Chris Piper & John Earle visited Bordeaux in March 2009 to taste the En Pri
meur 2009 wines; highlights of their comments are as follows:
Right Bank tastings have revealed wines of unparalleled balance. They combine power and finesse with very high tannins; tannins that are so fine that they are so discreet when tasted, enveloped in an amazing amount of unctuous fruit. The watchword so far is ‘freshness’, despite the fact in a vast amount of cases, these wines have high alcohol levels (+13.5%) which are hardly perceptible.
Summary of the tastings of the Left Bank En Primeurs:
“There have been discussions over the consistency of vintage in the American press, however we feel this is a vintage that is all about how winemakers have handled their Terroir. As we worked our way through the Left Bank wines, two styles clearly emerged.
The first being wines of massive fruit characters with balancing finesse, and the second of a more structured and muscular style, more in a classic vein of Bordeaux.”
All our En Primeurs are highlighted on our Website showing prices and availability.
2009 was undoubtedly the best vintage since 1982. Our sales outstripped all expectations and outsold 2005 (the last great Bordeaux vintage) by nearly 150%. The sales campaign is now effectively over and instructions for bottling have been sent to the chateaux in Bordeaux.
We must now wait and see what the 2010 harvest brings. Current reports indicate that the vineyards and grapes are in a very healthy condition. This space must definitely be watched!…