A sleeper vintage awakens

James Suckling revisits 2012 Bordeaux

'The 2012 is certainly a sleeper vintage for Bordeaux. I can't think of many vintages that have improved so much after ageing in the cellars of the best wineries of Bordeaux. It is a wonderful year to buy and to drink. Many of the wines are incredibly drinkable now, with ultra-fine tannins and delicate fruit. The best wines of the vintage hark back to such excellent years as 1962, 1971, 1985 and 2001. All those years were overshadowed by great years before them, but they produced wines with the finesse and delicacy that Bordeaux provides so well.' - James Suckling, jamessuckling.com

Sometimes fantastic vintages get overlooked because they sit in the shadows of great vintages. As James Suckling has just noted on revisiting the vintage such may be the fate of Bordeaux 2012, with 2009 and 2010 looking over its shoulder, and a perception that growing conditions were challenging in 2012. They were challenging, but those chateaux that rose to the challenge through severe selection and careful winemaking produced magnificent wines that are now starting to show their true colours. As we said at the time, the peaks of the 2012 vintage are extremely high.

And in his 100 Top 2012 Bordeaux Tasting Report Suckling has given out some very impressive scores for a selection of 2012s still available from Uncorked - take a look at the table below. For a full list of our 2012 Bordeaux, click here. /NT 

Offered subject to remaining unsold, available now through 2015