Bordeaux 2008: Parker has spoken

[Matthias R WHT]

When Europe was asleep last night, Robert Parker published his
Bordeaux 2008 report and ratings. Parker is very excited about the
quality of the new vintage. As the main reasons he sums up:

1. Very long hang-time for the grapes, thus a slow and long maturation
resulting in well-developed and complex aroma's.

2. A summer that was overall cooler and sunnier than average.
Interesting, because what I heard from producers is that despite the
variable weather during the growing season, the average temperature
was slightly higher. Something to check.

3. It was a dry summer.


Parker points out the good fruit, the purity and freshness and the
quality and the ripeness of the tannins. He states that the quality of
Bordeaux 2008 comes close to 2005 and 2000, and surpasses the other
vintages from this decade. Pomerol is supposedly the star appellation
in the year 2008.


This is Parker's top 11 for Bordeaux 2008:

- Lafite-Rothschild (Pauillac) 98-100

- Pétrus (Pomerol) 98-100

- Trotanoy (Pomreol) 96-100

- Ausone (Saint-Emilion) 96-100

- Pavie (Saint-Emilion) 96-98+

- Pontet-Canet (Pauillac) 96-98+ (the buy of the vintage?)

- Bellevue-Mondotte (Saint-Emilion) 96-98+

- La Violette (Pomerol) 96-98

- Hosanna (Pomerol) 96-98 (released 1st day, hardly sold, now hunted)

- Latour (Pauillac) 96-98

- Ducru-Beaucaillou (Saint-Julien) 96-98


And there are many many more wines scoring above 90, so I guess there
will be enough Champagne uncorked in Bordeaux today.

This last time the campaign has been a little boring, because many -
major - châteaux were waiting for Parker's verdict. Now they will come
out, and hopefully Parker's enthusiasm doesn't push the prices back
up. We'll see in the coming days...



- David Bolomey. Bordoverview. April 30, 2009.