Month: September 2022

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The 2022 Burgundy Wines’ Real Potential

Report Cover

The Burgundy Wine Board (BIVB) announced that the wines from the 2022 Burgundy harvest have real ‘potential’. This vintage will be dedicated to Louis Fabrice Latour, the former president of the trade association, who passed away earlier this month.

Commenting on the recent harvest, the BIVB said that it had been ‘a pleasant surprise’ and that it was ‘a vintage of the kind we were all hoping for.’ Despite cold temperatures and frosts, the board is happy with both the quantity of grapes that will go into this year’s wines as well as their quality.

The 2022 Burgundy Vintage

The growing season began at the start of April having experienced a milder winter with less rain than usual. Temperatures dropped mid-April and two snaps of frost followed. Fortunately, budburst hadn’t taken place completely and buds were not fully exposed to the frosts, although some areas did experience small amounts of damage. 

Spring arrived and brought excellent conditions with it. Flowering took place two weeks earlier than usual which led to many commentators suggesting that the 2022 vintage could be one of the earliest ever. Thunderstorms in late June refreshed the vines but also brought some hailstorms which caused ‘significant damage’ in some areas.

Contrary to the belief that the harvest would start earlier than normal, pickers started harvesting Chardonnay on the 20th of August which is in line with previous years. It was a prolonged harvest due to the good weather which helped produce optimally-ripe grapes. 

The board agreed that this year’s grapes are ‘balanced with controlled degrees of alcohol and good acidity.’ It found that the compounds in the red grapes were ‘excellent’ which are needed for long-term ageing. The BIVB also commented that the musts of the whites and reds were ‘highly aromatic’ which is another positive sign. 

This year’s harvest is what the Burgundians had hoped for, as the 2021 vintage suffered very low yields and in turn triggered higher prices. However, 2022’s yields were still down on average.

Find out more about our initial thoughts on the Burgundy 2022 vintage in this article.

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Stags’ Leap Winery Appoints New Head Winemaker

Ludo Dervin in vineyard

One of the oldest wineries in Napa Valley’s Stags Leap District has appointed Ludovic Dervin as Senior Winemaker and General Manager. Christophe Paubert has managed the winery for 13 years and will retire after the 2022 harvest and return to France, his home country. Both Dervin and Paubert will work together on this year’s vintage.  

A fellow Frenchman who’s originally from the Champagne region, Dervin has been making wine in California since the 1990s. His CV boasts such prestigious wineries as Kendall Jackson’s Vérité, Hartford Court and Mumm Napa.

‘We believe Ludo’s global experience, diverse background and passion for producing world-class wines makes him an excellent choice to continue the Stags’ Leap Winery legacy,’ commented Rachel Ashley, Sr. Vice President, Supply, for Treasury Americas. ‘Christophe’s commitment to quality, authenticity and sustainability has made a profound impact on Stags’ Leap Winery and we feel fortunate that he led this historic property for many years.’

Dervin was attracted to Stags’ Leap’s signature style of winemaking in particular and commented that he’s ‘thrilled to join Stags’ Leap Winery as its newest caretaker and for the opportunity to work with a brand that is known for its refined elegance, finesse and level of traditionality that really showcases the incredible quality of the fruit.’ He also added that he’s ‘look(ing) forward to taking the leap into its newest chapter.’

Stags’ Leap Winery was established in 1893 in the eponymous Stags Leap District and continues to use traditional techniques to create estate wines from a 240-acre property situated on dark, well-drained volcanic soils. While the estate is best known for its classic Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay, this authentic, time-tested brand is also admired for its expressions of Sauvignon Blanc, Petite Syrah and Viognier.

Read more about Shafer Vineyard’s recent purchase of a nine-hectare vineyard in the Stags Leap District here. 

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Updated Saint-Émilion Classification Announced

Exterior of Figeac

Bordeaux’s Saint-Émilion Classification is reviewed each decade and the seventh edition has now been released for 2022. 

Both the wine trade and wine lovers across the globe have been expectantly waiting for this new edition as the classification has experienced unprecedented withdrawals over the past year and a half. Châteaux Angélus, Ausone and Cheval Blanc – all Premier Grand Cru Classé A – decided not to be a part of the classification over the past 14 months as they felt too much emphasis was being placed on brand building and not on the wine itself. And, in June earlier this year, Château la Gaffelière (status ‘B’) also withdrew, highlighting a concern with tasting notes it was being given.

Château Figeac has now been promoted to Premier Grand Cru Classé A status where it joins Château Pavie. There was a real sense of disappointment when Figeac wasn’t promoted in 2012 so there will be plenty of celebrations for this well earnt result. 

Châteaux Canon and Troplong Mondot have both been working hard to gain promotions, although it wasn’t to be this time round. Interestingly, there were also no demotions, leading some commentators to speculate that the commission had played it safe in order to avoid attracting any further controversy.

While there may have been withdrawals and lawsuits recently, more than 140 estates are estimated to have applied to the commission. Ten years ago there were around 90. This demonstrates the value of the classification and what it means for those fortunate enough to be included in it: the opportunity to command higher prices for their wines.  

Below you can find a full list of the producers featured in the new Saint-Émilion Classification for 2022. 

Interested in finding out more about the recent Bordeaux Blanc harvest? Read our recent article here.

 

PREMIERS GRAND CRUS CLASSÉS

Château BEAU-SEJOUR BECOT

Château BEAUSEJOUR HERITIERS DUFFAU LAGARROSSE

Château BELAIR MONANGE

Château CANON

Château CANON LA GAFFELIERE

Château FIGEAC (Distinction A)

Château LARCIS DUCASSE

Château PAVIE (Distinction A)

Château PAVIE MACQUIN

Château TROPLONG MONDOT

Château TROTTEVIEILLE

Château VALANDRAUD

CLOS FOURTET

LA MONDOTTE

 

GRANDS CRUS CLASSÉS

Château BADETTE

Château BALESTARD LA TONNELLE

Château BARDE-HAUT

Château BELLEFONT-BELCIER

Château BELLEVUE

Château BERLIQUET

Château BOUTISSE

Château CAP DE MOURLIN

Château CHAUVIN

Château CLOS DE SARPE

Château CORBIN

Château CORBIN MICHOTTE

Château COTE DE BALEAU

Château CROIX DE LABRIE

Château DASSAULT

Château DE FERRAND

Château DE PRESSAC

Château DESTIEUX

Château FAUGERES

Château FLEUR CARDINALE

Château FOMBRAUGE

Château FONPLEGADE

Château FONROQUE

Château FRANC MAYNE

Château GRAND CORBIN

Château GRAND CORBIN-DESPAGNE

Château GRAND MAYNE

Château GUADET

Château HAUT-SARPE

Château JEAN FAURE

Château LA COMMANDERIE

Château LA CONFESSION

Château LA COUSPAUDE

Château LA CROIZILLE

Château LA DOMINIQUE

Château LA FLEUR MORANGE

Château LA MARZELLE

Château LA SERRE

Château LANIOTE

Château LAROQUE

Château LAROZE

Château LARMANDE

Château LA TOUR FIGEAC

Château LE CHATELET

Château LE PRIEURE

Château MANGOT

Château MONBOUSQUET

Château MONTLABERT

Château MONTLISSE

Château MOULIN DU CADET

Château PEBY FAUGERES

Château PETIT FAURIE DE SOUTARD

Château RIPEAU

Château ROCHEBELLE

Château ROL VALENTIN

Château SAINT-GEORGES (COTE PAVIE)

Château SANSONNET

Château SOUTARD

Château TOUR BALADOZ

Château TOUR SAINT CHRISTOPHE

Château VILLEMAURINE

Château YON-FIGEAC

CLOS BADON THUNEVIN

CLOS DE L’ORATOIRE

CLOS DES JACOBINS

CLOS DUBREUIL

CLOS SAINT-JULIEN

CLOS SAINT-MARTIN

COUVENT DES JACOBINS

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New ‘Rocas de Seña’ Label Released

Bottle of Rocas de Sena

The Chilean fine wine ‘Seña’ has released a second label called ‘Rocas de Seña’.  This new 2020 vintage was sold via La Place de Bordeaux along with its older sibling. Both labels sold out within hours of their release on the market on the 1st of September.

Both wines hail from the same area, a remote and biodynamically-farmed estate in the Aconcagua Valley. However, the grapes that go into the blend differ in both expressions. 

Over half of Seña is made with Cabernet Sauvignon (53%), with Malbec (25%) and Carmenère (15%) in support. Petit Verdot completes the blend, adding the final 7%. However, the main grape variety in Rocas de Seña is Malbec (38%) and has no Carmenère. Syrah (25%), Cabernet Sauvignon (15%) and Grenache (14%) also feature, with Petit Verdot adding a final flourish of 8%.

Just under 3,000 cases were made of the first vintage of Rocas de Seña, that’s around half the annual production of the Grand Vin.

Seña’s 2020 vintage was released up 6.2% on 2019’s opening price and is offered at £1,029 per 12x75cl case. Rocas de Seña 2020 is being offered under half the price of the Grand Vin at £426 per 12x75cl case.

Winemaker Francisco Baettig said at a tasting in London that he wanted Rocas de Seña to have its own character which is why he selected different grape varieties.

‘I did not want to make a copy of Seña just with younger parcels (of vines), I wanted to give a personality to Rocas, which is why I used Malbec as a base instead of Cabernet and some Mediterranean varieties, with Syrah and Grenache,’ he commented.

He added that Petit Verdot’s inclusion in the blend was important in order to create ‘tension’ in the wine, which is needed in this part of Chile, as well as in the moderately hot, dry 2020 vintage.

His aim is for ‘Rocas… not to be a Cabernet-based wine – we have that with Seña, as well as Chadwick and Don Max.’