Recent Bordeaux Vintages
After tasting lots of '08's and '09's last year and getting a good first look at '10's in January here's my take...
'08's have the lovely aromatics of a carefully ripened fruit from a cool vintage. A year of compelling secondary aromas even in young wines balanced with appropriate and quite classic fruit, but not the great sucrosity of years like '09, '05, '00, '90, or '82. I wonder if better made '81's or '79's could have turned out like these will. I am a particular fan of the Pomerols I tasted and some of the St Estèphe. I will have to cellar some Clinet, Montrose, Troplong Mondot, Ducru Beaucaillou among others.
The '09's are huge, opulent wines with reasonable acidity (analysis may show a lot of acid but the wines don't have that profile). There's real length to the fruit and enough structure and depth to mask the breathtaking alcohol of some of the wines. All appellations seem quite successful so this is a good year to purchase wine from modest terroirs for near-term consumption. This size of the wines in the Northern Medoc is like '03 but the tannins are much finer. My personal requirements include Vieux Chateau Certan, Montrose, Les Forts de Latour, Malescot St. Exupéry, Gracia, Pavie, Cos d'Estournel Pavie Decesse, Bellevue Mondotte and many others.
My first take on '10's is purely general at this point. It seems a year close to '09 in size with more marked variations, less even quality, a more roasted - less fresh quality. The best wines will be superb and probably from more clay soils. Perhaps a cross between '78 and '85 with much more fastidious work in vineyard and cellar and a bit warmer than either.
Pricing is amazing now. '08 and solid '07's and best '06's are the best buys. '09 pricing is skewed up by the famous names and the Asian markets desire for first growths. I am afraid I've already drunk 70 percent of the first growths I ever will in my life based on pricing from '05 onward.
'08's have the lovely aromatics of a carefully ripened fruit from a cool vintage. A year of compelling secondary aromas even in young wines balanced with appropriate and quite classic fruit, but not the great sucrosity of years like '09, '05, '00, '90, or '82. I wonder if better made '81's or '79's could have turned out like these will. I am a particular fan of the Pomerols I tasted and some of the St Estèphe. I will have to cellar some Clinet, Montrose, Troplong Mondot, Ducru Beaucaillou among others.
The '09's are huge, opulent wines with reasonable acidity (analysis may show a lot of acid but the wines don't have that profile). There's real length to the fruit and enough structure and depth to mask the breathtaking alcohol of some of the wines. All appellations seem quite successful so this is a good year to purchase wine from modest terroirs for near-term consumption. This size of the wines in the Northern Medoc is like '03 but the tannins are much finer. My personal requirements include Vieux Chateau Certan, Montrose, Les Forts de Latour, Malescot St. Exupéry, Gracia, Pavie, Cos d'Estournel Pavie Decesse, Bellevue Mondotte and many others.
My first take on '10's is purely general at this point. It seems a year close to '09 in size with more marked variations, less even quality, a more roasted - less fresh quality. The best wines will be superb and probably from more clay soils. Perhaps a cross between '78 and '85 with much more fastidious work in vineyard and cellar and a bit warmer than either.
Pricing is amazing now. '08 and solid '07's and best '06's are the best buys. '09 pricing is skewed up by the famous names and the Asian markets desire for first growths. I am afraid I've already drunk 70 percent of the first growths I ever will in my life based on pricing from '05 onward.
posted by Moderator at 5:00 PM
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