Bordeaux 2023 En Primeur

The last of an excellent lineup tasted at the chai, the Grand vin is superb! A delicious nose of ripe black fruit, floral, dark berries and spice hint at the underlying power and svelte nature of the Ausone. Irresistible, it delivers a concentrated core of dark fruit, seamlessly integrated oak, velvety tannins and joy. Add into the mix an evident minerality and saline, mocha notes on the finish you get an effortless, precise wine not to be missed! 5-15+ years.

The second wine of fifth growth Château Batailley, named after the Lions that 'guard' the gate.Sumptous from the off, the Lions exudes cassis and spice. On the palate there is evident purple and blackberry fruit crumble notes with hints of cinnamon, liquorice and dark chocolate coming through. Expressive and rich with plenty of weight and a long finish it's hard to resist this 'baby' Batailley!

An oaky, vanillary nose over some spicy fruit on entry, then quite a broad but tightly-grained structure. Some depth of flavour but, apart from a stony finish, this feels a little atypical compared with other Saint-Estèphes with more tannin and extraction. 3-9 years.

Ben Sichel, winemaker at Angludet, described a particularly challenging time in 2023, with the heat of 2022 as the root cause of a significant drop in yield compared with many other properties.There is 17% Petit Verdot in the blend, which gives a lush core to the wine and a pretty, juicy character. There's silky tannin backing the fresh raspberry fruit, and a clean, pure finish. This is a mid-term Margaux of high quality, it's organic traits very much to the fore. 5-15 years. 

Much more density and richness from the top dog in the Lorenzetti Family stable. Jean-Michel Wilmotte is increasing the polish and precision every vintage, and it shows. They got their Cabernet, which comes from plots all over Pauillac, harvested at the right time, and the focus is perfect. Behind some lovely mulberry and blackberry fruit is a touch of spice, powerful but silky tannins and excellent length of flavour. Generous, harmonious, quite linear but easy on the finish. As good as we can remember.

An attractive lesser-known Pomerol which flies somewhat under the radar because the quality here is always good. Ripe dark plum on the nose with a touch of mulberry. Nice mouthfeel, soft and round backed with nice tension and good length. Very nice juiciness with texture and substance, and a precise slightly salty finish. Another good effort.

From the plateau in Pomerol, as the name suggests close to the church, this is an excellent wine with the clay soil giving super depth with good tannins. There is plenty of red and black fruit to give balance as well as the juiciness typical of the vintage. Owned by the Casteja family since 1973, this property is making excellent value wines. 5-15 years.

A very successful wine with plenty of black cherry fruit on the palate, soft tannins and touches of attractive, toasty oak. This is a medium weight well balanced wine with good freshness. Well situated at the edge of the Pomerol plateau between Gazin and La Fleur-Pétrus. Run by JP Moueix since 1976.

Frederic Casteja makes things happen in Bordeaux. “A good campaign is a quick campaign,” he said, while berating neighbours who watch the market and sit on their hands. His tenure at Batailley has improved the quality while keeping the price under control, and his wine is once again a firm recommendation. Almost minty on the nose, over sweet black fruit. Then dense on the palate with a bit of chew, currant on the back palate. Linear and grainy with an oak framework, this feels blocky, gourmand and should keep a bit.

Lafon Rochet has joined the Pedesclaux stable that includes Lilian-Ladouys and d?Issan, and they have lured Christophe Congé from Lafite to push the quality forward. We?ve always liked the wine which is usually true to type, a sensible Saint-Estephe at a sensible price that ages well. Tasting with the team we felt that once again this is a worthy effort, very characteristic of the vintage with red plum freshness, a stony feel to the centre and a bright, ripe, long feel in the mouth. The tannins are quite chalky, the overall feel is vivid and pure.

Yet more applause for this wine from the Borie-Manoux (Batailley) stable, now a good value Pauillac with damson, a soft texture at its core and easy oak giving a round, friendly structure. Freddie Casteja, who’s family home this is, has been working hard to improve his wine and that work is paying off. This is a well made and characterful mouthful.

From a property on the limestone plateau close to the town of St Emilion this has lovely strawberry aromas with a very complete palate with more black fruit and even hints of liquorice. There is just a hint of oak on the finish which also has good, soft tannins and attractive freshness. 5-15 years.

So often 'Gentleman's Claret', this year you'll find a svelte, trimmed wine with lovely curranty notes on the nose, some cedar even, then very swish in the mouth, poised and elegant with layers of fruit and spice. Refined and easy while long in the finish, it has perfect oak and a fluid, fresh feel. Emmeline Borie was very pleased with it, rather more so than with her builders who have started on a new winery but are taxing her patience. "It will be wonderful for your next visit, she said, adding, "hopefully next year!" No need to wait until then for a brilliant wine, however. Buy the 2023.

Another big and juicy wine from Pessac, there is plenty of smooth black and red fruit here, quite layered in the mouth with some firm grained tannins mid-palate. The oak is smoky, there is good length, the whole wine is quite straightforward and structured without much elegance but plenty of presence. There was a lot of sorting of grapes here this year, and after 40 vintages Olivier Bernard feels he is still learning! Chevalier is a chunky wine this year, reflecting those deep gravel soils.

A very fine Trottevieile with silky red fruits, lovely concentration and balance with the 100% new oak seamlessly integrated. This small property, owned by the Casteja family, goes undeer the radar but produces wonderful wines from the limestone slopes just outside St-Emilion. This terroir has given great poise and elegane to the wines 2023.

Beychevelle is a large property (bizarrely with a flock of stone penguins in the garden to the rear!) that has long been pursued by the Chinese market. With that outlet somewhat dried up, we have been lured back and encouraged by recent investment and a step up in quality. The new chai is superb and the wine coming out in 2023 is very impressive. It is most seductive on the nose, ripe currant and cassis with a swirl of raspberry, then dense, rich damson in the mouth, lovely supporting oak and a harmonious finish. Length is excellent, it is bold yet refined with the substance to go further than others. Phillippe Blanc has made a delicious wine worthy of note.

Winemaker Nicolas Audebert was either at Château Canon or possibly on Chanel's island in Provence (making wine?), so we tasted with Jean-Basile Roland who is the font of much knowledge at Rauzan anyway! There are 100+ plots of vines around the property with 25 different soil profiles and, with a challenging year, this takes a lot of management. But the results are superb, probably because of this careful segmentation. Jean-Basile reminded us that this was a hot year with late-ripening Cabernet Sauvignon the key, and Rauzan is 85% Cabernet of the highest quality. A great nose kicks off, with lots of flower and red fruit, with a touch of spice. It's very concentrated in the mouth with a muscular density that finishes with a rhubarb sappiness and inky depth. A big wine with depth and balance, intensity of flavour and plenty of structure. Should keep well. 5-15 years. 

Alfred Tesseron at Pontet Canet was thrilled to see us at 8:59 on Tuesday morning and berated his son, Noel, who arrived at 9:20. The chai is beautiful, the new 'eggs' (fermenters) in position, a herd of horses in the stables - the place looks immaculate and it's no wonder the results are superb. The wine had classic Pontet poise, lots of pure fruit backed with that organic ‘freshness’ he says they have been after since starting to convert 20 years ago. It is beautiful, succulent and fresh with a layered texture. Delicious mid to long-term drinking we thought, with bags of style - a top Pauillac. Interestingly we had tasted the 2005 vintage the previous evening and were struck by the similarities in structure and flavour.

"This offers plenty of dark berry fruit mixed with cedar and pinecones on the nose, very well defined and focused. The palate is medium-bodied with pliant tannins, and the acidity is very well-judged. Just a soupçon of white pepper appears toward the finish. This is a much more succinct Les Carmes than the 2022, but it's extremely harmonious and characterful." 94-96 points, Neal Martin, vinous.com

Delicious compote of flavours on the nose: raspberry and red plum, cinnamon spice, mulberry and stewed damson, all continuing into the palate too. Super mouthfeel, layered cassis richness and round texture, good depth of character and clean on the finish.

Another very fine Canon and one in which the limestone terroir really shows through giving fantastic uplift and elegance to the layers of juicy red and black fruit. There are beautifully soft and integrated tannins here with he amount of new oak restrained and some large foudres being used instead of barrels. Almost ethereal, very long, very fine. 5-15 years.

Bruno Borie was hobbling rather when we pitched up, recently fitted with a bionic part. His enthusiasm for his latest vintage was as infectious as ever, You've come to taste a great wine? A big job to make but we love it!? he said. They had a long harvest here, from 16th Sept to 7th Oct but the grapes came in healthy and with good yields. Ducru feels very plush this year, good tannins maybe more four-square than some other places but supple enough with tempered oak coming through on the finish. It's long in the mouth, saturated black fruit with a raspberry edge and the whole quite fresh on the end. Another very good effort, full of character and flavour.

A very silky and seductive wine with plenty of fruit and elegant tannins. There is real refinement and elegance here overlying good structure and with the hallmark balance and freshness of the vintage. Owned by JP Moueix since 1950 this is on the best terroirs of the Pomerol plateau. 5-15 years. 

Rather castigated across Bordeaux last year for over-cooking the 2022 release price (fortunately they have rectified this for 2023!), we were amused to see in the official en primeur leaflet that they compare this vintage to 1771… On a more serious note, Antoine Gimbert explained that they now handle the fruit extremely gently, stopping pumping-over and letting the juice filter through as softly as possible. With many small vats they can handle individual plots far more carefully, the sum of the parts making a very impressive whole. Las Cases is a real curranty beauty - intense and concentrated in the mouth, very balanced, textured with beautifully crafted tannins. Generous, long, very clean with a lovely finish. 

Brooding, black fruit, damson and mulberry on the nose. The mid-palate delivers savoury and mineral notes amid layers of blackberry, cranberry, cassis and spice. Well structured, with bright acidity (the vintages calling card) and chalky tannins, the Carraudes has a long finish. Its hallmark Pauillac character is as a result of the highly prized Lafite ‘Caudeyrac’ plot, it’s sourced from.

Superb damson and cassis on the nose with creamy oak behind. This is a seductive wine with richness, layers, complexity in the mouth, that bright finish again over wet stones. The length is prodigious and the wine more accessible and charming than we have seen in the past. There is more Cabernet Franc in the blend than usual (double that of Haut-Brion), and perhaps this has lifted and lightened the whole wine.

The last of the lineup tasted at Clerc Milon. On the nose there are hints of smoke and bacon fat sitting behind more pronounced notes of black fruits and spice. Energetic and well structured, there's super a concentration of black fruits, cassis, damson, black olive and tobacco mingling seamlessly with the oak and lick of bright acidity. Delivering a hint of toast and spice on the long finish, this is a dynamic Grand Vin.

Measured, pure and understated this latest release just oozes finesse. Superbly balanced, with no one element out of place. It delivers a concentrated core of juicy black fruit, spice, touches of graphite and cracked pepper, there is an almost creamy mouthfeel. The tannins are silky and ripe, providing a suitably fine, deliciously long finish. 5-15+ years.

While it’s a long trek up to Begadan in northern Medoc we always get the warmest welcome from cousins Frederic and Benjamin. This Tanners favourite is a very attractive wine in 2023; well textured and smooth with the fresh plummy character of the best Medocs on display, a beautiful claret for the mid-term while the characteristic freshness of the vintage makes it sing in the glass. Delicious. An excellent La Tour de By with fresh aromas and plenty of black fruit on the palate backed up with soft and ripe tannins. There is good fresh acidity too with great length. This is very attractive wine that will drink young but also has the potential to age.

While we invariably taste Puygueraud at one of the main Thienpont properties like Larcis Ducasse, Nicolas reminded us that many moons previously (1990 possibly?) we went to this property in the Francs which is the family home, and we must visit again as soon as we can. A date has been suggested. In the meantime we can report that Puygueraud is as good as ever, quite creamy and fleshy in the mouth with a supple blackberry jam feel on the end. It has many fans and for drinking mid-term it is an excellent Right Bank choice.

Melanie Barton has made another good wine in tricky conditions, with Moulis suffering with mildew early on. There’s good black fruit character, quite tempered and stylish in the mouth. Nice structure with ripe tannins all in balance and then juicy and fresh on the finish. Lighter and elegant this year compared with last, it’s a clean, early drinking claret with plenty of charm.

This property has been on our radar for quite a few years, but recent vintages have seen it move up a notch. The clay soils here are quite deep, the vines planted in two plots near Neac and in Lalande itself. Michel Rolland has had a hand in the wine making process in the past, and the style is quite dense with sweet fruit and well-integrated tannins. For a ‘Rolland wine’ you’ll find more charm than guts, and it is very appealing. Well worth a look this year.

This has plenty of sappy red and black fruits backed up with toasty new oak flavours and touches of spice on the finish. Jean Mestreguilem calls the vintage "complicated, but finally good" observing that it's very ripe which you can certainly see in the quality of the tannins. A very fine wine which Jean suggests is close to 2020 and 2010 in terms of style.

Fruit forward this year with pure black fruit on the nose backed up by nice warm spice and some licorice. The balance is fine, the emphasis on early drinking with that juicy fresh fruit backed by easy, soft tannins. Fronsac, to the west of the major Right Bank areas, still has great terroir and can produce some lovely, expressive wines that are invariably good value. 3-9 years.

A smoky hint is followed by plums, black cherry and violets. Juicy and fleshy on the palate with excellent depth of fruit. This is well balanced with some chewy tannins, ideal for short term cellaring. 3-9 years.

A lovely Aligoté from the Germain stable, plenty of fresh Russet apple fruit, a touch of honey, and a citrus tang. It is nicely weighty on the palate with an attractive, silky style.

A floral and citrus nose leads to a palate with full and waxy flavours, pear and quince with excellent minerality, vivacious and sappy. Very well balanced with great length. A textbook white Bordeaux. 3-7 years. 

A big and silky wine, rich and creamy with great depth of fruit and a touch of oak showing on the palate to give balance. Ripe and full but finishes with plenty of taut acidity. This is a very fine wine in a very great vintage for dry white Bordeaux. 3-9 years.

Generous nose, quite seductive with full-on sweet black fruit character. There is a firm tannic grip to it this year, with a chunky feel and bold finish. This is not a regular purchase for us but we liked the style and if you want a keeper, this wine has more grunt than many. 3-9 years.

Set in a magnificent position up on the limestone plateau, Laroque must be one of the most impressive châteaux in the Saint-Emilion region, with the bonus that it is making fabulous wine! Between 1920-1950 it fell into disrepair but is forging back; with David Suire at the helm the critics (and ourselves) love it. Crushed raspberry and strawberry fill the nose, then it is limpid in the glass, juicy and vibrant. The texture is suave, the wine very focused with a bright fresh feel. It has a chalky structure but there's superb balance and a sensual core of fruit. A lovely long, sophisticated style, truly impressive. 5-15+ years.

Set in a magnificent position up on the limestone plateau, Laroque must be one of the most impressive châteaux in the Saint-Emilion region, with the bonus that it is making fabulous wine! Between 1920-1950 it fell into disrepair but is forging back; with David Suire at the helm the critics (and ourselves) love it. Crushed raspberry and strawberry fill the nose, then it is limpid in the glass, juicy and vibrant. The texture is suave, the wine very focused with a bright fresh feel. It has a chalky structure but there's superb balance and a sensual core of fruit. A lovely long, sophisticated style, truly impressive. 5-15+ years.

Fresh and aromatic nose with hints of redcurrants leads to a palate full of red fruit, well balanced with fine tannins. 'A very nice vintage for us' says owner Mathieu Ternault'. 0-5 years

Set in a magnificent position up on the limestone plateau, Laroque must be one of the most impressive châteaux in the Saint-Emilion region, with the bonus that it is making fabulous wine! Between 1920-1950 it fell into disrepair but is forging back; with David Suire at the helm the critics (and ourselves) love it. Crushed raspberry and strawberry fill the nose, then it is limpid in the glass, juicy and vibrant. The texture is suave, the wine very focused with a bright fresh feel. It has a chalky structure but there's superb balance and a sensual core of fruit. A lovely long, sophisticated style, truly impressive. 5-15+ years.

30% whole bunches are used to bring freshness to the wine, which is very deep and concentrated with plum-laden fruit, plenty of spice and a gentle floral note before a creamy, elevated finish. 3-9 years.

Ben Sichel, winemaker at Angludet, described a particularly challenging time in 2023, with the heat of 2022 as the root cause of a significant drop in yield compared with many other properties.There is 17% Petit Verdot in the blend, which gives a lush core to the wine and a pretty, juicy character. There's silky tannin backing the fresh raspberry fruit, and a clean, pure finish. This is a mid-term Margaux of high quality, it's organic traits very much to the fore. 5-15 years.

It was mentioned, in passing, that the big cruise ships are going to be stopping at Pauillac later this summer. When they do the occupants will see the brand new buildings and facilities that are just being finished including a gravity-fed chai. We suspect this will put Grand Puy Ducasse firmly on the map! Another wine that is on an upward path, the 2023 has a terrific nose with masses of black fruit and hints of tobacco behind, even a touch of polished leather. The tannins are silky and there is power in the texture and body here, balanced and precise oak bring plenty to the party. Should outlive many peers of the same quality.

A very successful wine with plenty of black cherry fruit on the palate, soft tannins and touches of attractive, toasty oak. This is a medium weight well balanced wine with good freshness. Well situated at the edge of the Pomerol plateau between Gazin and La Fleur-Pétrus. Run by JP Moueix since 1976. 5-15 years.

While it's a long trek up to Begadan in northern Medoc, we always get the warmest welcome from cousins Frederic and Benjamin. This Tanners favourite is a very attractive wine in 2023; well textured and smooth with the fresh plummy character of the best Me

A wonderful Figeac, lush, velvety and aromatic, showing the benefit of the 32% Cabernet Franc which did very well here this year and really benefitted from the late ripening in September. This is very complete with great fruit on the palate, round and ripe tannins and good freshness giving balance. Real depth and poise. Comparisons are with 2019 and 2014 but better than both.5-15 years.

The last of the lineup tasted at Clerc Milon. On the nose there are hints of smoke and bacon fat sitting behind more pronounced notes of black fruits and spice. Energetic and well structured, there's super a concentration of black fruits, cassis, damson, black olive and tobacco mingling seamlessly with the oak and lick of bright acidity. Delivering a hint of toast and spice on the long finish, this is a dynamic Grand Vin. 5-15+ years.