Wine Terroirs

Bordeaux experienced a host of weather events which had a negative impact on the development of the growing season, ripening and yields. They ranged from severe spring frosts to horrendous outbreaks of mildew and a cool summer with little sunshine, but ended with a mild autumn. A lot of hard work in the vineyards produced decent wines, some of them stellar even, but with significant inconsistencies from one appellation, or even property, to another. The following is an excerpt from our tastings, solely focused on the Crus Classés.

More often than not, only seasoned connoisseurs are familiar with Graves, despite the fact that the area produces very affordable, signature Bordeaux wines in a complete range of styles. Alain Echalier gives us a run-down of the appellation and offers a detailed visit to a selection of wineries.

For years, the rosé wine category in Italy was the underdog, considered a marginal genre, almost as if it were a 'non-wine'. In recent years however, global growth of rosés, and in particular still rosés, has allowed Italian wineries to free themselves of the shackles of cultural legacies that did not value the perception and positioning of pink wines. The undeserved victim of prejudices and absurd confusions, rosé is in fact one of the most cross-functional, versatile wines, both for its potential for expression and pairing possibilities.

Here, too, winter was wet but quite mild, leading to early budburst though the head start was lost due to a cold spring and start of April marked by frost. Flowering went well but June was particularly wet and caused shatter and disease pressure. Botrytis ultimately established itself well and harvesting went seamlessly, producing beautifully crafted noble-rot wines but in very, very small quantities!

These two neighbouring cousins are no exception to the rule – inconsistency left right and centre! Probably the most challenging vintage since 2013. But 2021 was saved by its unusually long growing season. It began with budburst at the beginning of April and finished with harvesting dates that were spread out until mid-October due to an over-abundance of sunshine. This confluence of events obviously benefited the Cabernets more than Libourne’s ubiquitous Merlot. Here’s a run-down of what to expect.

These appellations to the South of Bordeaux experienced a mild winter and early budburst with the now all-too familiar consequences at the beginning of April. The end of the growing season was less eventful, allowing healthy fruit to be harvested, paving the way for a low-volume but high-quality vintage. The whites are fresh and very aromatic. There is greater inconsistency among the reds but with good fruit and lots of crunchy flavours.