Bordeaux makes some of the finest wines in the world, but its cool maritime climate means that there can be lots of variation between vintages. Choosing the right year is more important in Bordeaux than almost anywhere else. Luckily for wine-lovers like me, there have been a variety of great vintages in the last fifteen years; here is my brief guide to a favourite year of mine, 2009.
Often described as the ‘vintage of the century’, 2009 was hugely successful by anybody’s standards. A warm summer lead to excellent ripeness in the grapes, but the nights were mercifully cool leading to ripe, smooth, hedonistic wines that retain fresh acidity. This blessed growing season also helped the grapes to develop high quantities of tannin, which, along with good acidity, is one of the key characteristics of a wine that will develop and improve over many years in bottle.
Perhaps more importantly for impatient drinkers like me, 2009 is a rare example of a Bordeaux vintage whose wines are very accessible in their youth, due to their opulence, intensity, and velvety tannins. I found the Chateau L’Enclos (see below) particularly hard to resist, although it has the potential to last another ten years!
If you are usually a New World drinker, these wines could be the perfect introduction to what Bordeaux has to offer.
Three for the table:
- Chateau Noaillac 2009, Médoc
- Chateau Patache d’Aux 2009, Médoc Cru Bourgeois Superieur
- Chateau Cissac 2009, Haut-Médoc
Three for the cellar:
- Esprit de Chevalier Rouge, Domaine de Chevalier 2009, Pessac-Léognan
- Chateau de Candale 2009, Saint-Émilion Grand Cru
- Chateau L’Enclos 2009, Pomerol
Alex’s Bordeaux Bundle is available to buy at £292 a saving of £50 on the usual price. You’ll get two bottles of each wine and free delivery too.
