Wise Hit: Episode 4 'THE BULL'
2008 was a year most people would like to forget. Among other things it brought us the Global Financial Crisis, from which the world is still shakily recovering.
Right up until September of that year, there was plenty of hand-wringing too in the vineyards of Bordeaux. There’d been little sun and too much rain throughout the growing season and it was all looking depressingly similar to 2007, without the happy ending. Chris Kissack, writing in thewinedoctor.com, said he had christened 2007 the "Hollywood Vintage", as it seemed to him that “the harvest, which was heading for a rot and mildew-infested disaster, was saved by an improbably fortunate ending (warm September weather) redolent of a Hollywood action movie, when in the last ten minutes the hero, against all the odds, saves the day.” Well, the same thing happened in September 2008 - just as the sun went down on two of America’s biggest investment banks Merrill-Lynch and Lehman Brothers; across the Atlantic the sun came up on Bordeaux. Kissack called the 2008 vintage the sequel, for yet again the Bordelais laboured under a rather wet and depressing summer sky, before once again the weather improved late in the year, saving the harvest. The only flaw in this analogy is that, unlike most Hollywood sequels, 2008 has turned out to be a considerably better effort than 2007.”
Many say it’s done even better than that. Robert Parker, tasting the “en primeur” wines (of which more below) commented that the 2008 vintage was “at least excellent” and that comparisons were being made with the 1988 “Classic Bordeaux” vintage. The reputable James Suckling, writing in the Wine Spectator was less effusive, commenting that “the 2008 vintage was challenging for red wines, though undoubtedly a better one than 2007. Cool, wet weather in May and June kept yields low, but was followed by a warm, sunny July. Then August and early September were gray and damp; ripening was uneven and mildew threatened the grapes. But the last three weeks of September were warm and sunny, potentially saving the day for many producers. The best of the resulting wines show lovely aromas, fruity palates, silky tannins and bright acidity that gives them long, lively finishes.”
We found out for ourselves in December last year, when Guangzhou hosted its very first visit of the “Union des Grand Crus de Bordeaux” at the Sofitel Sunrich, courtesy of ASC. Ninety or so of the 134 member estates attended, armed with samples of their 2008 vintage; both the dry reds and the sweet whites - which had an excellent year by the way, with all that mildew on the vines and the very long maturing time. But sample upwards of 200 bottles in two and a half hours? Can’t be done, I decided. Happily, my personal favourites were there, Chateau-Figeac from Saint Emilion, and Chateau Kirwan, reputedly Bordeaux’s oldest chateau, from Margaux and they were where I spent much of my time.
The union also hosts the week-long “en-primeur” barrel tastings which mark the official launch of a vintage and help set the “futures” price, for investors who purchase wine up to 18 months before it’s bottled, after which – typically – the prices rise dramatically.Yet shadows of the GFC continue in the wine industry. Many Chinese investors have been bitten hard and are licking their wounds. As noted Singapore-based wine and food columnist Ch’ng Poh Tiong reported in edition 389 of The Wine Review, “prices for the 100 most traded wines (95% of which are Bordeaux) fell by an average 22.5% between June and December 2011.” The accompanying chart, from www.liv-ex.com, tells the story from October last year.
”The hardest hit” he continues, “is the former darling of the mainland market, specifically the 2008 vintage. This time last year, in January 2011, Chateau Lafite-Rothschild was fetching just over £14,000 for a case of 12 bottles. The most recent traded price, according to Liv-Ex, was £8,108 – a fall of nearly 45%.”
The sun may well have saved the day for the 2008 vintage, but the financial storms apparently continue.
But not to worry. As one vigneron confided to me with a wink, “just wait until the 2009 vintage.”
David Kellaway attended the Union des Grand Crus de Bordeaux at the invitation of ASC Fine Wines, www.asc-wines.com
