Key wine critics reveal the 2023 vintage stars for investors

Discover which investment wines have achieved the top-quality ratings this vintage?

There are less than ten people in the world whose palates provide a quality indicator which has the potential to move markets in investment fine wines.

Which wine critics should investors be guided by?

• Antonio Galloni - https://vinous.com
• James Suckling - https://www.jamessuckling.com
• Jancis Robinson MW OBE - https://www.jancisrobinson.com
• Lisa Perotti-Brown MW - https://thewineindependent.com
• Neal Martin - https://vinous.com
• William Kelley, The Wine Advocate - https://www.robertparker.com

Liv-ex has tracked the correlation between quality scores and prices in both en primeur and bottled wines once they start trading on the secondary market. Bordeaux wines are more likely to see price movement following the release of quality scores, and when ratings are later upgraded once wines are bottled and later at key tastings.

Key critics’ observations of the Bordeaux 2023 vintage

Each of the wine critics has their own unique opinion and commentary on the quality rating of individual 2023 wines. Those wines that have attracted higher scores from several, or all the critics, are the natural targets for investors.

Some of the key observations made by those critics that had published their view at the time of writing this blog (James Suckling, Neal Martin, William Kelley and Yohan Castaing of The Wine Advocate, Antonio Galloni and Jane Anson) are:

• A heterogenous vintage with inconsistent quality across Bordeaux has produced some spectacular wines on both the Left and Right Banks
• Challenging year for mildew-vulnerable Merlot, so Cabernet biased-estates seemed to fare better
• Green harvesting was necessary to reduce yields and enhance concentration in a wet vintage
• Estates that had invested in smaller fermentation vats were able to be more precise achieving better results
• Cooler vintage meant a return to lower alcohol levels and a more classic balance with greater tannic structure than recent vintages
• Relatively high yields in the more prestigious appellations
• A vintage that will drink younger but with the tannic structure to still have significant ageing potential.
• Pricing will be key with significant discounts on 2022 release prices needed to engage buyers. The balance between offering this and not undermining the value of recent vintages will be a serious challenge for the chateaux.

Which are the top-scored 2023 wines?

The most influential fine wine critics are in the process of releasing their critical scores for the Bordeaux 2023 En Primeurs. The following have published and you can find more information on their relevant websites.

James Suckling tends to be the first to release his critical review each vintage and, true to form, his critique of the 2023s was the opener. He states that they are “some of the brightest and liveliest red Bordeaux he has tasted in years.”

James Suckling top scored 2023 Bordeaux En Primeur wines

Source: www.liv-ex.com

Neal Martin is the merchant’s first choice critic for Bordeaux En Primeurs and his review of “The Dalmation” 2023 vintage provides fantastic insight into the year’s outstanding wines, whilst being a highly entertaining read. Martin describes Bordeaux 2023 as a vintage “bejewelled with a clutch of spell-binding wines”.  

The Right Bank led his scores with three of his top four ranked wines from Pomerol. He tips Chateau Eglise-Clinet 2023 as a possible wine of the vintage, his only wine rated with the potential to achieve perfection at in-barrel tasting. 
 

Neal Martin’s top-scored 2023 Bordeaux En Primeur wines

Source: www.liv-ex.com

Antonio Galloni, points to the high quality on the Left Bank and particularly St Estephe and Margaux for him, but also states that there “are plenty of stars on the Right Bank too.”

In his view, 2023 is an epic year for Sauternes and Barsac and other critics have also highlighted that this is a vintage of note for white Bordeaux.

Galloni comments on the investment some chateaux have made into smaller fermentation tanks as “one of the most significant evolutions in Bordeaux” giving vineyard managers greater resource to be more precise when picking. 

Antonio Galloni’s top-scored 2023 Bordeaux En Primeur wines

Source: www.liv-ex.com

The Wine Advocate’s William Kelley, the anchor-man for Bordeaux tastings was joined by Yohan Castaing for the 2023 En Primeur review. In their report on the new vintage, LINK https://www.robertparker.com, entitled ‘Bordeaux En Primeur 2023: Make or Break’ they share the opinion of other key critics, that the chateaux need to significantly discount the price on 2022’s release for a successful campaign.

The Wine Advocate’s top-scored 2023 Bordeaux En Primeur wines

Source: www.liv-ex.com

Lisa Perotti-Brown MW has published ‘the first wave’ of her notes and scores from the 2023 En Primeur Tastings, with the next revelation due out on the 9th May via her website, LINK https://thewineindependent.com. The early scores are set out below:

The Wine Independent’s top-scored 2023 Bordeaux En Primeur wines

Source: www.liv-ex.com

Jancis Robinson has yet to publish her team’s tasting notes and scores, and we will analyse these once available.

Our view

Vin-X team members attended the trade tastings in Bordeaux in April and you can see our opinion on the 2023 vintage as a strategic investment. Pricing for the 2023 en primeurs is paramount. As all the key critics have commented in their reports, and no doubt encouraged the chateaux and their advisors to do, discounting the 2023 from the 2022 release prices needs to be a significant movement. The challenge for the chateaux is to not be seen to undermine the value of recent vintages such as 2021 in the process.

Some of Bordeaux’s key estates, including First Growth, Chateau Lafite Rothschild have released their 2023 wine early and met the brief with discounts over 30% on their 2022 release prices. The chateaux look to have taken the trade warnings and the global economic conditions on board and priced the 2023 En Primeurs with the original rationale of a discounted first release price.

Key 2023 En Primeur discounts on 2022 wines

Liv-ex.com – key releases at 08.05.2024

On the release information so far we believe that key 2023 wines provide strategic opportunities for investors to add future value to their portfolios. For more information about the vintage and allocations, speak to our expert team on 0203 384 2262.