Tasting Report: My 50 Top 2013 Red Barrel Samples – Claret Vintage
If you are reading this, you probably already know all about the 2013 vintage in Bordeaux. It is one of the most famous vintages in a long time for France's premier wine region, and all for the wrong reasons.
Yes, the vine growing conditions were atrocious. It was too cold and wet in the spring and early summer. Anyone who went to VinExpo like I did froze his or her ass off. Thank God for the Bordelais, most of July and August were hot and sunny. This saved many wine estates, but this was followed by hail and then the weather turned rainy for most of September and October. If this wasn't bad enough, rot began to set in, and chateaux had to rush their harvest. This prevented most wineries from harvesting their grapes at the ripeness levels they prefer.
Many winemakers and chateaux owners said the same thing. If it weren’t for improvements in viticulture and winemaking, 2013 would have been one of the worst vintages in decades - it could have been as bad as 1963.
The end results are hundreds of delicate, subtle, and fruity reds with fine tannins and bright acidities. They are wines that that remind me of Bordeaux produced in the 1970s and early 1980s. With a few exceptions from the top winemakers, the 2013s don’t have the structure or richness of any of the recent vintages. The 2013s will be for early consumption - right out of the bottle or after three to five years of bottle age.
The majority of Bordeaux produced mediocre, almost-undrinkable wines. Thousands of small growers and winemakers could not afford to take the draconian measures in their vineyards or cellars to select the best grapes and wines. Consequently, they had to leave it up to Mother Nature, and she dealt them a horrible hand.
My tasting over that last ten days primarily focused on the best names in Bordeaux, and I reviewed about 550 wines. In this first report on 2013 Bordeaux en primeur (futures), I list my 50 Top 2013 Bordeaux Red Barrel Samples. In time, I will also post a report on dry whites, sweet whites, and the rest of the reds arranged by score and alphabetically.
The highlight of my latest tasting was Sauternes. These sweet wines are fabulous in 2013, and I may like them better than 2011, 2007 or 2005. They might be close to the legendary 2001 vintage in quality and style. They have a purity of botrytised fruit that is amazing. The Chateau d'Yquem 2013 is fantastic. It is THE wine of the vintage.
The dry whites are also excellent, and I found many outstanding wines from Haut-Brion, Domaine de Chevalier, and lesser know estates such as Jean Faux and Raoul. The 2013 vintage is an across-the-board success for white.
The most memorable reds from my tasting start with Chateau Margaux. The first growth made a bewitching wine with subtle and seductive aromas of rose petals, delicate strawberries, spices and nuts. It's a potpourri of smells and tastes, and I love how it was less than 13% alcohol. It was all about subtlety and finesse.
In fact, winemaker Paul Pontallier told me that the wine's complexity and refinement made him "rethink" his ideas on recent winemaking, where optimum ripeness meant potentially high alcohols. He said he learned something new from 2013, even after making more than 30 vintages at Margaux
I think that anyone who tasted 2013 Bordeaux from barrel learned something new. For some, it was a lesson in humility because many Bordeaux winemakers proved they could make very good to outstanding wines in a very difficult year. It was also a reminder that Bordeaux still makes refined and delicate reds that the British so fondly call "claret." I am happy I tasted 2013, and I look forward to drinking some from bottle in the future.
