Robert Parker publishes his ratings of the 2011 Bordeaux wines

 

Robert Parker's review of the 2011 Bordeaux En Primeur wines

Following the release of around twenty Grands Crus from the 2011 vintage, and in particular... Châteaux Lafite-Rothschild And Cos d'Estournel With prices having fallen sharply by at least 50%, the Bordeaux wine market eagerly awaited critic Robert Parker's ratings. These ratings, displayed in parentheses (typical of en primeur tastings), provide a range.

Sauternes and Barsac

Confirming the exceptional quality of the 2011 vintage for both dry and sweet white wines, the scores are generally excellent for the First Growth wines of this name. The château d'Yquem dominates his segment (96-98), closely followed by Doisy-Daene and Climens (95-97). The excellent Barsac, Château Cutlery takes 3rd place with a score of 94-96. Also noteworthy is the very impressive progress of Château Rayne-Vigneau (93-95) which rises to the level of Château Rieussec.

The red wines of the 2011 vintage

6 of the top 7 in the rankings Robert Parker are from Saint-Emilion and Pomerol: this confirms the analysis made by our tasting team on the remarkable freshness brought by the Cabernet Francs and Merlot in this vintage. Château Ausonius takes the gold medal by a wide margin (96-100), followed by the Château MargauxThe absolutely excellent Château Cheval Blanc taking a third place this year, tied with several garage wines, the Château The Pine and the Vieux Château Certan (94-96).

In general, the scores are significantly lower than in 2010, 2009 and often 2008. We remember that in May 2009, Robert Parker surprised everyone by posting excessively high scores for the 2008 vintage, as if it had been necessary to reconcile Bordeaux with its dwindling clientele.

Among the 39 other Châteaux that received a score of at least 94, we should again note a large majority of Saint-Emilion and a high density of Premier Grand Cru and Super Secondsincluding Château Pontet Canet, Château Mouton-Rothschild, Château Léoville Las Cases And Château Ducru-Beaucaillou.

On the Left Bank, the Saint Julien fare better than the Saint-Estèphe and Pauillac wines. It should be noted that Château Lafite-Rothschild, Lynch Bages, Cos d'Estournel, Montrose, Carruades de Lafite are not in the top 46. Nor like the Château Smith-Haut-Lafitte, Léoville Barton And Pichon Baron.

Among the revelations noted 91-93, we can mention the Château Rouget à Pomerol, which continues its slow climb in the rankings. We remind you in passing that this Château, property of domaine Bourguignon prioritizes terroir over extraction: we will once again put this into practice this year. Château prominently featured in our catalog. We should also mention Castle Sociando-Mallet, Brane Cantenac , Malescot Saint Exupéry and the Clos du Marquis.

 Exit prices and our allowances

Based on this ranking and these relatively average scores, we are awaiting release prices to determine our bulk purchases and satisfy our customers looking for a wine cellar for enjoyment or investment. It was crucial not to rush and to carefully assess this rather surprising vintage.

Are you looking for a Bordeaux Primeurs 2011 a particular or special format, Contact our teams.