Vintage Guide

A lighter fresher style is promised from the 2024 vintage following a year that required extensive work in the vineyard to bring in ripe, clean fruit. The 2023 vintage is good, but the yields are down, some warm damp weather in summer means the Cabernets have outperformed the more delicate Merlot. The wines of 2022 are excellent showing a lovely balance of ripeness and juiciness that give them great balance. The 2021 vintage has made wines that are medium bodied with good freshness, in a similar style to 2017. The 2020 vintage yielded wines that are aromatic and concentrated, quite big in structure with freshness and balance. The wines of 2019 are very concentrated, fresh, ripe and plentiful, all in all a very well-regarded vintage. 2018 was a very good vintage in the end but mildew, hail, and a heatwave all served to reduce yields. The harvest across the region took place in near ideal conditions. 2017 is good in terms of quality but short on quantity, following frosts in the Spring that decimated certain properties. 2016 is a worthy successor to 2015, on a par qualitatively and looking very promising across all wine types. A hot summer but with cool nights has produced wines with fruit and freshness. 2015 is exceptionally good across the region for reds, especially the Right Bank, Pessac-Léognan, dry whites (better for Sauvignon than Sémillon) and sweeties: it is certainly the best vintage since 2010.

1999 was overlooked as everyone waited for the Millennium vintage but the wines have great charm. The Right Bank did particularly well in 1998 while the wines of 1997 continue to provide attractive drinking. 1996 and 1995 make for an interesting comparison; the best wines will age longer but others are drinking well now. 1994, 1993, 1992 and 1991 – all but the best ’94s are now fully mature, while 1990 remains the best vintage from this decade. Look out for top properties from 1989, 1986, 1985, 1983 (good value) and 1982 (expensive). Other ’80s vintages and lesser properties will need drinking up soon, whilst from the ’70s, just the top properties from the likes of 1978, 1976, 1979 and 1970 will carry on, though even they are now at their peak.

The very late arrival of botrytis in 2018 meant growers required nerves of steel, but they were rewarded with a small harvest of rich wines showing some botrytis character. A favourable summer in 2017 has produced some very good sweeties concentrated by weather rather than botrytis but in small quantities. A warm 2016 vintage has given rise to excellent sweet wines, mostly concentrated by the sun but with some botrytis and good fresh acidity. Both 2015 and 2014 have produced excellent quality in a modern style, sweet but balanced with good freshness rather than overly sweet and rich. The 2013 vintage proved a good year for Sauternes; the wines have freshness and balance (keep). In contrast, the rains of 2012 meant the top châteaux did not release wines. The rich opulent wines of 2011 will be charming (keep), while those of 2010 are good but more irregular and less overt than the ‘11s which came after and the tremendous ’09s which came before.  The wines of the small harvest of 2008 lacked concentration and are a contrast to the wonderful wines of 2007 – rich, pure, plenty of botrytis (keep). The challenging 2006 vintage suffered rain at harvest but some good wines were made (drink or keep). The wonderful vintage of 2005 – powerful and opulent but elegant too – are wines to keep. The small quantity of botrytised wines from 2004 are beginning to drink well, while the sugar-laden, concentrated wines of 2003 are best kept. The 2002 vintage proved light and needs drinking soon compared with the superb wines of 2001 which will stand the test of time. The 2000 vintage proved less than ideal so drink up. The classic wines of 1999 will cellar well while you reach for those of 1998 which, despite giving the growers plenty to worry about during the season, proved good in the end. 1997 is a very fine vintage, the best since 1990, drink or keep, but hot on its heels 1996 and 1995 make for great comparison. The good, rich wines of 1990 are drinking now, as are those of 1989, though no hurry here, while the outstanding wines of the 1988 vintage and the rich honeyed wines of 1986 are drinking well, as are the fabulous late-harvested wines of 1983.

The 2024 vintage required a lot of work in the vineyard but those that persevered have produced some very promising looking wines albeit in small quantities. 2023 was also a very good vintage, with the southern Rhône having an easier time of things but the results from both are showing great character. The North and South of the region both excelled in the hot conditions of 2022. The 2021 vintage has seen some good results particularly in the North where attractive, aromatic, elegant wines have been made, albeit lighter in style. The wines from the 2020 vintage look to be a little fresher and more approachable in their youth than those of 2019 which is a high-quality vintage with yields on a par with 2018. Another good result along the valley in 2018, though the South had more disease problems to contend with, as mildew affected the thinner-skinned Grenache more than other varieties. Quality was high but the yields were down. An early harvest produced some intense wines in 2017 for both the North and the South of the region, though uneven flowering in both reduced yields considerably. 2016 in both Northern and Southern Rhône has produced excellent results, and the South has it by a whisker this year, the opposite of 2015. 2015 is terrific, particularly for the North’s Syrah, no problems and decent yields too. An ideal growing season, which was even hotter than 2003 in the daytime but with cooler nights and just enough rainfall to prevent problems in the vineyards. Both whites and reds are excellent.

Early indications for 2024 are positive in terms of quality with a fresher feel to the wines and slightly lower alcohol, but at the price of quantity, with Chablis particularly affected. 2023 is excellent with a good quantity, stylistically similar to its predecessor. A warm season but with cooler nights, 2022 has brought both excellent quality and, importantly, a decent quantity. The 2021 vintage was heavily affected by frost meaning quantities are well down though the quality is very good. 2020 was historically early and regarded as a great vintage. 2019 is a worthy successor to the excellent ‘18s, where low yields have given very concentrated wines. A seriously good vintage here in 2018 as the region escaped the frosts which have plagued recent years. They have a good crop of rich, aromatic whites across the region as a result. Despite a familiar and now all-too-frequent late frost in 2017 the growers in the Côte d’Or were better prepared and the vintage has delivered excellent results, with many domaines back to ‘normal’ yields. In the Mâconnais and Chablis growers were not quite so lucky with yields down for the second year but wines of excellent quality. What there is in 2016 is very good but sadly frost and hail had a bigger than usual impact this year, particularly in Chablis and the Mâconnais, but almost no-one escaped unscathed. 2015 produced round, full whites with good, ripe fruit.

A cool and wet 2024 season has reduced yields, but diligent growers have produced some promising results albeit in small quantities. A hot growing season in 2023, meant sorting was required when the grapes came in to avoid any raisined fruit, but the results are very good and in decent quantity. The region basked under the summer sun in 2022, and thanks to cool nights the wines have avoided excess alcohol while retaining elegance. The 2021 vintage was severely affected by frost in the spring which means yields are historically low, the wines are fresh and juicy. 2020 was one of the earliest vintages on record following a warm summer but the wines have an appealing freshness too, like a combination of the previous two vintages. There was an absence of frost in 2019, but yields were still restricted, this time by drought, the resulting wines have great richness and concentration. A very good vintage in 2018 with no frosts in the early part of the season though rain in the first half of summer caused some disease pressure. Hail affected Nuits St-Georges and the Hautes-Côtes reducing yields. The resulting wines are rich and concentrated. Quantities in 2017 will be better than 2016 with equally good results. They are more red fruited than black, showing great elegance. 2016 proved a rollercoaster of a season with everything thrown at the growers in the early season but what fruit survived through to harvest is very good.

A small vintage in 2024 following a tricky growing season that on the plus side saw many regions come out of drought, but disease pressures have meant yields are small, just a little ahead of the tiny 2023 vintage. The wines of 2023 are in short supply but good quality, while those of 2022 a hot, dry year are excellent and concentrated. The 2021 vintage is very good after a warm dry season with wines showing good concentration and aromatics. A wet first half of the 2020 vintage meant a lot of work in the vineyard was needed but a better, more consistent second half resulted in some juicy young wines with those ageing in barrel looking very promising. A very good year, 2019 had warm dry conditions but yields were limited by a tricky flowering period. A cooler and wetter year than other recent vintages has endowed the wines of 2018 with greater freshness and lower alcohols. Across the country the wines are showing good aromatics, plenty of weight, and a juicy fresh character. Growers had a complex year in 2017 having to contend with frost, hail and drought. Yields are down as a result, but the picture overall is of good quality particularly in Galicia and the South, Penedès also performed well. The 2016 vintage was pretty good on the whole with Ribera del Duero, Rioja and Rueda having excellent results. 2015 was heralded as the best vintage across Spain in recent years, and particularly so in the north.

Early reports of the 2024 vintage are very promising for this region with rainfall near the long-term average and less heat spikes in the growing season leading to well-balanced grapes at harvest time. 2023 too, saw more balance and freshness as the climate was not as hot as its predecessor when 2022 saw temperatures hitting 47ºC giving great concentration and power. In contrast 2021 was a gentler season without excessive heat that has delivered aromatic wines with freshness and elegance as well as depth. Plenty of rainfall in the first part of 2020 set up the vineyards perfectly to weather the heatwave in the summer giving small yields of deeply concentrated wines. In 2019 Portugal escaped the heatwave of the rest of Europe meaning the wines are wonderfully aromatic and elegant. Tiny yields for the second year in a row in 2018, after the previous year’s drought finally broke in spectacular fashion. Heavy rain caused soil erosion and hail was also a problem. A hot summer saved what was left in terms of quality but could not make up for the yields already lost. 2017 proved to be a hot, dry year with one of the earliest harvests on record and yields down about 35% but the quality is very good for table wine. 2016 was a complex but ultimately satisfying year with a wet winter followed by a summer that was drier and warmer than usual; the resulting wines show great balance and concentration in both red and white.

Opposing problems, in the north (too wet) and in the south (too dry), have delivered a modest harvest for 2024, larger than 2023 but still below average, of good quality, fresher in style than of late and harvested later. The 2023 vintage proved complicated, good in the north but trickier in central and southern regions, resulting in one of the smallest vintages of recent years. A dry winter followed by a hot summer has certainly affected yields in 2022, but the quality looks excellent across the country. Small but perfectly formed seems to sum up the 2021 vintage here. Across most of the country the 2020 vintage is looking very good indeed with ripe fruit and lovely aromatics. A classic if not straight forward vintage 2019 has delivered some excellent wines but in smaller quantity. Overall, the results are very good in 2018, though a warm wet early summer led to disease pressures in many parts of the country. The Northeast, home to Prosecco amongst others did particularly well; so too did Tuscany and Piedmont but yields were a little down in some estates. 2017 saw a small crop of excellent wines; spring frosts and a later heatwave nicknamed ‘Lucifer’ reduced yields, but you’ll find good results on the whole with excellent results in Piedmont.

A rollercoaster of a ride in 2024 saw frost reduce yields initially, then a yo-yo of wet and warm weather meant much work in the vineyards to combat disease was required. A small harvest of excellent quality has been reported mostly at Kabinett level. A tricky 2023 vintage where the dedication of the grower had a big impact, the resultant wines are very good for those that did the graft. The warmest year on record, 2022 has produced some super results. The wines of 2021 are lighter in style and more aromatic with evident acidity compared with the previous two vintages. 2020 saw a warm summer, giving ripeness, while a prolonged harvest has given freshness and perfect quality fruit. The 2019s show wonderful rapier-like style, good weight and depth, yields are lower than the generous 2018 vintage. “A glorious vintage” said one grower, amongst many superlatives bandied about for 2018. For the first time in 10 years growers were truly happy with the quantity and the quality. The resulting wines are pure, rich, aromatic, and show a fine acidity. An early harvest following frost earlier in the season meant 2017 produced excellent light, fruity wines with great finesse. Weather conditions were tricky in 2016 and growers had to earn their stripes; the early season was wet, which reduced yields, followed by a hot summer with cool nights bringing excellent aromatics but with wines a little lighter than 2015.

Too soon to say for sure but the outlook is very promising for 2024 being declared, the early reports speak very highly of the vintage. The weather pattern in 2023, fresher and less extreme than 2022 which was baking hot, suggests there could be an interesting comparison to come. In 2021 a small amount of top Single Quinta wines were produced but not a full declaration. There was plenty of beneficial rainfall early in 2020 but also plenty of heat which has given exceptionally low yields. What there is, is deeply concentrated and very like 2009 in style. 2019 was a very dry, but not hot, vintage which has given some characterful wines with great elegance, some excellent single quintas have been made. A rain affected start to the season, coupled with hail, reduced yields to very small levels in 2018. A hot summer reduced these further. What there is, looks very good, with some houses declaring a vintage year for the third successive year. The earliest harvest on record in 2017 followed a growing season of drought and high temperatures, the resultant wines being very concentrated with good structure resulting in the first back-to-back declaration with 2016 for many years. 2016 was a tricky vintage for the growers but ultimately, they have been rewarded with super wines with elegance and freshness, good enough for a general declaration. 2015 made some outstanding single quintas, the houses maybe overly swayed by those 2016s into not declaring but the wines are very good in their own right. 2014 and 2013 made good single quintas which are fresh with lively fruit character. 2012 is a great single quinta vintage which produced elegant wines with balance and poise. Looking back through declared vintages, 2011 produced fabulous wines with freshness and a fruity style which will make them great drinking throughout their evolution.

2009, by contrast, is about power, density and longevity. The 2007 vintage was more elegant with great concentration, length and purity. The hot summer of 2003 delivered super ripe, intense wines. The Millennium vintage of 2000 was wonderfully rich and ripe, approachable in style but worth keeping. 1997 was widely declared and rightly praised but still a little backward. Wines from the 1994 vintage remain backward due to their intensity. 1992 is also for the long-term, currently quite closed. The concentrated wines of 1991 are still for keeping, though Ports from the lighter houses are just beginning to emerge. The wines of the bountiful 1985 vintage have a great balance of power with sweetness and are drinking now. The appealing style of 1983 makes it perfect for current drinking. The wines of the 1980 vintage too are much under-rated and very pure. The 1977s, undoubtedly one of the great vintages, have matured well and are firmly in their drinking window, whilst the initially structured wines of 1970 have proved themselves worth the wait and are now at their peak. Lucky indeed are those still fortunate enough to have some 1966s, 1963s, 1960s and 1955s!