Oeno-File, the Wine & Gastronomy Column

by Frank Ward

Posts Tagged ‘Clarets’

MAJOR TASTING OF 2012 CLARETS PART II : PESSAC-LÉOGNAN, SAINT ÉMILION, POMEROL, FIRST GROWTHS

Posted by Frank Ward on January 23, 2017

January 2017. PESSAC-LÉOGNAN. Both châteaux BOUSCAUT and DE FIEUZAL were light, elegant, and approachable, with good balance and will drink well in the coming years. HAUT–BAILLY was in a reticent mood, with an elegant aroma reminiscent of freshly sharpened pencil and autumn berries. It too will evolve smoothly if unlikely to generate great excitement. However, such top estates can be very closed up when young and all three may well surprise us. Made of sterner stuff was [….]

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BIG LONDON TASTING OF 2012 CLARETS PART I : Haut Médoc, Margaux, Saint Estèphe, Saint Julien, Pauillac

Posted by Frank Ward on January 10, 2017

January 2017. Over eighty clarets from the 2012 vintage were recently shown in London by the Institute of Masters of Wine. It was a challenging year, with fluctuating weather, a tardy summer, and some rain at harvest time. Needless to say, the best-run properties came out best. As Charles Taylor M.W. commented: “in a difficult year, producers with commitment and resources achieved much better results than those with limited opportunities or modest ambition”.[….]

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Tasting of Classed Growth Clarets from 2014

Posted by Frank Ward on December 5, 2016

December 2016. A big tasting of classed-growth clarets from the 2014 vintage was recently held in London under the auspices of the Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux (UGCB). The following are tasting notes on some 30 of the 100 or so wines on show. I spent an average of 4 minutes per wine. Why that long? The actual sampling takes only a minute or two. But the crucial aftertaste, often the most illuminating element of all, doesn’t reveal its full complexity (or lack of it) in less than 3-4 minutes.[….].

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A Look at some 2013 Clarets, white Graves & Sauternes

Posted by Frank Ward on October 31, 2015

AvatarOctober 2015. Everybody knows that the 2013 vintage in Bordeaux was an extremely difficult one. Nonetheless, some of the greatest estates managed to fashion creditable wines, wines which would, in some cases, give more pleasure over the next few years than many much greater wines from greater vintages, that are completely closed up now and require decades of further storage. That being said, some 2013s at the top end will live for 20-30 years. Cool rainy years impose serious limitations on most properties.[….]

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