Not even the ‘Beast from the East’ could dampen spirits at our annual Bordeaux tasting. Our stoic growers packed their finest winter woollies and put on another great show.

The Royal Society of Chemistry in Burlington House played host for the 2015s, and for those, and there were many, who braved the snow, were treated to a spectacular selection from this luxurious vintage. There were star wines wherever you looked, the sumptuous Calon Segur proved that those who wrote off St Estephe were a little hasty – this was packed with charming sweet fruit and rippled with muscle. Domaine de Chevalier was gloriously decadent and polished, the Mouton brace of d’Armailhac and Clerc Milon were a sheer joy, brimming with lavish fruit, they are glorious expressions of this vintage.

Last week, the great and the good of the British wine trade including journalists, merchants and multitude of MWs decamped to our new Southwold-on-Thames venue to dissect the 2014s.

After the demoralising 2013s, there was a palpable sense of anticipation. We have always admired this vintage for its classical style and elegance. As is custom, we start with several flights of St Emilion. The flights seem to get longer each year and usually feature unfamiliar names that leave us pondering, ‘why?’ There was no such bafflement this year. Vignerons appear to have used a lighter touch and coupled with the natural acidity of the vintage, the wines have a real sense of cohesion and energy. Top marks went to Francois Mitjavile’s Tertre Roteboeuf, such an unmistakable wine, there’s really no need to disguise its identity… My preference was Canon, John Kolasa’s last year at the helm – this is as classical and super-refined, and a mighty impressive showing from Troplong Mondot.

2017 is probably the most misunderstood and poorly represented vintage we can recall. Before a single grape had been picked, major broadsheets were taking swipes at the poor old '17s. 

It’s true, many vignerons were left heartbroken after the frost of the 27th of April. The unlucky ones had their entire crops wiped out, but in parallel with life itself, the most fortunate, through a mixture of toil and often just good luck, went unscathed. And for those who had a crop, there was everything to play for. But good news doesn’t sell newspapers; the pejorative voices of the press would rather declare this the ‘worst vintage since 1945’. Those who’ve tasted Mouton `45 are probably pricking their ears up… Negative terminology has created a huge misunderstanding. 2017 is a very simple vintage, it’s about the haves and have nots. You either have a crop, and judging by what we have tasted, it’s a very smart crop, or you have nothing, which is a travesty for many small growers. ‘Worst’ in terms of quantity, by all means, but don’t allow this sweeping statement to influence your view of the quality.

Our custom is to start on the Right Bank and ‘avoid the crowds’. Monday morning started with an early appointment with Denis Durantou at L’Eglise Clinet. Saintayme, Le Chenade, Cruzelles and Montlandrie were all spectacular, possibly the best range we’ve seen from Denis, boasting wonderful purity, lots of intensity and great balance. 

The Pomerols were a step up again; both very profound and exciting wines. Bravo Denis. Next stop was Le Pin to meet Jacques and George Thienpont. L’If continues to go from strength to strength, a St Emilion with real verve and a nervous tension that delights the taste buds. Le Pin is very grown up and muscular, less flamboyant than normal, but still packing a kaleidoscope of decadent fruits and seriously impressive tannins. This was becoming a tough morning and it was about to get tougher… Alexandre and Guillaume Thienpont presented the magnificent Vieux Chateau Certan 2016. They are rightly proud, this is a very handsome VCC full of breed. Did I mention that this was hard work? Next stop was Petrus for a very important ‘initiation ceremony’. We feared that the J&B bulldog, donated a few years ago, was about to get the snip, but this was actually a huge honour for our humble hound – he was made the official mascot for the forthcoming Petrus vintage. The wine itself is stunning and quite unique. It’s a powerful Petrus that harks back to greats of ’89 and ’90,  with a hint of exotic spice, yet all wrapped up in the suavest of tannins – it really is quite moving and deeply impressive – chapeau!

Journalists like to pigeonhole vintages. It supposedly makes life easy for consumers. Condense the wines of Bordeaux down into a brief soundbite, a paragraph that tells you all you need to know about this wonderful region. 

In 2015 it was a ‘Right Bank, Pessac and Margaux’ year. Read into this what you will – but what is not said often resonates the loudest. Most interpreted this as ‘don’t go near the northern Medoc’. The truth is rarely so simple…

Last week, our reconnaissance team spent three fascinating days tasting and re-tasting what is already being referred to as a sanctified trilogy: 2014, 2015 and 2016. Let’s start with the 2014s. This is a vintage that really appeals to our palates – a combination of modern winemaking and classic flavours, a vintage of balance and precision with more than enough power and concentration. It will of course remain in the shadow of 2015 and 2016, but these wines will make you smile and if you bought them en primeur, you should be well pleased.