Bordeaux 2012: Summer & Autumn
During the first week of July I was watching the Météo, the French national weather service, with some degree of trepidation. I was due to fly out to the region on July 7th, with a series of appointments lined up, at Château Teyssier, Château Tertre-Roteboeuf, Château Bauduc, Château Lafleur and one or two others. Rain would not dampen my spirits during such a trip, naturally, but as I was combining it with a family holiday – three weeks renting a gite not far from Sainte-Foy-de-Bordeaux – I was hoping the weather would be better. Otherwise, my name would be mud, and this might be my last summer-time visit to the region. The signs weren’t good; it rained almost every day during the first week, and the temperatures were a little lower than I would have liked. But then the weather turned; I had a lucky escape. The long-awaited arrival of summer was also welcomed with open arms by the Bordelais.
Aside from some rain on July 13th and 14th, the month was largely dry, and temperatures picked up, hitting more than 35ºC before the month was out. Great holiday weather, and great news for the vignerons. There was even some signs of veraison in the berries before the month was out, something I didn’t think I would see during my three weeks there, as the vintage was certainly behind schedule. The white berries do not declare this visually at first, but feeling the fruit it was clear that one or two were beginning to swell, and to soften as a result. And there were a small number of pink berries on the red vines too, although it was not until August that the colour change really got underway. And persistently good weather helped, August being warmer than average on most days, and with very little rainfall, the month dry except for 15 mm of rain on the 4th and 5th, and 2 mm on the 24th. Nevertheless, despite this hot and dry weather, the ripening process was very drawn out, and many bunches remained sufficiently green for a second green harvest in late-August/early-September. Here, dedicated vineyard managers cut away any green or pink fruit which had no hope of ripening before harvest proper.
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