Bordeaux 2010: Summer, Autumn & Harvest
The second period of heavy rain came in June, bringing some welcome moisture to the soils and the vines after the long drought. Unlike more torrid vintages though (yes – I’m thinking of 2003), the weather during 2010 was never really hot enough to cause the vines to totally switch off photosynthesis. So even though June really began to heat up, once the rains had passed, there were none of the extraordinary spikes of temperature seen in 2003. And so the fruit continued its march towards ripeness through the summer months, while the cool July nights and then a cooler August helped to preserve acidities. The véraison came in early August, and here a second green harvest – again a very light one – allowed the weeding out of aborted grapes.
Despite the warm weather and the extreme drought, this was not an early harvest in the manner of 2003 or 1990. As I have written above, 2010 was a vintage marked by drought more than by heat, and for much of the growing season the vines lagged behind in comparison to 2009, although they did begin to catch up as the season progressed. Come harvest time, the vines were bearing a rich crop of ripe and healthy fruit. The whites came in without undue fuss during early September, although the decision when to harvest the reds was a little more difficult. In 2009 the Bordelais could choose when they picked, but this was not the case in 2010; when to harvest was a decision made by watching both the development of the grapes and the skies overhead, a decision complicated by rain and the need to balance physiological and technical ripeness.
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