Experts hail 2005 vintage as a Bordeaux to die for

[Gifted Gourmet]

Independent UK article

"The perfect year, the year when everything went right." M. Llose, 54, believes that the 2005 vintage of Lynch-Bages, one of the great châteaux of the Médoc, is incomparably the best in his 30 years as a wine-maker. "It may even be better than the mythical vintages, like 1961. It may be even more special than the great vintages of the 1940s," he said.The same story was being reported - some say spun - from all the leading châteaux of the Médoc and the other great vineyards of the Bordeaux region this week as pundits and traders flocked from all over the world to "pre-taste" the 2005 vintage for themselves."It has a precise balance between richness and acidity, between fruitiness and the tannins [which make the wine more complex as it matures]. It has an extremely punchy nose [smell] but it also lingers in the mouth. Even drunk so young, it has great complexity, great depth."

This is a remarkable article on incredible wine from 2005 ... enjoy yourself!

[Brad Ballinger]

exceptional year, one of the best ever

Until next year.

[djsexyb]

exceptional year, one of the best ever

Until next year.

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Isn't that the truth...thought i'd throw in a quote from Mr. Parker himself, from"Bordeaux"....

"the greatest wines ever made are the ones that are available for sale"

Ha! although the 2005 harvest does sound quite intriging.

BTW binnys beverage depot just opened thier 2005 futures if anyones interested...

http://www.binnys.com/search/winesearch.cf...1&pl=1&asy=2005

[Daniel Rogov]

Well, other than that the article is a few weeks out of date (the Bordeaux barrel tastings took place some while ago now), and other than for the hype, I suppose we really are seeing that 2005 is going to prove an excellent year for many of the Bordeaux producers.

If there are two problems with the very best 2005 Bordeaux wines those are (a) that many of them are going to be very, very, very expensive indeed and (b) some of the top wines won't be at their peak for 15, 20 or 25 years which means that the most affluent age group that might have bought them may not be alive by the time these wines are ready. On which, one of the rare times I'll allow myself the use of a

[MaxH]

... I suppose we really are seeing that 2005 is going to prove an excellent year for many of the Bordeaux producers.  /  very, very, very expensive indeed and ... top wines won't be at their peak for 15, 20 or 25 years which means that the most affluent age group that might have bought them may not be alive by the time these wines are ready.

Don't overlook, Daniel, that with the frenzy lately for futures (Brad B is being cynical of course, not more than one Bordeaux vintage in three is now labeled Vintage of the Century) we have the peculiar situation that older inventory from respectable years routinely sells for less, sometimes much less, then the latest newborn wines. I've seen excellent deals in recent years from the 1980s and 1990s. Not only are they cheaper, you can drink them sooner.

[JohnL]

It would be interesting if someone looked at each "major" vintage in Bordeaux and compared the comments of the wine makers and the critics after the barrel tastings.

(it would also be interesting to make these comparisons for the poorer vintages).

The Independent piece was well written.

I enjoyed the comments about vintages of the past.

[MaxH]

If ever on earth (by the way) proof were wanted that a little wine knowledge is the consumer's friend -- a truer friend than advertising, or ratings followed blindly -- then the recent Bordeaux market should furnish this proof. (Wine knowledge in that case could be as simple as reading the Bordeaux chapter in an introductory wine book and some information about past vintages, or tasting some of them, or asking a good merchant about good wines not on the current trophy list.)

[JohnL]

You are right IMOP. But just reading a book (or two) is simply not enough.

There is a great deal of misunderstanding of the role of writers and critics.

Bordeaux is a perfect example.

Prices are very high for these wines. Critics and writers provide a lot of excellent guidance especially given the fact that they are able to taste a wide range of these wines each vintage. They are also able to provide a lot of historical context having tasted many vintages of each of these wines.

It is simply impossible for most buyers (that includes retailers who will sell these wines) to taste all these wines before purchase--especially if one is going to play the futures game.

These reviewers are one valuable source of information--there are quite a lot of them (seems like everyone has a newsletter these days). Some are better than others.

We forget that Bordeaux purchases were once heavily influenced by the trade--cellars were stocked with wines that were "recommended" by merchants/importers/exporters. I would argue that back then people followed "advice" even more strictly than today.

And--there were certainly few, if any, independent voices.

It will be fun to see how the '05's do once they reach the shelves and how prices hold up or are impacted by subsequent vintages. also a very steeply priced vintage can be (you may have noted this) a positive influence on earlier vintages' pricewise.

[DTBarton]

It will be interesting to watch as this plays out. I have seen prices come down somewhat on Bordeaux after peaking in the early 2000s as evidenced by futures prices in some catalogs I get.

Maybe a great vintage, maybe a good vintage with some early heavy hype to try and get the prices back up some.

Agree that some nice buys from other vintages are available. I have some 95s, 96s, 98s, and 2000s that are still young. In the interim, I've found good value in the 97 vintage that was initially panned, but I believe to be soft and early maturing. Good stuff, drinkable now at reasonable tariffs.

[balex]

... I suppose we really are seeing that 2005 is going to prove an excellent year for many of the Bordeaux producers.  /  very, very, very expensive indeed and ... top wines won't be at their peak for 15, 20 or 25 years which means that the most affluent age group that might have bought them may not be alive by the time these wines are ready.

Don't overlook, Daniel, that with the frenzy lately for futures (Brad B is being cynical of course, not more than one Bordeaux vintage in three is now labeled Vintage of the Century) we have the peculiar situation that older inventory from respectable years routinely sells for less, sometimes much less, then the latest newborn wines. I've seen excellent deals in recent years from the 1980s and 1990s. Not only are they cheaper, you can drink them sooner.

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It is an absurd position. In some cases 1982 is selling for about the same as 2000.

e.g. in the UK Cheval Blanc with the 1982 at 5.5K, and the 2000 at 4200,

86 Mouton is actually less than 2000 Mouton.