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Bordeaux 1998

The latter years of the 1990s made for an interesting market, the bullish Bordelais having raised prices for the dodgy 1997 vintage, riding a tide of optimism that started with the considerably more interesting 1995 and 1996 vintages. With time it became clear that quality and price were remarkably out of synch in the latter of those three vintages, and so with 1998 the pressure was on to drop prices. Especially so once critics had pointed out the less than charming nature of many of the wines in this vintage, particularly those from the communes of the left bank. Nevertheless, the relationship between quality and the prix de sortie in Bordeaux is a weak one, and buoyed by the news that the vintage was in fact very successful in the right bank communes of St Emilion and Pomerol, as well as south of Bordeaux in the Pessac-Léognan appellation, the Bordeaux proprietors saw no reason to significantly lower prices. On the left bank, even where the 1998 vintage saw a price cut on the over-hyped 1997 vintage, the numbers concerned were still often much higher than the better 1996 vintage. And so 1998 continued the seemingly inexorable upwards trend for wine pricing in Bordeaux.

To gauge the merit of the vintage it is of course necessary to taste the wines, and here I provide links to two tastings. The first looks at a dozen top wines from St Emilion, sampled at a tasting hosted by the Groupement de Premiers Grands Crus Classés de St Emilion at just six years of age. The second shows a broad but small selection of wines tasted at ten years old. But first, I also provide below a review of the vintage conditions that explains why 1998 was such a success on the right bank, and yet so questionable on the left.

Vintage Review

To describe the weather as changeable is perhaps somewhat unhelpful, yet this is certainly an apt description for the conditions in the early months of the 1998 growing season. Spring opened with a flourish of March warmth which had the vines eager to burst forth, but any early optimism was soon tempered by cool and damp conditions in April which carried on into early May. By the end of the month, however, warm weather had returned once more, but not for long. During June the conditions reeled unsteadily from wet and miserable to hot and sunny, but as July approached it was the latter that dominated. Despite the unpredictable skies, the flowering occurred without undue upset, and the early optimism returned.

June's story was continued by July, with a sparse sprinkling of hot and sunny days interspersed with thunderstorms, grey skies and even a little hail, the latter affecting Pomerol in particular. August, however, saw a heatwave settle over Bordeaux, and with little rain throughout the month there was now a threat of drought rather than flood. It was sufficiently arid to threaten the vines, which under such conditions cease photosynthesis (a process for which water is essential), shutting down leaf growth and fruit development. Ultimately, if this continues unchecked by rain, the leaves will wither and the fruit dehydrates leaving small, hard, thick-skinned berries. Fortunately the necessary rain came in the first week of September, with scattered showers irrigating the vineyards, followed by fine weather, bringing the vines back to life and then enabling the white grapes to be picked under clear skies. There followed more rain in mid-September, then another prolonged fine spell, during which the Merlots were harvested. For the Cabernets it was a different story; a prolonged intermittent deluge characterised late September and early October when these grapes were harvested.

The result, as far as the red wines are concerned, are excellent wines where Merlot dominates, so this is very much a right bank vintage. For the left bank Cabernet-dominated wines, the quality - like the weather - is rather more variable. The Médoc communes in particular did not fare so well, although further south the vineyards of Pessac-Léognan were more favoured, and my impression is that the wines of this commune are under-rated and under-appreciated in this particular vintage. This may in part be due to the greater role played by Merlot in some of these wines. Nevertheless, it was soon realised that in 1998 it was to the right bank appellations of St Emilion and Pomerol one should look for the very best wines.

As for Sauternes, although some good wines were made, it was by no means a great vintage for this region. The very wet weather towards the end of the year did nothing for the quality of the wines. Nevertheless, followers of these wines had plenty to look forward to, as the 1997 vintage had already proven itself as a fine vintage for sweet wine in Bordeaux. And although they didn't know it at the time, more great wines were soon to come, in 1999 and 2001. (26/8/08)