Bordeaux 2011 at Two Years: Haut-Médoc & Médoc
The Haut-Médoc is a very broad appellation, and considering it all as a single entity is a rather weak approach. In my Bordeaux 2012 report, after tasting a broad range of wines, I divided my notes up into four regional sections, these being (i) north of St Estèphe, (ii) west of Pauillac and St Julien, (iii) the central Médoc, between St Julien and Margaux, and (iv) the southern Médoc, between Margaux and Bordeaux itself. This was informative, as it clearly indicated some regions performed better than others, which might reflect differing terroirs and it may also be influenced by the vagaries of the vintage. Clearly there is ‘granularity’ to this appellation that does not come through in most reports or articles on it.
Sadly there is little point in dividing up my notes here in a similar fashion, as there simply aren’t sufficient tasting notes for this to have any real meaning. Indeed, I don’t often get around to the Haut-Médoc châteaux at all at the annual Union des Grands Crus tastings, but spurred on by the despair of what I found in Margaux in 2011 I felt I had to keep hunting for something better, even though the tasting was drawing to a close and I was acutely aware that I had a flight leaving from Gatwick airport for Bordeaux in a little over two hours time.
