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It’s a Whole New World: Bordeaux
Dear Friends,
I have volumes to report with my recent escapade to Bordeaux but I will surmise a few highlights below including one of the top buys of the 2016 vintage that you may want to jump on sooner rather than later. My goal was to re-taste the 2016 vintage (now finished and in bottle) plus a re-taste of the 2017s, 2015’s, 2014’s and the new 2018 grapes and “just off the vine” fermentations that should give a very good read on what’s to come for the 2018 vintage. I also participated in a few fantastic vertical tastings that I will write-up soon enough.
There’s too much to report for one missive today but stay tuned to this page for updates that are sure to intrigue
In addition, you can follow our Instagram page for even more “of the moment” photos/videos and quips on what is going on with the Bordelaise firmament: https://www.instagram.com/garagiste_wine/
In a nutshell (without any “retailer” bias but tasting and reporting as a consumer first, which is still what I consider myself):
• 2017 is FAR better than people think. The vintage had the unfortunate problem of following 2015/2016 but, ten years from now, the vintage will rank as one of the better second tier vintages of the last 20 years and I predict it will be among the most popular drinking vintages around age 12-15+. That does not mean you should scramble to secure futures of the 2017s but up and down, far and wide some of the best wines I tasted this week were 2017s – many are lovely wines with a classic tone but even more fruit than the 2014’s. Think of 2017 as a better 2014 or (gulp that I’m saying this) a new-era 2001 and you know how well the 2001’s have aged – arguably better than the 2000’s. if you see 2017’s at low $’s, do not hesitate.
• 2016 is currently a rangy, occasionally severe and pent-up vintage that’s full of whirlwind energy and an endless horizon to dream of. Many properties produced some of the most electric red fruit and mineral material Bordeaux has ever witnessed and there really is no other “modern day” vintage that compares to 2016. In general, the vintage is currently closed and unformed from recent bottling (and should not be shown for another 3-4 months or the wines may be grossly misread because they do not possess the overt gras of a vintage like 2015). For the most part, 2016 is a vintage for the patient – it’s a long-term aging year that (at its heights) has a chance to be one of the first modern-day “centenary” vintages – with bottles that will last for more than 100 years (a la 1900). There are a few wines that are so special, I nearly cried after tasting them this week (2016 Calon Segur and, I’m happy to report, 2016 Canon – a wine I had severe doubts about for the past 1.5 years but it is now even better than the flame-throwing 15.0-15.5% alcohol 100pt 2015 Canon, which I tasted side by side with the 2016 and the 2005 at the Chateau this week). As a broad statement on the vintage (both Right and Left bank), it will be interesting to see if the new generation of “me, me, now now” consumers around the globe has the patience to wait on the 2016s or will they find them mostly annoying following such a plush and high alcohol year like 2015? Regardless, the “vin de garde” 2016 vintage has a chance to be one of the all time greats of the region and every serious Bordeaux collector should invest in the year...heavily.
• 2015, by contrast, is currently showing its showmanship style. Like any great stage actor, the 2015's gave a tremendous performance for the full two acts of the show but now the curtain has closed and the actors have gone home for the night and the theater seems a bit, well, lacking in excitement. Unlike a year ago, the principle ingredient that resonates with the majority of 2015’s tasted this week is...alcohol (and lots of it). In certain vintages, high alcohol is not a concern because of extractive balance and elevated harmony among all elements but many of the 2015’s lack that sort of balance and they seem somewhat blowsy and simply too plush at this stage to eventually swallow their alcohol. To be sure, they are not 2003 or 2009 but they are a sort of a “grown up” 2003 or 2009 with enough breed and structure to set them apart as wiser offspring but the family lineage of 2003/2009 is tough to escape. We’ll see, but the 2015 vintage is not what I would call “classic” in any way shape or form and some of the best 2015’s reside from areas initially though to be also-rans in the year (i.e. Saint-Estephe). The silly part for this scribe is the nearly undeniable fact that the 2015’s will always retain value and ascend in worth (regardless of quality) because their initial ratings were so high. I also predict a possible scarcity of 2015’s as we move 20-30+ years on from the vintage date due to so many 2015’s consumed at a very young age. For the long-term investor, that’s a very good thing.
• 2018 – at this grossly general stage that can only include overtly ridiculous statements (the “vintage” is not fully in the tank yet) I’m afraid to report (from a 2nd/3rd mortgage or home equity line standpoint) that we may have another incredible year on our hands. Those that survived the massive winter/spring rains, endless clouds and cold and resulting downy mildew in the late spring have seen nothing but hot, dry sunshine for months on end. If you are a property with old vines (ample root depth) and lots of clay/limestone soil, this may be the vintage to bring you glory. If you have young vines on some of the more costly gravel soils of the region, I will cross my fingers for you. Gravel tends to drain water away and down into the depths of the soil and young vines do not have the root length to benefit. To put the vintage into perspective, more than a few winemakers wanted to rename Bordeaux “Beziers” due to the Languedoc-like conditions this summer but...I tasted more than my fair share of grapes and pressed juice across the region this week (Right and Left Bank) and what’s already in the tank tells a tale that may end up as a stunner. There will be variation to be sure and the berries are often tiny with very little juice but the bubbling cauldron that is 2018 has a chance to be another special year. More on the style of the vintage as the Cabernets (Franc and Sauvignon) are picked and pressed but we will not see the 2018’s for another 2-3 years so let’s go back to the vintage currently set to tantalize our palates for the better part of several generations...
2016.
The Cru Bourgeois debut of bottled 2016's was held this week and it was a much anticipated debut, arguably the most anticipated since...the 2015’s. I was among a group to taste the wines first before the room was overrun so I had a leisurely pace that paid dividends (I was able to taste and retaste as the bottles gained oxygen). As noted above, many 2016’s have closed in on themselves (from recent bottling) but I am fortunate to have a wide card catalog of interaction with the vintage and I’ve tasted many of the wines 4-5 different times at this point. I will get into the confusing aspect of “Cru Bourgeois” in more detail another time but the consumer should note that a three-tier division of Cru Bourgeois is coming to help single out the upper-echelon from the merely average. Currently, no standard truly exists but that is about to change.
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