En Primeurs week, and we celebrated the launch of 2022 in Bordeaux! Rumours abound that one of the hottest years on record may well have produced a great vintage.
So, is it true? The Bordeaux glitterati of vineyard owners and celebrity wine makers welcomed the world’s critics, merchants and journalists to sample their embryonic 2022 vintage. This week is the first gathering of the wine trade on its annual En Primeurs pilgrimage to Bordeaux in its traditional form since April 2019, pre-Covid.
This reason alone made many a merchant euphoric to be back in the most famous and revered home of fine wine. Bordeaux welcomed us back in magnificent style with an extremely exciting vintage to savour the moment.
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Chateau Carmes Haut Brion fermenters
Of course, we are incredibly privileged to be some of the first to taste, potentially, some the greatest wines of the future. I promise this is not wasted on us; we know how lucky we are.
Wine investment sweet spot
So an action-packed En Primeur week, referred to by the local Bordelais as ‘the crazy week’, went straight to the ‘sweet spot’ on day one at Chateau de Fieuzal. Producers from Graves, Pessac-Leognan, Sauternes and Barsac show-cased their 2022s in style.
The region's 2022 whites were polished and immaculate, but those which contained a portion of Sauvignon Gris were more lifted, different and distinctive. The young, tannic Bordeaux reds from the Pessac and Graves stood up well given their youth and a standout was definitely Domaine de Chevalier who continue to go from strength to strength.
Sauternes looks to have an exciting vintage on their hands, with some key changes at iconic estates. Chateau d’Yquem’s 2022 vintage will be its first certified organic year. This could add an interesting angle to their sales pitch. Famed wine maker, Sandrine Gambay moved from Yquem to neighbour Chateau Guiraud in November 2022, making it one to watch for the future.
Left Bank investment pointers
After a palate-packed first day, we headed to Chateau Montrose in the evening for their spectacular En-Primeur celebratory ‘From Roots to Light’ event. Hosted by Charlotte Bouygues and Pierre Graffeuille who 'wowed' the audience with a show-stopping light show and, of course, outstanding wines. A highlight was the newest addition, Montrose Blanc 2022!
Our second day took us first to St Julien where Chateau Beychevelle hosted the UGC member tastings from the appellation, then on to the Margaux appellation for a private tasting of 2022 at Château Palmer. One of the most impressive sampled by this point and we understand that Palmer’s new wine was well received by the critics. Day two concluded with another spectacular evening, this time at Château Gruaud Larose.
Chris Robshaw on Right Bank 2022 wines
Our Sport & Entertainment Director, and former England Rugby Captain, Chris Robshaw joined us on the morning of day three as we headed off to St Emilion, where Chateau Valandraud hosted the appellation’s Grand Cru tastings. Again, owners and wine-makers were comparing 2022 to great vintages of the past with 2016 a strong comparative.
At our earlier visit to Chateau Pavie we heard about their excitement for the vintage and were shown their commemorative 2022 bottle. This will celebrate their ten-year anniversary of receiving the St Emilion Premier Grand Cru, Classe A ranking and has all the hallmarks of a 'collector's must-have' . Pavie is now just one of two Classe A estates with newly raised, and well deserved, Chateau Figeac.
Chateaux Angelus, Ausone and Cheval Blanc withdrew from the 2022 edition of the St Emilion classification and it will be very interesting to see how their campaign unfolds. The critics scores will be the wayfinder as usual for the market. James Suckling has already pointed to Cheval Blanc as a top wine of the vintage.
Finally, we joined in the celebrations organised by the Commanderie de Bordeaux at their magnificent gala dinner. Extremely exclusive this final major celebration of the week with over six hundred carefully selected guests attending with the great estates of Bordeaux. This spectacular event celebrated the winemakers and their teams from the great estates and the brilliance of their work. Chris commented:
“My first experience of the En Primeurs week in Bordeaux was just mind-blowing. The sheer volume of quality wines was beyond my expectation and being part of this great process was another learning opportunity I feel really privileged to experience.
Speaking to the hugely talented wine makers and their teams assembled together at the Chateaux tastings with the new vintage wines was very special. Finally, to share in their celebrations at the Gala Dinner of what looks to be the launch of a special vintage was just fantastic.”
What is our first impression of Bordeaux 2022?
It’s very early days, but it is definitely looking like a vintage that will be significant for investors. Despite the challenging conditions, the region’s wine makers have delivered very promising wines, with comparisons being made at this stage to the Prime 2016s. The major critics’ scores will be published in the coming days and with their qualitative steer we can get a firmer grip on where we will be pointing our focus for the releases.
Investing in En Primeur wines can be very rewarding with the aim being to acquire excellent quality, rare wines at first release from the Chateau cellars. This is the very best provenance you can get. We will be following the 2022 vintage campaign very closely, appraising the release prices and identifying those opportunities we feel offer the right potential for future returns.
Follow our blog, social channels and Newsletter for the latest news through the campaign to discover our view on investing in this year’s campaign. For more information on 2022 allocations speak to a member of our expert team on 0203 384 2262.