Bordeaux 2017 Cru Bourgeois: Tasting in 2019
The Alliance des Crus Bourgeois du Médoc has granted the Cru Bourgeois designation in the 2017 vintage to 226 châteaux which between them account for 23% of the volume produced on the Médoc peninsula. As usual the majority hail from the broader Haut-Médoc and Médoc appellations, as well as Moulis and Listrac, along with a select few from St Estèphe, Pauillac and Margaux.
The 2017 vintage was a difficult one, complicated by a spring frost. I will return to the vintage in more detail in my full post-bottling report in the next few months, but briefly and with specific relevance to the Médoc, the Gironde offered valuable protection from the frost to many parts of the Médoc. When it comes to frost, those vineyards closest to large bodies of water, whether it be a lake, river or in this case an estuary, will be protected by its moderating effect on the local climate. Vineyards further ‘inland’ will often be harder hit. On the Médoc this means those more prestigious appellations which hug the water’s edge, specifically St Estèphe, Pauillac and St Julien more than Margaux, will have been advantaged. While some of the vineyards of the Haut-Médoc and Médoc appellations get quite close to the water, many are set further back, and at greater risk.
Perhaps this explains, at least in part, why some of the better wines in this tasting hailed from the communal appellations, specifically St Estèphe more than Pauillac and Margaux. This is a reverse of the norm at the cru bourgeois level, where I usually find the best wines originate from the Haut-Médoc and perhaps Médoc appellations (presumably because most of the best terroirs in Pauillac, Margaux and so on have long been absorbed into the vineyards of neighbouring cru classé properties).
