Fine Wines, One Bottle at a Time - Stellar Vintage Classics

Wine lovers know that top producers have a knack of turning out beautiful wines no matter what nature throws at them. However, a stellar year, with just the right balance of weather and optimal timing around ripeness and picking, can elevate the wines of already exceptional producers into legendary status.

Top vintages often bring greater aging potential, wines from these years having more structure and balance to evolve gracefully over decades. Ideal growing conditions can lead to more nuanced aromas and flavours that take longer to unfurl.

This week we would like to highlight some classic wines from top vintages which are available to buy as single bottles. Try them while you can.

Château L'Eglise-Clinet, Pomerol, 2005 – A modern great, built to last. 2005 produced structured wines of great concentration and ripeness. Considered a benchmark year for this château, offering up a dark fruited, violet and spice scented Pomerol of great depth and multitudinous layers, this is finally starting to show its colours though will live on for many decades.

Barolo, Bricco Fiasco, Azelia, 2013 – One of the true classic vintages, 2013 yielded traditional, cool but powerful wines. This is a year that has rewarded patience, with clear fresh flavours wrapped in a finely-chiselled structure and overlaid with beautiful floral red-fruited aromas, from an historic cru replanted in the 1940s.

Chassagne-Montrachet, Les Chenevottes 1er Cru, Jean-Noel Gagnard, 2020 – A stellar year for white Burgundy where Chardonnay resisted the drought of the 2020 summer better than Pinot Noir to produce glowing but fresh wines of substance and full-flavoured ripe yellow fruit tempered with a balancing citrus edge. 2020 whites are already being seen as a modern benchmark for the region.

Cabernet Sauvignon, Philip Togni, Napa Valley, 2014 – This was a small but excellent year for Napa wines, the result of a balanced and uncomplicated season where everything seem to happen at the right time. A dry winter and spring lead to a summer gently interspersed with enough rain to avoid any vine stress. Long-standing Napa stalwart Philip Togni is currently the talk of the town, having produced Antonio Galloni’s wine of the year last year, and their 2014 is incredibly alluring and complex. Whilst silky and alluring enough to drink now, these wines have a great track record for ageing.

Corton-Bressandes, Grand Cru, Follin-Arbelet, 2009 – Whilst many Burgundy purists might favour the firmer, fresher lines of 2010, there is no doubting that the sun-kissed large crop of 2009 produced wines that continue to wine many, many friends. Juicy and joyful are two of its hallmarks and this Grand Cru is generous and full-bodied, with intense and persistent ripe berry fruit character.

Champagne Philipponnat, Cuvee 1522, Rose, 2008 – One of Champagne’s all-time great vintages, 2008 mixes pin-point freshness with intense concentration, and moreish ripe fruits with a cooling minerality. They are remarkably youthful and are ageing seamlessly. This Pinot Noir-dominated blend from Grand Cru vineyards is a case in point.