Bordeaux 2016 at Two Years: Pessac-Léognan
In this instalment of my report on the wines of the 2016 Bordeaux vintage after bottling I look at all the wines of Pessac-Léognan in this vintage, both white and red. There are a few other dry white wines dotted here and there in my report, in The Rest of the Left and The Rest of the Right, but here is where the majority of the tasting notes on white wines are to be found. That doesn’t mean to say that this is where the most glowing tasting notes or the highest scores are waiting though.
I recall the words of Jean-Philippe Delmas during the primeur tastings, as reproduced in my initial 2016 White Pessac-Léognan report. “The whites were difficult”, he told me during my visit to Château La Mission Haut-Brion, with sun-exposed fruit easily burnt in the warm and sunny weather, while shaded fruit lagged behind, still green. The challenge in a warmer vintage such as 2016 is achieving a good sense of balance, fashioning wines which carry the richer flavours the warmer conditions naturally engendered while also holding on to the freshening acidity. These difficulties showed through in the character of the white wines at the barrel sample stage, and the wines tasted now, from bottle, remain true to my initial impressions. This is a vintage in which, here in Pessac-Léognan, we have white wines of beautiful flavour, but which struggle with freshness, acidity and balance on the palate. Many have a sense of charm, but there are none that hint at true greatness.
From among this particular gang, the white 2016 from Château Haut-Brion was my favourite, but it has a richer style akin to 2015, and I think those interested in this wine should take a long look at 2014 or maybe 2017 instead. The 2013 vintage, rightly derided (by me, anyway) for its red wines, is also worthy of consideration; some of the white wines put on a pretty good show in that washout vintage, including Château Haut-Brion with its waxy weight and correct, poised acidity. Of course, few of us find ourselves picking up such bottles as we browse the shelves of our local wine merchant, but there are other names to look out for in the 2016 vintage. The white 2016 from Château Brown showed well, putting some more famous classed growths to shame (not for the first time), and I suspect the white 2016 from Château Bouscaut will also give serious joy in a few years time.
