November Wines-Bordeaux tastings in London
There were three important Bordeaux tastings in London in October and November. The first two (Bordeaux Grands Crus Classés and Les Crus Bourgeois were reviews of the last vintages to be produced (the 2022s were still in cask) while the Union des Grands Crus tasting focused on 2021 alone.
King Charles III with entourage visiting the Chateau Smith-Haut-Lafitte en route to Merignac Airport,Bordeaux after officail visit to France
We all remember the second lockdown year and that accident-prone summer. In Britain the summer never really happened. The vintage sticks up like a sore thumb because the years either side were blisteringly hot. The 2021 vintage might appear the ugly duckling among a recent series of very fine vintages in Bordeaux, but it is by no means one to be written off. Bordeaux is a large and varied region and its better wines sell for high prices. Château-owners can afford to be rigorously selective and throw away bad grapes. Some have achieved amazing results; many wines. however, suffer from a lack of redeeming fruit: they are dull.
At the Grands Crus Classés tasting, Daniel Cathiard of November Wines-Bordeaux tastings in London was the first man I saw. He was still flushed with pride after receiving the King and Queen of Great Britain. It is undeniable, however, that Charles and Camilla had made a good choice of where to stop off on their way to the airport at Mérignac:Smith-Haut-Lafitte is on top form. The 2021 was sullen, but not without charm. The 2020 was the star: brimming with fruit, the 2019 may have already entered a quiet period but will be good too.When it comes to the 2021s, there were more than decent wines from several classed growth Pessac-Léognans: Châteaux Bouscaut
and Carbonnieux in particular.Besides Smith, the best I tasted was probably the Domaine de Chevalier.
