All Bordeaux 2023 coverage:

Verdict & top-scoring wines | How the weather conditions shaped the vintage | Decoding the yields | Wine styles: what to expect

Appellation analysis

St-Estèphe | St-Julien | Pauillac | Margaux | Pessac-Léognan | St-Emilion | Pomerol | Dry whites | Top value | Sauternes & Barsac

Médoc, Haut-Médoc, Moulis & Listrac 2023: A variable vintage

Scroll down to see notes and scores for the top Médoc, Haut-Médoc, Moulis & Listrac en primeur 2023 wines

Vintage overview

When tasting red wines from the Listrac region, I found that the few and far between dry whites performed better: a sign for this catch-all category, as properties in the other appellations also produce a few dry whites.

While some estates with the means to remove mildew-affected Merlots did well, others showed tell-tale signs of mildew damage: green, stemmy falvours and hard tannins. Care is needed when considering these four broader Médoc appellations, with ‘variable’ an apt description.

On a general basis, properties benefitting from cooler climates further north – such as an outstanding Château Sociando Mallet along with fine performances from Château Les Ormes Sorbet (Médoc), Château Bel Air Gloria (Haut-Médoc), Château Larrivaux (Haut-Médoc) – tended to surpass properties in the south.

But that generalisation does not count when it comes to estates that were unable to sort out mildew-affected grapes or did not wait to harvest ripe Cabernets.

Some estates further south, such as Château Poujeaux in Moulis or Château Clarke in Listrac did manage the conditions well and their efforts stand out from the rest.

Other names to look out for in these fringe appellations include most of the classified growths from the Haut-Médoc, including Château Belgrave, Château de Camensac and (especially) Château La Lagune.

See the top-scoring Médoc, Haut-Médoc, Moulis & Listrac 2023 en primeur wines

Search all 550+ Bordeaux 2023 en primeur ratings published

Related articles

• Bordeaux 2023: Our en primeur verdict and top-scoring wines
• Bordeaux 2023: What to expect from the wines stylistically
• Bordeaux 2023 market analysis: Lafite Rothschild released

Médoc/Haut Médoc/ Moulis and Listrac 2021

Average yields:

• AOC Médoc 35.5hl/ha. A decrease of 11% from 2020.
• Haut-Médoc 33.4hl/ha. A decrease of 6% from 2020.

What you find from the 2021 wines

In a year in which overall yields in Bordeaux were down 14% on 2020 and 20% on the 10-year average, in the Médoc the harvest was down by just 6% year-on-year, which accounted for 15% of total production, with 565,000hl.

A number of less successful wines were encountered in these appellations where a general lack of water stress meant grapes were large and diluted at the time of harvest.

Many estates here rely heavily on Merlot which suffered on the Left Bank in 2021, largely from mildew, with much of the remaining Cabernet Sauvignon struggling to ripen sufficiently so chaptalisation was widespread.

Top picks:

• Château La Lagune
• Château Branas Grand Poujeaux
• Château Belgrave
• Château Arnauld
• Château Sociando-Mallet
• Château Cantemerle
• Château du Retout
• Château Magnol
• Château La Tour Carnet
• Château Rose Sainte-Croix
• Château Bournac
• Château La Tour de By
• Château Carcanieux 
  

See the top-scoring Médoc/Haut Médoc/ Moulis and Listrac 2021 en primeur wines

Search all Bordeaux 2021 en primeur ratings published so far

Back to the main Bordeaux en primeur page

After tasting more than 800 Bordeaux 2019 wines in bottle, Georgie Hindle has given her verdict on how the wines are tasting now.

Here we present a quick and easy way to see tasting notes and scores for the 66 Médoc and Haut-Médoc wines.

See also

Bordeaux 2019 in bottle: overview and top-scoring wines

Photo highlights: Bordeaux 2019 in bottle

Médoc/Haut Médoc/ Moulis and Listrac 2020

Average yields:

• 40hl/h in AOC Médoc,
• 35hl/ha in Haut-Médoc
• 31hl/ha in Moulis and Listrac

What you find

Concentrated flavours, some excellent structured wines, but here you start to also see a few bitter flavours creeping in from either low yields or underripe Cabernets.

Careful ageing is going to be needed.

As with last year, it’s a little disappointing that there are few standout wines in the Cru Bourgeois Exceptionnel category in these appellations.

What’s new

For the classified wines in these appellations, La Lagune is in its final year of biodynamic conversion, and there are changes at Château Cantemerle with Philippe Dambrine stepping down to be replaced by Laure Canu as estate director (who was previously at Château Angélus).

Château d’Agassac was bought by Gérard Jicquel (who also bought Fourcas Dupré last year).

The Borie wines in Listrac are no longer bottling under the AOC Listrac and are now all one bottling called Madame de Beaucaillou AOC Haut-Médoc. The estate comments: ‘The wine is and will remain sourced from vineyards owned by the Borie family – currently Cussac and Listrac and a small portion of Moulis – and is vinified by the same technical team as all of the Saint Julian wines including Ducru – but in the cellars of Forcas Borie’.

Château Lanessan 2020 is the last vintage with Paz Espejo – shame, as she has done a great job at this property.

Top picks and value wines:

• Château La Tour Carnet,
• Château Potensac,
• Château Branas Grand Poujeaux,
• Château Escurac,
• Château Laujac,
• Château La Cardonne,
• Château Caronne Ste-Gemme,
• Château Saint Paul,
• Château Sénéjac
• Château Mauvesin Barton.
  

See the top-scoring Médoc/Haut Médoc/ Moulis and Listrac 2020 en primeur wines

Search all Bordeaux 2020 en primeur ratings published so far

Back to the main Bordeaux en primeur page

The last round-up of Bordeaux 2018 wines covers some of the most interesting names of the region, including the recently bottled Lafleur 2018, as well as Latour, Carmes Haut-Brion, Figeac and Le Dôme.

Scroll down to see Jane Anson’s new tasting notes for Lafleur 2018, plus Figeac, Carmes Haut-Brion and more…

These are all estates that show clever approaches to handling a Bordeaux 2018 vintage that was extremely wet in the first half of the season, and extremely dry in the second part.

The conditions meant close attention was needed in the vineyard but also in the cellar.

It was a vintage that asked again what is needed to combat a changing climate?

‘A crazy season’

The newly-approved Bordeaux grape varieties allowed as of January this year get most of the headlines, but the real work of adaptation has been ongoing for some time.

Commenting on Bordeaux 2018, Château Lafleur estate manager Omri Ram says, ‘It would not have been easy to make great wine in this crazy kind of season even a decade ago – with the vines receiving an excess of water at first, then the valve being abruptly turned off.

‘It means the plant goes from comfort to discomfort extremely quickly, and you have to be there to help it adapt.

‘But years with such contrasts have become more common recently, and now we know how to make great wines from them, as long as our attention is 150% in the vineyard.’

He adds, ‘In 2018, the rain of the first half of the season meant lots of green growth of shoots and leaves, and we therefore had to be careful with the canopy size.

‘When the sun comes out that canopy becomes a sugar machine and therefore has an impact on alcohol levels, so you have to reduce the canopy very quickly to ensure the leaves don’t take up all the energy and nutrients, and that the sugar levels in the grapes don’t go too high.

‘The clay of Pomerol gives you more of a buffer against drought than sandy or gravel soils, but once it dries up it is extremely unforgiving.’

Ram continues, ‘The regularity of the dry seasons that we are seeing now mean that I expect irrigation to become widely used in Bordeaux within the next decade.

‘The problem is that it can be used as an easy shortcut without thinking about the plant and how best to work with it.’

Lafleur is quietly undertaking some of the most interesting vineyard work in Bordeaux, much of which is driven by the need to ensure a vineyard that is robust and sustainable.

Lafleur research in the vineyard

Its massal selection of old Cabernet Franc vines – they refer to them under the older name of Bouchet – has been under way since 2009.

It has now been extended into Merlot and Sauvignon Blanc, planted across their estates in Pomerol, as well as in Château Grand Village, Les Champs Libres and Les Perrières in the Fronsac region.

The team today count more than 65 different genetic variations of Bouchet alone, all of which are tracked at every stage of evolution for differences in growth and ripening, and in aromatic and taste expression in the final wine.

For the Sauvignon Blanc the team has massal selection Sancerre, massal selection Bordeaux from their oldest vines, and clones.

‘But we have only just begun working on Bordeaux massal selection for Sauvignon Blanc, and we expect to take another 10 years before we really have any answers,’ says Ram.

‘Whole bunch’ at Carmes Haut-Brion

At Carmes Haut-Brion, another form of adaptation to climate change is seen in the cellars, where whole bunch fermentation has been gradually climbing over the past five years.

The 2018 vintage retasted here saw 53% whole bunch fermentation.

‘It allows us to drop the alcohol by around 1% in the final wine and helps develop salinity,’ says estate director Guillaume Pouthier.

‘But you have to be careful. We are able to do this because our vineyard site at Carmes Haut-Brion is warm, as we are so close to the city centre of Bordeaux and have the thermal impact of this location.

‘It means that the stalks get extremely ripe, turning from green to brown and red, and therefore are not loaded with harsh tannins.

‘Even so we sort them out very carefully before use, and we are also careful to use mainly Cabernet Franc and Merlot vines. I have found less success with Cabernet Sauvignon.’

Both of these estates are interesting to follow right now – and are part of a growing number of properties looking at intelligent ways to combat changing conditions without the drastic step of introducing entirely new grape varieties.

See Jane Anson’s latest tasting notes and scores, including Figeac, Carmes-Haut Brion and Lafleur 2018 in the bottle

NB: Château Latour 2018 has not yet been released.

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The Bordeaux first growths could have been forgiven for feeling relaxed as the 1990 grapes were brought into the cellar.

This was the third successful vintage in a row, and a time where money was flowing back into the region in a serious way after a decade that had more hits than misses.

Scroll down for Jane Anson’s tasting notes and scores for the 1990 Bordeaux first growths

Beginning a new decade

Cellar upgrades were now routine, and confident winemaking choices were being introduced, such as the third wine Pauillac de Latour at Château Latour.

It was also a time of change, with new owners at Latour, and a new generation at Mouton Rothschild.

There were many owners, however, who initially reserved their enthusiasm for the wines. Although it was clear that 1990 shared with 1989 the fact that it was an early vintage, with great concentration of tannins and sugars, it had also been so hot and dry in July and August that the tannins were initially hard and unforgiving.

Vintage conditions

Cumulative temperatures from June to October in 1990 were higher than both 1989 and 1982. There was also significantly less rain in 1990; 31mm across both July and August, compared to 94mm the year before.

Blockages meant a drawn-out colour change in the berries, which led to a later harvest, and most estates had a good yield of small, thick-skinned berries (saved by two short bursts of rain on 14-15 September and on 22-23 September).

Alcohol levels were seen as high at the time, but read today as extremely reasonable. Of the six wines that we tried here, none go above 13% abv.

Most estates dropped their prices by around 20% at the moment of en primeur, but the 1990 vintage has more than proved its quality over the years.

They might not have been so quick to do so if they had known this vintage would be followed by the seriously underwhelming 1991, 1992, 1993 and 1994. Bordeaux would have to wait five years before being rewarded with another year that even approached the 1990 wines in quality.

And as is invariably the case in well-built, slow burn years such as this, the interest in the first growths is intense.

Prices today

Finding them is not easy today, and this particular tasting, if you were buying a full case of each (in bond), would mean spending somewhere close to £40,000 in the UK market.

Now 31 years old, Lafite comes in at close to £8,000 (per 12-bottle case in bond), Latour £7,500, Haut-Brion £8,500 and Margaux heading up the pack at £11,000.

And in proof of the draw of a first growth, even the less successful Mouton is priced at £4,250.

For value, relatively speaking, you might want to look at the Yquem, which is drop dead gorgeous and a ‘mere’ £2,700 for a case of 12 in bond right now.

There is no question that these are wines that have retained their power to delight, although Mouton 1990 is an excellent reminder that it is not just the vintage or even the quality of the estate that always comes out on top.

Drinking older wines is like heading into a time capsule and sometimes they point to disruption.

At this point at Mouton, Baron Philippe de Rothschild had died in 1988, bringing to an end a monumental career that had begun when he first arrived in Pauillac in 1922.

His longtime winemaker Raoul Blondin retired a year later in 1989, and so the estate was finding its feet under a new team in 1990.

It was also three years before the introduction of Petit Mouton, brought in by Baroness Philippine. From the start, Mouton was seen to have had a more problematic 1990 vintage than its fellow firsts.

Based on this tasting, this has remained true, with Mouton’s two Pauillac first growth siblings outshining it – yet with neither of those coming up to the level of Margaux and Haut-Brion.

And the success of Yquem alongside them clearly showed that 1990 managed that rare trick of being successful for both red and sweet Bordeaux – and one that has decades ahead of it.

See Jane Anson’s tasting notes and scores for the 1990 Bordeaux first growths

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On September 1 1985, Frank J Prial wrote a column in the New York Times entitled ‘Wine; the Baron’s Story’.

In it, he talks about Milady Vine, the autobiography of Baron Philippe de Rothschild at Mouton that was published the year before (easily my favourite book about Bordeaux by the way), and recounts a story about Baron Philippe being stopped for speeding in California and being asked for his driving licence.

‘Don’t have one,’ he told the astonished policeman (recounts Prial). ‘Never did. You see, I am Philippe de Rothschild.’

Scroll down to see Jane Anson’s tasting notes and scores for the 1985 Bordeaux first growths

This is the kind of story that makes drinking a 35-year-old Château Mouton Rothschild extra special.

It was being headed up by one of the most charismatic characters of 20th century Bordeaux, still attracting headlines in what was his 63rd harvest.

At this point we were just 12 years on from Mouton’s promotion to first growth status, but subsequent years had given them little opportunity to really show off.

The 1970s barely supplied a good vintage besides, at a push, the 1978, and it was only in 1982 that things really started to deliver more consistently.

The 1980s

The mid-1980s saw things looking up for the first growths in general. The rising market after 1982 meant they all had more money to invest and were finally able to put the impact of the oil crisis in the 1970s behind them.

This may be why Mouton had expanded into California with Opus One a few years before, and also why Lafite bought Rieussec in 1984 and Haut-Brion bought La Mission in 1983.

The first growths were also busy expanding their vineyards by buying up plots of land across their appellations – except for Haut-Brion, which was hemmed in by its location.

Winemaking in general had taken a step towards modernity, with temperature control widely installed in the cellars, and a higher proportion of new oak used for ageing.

However, selection for the second and third wines was still way behind what it would be a decade later, and yields remained high; both things that have left their impact on the wines today.

Taking charge

Behind the scenes, it was a very different era. Baron Philippe’s next-door neighbour at Lafite was his cousin Baron Eric de Rothschild, who had taken over in 1973, and relations were finally thawing after the more fraught exchanges between Philippe and Eric’s uncle, Baron Elie.

Over at Haut-Brion, Joan Dillon, the Duchess de Mouchy, was in charge – granddaughter of Clarence Dillon and daughter of C Douglas Dillon, who was treasury secretary under John F Kennedy and US ambassador to France under president Eisenhower.

The English were still installed at Latour, with Lord Cowdray heading up the Pearson Group in the last years before selling on to Allied-Lyons in 1989. Wine writer Hugh Johnson was appointed to Latour’s board in 1986.

Of the five first growths in the era, only Château Margaux still has the same person in charge today, with Corinne Mentzelopoulos taking over in 1980. Paul Pontallier had arrived two years before and together they oversaw a wholesale investment programme in Château and vineyard.

Previous owner Bernard Ginestet had in fact expressed cautious disapproval of the ‘power of money’ and the ‘startling rapidity’ of the changes in his 1985 book on the Margaux region.

In 1985, they had an unusual vintage on their hands – the best since 1982 for sure, but not without its challenges.

1985 weather

Winter in 1985 had been extremely cold, as cold as 1956, with -10 degrees Celsius for a full five days straight in January, going down to -14.5C on 16 January Pauillac.

The vines were dormant at this point, though, making it far less destructive than the 1956 frost, and by spring things had returned to normal with good, even flowering.

July saw temperatures that were just a tiny bit above average. August was cool but dry, with temperatures two degrees Celsius below the average and 40mm less rain than average.

But it was the harvest that really marked the wines, with a brilliant September that saw barely a drop of rain – just 4mm in total, 64mm less than average, and temperatures that were two degrees Celsius hotter than the average.

Only 1959, 1961, 1958 and 1964 had similarly hot Septembers, but this was the driest on record. Things continued into October, with 60mm less rainfall and temperatures up by 1.2 degrees on the average.

The well-drained gravels of the Médoc suffered a little from this drought, giving wines that had exuberant fruit but some drying tannins, and certainly they are not as dense in texture and fruit character at this point than the 1986s.

The appellation that was most impacted by the drought was Sauternes, as botrytis refused to arrive. That’s why for this tasting we chose to open the Yquem 1989, the best vintage of the decade in the appellation and a resounding success even 32 years on.

Ready to drink

The reds are fully in their drinking window, but none are ready to quit.

And they each remain true to their character – savoury elegance at Lafite, muscular depth at Latour (if a little disappointing on this showing), opulent generosity at Mouton, seductive finesse at Margaux and balanced fruits and smoky aromatics at Haut-Brion.

They lack the depths of the very best years perhaps, but these remain impressive bottles.

See Jane Anson’s tasting notes and scores for the 1985 Bordeaux first growths, plus Yquem 1989.

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‘Good grapes, good luck and a little savvy’, is how The Times newspaper described the Bordeaux 2000 vintage at the time.

Over the following 20 years, those who bought the wines have had to be patient, as this much-touted millennium vintage has proved one of the more stubborn years to reach its drinking window, reflecting its richly tannic structure that proved awkward at times.

Scroll down to see Jane Anson’s tasting notes for the Bordeaux 2000 first growths

This is why the 2001, with its slightly fresher and more sculpted tannins and fruits, has proved the more appealing of the two in so many tastings over the past two decades.

But, the 2000 is now coming round, underlining that the standard 10-year rule in Bordeaux needs instead a vintage-by-vintage approach.

And this is even more true when looking at the Left Bank first growths, always among the most structured and slow-ageing wines of Bordeaux, built to slowly reveal their potential and to reward patience.

This tasting, covering all five 1855 first growth reds plus first growth supérieur Château d’Yquem, showed the truth of this, and revealed some useful information for those wondering when to open up their bottles.

Release prices

The average rise in release prices 1999 to 2000 reflected the optimism in quality, as well as a recognition of the power of the three zeros.

The rise was 22%, with the first growths coming out at €141 per bottle ex-Bordeaux, up to €380 for the third ‘tranche’ of releases.

It was an incredible price at the time; the same wines in 1996, just four years earlier, had released ex-Bordeaux at closer to €46 ex-Bordeaux for their first tranche. Yet all have proved good investments.

Mouton 2000 ahead of the pack

Mouton has seen the highest price rise since release, available on the market today for somewhere close to £1,800 in bond per bottle. It was helped along the way by the marketing genius of Baroness Philippine de Rothschild, who commissioned the infamous black and gold ‘Augsburg Ram’ commemorative bottle that quickly became a collectors’ item.

An Imperial of Mouton 2000 sold for £14,300 at auction in 2017 and has proved to be the most popular of all First Growth commemorative bottlings that have appeared at various intervals over the past few decades.

In the glass, Mouton 2000 is a sumptuous wine, but the estate had not yet reached the heights that would be attained following the arrival of Philippe Dhalluin four years later.

For the other Firsts, Lafite is not far behind Mouton in price, at around £1,200 in bond per bottle. Latour is around £850, Margaux £800 and Haut-Brion £650. Based purely on this tasting, those last two offer particular value.

Yquem, which was not released en primeur at the time, can be found at around £300 per bottle in bond; in general, add around 20% to the in-bond prices to get current market prices in the UK.

What has changed at the châteaux?

This tasting also highlighted the changes that have taken place at Bordeaux’s top estates over the past two decades.

Below is what has happened to vineyard size since 1996:

• Haut-Brion has remained the same size and shape at 53 hectares (ha);
• Château dYquem has remained the same size and shape at a rather larger 113ha;
• Lafite has increased from 94ha to 110ha;
• Mouton has increased from 59ha to 83ha;
• Latour has increased from 65ha to 92ha;
• Margaux has decreased from 90ha to 82ha.

All six have kept the same owners over the past 20 years, even with changes at the top.

Five of the six are family-owned, although by extremely well-heeled families that tend to have powerhouse businesses behind them. For example, one has two branches of the Rothschilds at Mouton and Lafite, François Pinault of luxury group Kering at Latour, Prince Robert of Luxembourg at Haut-Brion, and Corinne Mentzelopoulos at Margaux.

Only Yquem is something of an outlier here; luxury goods group LVMH having acquired a majority stake in the family-owned Sauternes estate at the close of the 20th century.

Back in 2000, Margaux was owned by Mentzelopoulos in partnership with the Agnelli family of Fiat; she would take full ownership as of 2003.

Paul Pontallier was her director and right-hand man, with the success of that partnership obvious in the glass, but current director Philippe Bascaules had already been there for 10 years, starting out in research and development and quality control and providing continuity today.

At Lafite, Baron Eric de Rothschild was owner and figurehead, but today his daughter, Saskia de Rothschild, is leading the estate. Working alongside the Baron were Christophe Salin as CEO and Charles Chevallier as estate director and winemaker, a team that has now passed over to estate director Eric Kohler – already with the Rothschild family in 2000 – and Jean-Guillame Prats as CEO, who was just next door at Cos d’Estournel 20 years ago.

Haut-Brion has also seen a generational shift at the top. In 2000, the estate manager and winemaker was Jean-Bernard Delmas, father of current director Jean-Philippe. On the ownership side, Joan Dillon, Duchess de Mouchy, led the estate 20 years ago and has since passed on the baton to her son, Prince Robert of Luxembourg.

Mouton was headed up by Baroness Philippine de Rothschild, mother of the three current co-owners, Philippe Sereys de Rothschild, Camille Sereys de Rothschild and Julien Beaumarchais de Rothschild.

François Pinault arrived at Latour in 1993, and current director Frédéric Engerer was also already in place.

At Yquem, current winemaker Sandrine Garbay had arrived in 1998 and was on her second vintage in 2000.

As noted above, current owner Bernard Arnault of LVMH had already arrived as a shareholder in 2000, but the property was still run by Alexandre de Lur Saluces, whose family had been in place since 1785. Pierre Lurton was appointed CEO of Yquem in 2004, with Lur Saluces becoming an advisor to LVMH around its wine business interests.

All in all, a fitting reminder that these estates have a power that outlasts specific generations, even specific families, generating their own momentum and sense of history.

See Jane Anson’s Bordeaux First Growth 2000 vintage tasting notes and scores

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Search all Médoc & Haut-Médoc, Moulis & Listrac 2019 wine ratings

In terms of a comparison, the classified wines from the Médoc peninsula (classifieds included) seem to be like 1996, 2000 or 2010 in style with regard to depth and concentration, but are less consistent when you head down to cru bourgeois and similar level.

Scroll down to see the top-rated Médoc & Haut-Médoc, Moulis & Listrac 2019 wines

Changes

The major news across these appellations is the new Cru Bourgeois classification, with a return to the three-tier system.

Personally, I was a little disappointed that the Cru Bourgeois Exceptionnels were not all standout wines that I was hoping for – Agassac, Arnauld and Belle-Vue notable exceptions (as are the St Estèphes, that all performed strongly).

I also found the same thing with the Cru Bourgeois Superieurs – there are some wonderful wines but not as many standouts as I was expecting to truly reflect the new system in terms of consumer confidence and expectations in such a good vintage.

That is not to say there weren’t great wines among them, but it was not a slam-dunk for them all. I’m looking forward to watching the system develop though, and hope to see more consistency from those who have been rewarded with these higher levels over the next few vintages.

Look out for a 100% Petit Verdot at Château Loustaneuf – first vintage of this wine but with real promise.

At 94 points we have Château La Lagune, performing brilliantly in this vintage. And a brilliant Sociando-Mallet to mark Jean Gautreau’s final vintage.

Top Scorers (all are good value)

Médoc/Haut-Médoc: Gironville, Belle-Vue, Tour Séran, Bel-Air Gloria (owned by Domaines Henri Martin), Escurac, Maurac, Coudot, Les Grands Chênes, Belgrave, Senejac.

Listrac/Moulis: Chasse-Spleen, Poujeaux, Maucaillou, Fonréaud, Clarke, Fourcas Dupré, Fourcas Hosten.

See the top-rated Médoc & Haut-Médoc, Moulis & Listrac 2019 wines

The following wines have all been scored 92 points and above

Back to the main Bordeaux en primeur page

It’s the perfect time to take an in-depth look at these two vintages, says Jane Anson...

88 Haut-Médoc wines from 2010 and 2014 tasted, with 1 Outstanding and 17 Highly Recommended

The tasters: Jane Anson, James Lawther MW and Ronan Sayburn MS

Scroll down to see the wines

Summary by Jane Anson, Decanter contributing editor:

Looking at the numbers, we tasted through 88 wines in total across the Haut-Médoc, with a relatively even split between 2010s and the 2014s, and we found a good many successful bottles that are worth stocking up on.

Living up to expectations, the Haut-Médoc 2010s shone, but 2014 achieved some good scores too. Plenty of good drinking wines for both now and the coming years.

A full 18 wines out of the 88 were awarded 90 points or more – Highly Recommended here, or a Silver medal in the Decanter World Wine Awards system.

Only one made it into the 95+ Exceptional/Gold bracket (and none in 98+ Outstanding/Platinum). But that’s still 20% of the tasting Highly Recommended, with only 23 wines scoring below the 86 Recommended threshold. A reasonable result when you consider that the vast majority of the wines we tasted retail at less than £30, and many below £15.

As expected, there was a pretty clear distinction between the two vintages. Five of the top seven wines (scoring 91 and above) were from 2010, although eight of the top 18 (90 and above) were from 2014.

And, even in 2010, there was a distinction between the classified estates and non-classifieds (or at least the more expensive wines) in terms of ageing potential. The classified 2010s were barely out of the starting blocks, while many of the crus bourgeois or other 2010s were getting fully into their drinking window – important to note, when you read so much about how we should be leaving our 2010 wines for another five years at least. It’s worth pointing out that some 2010s and succulent and joyful right now, and have no need of further ageing.

But there were clear highlights and excellent fruits on display in 2014, scattered from top to bottom of the scores, though in general the wines did not have the same density and longevity as the 2010s. Too many 2014s showed the weakness of the vintage in terms of underripe fruits that left traces of green pepper flavours.

Assessing large groups of wines in panel tastings really drives the point home that it is not always easy delivering a supple, fruit-filled, easy-drinking wine at the lower price points in an oceanic climate such as Bordeaux. It gives you huge respect for the ones that manage it.

The two highest-scoring 2014s were Châteaux La Lagune and Arnauld, with La Tour Carnet and Cambon La Pelouse also deserving a nod – in fact La Tour Carnet was one of the few where all three judges scored it equally well, with a Highly Recommended across the board.

And it’s great to see Château Arnauld do so well, especially as it made it into the top wines for both its 2010 and 2014. It’s an estate that is on excellent terroir, just outside the Margaux appellation borders, and has been investing heavily over the past decade. Hubert de Boüard consults, and there’s a focus increasingly on ensuring ripe fruits and soft tannins, but still within the signature sculpted elegance of a Haut-Médoc.

There were also, as expected, a number of great value wines on offer – the second wines of Châteaux Chasse-Spleen and Lynch-Moussas in 2010 are definitely worth getting hold of, both well priced and delicious; and the top-three wine Château Sénéjac 2010 can be found at under £25, which makes it a clear winner in a vintage where classified estates often retailed above £50, even £100.

Ronan Sayburn MS, head of wine at 67 Pall Mall in London, summed up the tasting by acknowledging: ‘Lots of solid bronze- and silver-level wines, to be drunk with food. Lots of tannins and acid, highly structured, lots of classic Bordeaux successes on display.’

The scores

88 wines tasted

Entry criteria: Producers and UK agents were invited to submit their AP Haut-Médoc reds from 2010 and 2014, with a maximum of three wines per producer

2010

Exceptional 0

Outstanding 1

Highly Recommended 9

Recommended 23

Commended 7

Fair 2

Poor 0

Faulty 1

2014

Exceptional 0

Outstanding 0

Highly Recommended 8

Recommended 23

Commended 12

Fair 2

Poor 0

Faulty 0

Our tasters each pick their top three wines from the tasting:

Jane Anson

Decanter’s Bordeaux correspondent, Anson lives in the region and is an accredited wine teacher at the Ecole du Vin in Bordeaux. Her book titles include Bordeaux Legends, a history of the 1855 first growth estates (Abrams 2013), and Wine Revolution (Quarto 2017). 

Chateau Belle-Vue 2010

A generous percentage of spicy, rich Petit Verdot is part of the character of this wine, and it really suits the intense character of the 2010 vintage. The texture and clarity of the fruit is clear. Intense, cassis-led, mixed with liquorice root and charcoal, roasted coffee bean, great texture and balance, tannins that are still young and with huge life ahead. 93 Drink 2019-2026

Chateau Sénéjac 2010

One of the most reliable names in the Haut-Médoc appellation, Lorraine Cordier was running this lovely estate with biodynamic farming in 2010 (she passed away in 2011 although the property remains in his family). Sweet fruit evident on the nose, some touches of damson and black cherry jam through the palate, super enjoyable on its own but will also be great with food. Vibrant and full of fruit. 93 Drink 2019-2022

Château Arnauld 2014

An excellent property with vines located on a high quality gravel terrace just outside the borders of Margaux, with serious investment in recent years. Clear grip, poise and enjoyable depth of damson and blackberry fruit expression, with lovely smoked spice notes on the nose. The tannins are firm but pliable. Great potential and a real success in the vintage (particularly impressive as Arnauld did so well in both vintages tasted). Hubert de Boüard consultant. 92 Drink 2019-2033

James Lawther MW

A contributing editor to Decanter and Regional co-Chair for Languedoc-Roussillon at the Decanter World Wine Awards, Lawther is an independent wine writer, lecturer and tour guide based in Bordeaux. A Master of Wine since 1993, he has been writing about Languedoc-Roussillon for the last 20 years.

Château Arnauld 2010

This cru bourgeois was the surprise package. Ripe, lush and creamy, it shows the elegance of its near Margaux site and the generosity of the vintage. A blend of 57% Cabernet Sauvignon and 43% Merlot, it can also age. 95 Drink 2019-2027

Château Belgrave 2014

The Dourthe team have invested considerable time and money in this good value fifth growth (1855) and the results show. A blend of 66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Merlot and 2% Petit Verdot, it’s dark, long and linear – a classic for ageing. 92 Drink 2019-2028

Château Sénéjac 2010

This southern Haut-Médoc has always been a favourite. Owned by the same family as fourth growth (1855) St-Julien Château Talbot since 1999, it produces characterful but harmonious wines, the fruit on the Cabernet-dominant 2010 particularly zesty and expressive. 91 Drink 2019-2022

Ronan Sayburn MS

Sayburn is CEO at the Court of Master Sommeliers Europe, head of wines at private members’ club 67 Pall Mall, and runs his own consultancy and wine training company, RS Wine Academy. A former UK Sommelier of the Year and regular judge in the competition, he is also a judge at the Decanter World Wine Awards.

Château Arnauld 2010

Located between Moulis and Margaux, opposite the iconic Le Lion d’Or restaurant, this Allianz Insurance group-owned château has seen much improvement recently. Shows great depth, elegance and balance with well-integrated oak and a modern winemaking technique. 95 Drink 2019-2027

Château Cantemerle 2010

Driving from Mérignac airport up to the Médoc along the D2, Cantemerle is the first of the great wine estates that you encounter. It’s a 90ha property located close to La Lagune. This wine shows classic graphite, cedar and pencil shavings on the nose with an elegant, multi-layered palate. Refined and attractive. 94 Drink 2019-2029

Les Hauts de Lynch-Moussas 2014

Found of gravelly/clay soils close to Batailley and Grand-Puy-Lacoste. Improvements have been seen at this property of late, and this second wine provides excellent value for money: delicious blackcurrant, dark cherry and plum wrapped in fine oak, cedarwood and tobacco. 93 Drink 2019-2027

About Haut-Médoc

On the face of things, this tasting might look a little unfair, pitting the 2010 vintage in Bordeaux against the 2014. One year with all the acclaim, the other frequently overshadowed.

2010 was without question an exceptionally strong year (given a Decanter 5/5 rating on both Left Bank and Right), with lots of sunshine but cool nights ensuring plenty of thick skins, intense concentrated flavours and big, bold tannins. All of this should perfectly suit the Cabernet Sauvignon-dominated Haut-Médocs, as the long harvest window meant excellent ripening. At eight years old, these wines should be in the absolute sweet spot.

2014 was also a strong vintage in some areas, and luckily the Haut-Médoc was one that most benefited from the beautiful Indian summer – after a July and August that gave winemakers sleepless nights. The southern Médoc was not quite as lucky as the northern sector, because it was up beyond Margaux where rainfall was particularly low during harvest, but a long ripening period will always suit Cabernet Sauvignon, and a late harvest where picking takes place in October will almost invariably mean reasonable alcohols and balanced acidities – a good thing, as long as there is enough fruit to buttress the whole experience.

Perfect timing

We should expect to find all these wines relatively young, with tight black fruit flavours and tannins still holding the fruit confidently in place, although Haut-Médocs traditionally will not take as long to be ready to open as the village appellations. The four years’ difference could mean that many of the wines – the concentrated 2010s as well as the slightly lighter 2014s – are beginning to open up and getting ready to be enjoyed.

In this tasting we had the Haut-Médoc 1855 classified wines of Belgrave, Camensac, La Lagune and La Tour Carnet, alongside much-loved names such as Cambon La Pelouse and Caronne Ste Gemme, so plenty to look forward to. Panel tastings at this stage are really important, as this moment of ageing is when corks are starting to be pulled.

Lining up such a good number of wines means the exceptional ones really do stand out, and it’s particularly interesting to see who did well across both vintages. In many cases, the 2010 bottles were considerably more expensive, although at the cru bourgeois and general Haut-Médoc level, this certainly isn’t always the case. Would the price make a difference? And would the 2010s wipe the floor with their 2014 counterparts?…

Haut-Médoc: the facts

Médoc appellations Médoc, Haut-Médoc, Moulis, Listrac, Margaux, St-Julien, Pauillac, St-Estèphe; total 16,000ha (15% of Bordeaux’s vineyard); about 600 châteaux

Haut-Médoc AP 4,318ha, 301 winemakers

Date of AP 1936

Location Southern part of Médoc, below AP Médoc, closer to city of Bordeaux

Soils Gravel and clay

1855 classifications in Haut-Médoc Five châteaux

Grapes Cabernet Sauvignon 50%, Merlot 44%, Cabernet Franc 4%, Petit Verdot 2%

Haut-Médoc: know your vintages

2016 Big, bristling tannins, great freshness, a more architectural feel than the previous year, but with many successes. Best wines are around Pauillac and St-Julien.

2015 Particularly successful in the southern Médoc (and on the Right Bank), so covering a lot of these Haut-Médoc producers. Plenty of sunshine, excellent ripeness, fruit plush and plump.

2014 Again, as this tasting shows, an above average year with some real successes in the Médoc, but uneven.

2013 Weakest recent vintage, very challenging conditions. Some producers managed to bottle fruit-forward, enjoyable wines, mainly through careful selection and sorting, but proceed carefully.

2012 Some tight tannins at first, a classic year rather than exceptional, but lovely fruit up in the Médoc, and many wines that are starting to be enjoyed.

2011 A vintage that should be looked at again right now. Exceptionally hot in April and May, although worries of drought were lessened by a cool July, then a damp August, followed by an excellent harvest. Initial hard tannins are beginning to soften.

2010 An exceptional vintage offering excellent fruit-tannin- acid balance, and long-living.

See all the wines from this tasting

Top Scoring Bordeaux 2010 & 2014

See all of the wines in this panel tasting

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All Haut-Médoc 2016 wines

Some extremely successful wines in this category.

The 1855 classified wines and top crus bourgeois have produced some of their best-ever bottles.

But there are successes across the board as the dry, late-harvest summer meant long, slow ripening for the Cabernet Sauvignon.

The wines have fruit and power combined with high levels of silky tannins.

• Bordeaux 2016 in Médoc: Anson’s first impression

• Latest on Bordeaux en primeur

The below wines are some of the top scoring Haut-Médoc 2016 – find all of the Haut-Médoc 2016 wines here.

The magnificent fortified castle overlooking the Gironde Estuary has its origins in the 11th century.

First built to defend the Médoc from Viking invasions by sea, Château de Lamarque was also subject to fierce assaults by the English during the Hundred Years’ War. While documents date the vineyards from the 15th century, wine production only became established after the French Revolution. In 1839, the estate passed into the hands of the Comte de Fumel, whose family were former owners of Margaux. Today, it is his descendant Pierre-Gilles Gromand- Brunet d’Evry and his wife Marie-Hélène who manage de Lamarque with great intelligence.

• Spurrier recommends: Château de Lamarque, Haut-Médoc 2010

The 38ha of vineyards, 35 years old on average, lie away from the castle in three main parcels, each on one of the gravelly croupes for which the Médoc is famed: the main plots lie close to Moulis, with Poujeaux, Chasse-Spleen and Maucaillou as neighbours, while another is opposite Malescasse just to the south on the way to Arcins. In the cellar, de Lamarque is a bastion of tradition: vinification is in stainless steel and cement vats, each plot fermented separately. The tanks are often ‘bled’ by up to 15% to improve concentration without too much extraction and a little press wine may be blended in if thought necessary to further improve structure. The wine is aged for 18 months in Allier oak, 15% new each year, and is bottled without filtration. Pierre-Gilles says: ‘The philosophy of our vinification is based on respect for the fruit: every aspect of the winemaking process is managed smoothly.’

I have known the Gromand d’Evrys for many years and have always found de Lamarque to be one of the most reliable of the very good Haut-Médocs that are found between Margaux and St-Julien. Perhaps its aristocratic lineage helps, and while the wine is anything but modern, it is completely up-to-date. Every vintage, good and less good, is reflected in the finished wine, which can be drunk at five years in lighter vintages and another decade for the classics.

The feeling was that 2014 was a Cabernet vintage due to the long hangtime that Cabernets Sauvignon and Franc love, and this certainly favoured the Left Bank. However, looking at the proportion of Merlot now planted in the Médoc, this was not the sole cause for quality. Words like ‘clarity’, ‘precision’, ‘fragrance’ and ‘freshness’ abounded in my notes and in the leaflets produced by the châteaux, and while Merlot’s ripe black fruits were present, blending perfectly with the firmer Cabernets, words like ‘plummy’, ‘rich’ and ‘robust’ were hardly mentioned.

The wines in general have lovely fruit, a natural density and tannins that support but do not overwhelm, creating wines that express their origins and impress by so doing. In the Médoc, the elegance of Margaux came through, but fewer great wines than expected; St-Julien was as homogenous as ever as a commune, while the three Léovilles were as different as usual with some lesser crus coming on strong. Further north, there were some great successes in Pauillac, a vast improvement on an uneven 2013, while the variety on offer in St-Estèphe made this, for me, the commune of the vintage.

The generic Médocs will make good bottles for the turn of the decade, as will the interestingly varied Haut-Médocs with more depth and length. Finally , Listrac and Moulis, the former firm, the latter supple, were more than reliable. The three rare whites I tasted from Margaux, Mouton Rothschild and Cos d’Estournel were remarkably good. All in all, 2014 on the Left Bank left a very good impression.

Spread over 15 communes from south of Margaux to north of St-Estèphe, Haut-Médoc is an appelation rather than a style. Here more than 120 crus bourgeois compete for attention in financial circumstances that are not easy, due to their modest prices compared to the neighbouring classed growths. Thos that succeeded and in 2014 there were many do so with a blend of good terroir and attention to detail. Long autumn ripening has brought out the best to show character of fruit that will hold for a decade or more.

Chateau d'Agassac in Bordeaux's Haut-Medoc has hired right bank wine consultant Stephane Derenoncourt to help it improve the quality of its grand vin.

The move follows a 17-year vineyard restructuring at d’Agassac (pictured), which will now culminate in the chateau significantly cutting the amount of grapes feeding into its top wine.

Previously, the estate used 70% of its annual harvest to produce its grand vin, but that will fall to 40% from now on, it said this week.

Derenoncourt‘s arrival is expected to help the estate improve the quality of its wine, but the hiring of one of Bordeaux’s most well-known consultants may also have commercial advantages.

It also signals another foray onto the left bank for Bordeaux’s right bank consultants.

Derenoncourt consults for dozens of estates, including 28 in St Emilion and also others across the Bordeaux area and further afield.

Speaking to Decanter.com during the recent Bordeaux en primeur week, he said that he tries to take a relatively hands-off approach at the estates he works with.

‘When I was young, I fell in love with wine, because of the place,’ he said. ‘I always try to look for the identity of the place. I don’t want to make something that when you taste it, you think Derenoncourt.’

Written by Chris Mercer

Chateau Latour has broken ranks with the other first growths by releasing its second wine at a much higher price than its peers.

Latour: breaking ranks?

Forts de Latour is €162 per bottle ex-negociant, compared with €108 for the other second wines – Margaux’s Pavillon Rouge, Carruades de Lafite, Petit Mouton and Le Clarence de Haut Brion.

Merchants are still waiting for the release of Latour’s grand vin, the last of the first growths to declare.

Allocations from the top chateaux are consistently down on last year, the properties releasing around half of what they allocated last year.

As reported on Decanter.com this week, Chateau Mouton has been the most sparing, releasing only 35% of its wine.

Chateau Haut Brion has released its grand vin at €660 ex-negociant, 10% more than the 2009 price of €600.

Haut Brion’s second wine, Le Clarence de Haut Brion, is keeping pace with other second wines at €108 ex-negociant, 20% up on its 2009 price of €90.

One of the most-praised wines of 2010, St Julien Chateau Leoville Las Cases, given an almost-perfect 19.5 points by Steven Spurrier and described as ‘a great wine in the most simple sense of the term’, has reduced its price by 11% to come out at €192, compared with €216 last year.

The often-controversial St Emilion Premier Grand Cru Classe Chateau Pavie, described by James Lawther MW for Decanter as ‘huge and muscular’ and ‘aromatically pitched closer to the Mediterranean with raisined fruit notes’ is 14% up on last year at €225 ex-negociant.

ALL PRICES QUOTED ARE PER BOTTLE

Written by Adam Lechmere, and Jane Anson in Bordeaux