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PRIMEUR 2011 ENGLISH: Laplagnotte Bellevue / La Plagnotte de Fourcaud Laussac
PRIMEURS 2011 FRANÇAIS: Laplagnotte Bellevue / La Plagnotte de Fourcaud Laussac
Live from Bordeaux: Primeurs 2011 first impressions

Live from Bordeaux: Primeurs 2011 first impressions

Ajouté le 13/4/2012


Primeurs 2011 tastings by La Boisseraie


Bonjour,


So what ….. primeur 2011??

 

The 2011 vintage which many a winegrower will have considered as 'rock and roll' as summer took place in March / April and Spring in July. September turned out to be an Indian Summer, and basically 'saved' the vintage. Thanks to the perfect conditions earlier in the season 2011 was one of the earliest vintages in history. Nevertheless the vegetal cycle has prolonged over the usual 110 days.

 

Yields are not very big as the soils throughout the year has been particularly dry. And due to severe selections in the quality focused properties, these were even lower.

 

Just to help 26th & 27th  June were so hot (over 40° C) that some plants suffered from that heat irreversibly. Hail storms have been locally a plague for a number of properties, A severe hailstorm ruined significantly parts of Saint Estephe 1st September.

 

Botrytis has played its part and has put a pressure on the winegrowers, some deciding to pick too early to avoid the infection of the entire crop, hence some unripe grapes with its green taste enhanced by extra extraction sometimes (Northern Medoc).

 

Anthocyanes  levels, though not as high as in 2010, were generally higher than in 2009. Depending on the date of harvest alcohol in merlot grapes was pretty high, but not with sufficient physiological maturity to sustain.

 

Therefore the wines tasted very heterogeneous and although the last 3 weeks has seen the wines develop enormously in intensity and balance, (that trend continuous).

Offers will follow very shortly, but please do send us also your wishlist.

 

Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux primeurs tastings at Château Lagrange, St-Julien


Our Recommendations:

Dry Whites are generally fruity and fresh with citrus fruit and good acidity.

Larrivet Haut Brion, Pape Clement, Dom de Chevalier, Smith Ht Lafitte, de Rouillac, Haut Bergey, Reynon, Chantegrive,

Sauternes have improved enormously since early March and showing some fine rather fresher and elegant style of wines not necessarily with lots of BC.

Yquem, Clos Haut Peyraguey, Guiraud, Tour Blanche, Rieussec, Fargues, Doisy Daene

St Emilion and Pomerol showed probably more heterogeneous wines with some far too much extracted or barrel driven, and the best some stylish elegant wines with good depth such as:

Cheval Blanc (+ Petit Cheval + Quinault l’Enclos) Canon la Gaffeliere, Clos l’Oratoire, Mondotte, Angelus, Soutard, Grand Corbin Despagne, Fonplegade, Laroze, Fonroque (bio), Figeac, Laplagnotte Bellevue, la Plagnotte Fourcaud Laussac, Lynsolence, Beau-Sejour Becot, Fombrauge, Gazin, Beauregard, Clinet, Nenin, Feytit Clinet, Clos l’Eglise,  l’Enclos, Clos Rene

Margaux was ( I heard ‘as usual’) slightly less convincing than SAINT JULIEN with some very fine:

Malescot St Exupery, Brane Cantenac, Lascombes, Cantenac Brown, Desmirail, Monbrison, Prieure Lichine. Mille Roses. Marquis d’Alesme.

SAINT JULIEN: Leoville Las Cases, Leoville Poyferre, Lagrange, Clos du Marquis, Beychevelle, Branaire Ducru.

ST ESTEPHE showing good efforts in:

Montrose, Lafon Rochet, Phelan Segur, Petit Bocq, Lilian Ladouys .

PAUILLAC: excellent wines from Pontet Canet, Pichon Lalande, Pedesclaux, Fonbadet

PESSAC LEOGNAN showed some very nice wines indeed: Domaine de Chevalier, Smith Haut Lafitte, Larrivet Haut Brion, Branon, Haut Bergey, de Rouillac, Clos Marsalette, Haut Bailly Lespault Martillac .

Other wines which showed very well because of their balance and stylish elegant structures:

Villars, Dalem, d’Aiguilhe, Francs ‘les Cerisiers’, Fougas Maldoror, Guibot, Bolaire, Poujeaux, Maucaillou, Citran, Tour Carnet, Lousteauneuf, Sociando Mallet, Belle-Vue, Gironville, Mille Roses (Ht Medoc) Grands Chenes, Rollan de By, Charmail, Mayne Lalande, Cambon la Pelouse, Potensac

  

We will be happy to offer a personal assistance on en primeur 2011 advice and purchases.


Primeurs tastings at Château Pontet-Canet, Pauillac


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