Bordeaux 2012

Bordeaux 2012: attendance good, but doubts about quality persist

As the en primeur tasting week gets underway in Bordeaux, there are differing reports as to the quality of the vintage.

Bordeaux 2012: Chateau Raymond Lafon not to release 2012

Chateau Raymond Lafon has joined Chateau d’Yquem and Chateau Rieussec in announcing that it will not make a 2012 vintage wine.

Bordeaux 2012: 'No need to wait' says Moueix as La Fleur Petrus, Trotanoy and Belair Monange released

JP Moueix sets the early tone ahead of en primeur tasting week by releasing their full 2012 range.

Bordeaux 2012: mixed verdict on first look at Right Bank

'Brittle' and 'lots of make-up' were two of the comments from critics as London had its first look at the 2012 vintage from Bordeaux’s Right Bank properties.

Bordeaux 2012: testing vintage looks better for whites and roses say producers

Bordeaux’s 2012 wines will express finesse rather than power after a year in which the weather tested winemakers' nerves to the limit, producers say.

Chateau Rieussec will make no 2012 vintage

Chateau Rieussec, the Sauternes estate owned by Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) has joined Chateau d’Yquem in announcing that it will not be making a 2012 vintage wine.

Chateau d'Yquem will not make 2012 vintage

Chateau d'Yquem has pulled out of making a Sauternes in 2012 after the vintage failed a post-harvest taste test.

Emmanuel Boidron talking about the 2012 harvest in St Emilion

Watch Decanter's exclusive video interview with Emmanuel Boidron of Chateau Corbin Michotte talking about the 2012 St Emilion harvest in Bordeaux.

Bordeaux 2012: Francois Despagne of Chateau Grand Corbin-Despagne

Watch Decanter's exclusive video interview with Francois Despagne of Chateau Grand Corbin-Despagne talking about the 2012 harvest in St Emilion, Bordeaux.

Bordeaux 2012: Anabelle Cruse Bardinet of Chateau Corbin

Watch Decanter's exclusive video interview with Anabelle Cruse Bardinet, owner of Chateau Corbin Grand Cru Classe in St Emilion, talking about the 2012 harvest.

Bordeaux 2012: Soft tannins and 'ripe fruit' potential say vignerons

Bordeaux 2012 is a vintage with low, soft tannins and good fruit flavours, vignerons say – but a good deal of work is necessary in the winery to deliver that potential.

Bordeaux 2012: Pickers on standby as late Sauternes harvest gets underway

Sauternes will not be a great vintage, one producer has said, as vignerons hope last week’s rains will finally kick start development of botrytis, or noble rot.

French vignerons ask government for insurance against bad harvests

Independent winegrowers across France are calling on the government to underwrite an insurance scheme to protect them from the effects of bad harvests or currency fluctuations.

Bordeaux 2012: White harvest finishes 20% down

The majority of white grapes in the 2012 Bordeaux harvest have been brought safely in to the cellars under warm and sunny conditions, but the forecast for the week ahead is rain, complicating decisions over when to bring in the red grapes.

Cru Bourgeois may add hierarchy to list

The Cru Bourgeois Alliance is planning to introduce two or three new levels into its annual listing – possibly for the 2012 vintage.

Bordeaux 2012: Region braces itself for 'winemaker's vintage'

The Bordeaux 2012 harvest will be several weeks later than in recent years – and France's overall harvest will be the smallest since 1991, according to the agriculture minister.

2012 vintage guide for Bordeaux