Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux 2007 Vintage Tasting

Atlanta was one of four U.S. stops on the Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux 2007 Vintage tasting tour. Thanks to an Atlanta Wine School email, I was able to be there today experiencing a virtual tasting tour through Bordeaux. It was truly a unique opportunity to taste my way through each of the appellations-experiencing the differences in terroir and style.

From all reports, the 2007 vintage in Bordeaux was a mixed bag. A wet summer put a damper on hopes for a good overall vintage; but a sunny, cool, and dry September improved prospects and some quality wines were made. This tasting included whites and reds from Pessac-Léognan, reds from Saint-Émilion, Pomerol, Listrac-Médoc, Moulis-en-Médoc, Haut-Médoc, Médoc, Margaux, Saint-Julien, Pauillac, Saint-Estèphe, and sweet whites from Sauternes & Barsac. The Saint-Émilion were all Grand Cru Classé, and there were a good amount of classified growths among the Médoc and Sauternes offerings. I was able to taste 44 different wines.

From Pessac-Léognan my favorite white was Domaine De Chavalier- very nice hints of tropical and citrus fruit elegantly balanced with mineral and straw notes. From the reds I liked Château Larrivet-Haut-Brion with its anise, coffee, black fruit, and herbal notes; their white was good as well-very Semillon influenced. Overall the whites were more consistent than their reds. The reds were fairly muted in their fruit and astringent.

The Saint-Émilion wines were a little uneven, mostly highlighted with herbal and earthy notes. On the ones where the fruit came into balance you could see nice potential. My favorites were Château La Tour Figeac & Château Trottevielle. The Pomerol wines were big and ripe compared to the Saint-Émilion, the Merlot really standing out much more. The ones I tasted were nice but fairly simple and straightforward with fairly muted aromas. Château Clinet was a favorite here. Between Listrac and Moulis, Château Chasse-Spleen was nice- with good ripe fruit and light spice notes. Of the Haut-Médoc, Château Cantemerle stood out for its elegant balance of dark fruit and spice.

The Margaux wines were consistently very delicate and complex- many with beautiful floral and red fruit notes on the nose and complex palates of fruit, herbs, and baking spices that suggested great potential for development. Château Lascombes and Château Rauzan-Ségla were standouts here; several more were very nice as well. Moving into the Saint-Julien wines- what stood out here was the gripping tannins and fine structure. The fruit-spice balance like that of Margaux was present, but with the fruit a little more to the forefront and consistently firm tannins. Flavors like cracked pepper and coffee beans were present in some of the best of these as well. I think the Saint-Juliens were the best overall of the day- with Château Lagrange, Château Léoville Poyferré, and Château Saint-Pierre as the standouts. Their complexity and structure showing great potential. The wines of Pauillac had more brawn and masculinity- dark spice, dark fruit, and ripe tannins. Bolder and richer than Saint-Julien but with a more relaxed structure, probably a little more drinkable now. Château Lynch-Bages was the standout. Of the Saint-Estèphe wines, Château De Pez was similar in profile to the Pauillacs- big fruit and rich spice with coffee notes- nice for now. Château Lafon-Rochet was big and tannic with notes of pencil shavings, herbs, and enough fruit to suggest nice potential for development.

I finished with a few Sauternes. The flavors here seemed pretty developed-ranging from the very aromatic Château Bastor Lamontagne, whose nut-brown sweetness was very balanced with rich fruit; to the intense Château La Tour Blanche, whose dense layers reminded me of apple and lemon meringue pies with a intense tart acidity.

So for what it's worth, these are my observations of a cross section of the 2007 Boudeaux vintage. It may not be another 2005, but I'm sure I could be happy for a long time with a supply of 2007's! Thanks again to Atlanta Wine School for getting me into the loop for this fascinating tasting!