What’s happening in the market?
Bordeaux led trade over the weekend, accounting for 33.8% of traded value. Chateau Lafite Rothschild continued to drive activity, with the 2015, 2019 and 2021 vintages proving the most popular of the 9 that changed hands.
Burgundy remained in second place, buoyed by high-value bottles such as Domaine de la Romanée-Conti’s Romanée-Conti Grand Cru 2019, and Maison Leroy’s Puligny-Montrachet Les Folatières 2013.
Tuscany saw in an increase in share of trade, overtaking Champagne’s 10.47%, led by trades of Tenuta san Guido Sassicaia 2020.
Today’s deep dive: James Suckling’s top-scoring Bordeaux 2023 wines
James Suckling has published his Bordeaux 2023 scores and tasting notes. His six top-scoring wines all received 99-100 points.
According to Suckling, the 2023 vintage boasted ‘some of the brightest and liveliest red Bordeaux [he has] tasted in years’. In comparison to the 2022s, the 2023s are ‘so Bordeaux in their nature, with their tensioned mouthfeels and energetic finishes’.
The critic described the wines as having ‘ripe, balanced fruit and firm tannins with slightly lower alcohol and lower pH compared with hotter years’ – qualities, he said, they share with vintages such as 2019, 2016 and 2001.
Suckling emphasized the importance of viticulture in producing top quality wines this vintage. High levels of Mildew last June and unpredictable rainfall in September made for a challenging growing season. Overcoming these challenges yielded wines showing ‘balance and freshness with deep center palates of ripe fruit and a complement of polished tannins’.
He gave his top score, a barrel range of 99-100, to a total of six wines, as shown in the table above. Château Canon St Emilion topped the list thanks to its ‘electric presence and length that goes on and on’. It is followed by Le Pin and Château Margaux.
Château Montrose received a glowing tasting note alongside its 99-100 point rating. Suckling said that ‘[he has] not tasted a Montrose like this in 42 years of [his] career’, with this vintage marking ‘a new era’ for the Château.
In recent years, Suckling has awarded the near-perfect score to the 2015, 2016 and 2022 vintages of Le Pin and to the 2015, 2018 and 2019 vintages of Château Margaux. As the chart below shows, the Market Prices of the 2018 and 2019 vintages are lower than that of 2015, and of the 95–96-point 2022.
Buyers seeking back-vintage opportunities in Le Pin may want to turn to the 2016 – last traded at a 9.5% discount to its Market Price.
Suckling expects release prices this year to drop across the board ‘despite the high quality of the wine’. He is not convinced, however, that this will ‘offset some vintners’ hefty price increases for their 2022s last year’.
Liv-ex’s En Primeur opening report ‘Bordeaux 2023: In the balance’ is currently available exclusively to members – read it here.
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