Bordeaux 2009 lives up to hype

The 2009 Bordeaux vintage, heralded as the vintage of the century by some, surpassing 2005, has been unveiled at this weeks En Primeur tastings and many reports suggests it is living up to expectations. According to Decanter wine critic Steven Spurrier after his first full day of tasting, Bordeaux has made a quantum leap and produced a truly 'modern' vintage, the best that Bordeaux has ever produced. Spurrier had only tasted the Right Bank and the Cru Bourgeois of the Medoc but Hong Kong critic Jeannie Cho Lee MW described three of the five First Growths as 'stunning wines with amazing density'.

Some think 09 may not be quite on a par with 05, for example French blogger Jean-Marc Quarin suggests the 2009 may not have 'the balance and freshness of the 2005' and Christian Moueix of Petrus said that 2009 had been a vintage that demanded time and money to get right. Other reports question the ageing potential of the wines compared with 2005 given that many of the wines are drinking well now.

Sauternes and Barsac are singled out as great vintages across the board of producers by French journalist Michel Bettane.