong and round. They are tasty and generous in aromas and lead to a lovely freshness towards the end. But let’s be patient! The wine in its first two years is ‘in process’ and its evolution is sometimes hard to predict. Today, the bright fruit is the dominant characteristic.  Age will certainly bring some structure and austerity as the wine closes down after a couple of years in bottle. It’s an evolution that I have witnessed many times.

Were there any other vintages that you can compare 2012 to?

- More than any other year, 2012 has its own personality. I do not remember any vintage this pronounced in terms of fruit expression and freshness. Tasting it is currently really enjoyable and I think the balance showing now is promising.

The Great Claret Tasting at Southwold - The Turn of the Magnificent 2010s

Last week the great and the good of the wine trade (and yours truly) descended upon the picturesque seaside town of Southwold to re-examine the 2010 Bordeaux vintage. It resembled something of an MW convention – if anyone knows the collective noun for a group of Masters of Wine, send your answers on postcards… As ever, it was an honour indeed to taste in such illustrious company.

There was an enormous sense of anticipation; after all, this is the British wine trade’s favourite vintage, so expectations were exceptionally high. With this sort of reputation, it is unsurprising that the wines didn’t quite live up to their billing, but that is by no means a put down or for that matter a reason to quell our enthusiasm.

Tasting these wines from barrel was a revelation. Tasting them straight after bottling affirmed everything we thought and added to their repute. Tasting them again last spring and summer was mind-blowing. However, it appears that they have put themselves into hibernation since our last glimpse at this wonder-vintage. In general most wines are displaying their muscularity and structure at this time and appear to have concealed the grace, charm and prodigious sexy appeal on which they have built their reputation. The wines are still remarkable, if not quite as pleasurable to taste. But hey, we never said these were going to be forward, easy drinkers. To quote a member of the UK trade (and Nigel Tufnel), these have all been turned up to eleven (apologies to those not au fait with the philosophy of Spinal Tap!). These are wines of outrageous proportions. They will require long term cellaring, so if you are after immediate thrills, stick to the 2009s. If you are looking for something that will reward patience, stick some of these away…

At this early stage, the Firsts Growths and the big names from the Right Bank are perhaps the least closed. They still have flamboyance and provoke a sense of awe. Scores at Southwold are treated like state secrets, but, for those still reading, I’m allowed to reveal my own scores - WikiLeaks, eat your heart out… La Mission Haut Brion (20), Haut Brion (20), Latour (20), Petrus (19.5), Le Pin (18), Margaux (19), Cheval Blanc (19), Ausone (19), Lafleur (19), Lafite (18), Mouton (18.5). In truth, on another day, any of these wines could have taken top honours. These all display a sense of breed and exquisite exoticism that make them almost unique in my experience.

Other stand out performances came in the shape of Troplong Mondot (19), Angelus (18), Tertre Roteboeuf (18), VCC (18.5), Eglise Clinet (18), La Conseillante (18.5), Evangile (18), Leoville Poyferre (18), St Pierre (17.5), Montrose (18), Dame de Montrose (17), Pichon Baron (19), Fort de Latour (19), Domaine de Chevalier (17.5), Haut Bailly (17.5), Rieussec (18.5) and Coutet (18).

The Petit Chateaux and lesser cru Classes will in time offer extraordinary drinking and value. On the evidence of last week, don’t go near these for some time, ideally five, maybe ten years and give the best wines even longer.

Our highlights of Burgundy 2012

Our Burgundy 2012 En Primeur campaign kicked off on Monday 13th January, with a house full of famous Burgundian names and of clients alike - it was a chance to explore the most talked about vintage.

Ghislaine Barthod

Alex and Marc Bachelet from Bachelet Monnot

Chantal and Florian from Louis Remy

Louis Michel Vicomte Liger-Belair

Burgundy 2012 Vintage Report - "Less is more"

2012 was a challenging vintage in Burgundy that has produced brilliant wines. Mother Nature threw everything at the growers: poor flowering (though this was to be a blessing in quality terms), mildew, hail (twice) and sunburn. Vitally the one thing that did not present a problem in 2012 was rot. Frank Follin is by no means alone when he says that “the grapes in 2012 were the most beautiful I have ever seen.” The red wines are intense, suave, fresh and ripe. They have the concentration of 2010 but show a little more accessibility and roundness. They will, therefore, show extremely well young, whilst also offering great ageing potential – such is their super balance. The whites are hugely concentrated but in many cases this does not seem to have resulted in too much heaviness or lack of balance, certainly as far as the wines from vineyards grown on poor, stony soils are concerned. It is specifically from these vineyards where wines should have a good long life ahead of them.

Qualitatively this seems to be a very homogenous vintage for red wine, whether its Bourgogne, Chorey Les Beaune or Chambertin. It is difficult to generalise in this vintage, there are so many brilliant examples of elegant Pinot Noir from all over the Cote, though it does seem that Chambolle-Musigny has produced its best wine for several years. That said Arnaud Mortet of Gevrey-Chambertin has produced his greatest work yet, too. Furthermore there are many outstanding Nuits and Vosnes, though be warned Nuits St Georges in particular has suffered particularly low yields. For whites, as mentioned earlier, the most outstanding wines come from the stonier vineyards in Chassagne, Puligny and Meursault. The likes of Grande Montagne, Caillerets, Garenne, Folatieres,Tillets, Perrieres (Puligny and Meursault), Luraule and Clos des Grands Charrons are all well worth seeking out.

Arnaud Mortet

This exceptional quality has come at a price: There is very little wine. The crop ranges from 20 to 90% down on 2011. Gerard Boudot of Etienne Sauzet has been making wine since 1974 and has never known such a small vintage, his Folatieres is just one example - he made 2 barrels instead of the usual 10. Don’t be surprised to see offers of 6 packs, 3 packs and even individual bottles during the 2012 releases in January. 2013 is also terribly small, and with 2011 and 2010 being short crops, too, Burgundy has effectively produced the equivalent of two decent sized vintages in 4 years. Cellars up and down the Cote d’Or look empty. Add this to furious, ever-increasing demand and we have quite a shortage on our hands and producers will inevitably have to put prices up.

Piedmont: A feast of friends and family

Last Thursday the Justerini & Brooks sales team set out for Piedmont. The aim of the trip was to visit several of our key estates and to get a feel for the different villages, vineyards and approaches to winemaking. We spent three busy days consuming Piedmont and have come away with so much more…

To understand the wines of Piedmont one must engage with the families, both actual and extended, and with the myths, the histories and the conflicts. The story of Piedmont is one of contrasts: tradition and innovation; respect for the family and revolution. We found three generations all under one roof at Azelia, with Grannie still ruling the vineyard; a gloriously eccentric Domenico Clerico in his glossy modern winery and, at Altare, a story of such sadness that it bought several of us and Elio’s daughter Sylvia to tears. What was most striking about the story of Piedmont is how the stark financial imperatives of the 60s and 70s created and nurtured a culture of such innovation and artistry. We met many young winemakers who are striving for beauty and meaning in their wines and their communities, inspired by the revolution of their parents. There is a new tradition in Piedmont which the previous generation fought for, it is one of freedom and it is firmly focussed on quality. It is not a battle of the modern against the traditional. This battle has been fought and the future for Piedmont is open with producers embracing the best techniques for their wines, whether they be new or old. There is a sense of maturity about the approach here and we think Piedmontese wines have never been better.

Our itinerary was as follows. Please do contact your account manager if you have any specific questions or would like to hear any of the stories in more detail. There are many and they are fascinating!

FRIDAY:

Tasting: Voerzio

– We tasted a kaleidoscope of Voerzio’s wines with Davide generously treating us to a range of vintages including many of their top wines. This was one of life’s great wine experiences for so many reasons but one thing that particularly stuck with us was the meticulousness of the Voerzios, even the way Davide poured the wines was measured. This diligence shines through in the purity and precision of the wines.

Tasting: Scavino

– Scavino is one of the greats. So often erroneously classified as simply modern, in reality the Scavinos embrace the best of the old and the new to make true terroir wines. This terroir is more accessible in youth these days as they have scaled back the oak but the wines are as serious as ever. 2009 is a special vintage for Scavino with large scaled, powerful, ageworthy wines which will also be seductive in youth.

Lunch: Scavino

– The Scavinos very generously treated us to an incredible lunch with wines to match. Our two abiding memories are the 2006 Barolos and deep fried porcini in breadcrumbs. Wow!

Tasting: Azelia

– It was wonderful to visit another branch of the Scavino clan at Azelia. This is very much an understated, hands on domaine which is drenched in family history, memories and traditions. Lovely, lovely people and delicious wines which offer serious value. Margheria 2005, from the same vineyard as Gaja’s Sperss, is a real ace in the hole here. Buy it!

Tasting: Correggia + a light supper

– A relaxing jaunt through some wonderfully elegant Roero wines, which are real staff favourites. Freshness, minerality and elegance. Correggia offer distinctly un-showy yet supremely satisfying Nebbiolos and some terrific whites including an oak age Sauvignon. The style at Correggia is very relaxed and it was a lovely way to end the first day.

SATURDAY:

Tasting: Altare

– This was quite an experience. This estate is steeped in history with Elio’s father refusing to speak to him for seven years whilst living in the same house! Narrow avoidance of financial ruin and all sorts… The wines are nothing short of spectacular, Sylvia Altare served us a 1990 Barbera Larigi blind which confounded us all with its freshness and seriousness. Stunningly good Barbera, so serious that most of us thought it Nebbiolo.

Tasting: Vietti

– Like the wines, the Vietti estate comes across as elegant, sophisticated and impressive. There is very much a sense of having arrived. Vietti is one of the originals and still one of the very best.

Lunch: More e Macine in La Morra

– A terrifically indulgent, chaotic and lengthy scramble through some wonderful food. We kept trying to leave but they just wouldn’t let us. Very memorable, especially the panacotta which was so full of flavour we had to ask how they made it, the answer… some milk and something to make the milk set. Brilliant!

Tasting: Clerico

– Luciano and Domenico took us on a tour of this astonishing new winery and through these remarkable wines. Clerico continue to ease off on and adapt their use of new oak making these wines a little more accessible. However, as ever it is with age that they shine, Percristina 1998 and a delicious Ciabot Mentin Ginestra 2003 were the highlights here.

Tasting: Marengo + a light supper (a five course, highly sophisticated light supper!)

– We love Marco Marengo, so gentle, relaxed and honest and with so much Brunate! This is without doubt one of the best value domaines out there. Seamless wines with such authenticity and elegance yet with power and real ability to age. These are exactly the kind of wines we like to drink and we did! Marco and Jenny treated us to a stunning supper in their house. Proper Piedmontese cuisine and lots of Brunate. What a night! Again the 2006 Brunate sticks in the memory.

So, what did we learn?

Piedmont is in so many ways like Burgundy, in fact many of the producers we visited had as much Burgundy in the cellar as they did Nebbiolo. We found the sense of terroir, delicacy, etherealness and elegance that is so striking in Burgundy here in Piedmont and these guys have white truffles too! Like Burgundy, volumes are small and it feels like Piedmont is starting to take off in the same way that Burgundy has done over the last 10 years.

Buy more 2006 and 2008 Barolo: two different sides of the classical coin. Buy 2007s and 2005s to drink in the meantime. 2005s are delivering way above expectations!

Regardless of points, reviews and investment potential, in some parts of the world wine is still all about families.

In Piedmont, the hazelnuts are almost as good as the wines, especially at Altare. Oh, and Elio’s Coppa Ham is pretty special too!

- Martin Buchanan, Private Clients Sales Account Manager

Enfin! We waited as long as we dared ..

A few words from Charles Blagden, vine grower and courtier in the Rhone valley, completes harvest at Le Bois Pointu in Chateauneuf ...

Le Bois Pointu 2013. Vendanges Saturday 19th October.

Enfin! We waited as long as we dared (the heavens opened yesterday) & it was all over in just under 4 hours.

One of the latest harvests in the southern Rhone from memory (albeit my feeble one) since 1984 & the smallest that anyone I've spoken to can remember- we'll be lucky to have made 13hl, ie 9hl/Ha!!

At least the grapes were ripe...

Here are a few snaps of the day: 

Bordeaux 2011 in bottle

Following 2010 was never going to be an easy act. Following 2009 and 2010 was going to be an impossible act. Arguably, no-one really wanted a vintage that could live up to these immense years. Could anyone handle another ‘vintage of a lifetime’? I for one had already encountered four, which was making me feel quite old; our poor Chairman must be feeling positively ancient!

It was immediately obvious to all that 2011 was not a rival to 2009 and 2010, but this should not in itself be a reason to condemn it. Aside from the small wines, 2009s really aren’t ready for drinking. 2010s will take longer still, so either we rely on our vast reserves of ‘61s and ‘82s until our 2009s and 2010s hit their straps, or we’re going to need a few vintages to fill in. I for one have been thoroughly enjoying some 2007s recently, so much so, that I feel inspired to write a blog on them. ‘Less-good vintages’ definitely have a place. But before anyone starts reading too much between the lines, 2011 and 2007 don’t have that much in common.

Inside the packed Opera House we found a relatively consistent group of wines. Sure there were ups and downs, but this is a big tasting – there were plenty of turkeys at the corresponding 2009 and 2010 tastings. Starting with the Pessac reds, we found plenty of sweet fruit. In fact we were quite surprised by how ripe and generous some of these wines were. The usual stars, Domaine de Chevalier, Smith Haut Lafitte and Haut Bailly were all delicious, but those who like the exotic would be advised to go for Malartic Lagraviere. Bravo to the Bonnies – a terrific wine that I’d very much like to have in my cellar!

St Emilion is a region I approach with trepidation. Much to my surprise, this flight provided some of the most exciting and polished wines at the tasting. John Kolasa at Canon continues his good work, Troplong Mondot was massive yet quite seductive and Canon la Gaffelière was a complete surprise package – either my palate has completely changed or their 2011 is demonstrating a refinement and elegance I don’t normally associate with this estate. This is without doubt the smartest Canon la Gaffelière I can remember. The standout wine though was Clos Fourtet. Their 2009 and 2010 received high praise from Parker and this is a very worthy successor.

In Pomerol, Gazin has firmed up; this is one of the few wines at the tasting that had real structure. This may require a few years, but will be a stunner. La Conseillante was as understated and distinguished as usual. In the Medoc, some little wines such as Beaumont, Chasse Spleen and Poujeaux all showed well. The soft, approachable tannins and ample sweetness of the vintage make these wines more accessible than ever. Brane Cantenac and Rauzan Segla were the stars of Margaux – no surprises here then… St Julien and Pauillac were not as consistent as we remembered them. There are some real highs: Leoville Poyferre, St Pierre, Gloria, Gruaud Larose, Pichon Lalande, Grand Puy Lacoste and Pichon Baron, but there were a few question marks over Lynch Bages and Leoville Barton. Both showed brilliantly from barrel, so maybe they are just in a difficult adolescent stage.

Our view of the Sauternes and Barsacs has not really changed. The wines are big and rich, but are not overly complex. In our view, those who declared 2011 to be an excellent year for sweeties slightly missed the mark. Some wines have definitely improved in barrel, but this is not another 2001. Our pick again was the wonderful Doisy Vedrines. Olivier’s wine has real tension and complexity. The bouquet is a melting pot of tropical fruit; the palate is awash with noble flavours and the acidity is remarkable. This is a Barsac I really want to drink!

In summary, there is much to like about this group of reds. There are good colours, lots of sweet, seductive, mid-palate fruit, soft tannins and freshness. They remind me of how 2001s started showing after a few years. It isn’t a vintage to lay down for decades, but the wines will give lots of pleasure. In the current, subdued market, it is difficult to make a compelling case to buy these, however, as they become available, they will be some of the best priced examples of physical stock, and they will drink well young. So while people wait for 2009s and 2010s to come around, the 2011s could be the answer.