Bordeaux 2017 Primeurs: St Julien
Here in St Julien we have the third in the lucky trio of left-bank appellations which came through the otherwise devastating spring frost of 2017 largely unscathed. As with St Estèphe and Pauillac, the explanation for this close shave is straightforward. The vines of this appellation hug the banks of the Gironde, and this expansive body of water has a significant effect on the local climate, damping down extremes of temperature. While inland there were sub-zero temperatures, here it simply wasn’t cold enough to do any extensive damage.
As with St Estèphe and Pauillac, the declared yields for this vintage provide support for this account of the vintage. The average yield in St Julien in the supposedly frost-bitten 2017 vintage was 44.3 hl/ha. Now while this is not a contender for the largest yield in recent years, this title much more likely to be claimed by 2016 (46 hl/ha), 2015 (47.9 hl/ha) or 2009 (45.8 hl/ha), the yield in 2017 is certainly comparable with these figures. In addition, it remains superior to the average yield obtained over the five vintages from 2012 to 2016, which stands at 40.7 hl/ha.
As for the September rains, the story here was pretty similar to that found to the north. The pre-harvest precipitation interfered with the picking of the Merlot, and so for some domaines there has been more of a focus on Cabernet Sauvignon in this vintage. With the appellation’s wonderfully deep beds of gravel, warm soils which are ideal for ripening this variety, the result is an array of very successful wines coming from the leading estates.
