The end of the campaign
Crushing fears of a long drawn-out campaign, 2016 Bordeaux primeurs finished with a rapid-fire sequence of releases last week, culminating with last Thursday's L'If and Le Pin.
We've lost track of the number of conversations we've had about the prices. It would be fair to say that it's a vintage where the typical buyer is different to the one who bought a lot of, say, 2008 or 2014. Why? Well, let's look again at some of Neal Martin's words from his overview of the vintage in The Wine Advocate.
'Let's cut to the chase: 2016 is unequivocally a great vintage… a vintage that can send tingles down the spine and back up again… there has never been a vintage with such breathtaking fineness of tannin… it is the first vintage whereby investments both out in the vineyard and inside the winery have manifested wines so pixelated and so crystalline… neither [the 2009 nor 2010] have the 'HD' quality of 2016… the first Bordeaux vintage defined by precision… The pleasure they will give is immeasurable.'
So this is a vintage for those satisfied only with the best - and for whom cost is a secondary concern. But the best doesn't necessarily mean those at the top of the historical hierarchies - this vintage more than most. And so there have been plenty of good buys, even if their prices have looked high compared to 2014's - or even 2015's. We fought hard for allocations of those wines and although many sold out immediately, we still have stock of several, including Brane-Cantenac and Grand-Mayne - two of the properties "writing new chapters for themselves" according to Neal Martin.
On our website we continue to list a broad range of '16s. Below are the ones where we've taken a position - the ones we've bought above and beyond the orders we've taken. These are the wines we're happy to take to stock - though happier still to sell to you. Thank you all for your support during the campaign. We look forward to your continuing enquiries. /AR
Offered subject to remaining unsold; available 2019
