Mesdames, messieurs… Bonjour!
As you read this, we are currently en route to Manchester Airport for the next chapter of our annual Bordeaux pilgrimage and another intensive week of Châteaux visits with the Union des Grands Crus (UGC) to taste the 2023 vintage from barrel.
Believe me, Bordeaux En Primeur is not for the faint-hearted; the days are extremely long (we often taste 7am to 7pm, and sometimes even later) as we navigate a sea of Claret… it is no exaggeration to say that we can easily sample a staggering 120+ wines per day! Nonetheless, it is always a great privilege to head back across La Manche for Primeurs and to see our Bordelais friends and colleagues once more. This year in a break from tradition from our customary chalet at Bordeaux Lac, we have rented a house in the centre of Bordeaux, as we are delighted to announce that several members of the Bon Coeur team will be joining Andrew and me, for their first ventures into the wonderful world of En Primeur. Bravo, et bienvenue à l’équipe!
It is imperative to remember that each vintage in Bordeaux is unique, and the region has been blessed with a run of great vintages over the last decade or so (2015 and 2016 closely followed by famous 2018-2019-2020 trilogy as well as 2022, of course). And so, as we prepare for boarding, we ask ourselves the usual questions: What can we expect from the 2023 vintage? Did the Left or Right Bank fare better? Can it be compared to any recent vintages?
The word on the grapevine is that the Bordelais are pleased with the 2023 wines despite a complicated growing season. Jane Anson (Inside Bordeaux) comments that “where 2021 and 2022 were studies in contrast – the first being largely cool and wet vintage with low alcohols and some dilution, and 2022 being an extremely hot vintage with concentration, depth and sometimes extreme flavours – we can expect 2023 to be somewhere in between.” Colin Hay (The Drinks Business) concurs, stating recently “in the most general terms, 2023 is a vintage that is likely to be judged favourably – a good and perhaps even a very good vintage, but not an exceptional vintage.” Although it is too early to comment, initial discussions with the Châteaux as well as Négociants indicate that despite some challenges, the wines are “classic” in style and lean towards vibrant red fruit with finesse and sophistication, rather than the dark black fruits with power, concentration, and richness of recent years.
We do anticipate differences in style and quality levels between appellations and Châteaux, so it is paramount to taste the wines ourselves to allow us to analyse and assess the vintage. It is now up to us to fill our glasses and “get stuck in” and discover what the 2023 vintage is all about; where the value is, and what we believe are the best buys of the campaign.
With that in mind, we are due to land at Bordeaux-Mérignac Airport at 22h00 tonight, from where we will head straight onto La Rocade and make haste to our home for the week. There’s no rest for the wicked as tomorrow morning we have an early start for our first appointments of the week in Saint-Émilion and Pomerol. We will then head back across to Gironde River to Bordeaux Lac for our rendez-vous with my long-term mentor and all-round Bordeaux Guru: Bill Blatch and the now famous annual traditional meal of “Sauternes et saucissons”… Allez-hop, et à demain!
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