Bordeaux 2012 - Day 1

Same story – not always the same result

The tale from vignerons is of three distinct seasons: a wet spring with a difficult flowering, a dry and warm summer with the potential of hydric stress, and a wet harvest with the potential for rot. It was certainly a challenge, but one that some have risen to. Our first appointment was with the dynamic Denis Durantou of Eglise Clinet. His range was spectacular (as usual). La Chenade will be one of the best values, Montlandrie continues to push the boundaries of what can be achieved in Castillon, and the Pomerols, Petite Eglise and Eglise Clinet are spectacular, but sadly there is about 25% less Grand Vin in 2012. Our next stop was an appointment with the Guinadeaus. Pensees is a sensational second wine with real grand vin breed – Lafleur itself is less massive and brooding than recent vintages, but is beautifully poised, intellectual,. 

Petrus’ 2012 was the first wine to be produced in the new wine-making facility, built on their plot of Cabernet Franc. As a result the cuvee is 100% Merlot and the wine is astonishing: grand, profound, voluptuous and deep. A hop-skip-and-a-jump to VCC and a tasting with Alexandre Thienpont. His Merlot plots adjoin Petrus and were very successful. Although the Cabernet Francs were more of a challenge, he has used his very best plots to add complexity and freshness to the final cuvee. As we have come to expect, another wonderful wine from this high-flying Pomerol estate.

Next to Alexandre’s cousin, Jacques at Le Pin. The 2012 is exotic and opulent and classic Le Pin. We also had the opportunity to taste Jacque’s new St Emilion, L’If. We believe that the translation is Yew, so an evergreen connection to Jacques’ Pomerol estate. The wine is beautifully precise, with wonderful purity of fruit and great finesse.

We lunched at Cheval Blanc. Considering Yquem has decided not to release a 2012, Pierre Lurton was in a surprisingly jovial mood. Although there won’t be any more of the excellent Tour du Pin as the best 1.4 hectares has been reclassified as Grand Cru Classe ‘A’ and will be incorporated into Cheval Blanc, the latest acquisition, Quinault L’Enclos is beginning to show real promise. Tiny yields mean there won’t be much wine, but it is definitely one to look out for in the future. As for the Petit Cheval and Grand Vin, these are two of the smartest wines we have tasted from this illustrious estate; they are both profound, deeply serious wines that hit all the right notes with us...

Our tastings with Francois Mitjavile of Tertre Roteboeuf andRoc de Cambes are always highlights of any trip, and the 2012s are no exception. Francois was at his humorous and thought provoking best. We will be posting his views in the next few weeks; well worth looking out for... Both wines excelled in 2012 and should be included on any self respecting wine lover’s shopping list - they really are sensational wines.

Other high points of day one included a very smart Fleur de Bouard and a really excellent Angelus, a charming and invariable a good value Fonbel and a slightly controversial Ausone. I was thrilled by the multilayered complexity, but the feeling was not necessarily unanimous. We also learnt of Margaret Thatcher’s death whilst tasting at Evangile. Apologies to Domaine Baron Rothschild as the news rather distracted us from your excellent wine – we will forever remember the place where we heard the news...

In summary, the great terroirs on the plateau of Pomerol have performed well with many good to excellent wines. St Emilion is patchier, but this should not come as a surprise. The early ripening Merlots have performed well producing seductive, powerful wines. Cabernet Francs were more of a challenge, but when harvested at full maturity and used sympathetically, they add complexity, perfume and freshness to the blends. All in all a strong showing from the right bank.

Southwold under snow

Despite the freezing conditions, many of the great and good from the wine trade made the annual pilgrimage to Suffolk to re-taste the much vaunted 2009s.

This was the vintage of the century, a vintage that boasts 17 hundred point wines, so how do they stack up three and a bit years on? Well the first observation is the tannins. From barrel, these were almost undetectable. Most of our notes referred to silky, velvety tannins, mainly masked by opulent fruit. Today, the wines are quite obviously tannic. They have lost some of that hedonistic quality and have gained in structure. This all bodes well for long term storage, but may put impatient souls off...

Another surprise was just how big a gulf there is between the top names and the low-mid-range Clarets. vignerons and negociants declared 2009 to be a 'great', 'homogenous' vintage with quality produced from top to bottom. They are right, many of the smaller estates have produced their best wines in 2009, but from the evidence of this tasting, you cannot expect to obtain First Growth quality on a cru bourgeois budget. At the affordable level the likes of Gloria, Clos des Quatre Vents, Poujeaux, Roc de Cambes, Lafon Rochet, Langoa Barton and Haut Batailley all had very strong showings and offer very good QPR (quality price ratio).

Where the vintage becomes really interesting is at the very top echelons. These flights from both banks of the Gironde were quite exceptional. Duhart Milon, Latour, Lafite, Mouton Rothschild, Montrose, Ducru Beaucaillou, Las Cases, Cheval Blanc, Canon, Ausone, Eglise Clinet, Clinet, Le Pin, Petrus and Palmer all deserve special mention. I gave two 20/20 scores to Latour and Montrose and on another day I may have awarded Lafite, Mouton and Eglise Clinet the same accolade. Other estates worthy of a special mention include Domaine de Chevalier Rouge (£540/cs) and Grand Puy Lacoste (£575/cs). Both offer outstanding quality and punch well above their weight.

The final session was devoted to the whites. I have to admit, the 2009 Sauternes and Barsacs rather passed me by when we tasted from barrel. All the hype surrounding the reds swallowed me up and I feel I rather missed a trick. 2009 produced splendid botrytis and the wines display everything needed for successful cellaring: richness, density, complexity, freshness and balance. They are delightful wines, and whilst they will always play second fiddle to the reds, they should certainly not be forgotten. My highlights included Doisy Vedrines, Lafaurie Peyraguey, Suduiraut and Rieussec.

So in conclusion, the reds are shutting down. Apart from petit chateaux, I would suggest holding the 2009s for a minimum of five years to experience them at anything like their best. If there were any concerns that 2009s were not built for long-term storage, this tasting should dispel that theory; these are massive, structured, profound wines that will cellar effortlessly and give their owners years of pleasure.

*All the views in this blog are mine and they are not necessarily shared by the rest of the tasters.

Stars of Southwold

The sleepy town of Southwold in Suffolk has become home to one of the most thorough and respected blind tastings of Bordeaux wines. A panel of UK buyers and journalist (with literally hundreds of years of experience...) descend on the Crown Hotel to give their verdict. This year it was the turn of the much maligned 2007s.

So, what were the winners and the losers? The best flight of wines unsurprisingly came from Sauternes and Barsac. This included revered names such as de Fargues, Climens, Suduiraut, Rieussec and of course, Chateau Yquem. Yquem 2007 was unequivocally declared the wine of the week and averaged a mighty 19/20 from the panel. All agreed that this was a superb flight and that 2007 is one of the great vintages for sweet Bordeaux. If there had been a little disagreement during the primeur tastings as to whether Climens or Yquem took first place, there was no such debate this time around. (If you are interested in a case of Yquem 2007 for your cellar, please speak to one of our sales team).

Of the reds, Mouton took first place on the left bank with an average score of over 18/20, with non first growth, Leoville Las Cases taking silver. Over on the right bank, Petrus and Cheval Blanc took top billing, but there were strong showings from Eglise Clinet, VCC, Le Pin, Evangile and Providence. The Pomerol plateau obviously hadn’t heard that it was a Cabernet vintage...

To conclude on this rather capricious vintage, the sweeties are sensational and are widely available for less than their 2001 counterparts. The Lesser reds from both banks are generally well made, but often lack a little substance. In some cases the wines are somewhat forced and this shows in the tannins. The best terroirs and those with the means and know-how have created some delicious wines with real character and sufficient structure to age for more than a decade. As one of the learned members of the panel pointed out, wine is supposed to give pleasure; the 1997s did just that, and the 2007s clearly surpass the `97s in every respect. They may not be as intellectual or profound as the so called `great` vintages, but they will be good fun!

Off to a flyer...

2010 has started with a bang. The Liv-ex 100 has closed January 2.7% up at 243.59, that’s a 17.4% increase year-on-year. The Hong Kong market has also posted some positive results. Sotheby’s first Hong Kong sale of the year (23rd Jan) realised HKD52.9 million (USD6.78 million), their largest ever total for a one day wine sale. Highlights included an imperial of Lafite `82 (HKD363,000, USD46,526) and a case of Petrus 2000 that achieved HKD411,400 (USD52,730).

The Southwold Tasting - Day 2 PM

Having tasted the best the left bank had to offer before lunch, it was the turn of the most celebrated names from Pomerol and St Emilion in the afternoon. The top eight wines all excelled. By a short head Ch Angelus (19/20) was my highest marked wine; it was not included in the earlier St Emilion flights, so this was its first outing. The ripe cabernet franc aromas seduced the taster with succulent yet aromatic wild fruits, silky texture and beautifully defined tannins. Ch Petrus had darker rich fruit and sweet oak aromas, enormous tannic structure, and great promise. Le Pin showed luscious, polished sweetness and the beautiful gravelly minerality contrasted the classy dark fruits and fabulous length of flavours. The terroir of Ausone really comes through in this 2006; exquisite harmony, cool, classy, silky textured, it possesses tremendous potential. Both L'Eglise Clinet and Vieux Chateaux Certan both scored 18/20 only half a mark behind the runners up, more perhaps because of their density and vast tannic structure, however, there is delicious underlying fruit.

Two flights of Margaux followed and were of a consistently high standard - all without fail having ripeness, which was not the always the case with the 2005s. Ch Palmer, which performed so well amongst the 1st growths was less expressive in the appellation flight; tight, firm, and brooding. Pavillon Rouge showed its pedigree; intense and all on finesse. Giscours; explosive ripe fruits and broad shoulders. Kirwan; big structure and plenty of substance. There were also impressive ‘06s from Malescot St Exupery, Lascombes and Rauzan Segla.

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