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2018 pichon lalande7/27/2023 ![]() Ch Pontet Canet is an outlier because of its approach to biodynamic viticulture. The combination of better micro-climatic conditions, wealth and physical resources helped with the result. They are powerfully expressive with pronounced ripe tannins and pure fruit flavours. In my opinion the strongest sub regions are Pauillac and St Julien – which have both produced wines of great consistency and classicism. Despite the amazing tannin density, saturated colours and flavours, the wines are actually quite easy to taste, indicating remarkable balance and life. The concentration, weight, and vitality of the wines are impressive. If this is the case, this is not just an exceptional vintage, this is something beyond the norm. For some people with long memories they believe the vintage is like 1947 or 1961. The narrative of the growing season will inevitably create a negative impression, but few people will remember the details in years to come. Mother Nature has been particularly cruel of late. When one considers that this estate lost its whole crop in 2017 from frost, the shock must be keenly felt. At Ch Climens in Sauternes Barsac I would estimate the crop being around 20% of the average. But they vary from almost nothing to less than a third. It is difficult to truly understand the overall crop losses as producers are understandably quite cagey. The colours, flavours, density and acidities are really impressive and as a consequence the vintage is generally quite exceptional. The growing season was near calamitous but long warm sunshine hours over summer cleaned everything up and allowed the grapes to ripen very really well. As usual the vintage will be exaggerated. We have pretty tasted a good amount of primeurs wines now. After the devastating frost events of 2017 and the challenges created by hail and mildew during 2018, there is a feeling that climate change may well have an unpredictable impact on future Bordeaux vintages. In two weeks we have seen dormant vineyards and trees spring to life. The growing season is starting a touch early and of course people are worried about the chances of frost. The weather until a few days ago has been clear with bright sunshine, warm days and a cool breeze. Temperatures have fallen now with more cloud cover and intermittent rains. While driving from Sauternes to St Emilion we drove through light hail but not enough to cause too many problems. In some instance I have tasted wines a few times enabling me to cross reference. Nowadays it is difficult to taste the wines blind but density of colour, aromatic freshness, tannin density and overall balance are obvious indicators. All sub regions produced examples of really good wines, but some performed better than others. Generally the very top estates made exemplary wines illustrating that the human factor and wealth can have a major impact on terroir! Over the last few weeks I have tasted around 350 to 400 wines, sometimes in large format forums like the UCG tastings or at various Chateaux. The Bordeaux whites and sauternes are very good, but from an Australian perspective the excitement is all in the red wines. The second wine of Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande, The Réserve de la Comtesse, was created and sold for the first time in 1973.Ģ018 Bordeaux Vintage Report and recommendationsĢ018 is an exceptional year. ![]() In addition, the accounts book for the year 1874, that details the production of the year confirms that the second wine was rigorously selected. The archives kept at Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande mention the existence of a second wine as early as the XIXth century:Ģ7 April 1890, shipping of four bottles of the vintage 1874 second wine to the Moscow exhibition. They are generally excellent wines, though less robust and long lasting than their elders. From the same soil, the second wine benefits from the same technology as the great wine, and also its reputation. Today, the second wines represent between 20 and 50 % of the total production of the Chateau. Severe selecting is the guarantee of quality of a great wine, but also of a second wine. ![]() It is only the quest for excellence during the XVIIIth century that led the owners to elaborate several wines of different quality. In the Bordeaux region the classified crus have mixed soils, but large enough tracts of land to make very rigorous selections. ![]()
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