Having just returned from En Primeur week in Bordeaux, my very first visit to the region proved to be a considerable education.  Here’s the skinny on the vintage itself:  As predicted after reports of the difficult fall harvest began to trickle in last October, 2013 proved a very challenging year for red wines. 

By all rights, it could have been a complete washout.  Château owners talked about conditions being the most demanding they’ve seen in 30 years.  Grey rot ran rampant in the vineyards at the tail end of the growing season.  Which meant 2013 might have turned out as disastrous as the dismal 1991 harvest.  Instead, through shear will and severe final selection, the resulting wines were, in many cases, akin to the charming 1997 vintage, clearly destined for early drinking versus long aging, yet still eminently quaffable.

Unlike in typical years where the division of clear winners is usually defined by appellation, 2013 did not offer any such distinctions.  This was not a right bank versus left bank year, for example, or even Saint-Julien versus Paulliac.  Within each appellation there were relative successes and disappointments, the stark contrasts between fine and average often on display in the wines at neighboring château. 

Latour Vineyard

You could pretty much throw the standard Bordeaux playbook out the window; tasting every wine this year and judging it on its own merits was a must.  There were some general observations but no absolutes.  Merlot was mostly a disaster--Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc the relative quality winners. 

Producers that traditionally featured healthy portions of Merlot in their wines had to rethink their strategy, sometimes with unique results.  Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande, for example, made a wine comprised of 100% Cabernet Sauvignon for the first time in their long history.  Another surprise included higher than usual portions of Malbec and Petit Verdot in some wines.

At their very best, the successful red wines of 2013 displayed suppleness and elegance with fresh structures and pretty bouquets.  Winemakers who tried to make powerful wines out of fruit that wouldn’t support the style ended up in over-extraction limbo:  unbalanced and backward wines that may never resolve themselves entirely.

If I were to pick one appellation that seemed to fare best, I might choose Saint Estephe, where Calon Segur and Montrose made very fine wine.  Elsewhere in the Medoc, the five first growths (Lafite, Mouton, Latour, Margaux, and Haut Brion) with the resources to adapt best to the challenging conditions also fared well.

At other end of the spectrum were the dry white wines of and sweet Sauternes/Barsac.  2013 was very good for these, as the earlier ripening Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon were picked in better conditions than the red varieties.  Château Haut Brion leads a host of dry white standouts in Pessac-Leognan with a stellar Haut Brion Blanc and Château d’Yquem the best of Sauternes with a sumptuous grand vin.

Perhaps the greatest concern regarding 2013 won’t be the quality, but the quantity.  The market in general is hoping for a price reduction after 2012, but with just half the normal production available as in a regular year, Château owners may be hesitant to bring prices in line.  Château Pontet Canet has already offered their 2013 grand vin at the same price as their 2012.  It remains to be seen if the other château will follow suit.

Jim Greeley, Southwest Florida wine supervisor

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