Bordeaux 2010 - Great Vintage or the beginning of the end

Bordeaux 2010 - Vintage Report and Top 25 (What I tasted)




My experience in Bordeaux is still in many ways in its infancy stage. This past April was my fifth visit to this historical wine region. My first visit was the en primeur tasting of 2002 union des Grand Crus (March 2003.) Besides the recent 2007 vintage (which I preferred), the 2002 vintage was rated the lowest score by Wine Spectator over the past decade.



I do know that experience and familiarity counts when it comes to Bordeaux. So when I travel to this region, I really make an effort to try objectively as many wines and vintages from as many producers as possible. I have found that what draws my heart to these wines is the balance they can posses. Could they be powerful? Definitely. Could they be elegant? Preferably. Could they be earthy? Sometimes. Tannic? Maybe. Balanced? Well, they used to be.



With my experience studying, drinking & evaluating Bordeaux starting primarily with the 1995 vintage (16 years,) I have dramatically seen a shift in wine making style. Specifically, the wines are plumper with higher sugars, longer macerations, darker colors, lower acidity levels, sweeter tannins and higher alcohols. Some of these lead to the other, yet none of these things are what I think of when I am looking for balance in a wine. So the question becomes why have wines gone away from traditional wine making to these sugar laced, high alcohol fruit bombs? Some say: Global Warming? Better Wine Technology? Better Viticulture? Better Yeast? Parker or other influential Wine Critics? The Market?



I find it interesting the changes in landscape of the wine market today versus 16 years ago. Today, investment firms own many of the top wine estates around the world. I think as a result less and less wine is made out of passion and more out of profits. Implementing strategies the yield the greatest returns on investment and reaching higher profit margins. Caves have been dug all through Napa & Sonoma, financed through bank loans and corporate investments. Wines have to be sold at higher and higher price points to bring about a return on the substantial cost of production. The after market for wine trading has become a huge facet in the wine world. Often selling for 2 to 3x face value wines are now purchased as stock with no intention of enjoying the fruit, but enjoying the profit from it. Marketing of products has also become a large part of a wineries business plan. Where it used to be about pretty labels and trade tastings, it has become about wine ratings that move products and price points. Who better to market through than the media that publishes articles about the product? If the public responds to arbitrary numbers, than who’s to blame for the change in wine culture? I think our search for right and wrong answers to wine are mostly to blame. Most of us want to validate or be told by someone which is right and which is wrong. We want expertise to lead us so we do not make the wrong decision. What if the experts don’t have our best interest at heart or the integrity of the trade in mind? I think it is upon us to decide what we like and don’t like by just listening to our opinions on the matter.



So why would Bordeaux follow down that same path? A region that has classified itself for quality differentiation since 1855, a region that has produced the most significant wines for centuries, so why does this region need to adapt its philosophies to meet this new culture? Could it be wine is just being made at a higher level than in the past and we demand it be made that way? Could it be that even Bordeaux must conform to the standards beset by our preferred wine critics? Could it be a significant escalation in the image of wineries and the glamour of the wine business that possesses the power to evolve history in years what took centuries to establish? If you told the Baron James de Rothschild (Purchased Lafite in 1868) that in 2010 his wines would be released at over $1,200 a bottle on a future program or over $24,000 a case (the value of some cars), he would say that was crazy. If you also told him the value of farmland in Bordeaux was $120,000 to $2 Million Euro per Hectare, he would undoubtedly have dropped to the floor. Napa has experienced the same phenomenon; in 1990 it cost $40,000 / acre roughly for vineyards in the heart of Napa Valley. In 2010, that number was closer to $180,000 / Acre. At 720 bottles per ton and fine wine is typically harvested at 1 – 4 tons per acre, it converts to approximately $64 a bottle on vineyards that are 100% planted to a harvest level of 4 tons per acre. Add in oak, equipment, labor and overhead, it is easy to see why it is difficult to make a profit on wine in this day and age. A move to start virtual wineries has over taken California winemaking. Why not when you can pay $5,000 a ton for Napa Cabernet Sauvignon fruit at less than $7 a bottle and not have to deal with harvest.



You can deduce that wine might no longer be made with the passion just to make wine. It might be made to elevate a company or personal image. It might be made with ego. Maybe it is made just to win awards and points like alluded to in this Decanter article of 2 prestigious Bordeaux producers:



“ In both the 2010 and 2009 vintages it was common to see Merlots surpass 15% alcohol, a situation Didier Cuvelier, owner of Chateau Leoville Poyferre in St Julien , finds ‘disturbing’.

In the Medoc, one of the reasons for planting Merlot had been because it ripened better than Cabernet Sauvignon, Cuvelier said.

‘But more recently, the Merlot has got so high in alcohol that we run the risk of losing the Bordeaux style,’

While all varieties have seen higher alcohol levels, Merlot’s susceptibility to ripen quickly and attain the highest alcohol levels makes it more of a challenge, consultant Denis Dubourdieu said.

A string of very good vintages since 2000 have meant there ‘has been no need to chaptalise, so sugars are naturally there and that is a good thing.’

But he noted the tendency for properties on the Right Bank to strive for greater concentration of sugars in the grapes by techniques such as leaf removal, which results in small and concentrated grapes.

Later picking – sometimes even after the Sauternes harvest in October – was becoming more common, Dubourdieu, who also owns the Barsac estate Chateau Doisy Daene, said.

‘There is a race towards concentration, to please many critics,’ he said. ‘I have been a consultant for 30 years; I have spent the first 20 years telling people not to harvest too early; in the last 10 years I have told them not to harvest too late.’”



Whatever the reason these wines have started a decent down a path to ambiguity I fear. Just as Australia, a wine country rich with great fruit and tons of potential found. If you paint that brush to just one style based of the popular trend, then you have to hope that trend stays for a long time. For Australia, people have graduated from the super fruit bomb. For California Merlot, people moved away from the sometimes over planted and boring varietal that was planted everywhere in the mid to early 90’s (especially after Sideways.) If Bordeaux fails to correct the steering of the path they are on, it might be concivible that you would have difficulty classifying it as old world wine. Bring back typicity of Bordeaux, let California and Australia have the fruit bombs and bring me back my terrior laced, regional placed & a smile to my face for my lovely classic Bordeaux.



That being said, my overall impressions of the 2010 Bordeaux wines is that it was good to very good vintage. There were some wines that I thought were better than there 2009 counterpart, but as a whole the 2009’s were the better of the two vintages. Here is a list of my top 25 of what I tasted in Bordeaux this past April and where I rated them on a 100 point scale:



1) Chateau Margaux 2010 – This wine shows that sticking to your guns no matter what the trends can pay off huge. This may have been my favorite wine of the past 2 en primeur tastings. A perfect sense of place, elegance and persistance. 98 Points



2) Chateau Cos D’Estournel ST Estephe 2010 – It seemed to be even more powerful than the 2009. This may not be the style I look for in Bordeaux, but when someone hits a homerun you must acknowledge it. This is on par with 1st growth Bordeaux. 95 Points



3) Chateau Mouton-Rothschild Pauillac 2010 – Outstanding and made with a heavy dullop of Cabernet Sauvignon. It shows heady tannins right now, but still manages to show a graceful side as well. Great balance for a modern style. 95 Points



4) Chateau Leoville-Poyferre St Julien 2010 – What an effort for a wine often not associated with a Super Second (A second growth that should be elevated.) 95 Points



5) Chateau Suduiraut Sauternes 2010 – One of the hardest wines to rate, but when you get to the top wines from Sauternes from a vintage, there is no question. 94 Points



6) Chateau Malescot-st-Exupery Margaux 2010 – This wine makes a case for the talk of a Super Third category of Bordeaux. 94 Points



7) Chateau Guiraud Sauternes 2010 – 93 Points



8) Chateau Guaraud-Larose St Julien 2010 – 92 Points



9) Chateau Pape Clement Rouge Pessac-Leognan 2010 – 92 Points



10) Chateau Rauzan-Segla Margaux 2010 – 92 Points



11) Domaine de Chavalier Pessac-Leognan Blanc 2010 – 92 Points



12) Chateau Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande Pauillac 2010 – 92 Points



13) Chateau Leoville-Barton St Julien 2010 – 91 Points



14) Chateau Grand-Puy-Ducasse Pauillac 2010 – 91 Points



15) Chateau Clerc Milon Pauillac 2010 – 91 Points



16) Chateau Larrivet Haut-Brion Pessac-Leognan Blanc 2010 – 91 Points



17) Chateau Reiussec Sauternes 2010 – 91 Points



18) Chateau Cantenac-Brown Margaux 2010 – 91 Points



19) Le Petite Mouton Pauillac 2010 – 91 Points



20) Chateau Langoa – Barton St Julien 2010 – 90 Points



21) Pagodes des Cos St. Estephe 2010 – 90 Points



22) Pavillon Rouge du Chateau Margaux 2010 – 90 Points



23) Chateau Pichon-Longueville Pauillac 2010 – 90 Points



24) Chateau Lafon-Rochet St Estephe 2010 – 90 Points



25) Chateau La Conseillante Pomerol 2010 – 90 Points



Notables: Brane-Cantenac Margaux 2010 (90), Chateau Gazin Pomerol 2010 (90), Chateau D’Armailhac Pauillac 2010 (89)


Cheers! Prices are just starting to come out on some of these wines and it looks like up is the direction that Bordeaux this vintage is going to go. As always, feel free to visit me at Bodega Bar to visit and learn more about the wines of the world.

Amier Taherzadeh
President
Chateau Wine Market & Bodega Bar
4514 Travis Street
Dallas, TX 75205
214-528-9463

Northern Spain

Espana Espana Espana




My recent travels had me touring the Northern Wine Regions of Central and Eastern Spain. Ribera del Duero, Toro, Rioja, Terra Alta & Priorat were all truly unique from the other yet I am not sure if anyone in Spain would realize it.



“Vino Tinto, Por Favor” was pretty standard at most restaurants and Tapas bars. A dangerous phrase in a wine bar in the United States as one might get a $40+ glass of wine. Yet in Spain, they know it is House and it is going to be cheap and a small glass. It was very typical to see 7cl as a glass of wine (2.33 oz.) or what we in Texas call a shot or taste. Price range was from .80 to 1.50 Euro ($1.12 to $2.10) The Bodegas or wineries know the locals do not spend money on wines in Tapas bars and so they often make the prices very low to find themselves on Tapas Bar Chalk Boards often only featuring 15 or less wines by the glass. For a glass (7cl) of other than Vino Tinto (or the house Wine) usually ranged from $1.50 to $3.50 Euro ($2.10 to $4.20.) And these are wines like Pesquera Crianza (US - $25 - $30 Bottle or $20+ a glass.)



Each wine region was proud to feature the wine of the commune or maybe those wines were just very aggressively priced for the restaurant and bar owners.



Here are some of my impressions of the wine regions:



Toro – A small village that pretty much you could drive by in the matter of minutes. Outside the village where the vineyards are located is a dry dusty earth what appears to be vines with significant age in red rock soil. The wines are powerful yet can be tannic. It seems that in order to find these wines you might be better off searching a US Wine shop. In Valladolid, a large town in between Toro and Ribera del Duero, I found very little Toro wines.



Ribera del Duero – Soils seemed to vary greatly amongst the Ribera del Duero. Reminded me of Bordeaux with what appeared to be satellite villages amongst a larger wine region. Yet also reminded me of Tuscany as there were some rolling hills. If you ask the locals they really enjoy the Ribera del Duero wines, yet many behind closed doors think Rioja has better quality at the high-end (excluding Vega Sicilia of course.)



Rioja – Vines, Vines and more vines. It seemed that any where grapes could grow vines were planted. Some were old and some were new. I saw several younger vines book-ended by Old Vines. I started to notice olive trees here and it was a theme as we headed towards Terra Alta. Vineyards started becoming dispersed with Olive trees. Logrono was the town we stayed in which would have been the centrally located in Rioja. Wine shops here I found to have many old bottles of Rioja which were expensive and had turned because apparently Spain has yet to receive the Memo that Wine and direct sunlight don’t mix.



Terra Alta – High elevation and vines of 60-70+ years of age pretty much everywhere. Spacing is very broad and trellising almost non-existent. Betea is a village of 2,000 people in which they have there on co-op and unfortunately for the DO of Terra Alta many of these producers are using techniques that oxidize and fail to express the potential of the area. Fortunate for the consumer, these keeps wines like Portal and Ludovicus under $17 a bottle (even though they score in the 90’s by Parker on multiple vintages.)



Priorat – Another one of those towns that we only drove through versus stopping into town for further investigation. Just a stop as we headed to Bordeaux. The Licorella is truly unique and another blink and you pass it wine regions. It looks to be quite difficult to manage a vineyard and harvest must be exhausting. These wines seem to be very well respected in most of Spain, but I failed to locate a single bottle in any shop of the other major wine regions.





Spain seems a bit disorganized and maybe slightly dis-interested in attempting to really push global expansion and local education. It is quite difficult when you need a siesta in the middle of the day to stay focused on an industry. While one day they will realize that the wine potential of Spain might by synonymous with Global wine powers such as France and Italy. Until then, enjoy the massive savings on world-class old world wines.