Médoc grand cru classé 2016: Panel tasting results

2016 Médoc grand cru classés — (Image credit: Credit Unknown)

Georgie Hindle, Vincenzo Arnese and Robert Mathias MW tasted 55 wines, with 11 Outstanding and 28 Highly recommended

Médoc grand cru classé 2016: Panel tasting scores

55 wines tasted

Exceptional 0

Outstanding 11

Highly recommended 28

Recommended 16

Commended 0

Entry criteria: producers and UK agents were invited to submit their 2016 vintage red wines from any appellation in the Médoc, including grand cru classé and second wines

Scroll down to see the top-scoring wines from the Médoc grand cru classé 2016 tasting

Positive outlook

It’s fair to say that expectations were high going into this Left Bank grand cru classé tasting, with the 2016 vintage hailed as one of the region’s finest in recent decades, celebrated for its balance, structure and ageing potential.

What began as a wet, soggy spring turned into a long, hot and exceptionally dry summer with refreshing rains just before ideal harvest conditions set in.

The result: concentrated reds with ripe tannins, bright acidity and intense fruit, drawing comparisons to 2005 and 2010 but distinguished by vibrant freshness.

A clearly successful tasting, with 20% of wines achieving the Outstanding rating, reassuringly identical to the St-Emilion GCC 2016 panel tasting in our 2023 Bordeaux guide (with 11 outstanding out of 59 wines).

Robert Mathias MW noted: ‘There’s a really good minimum level of quality. I maybe expected a little more charm, but equally I do like the seriousness of the 2016s.

‘Tannins are a bit chunky, sometimes heavy-handed in extraction and oak, yet freshness and balanced alcohol were positives. The best were excellent. I think 2016 is the first vintage in the new “modern” era of Bordeaux.’

Secondary rewards

Mathias highlighted St-Julien’s consistency and northern Médoc’s strength (Margaux was more variable), adding: ‘Second wines are drinking now, for sure, and for another five years, which is impressive, while the grands vins are more muscular and tightly coiled.

‘These are impressive wines which are fun to open to see how they develop in the glass,’ he continued. ‘But there’s not necessarily a rush to pull the cork on many of the top cru classé wines – in fact they’re quite closed.’

Vincenzo Arnese agreed: ‘Second labels are more approachable and ready now. There were a few dry wines but also real freshness across the board, with low alcohols. Some wines truly shone – and they’ll have impressive ageing abilities.’

The tasting underscored 2016’s excellence, and yet not everything was perfect.

Roughly 10% of the wines showed faults, notably cork taint and oxidation – a significant reminder of the challenges posed by traditional closures, even at the highest level.

See all recommendations from the Médoc grand cru classé 2016 tasting

What to eat with Médoc 2016, by Fiona Beckett

Given the judges’ conclusion that many of these wines are still quite closed, it’s going to be a question of what food would go best with the second wines at the moment.

Does the ‘new era of Bordeaux’ mean a new era of food pairing? Not necessarily – it’s still hard to beat the classics – but there is a growing realisation that many of the cuisines that might have been regarded as inimical to appellations such as St-Julien, Margaux and Pauillac are no longer so.

Dishes like Korean bulgogi or braised short rib, for instance. Of course, there’ll always be a place for these wines with what I would call gentleman’s club food: homely dishes like steak pie and shepherd’s pie.

Top Bordeaux can shine with a fair amount of rusticity, too. I’ve enjoyed Pauillac with cassoulet.

Traditional options are so familiar that it’s easy to overlook the elements that can throw or skew a mature wine.

An over-reduced jus, a hotter-than-usual horseradish sauce or a strongly flavoured vegetable such as red cabbage can all take their toll on a good bottle. Avoid if you can.