‘an incredibly exciting vintage’
‘It is a year brimming with phenomenal wines at all levels’. Antonio Galloni has comprehensively revisited 2020 Bordeaux, and published his unambiguous conclusion on vinous.com. ‘2020 is by far the most consistent of the three vintages in Bordeaux’s so-called trilogy spanning 2018 through 2020.’ It is ‘an exceptional vintage’. It is better than either of the garlanded 2009 and 2010 vintages, and harks back to what is considered this century’s best vintage so far: ‘2020 is a modern-day version of 2005’.
What makes a vintage great is often down to happy accidents of timing. In Bordeaux in 2020, budbreak (in March) swerved frost problems, and the crucial flowering period (in May) avoided the rainy spells before and after. Summer was long, hot and dry, favouring old vines (which have the roots to access deeper water reserves) and water-retentive terroirs. Then August changed the game, with stormy rains bringing some relief. Many chateaux owners told me the same thing: ‘the freshness you can taste in the wine is August’.
It has always been clear that 2020 was a fabulous vintage for Bordeaux, concentrated and cellarworthy, combining the opulence of the hot 2018 vintage with the freshness of 2019. As the wines take shape in the cellar, they may turn out to be even more special than that. Take a hint from Galloni and get some 2020s in your cellar; in his words, ‘Finding a great 2020 red is easy’. /NT
Offered subject to remaining unsold; available Autumn 2023
