Château Suau: Tasting & Drinking
My first encounter with the wines of Château Suau was probably with the 1990 vintage, and for many years I thought that was also going to be my last encounter. Indeed, you will see from my tasting note on the 2012 vintage, below, that when I tasted it I had obviously forgotten about that distant encounter with the 1990. And by the time I next met the wine of this estate, with the 2016 vintage, I had obviously forgotten about tasting the 2012. Such is the fallibility of human memory.
The 2012 vintage was not a great one for the Sauternes and Barsac region, with several estates, led by Château d’Yquem, deciding against making a grand vin that year. It shows in the quality of the wine. This vintage also predated the involvement of Olivier Bernard, who arrived in 2014, his impact only really felt with the 2015 vintage and those that followed. In my encounters the wines from 2016 onwards seem consistent, fresh and nicely polished, with plentiful clean fruit. The style deserves some admiration, and Olivier Bernard and his team deserve some credit for bringing this cru classé estate into from the cold.
Sadly the relationship with the Bernards seems to have come to an end, perhaps precipitated by a string of awkward vintages. A difficult season with sporadic rain at harvest meant that no 2020 was produced here, as was the case on one or two other properties in the appellation. The 2021 vintage was heavily frosted, and I expect the production was completely wiped out. While I am uncertain what wine (if any) was produced in 2022 I am told by Adrien Bernard that no grand vin was made in 2023 either. The relationship was terminated for the 2024 vintage. (9/6/21, updated 7/4/24)
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