The 2020 Bordeaux Vintage

Bordeaux En-Primeur wines 2020

On the Left Bank, from Saint-Estèphe to Margaux, via Saint-Julien und Pauillac, and without forgetting Pessac-Léognan, the 2020 Bordeaux Primeurs stand out for their colour and structure. These great terroirs did not suffer from water stress, producing fine wines steeped in elegance, made to withstand the passage of time, while also being accessible in their youth.

And when it comes to the 2020 Bordeaux Primeurs from the Right Bank, particularly those of Pomerol and Saint-Émilion it is impossible not to praise the historic quality of the Merlot. The colour was simply remarkable and the juices revealed delicious fruit upon a solid tannic structure. The en primeur wines of the Right Bank stirred up great enthusiasm at the very first tastings.

The dry conditions at the end of the season did not necessarily make everyone happy, and the sweet wines of 2020 Sauternes and Barsac kept the winegrowers of these appellations on edge. The famous noble rot took a long time to appear and it required great attention and self-sacrifice on the part of the vineyard teams to bring this 2020 vintage to fruition. The harvest, therefore, showed very low yields, but the resulting wines are superb, marked by a very nice balance and aromatic profiles that make the mouth water.

Finally, the 2020 white Primeurs of Pessac-Léognan and Bordeaux Dry White Wines were successful for the most part, despite the hot temperatures of the summer, which threatened a lack of tension and freshness in the wines. The clay-limestone terroirs produced very beautiful, tasty and balanced wines, less exuberant than those of 2019, but nevertheless endowed with a beautiful finesse.