The UGC Is Back!
Tasting the 2019s in San Francisco at the UGC.
Last week, we were honored to host the Union des Grands Crus tasting of the 2019 Bordeaux vintage at the Metreon in San Francisco. We have been hosting this event since 2005, when our co-owner and Bordeaux evangelist Clyde Beffa Jr helped lobby to have two tastings in California, with K&L covering SF and Wally’s covering LA. Last Wednesday, after a two-year pause for the pandemic—as well as a reschedule this year for same—Bordeaux producers and enthusiasts alike came together, finally, to revel in the 2019 vintage.
2019 in fact is a wonderful vintage to welcome us back. As a whole, the wines show ripeness and approachability, while maintaining a vibrant acidity and ripe, supple tannins. This balance of ripeness and freshness is a delicate tightrope walk, but good weather in 2019 managed to produce it. Overall, it’s a very delicious vintage, and not one that takes the enamel (completely) off your teeth at such a young age. The beauty of Bordeaux is in seeing where the wines go as they age, and I’m particularly looking forward to revisiting the 2019s in five and ten years’ time.
For those of you who haven’t attended, there are 131 members of the UGC, and they have been traveling from city to city since the 1970s to pour the current-release vintage for the world. Aside from tasting at the châteaux, I think it’s the best way to get a comprehensive understanding of Bordeaux—not just of the vintage, but of the character of each individual area within the region. This is the third UGC I’ve attended, and each time I continue to hone in on attributes I come expect from each area and learn which are more compelling to me. Not to mention, having access to ambassadors from each estate is invaluable. They know their terroir and winemaking intimately, and are bar none the best to speak to with questions about the wines and properties.
I was at the check-in counter during the event (if I checked you in, hello!), so my tasting and note taking weren’t as systematic as they might have been otherwise, but I did find many wines I was enthralled with. Margaux and St-Joseph are perennial favorite regions for me, and the wines this year were very good. A few standouts from other regions:
2019 Pape Clément, Pessac-Léognan $99.99 Tasting this wine was like encountering the tip of a very large, complicated iceberg. It was delicious now, but I was intrigued by the depth of what is below the surface. There is much more to come from this wine. It was dark and brooding with blackberry, mocha, and earthy aromatics that just hinted at what lies underneath. Showing structure and succulence in 2022, I have no doubt this will be a wonderful ager for the cellar.
2019 Malartic-Lagravière Rouge, Pessac-Léognan $47.99 If you’re looking for something that might be ready to drink a bit earlier, this wine is already showing approachability, with ripe, juicy red fruits and tobacco notes.
2019 Canon, St-Émilion $179.99 This was gorgeous, and very elegant, with floral aromatics but round, ripe fruit on palate, all integrated seamlessly. Delicious.
2019 Pichon-Lalande, Pauillac $259.99 Many were saying this was the wine of the vintage, and I wouldn’t disagree. Layers of black fruit and pencil led and mineral then brown sugared notes all work together to create a luscious, intriguing wine. The fruit is sweet but the power is clear. This is definitely another one for the cellar.
After the tasting, Clyde treated us to a lovely dinner at the nearby Mathilde. A highlight for me was traveling there and dining with Lilian Barton Sartorius. The ninth generation at Léoville-Barton and Langoa-Barton, she’s also the daughter of recently passed Anthony Barton, a beloved friend of Clyde’s. I’ve long admired her wines, and thoroughly enjoyed her company, too. We were also joined by Michael Menke, Betsy Renard, Marion Lopez, and Kara Pothass. It was a fantastic crew!
Mathilde provided a classic choice of steak frites or duck confit, and Clyde provided an array of wines, mostly older vintages of Léoville and Langoa. The 2005 from both properties was amazing, and the 1987 was still singing! We also opened up a few magnums from the Calera library, which, though from California not Bordeaux, have proven to be kindred spirits in ageability! We’ve been blown away by the freshness and depth of the wines we’ve been lucky enough to acquire.
A big thank you to the UGC for bringing such an exciting event to us in California, and to all of you who came out and tasted the wines. The event showed how important it is to come together as a community and celebrate these wines. If you haven’t yet joined us for a UGC tasting, there’s nothing like it! We’d love to have you join us next year for the tasting of the 2020s, another exciting vintage and the last in the “trio” of 2018-2019-2020. In the meantime, there are plenty of 2019s on pre-arrival, and Clyde keeps us well stocked in perfectly aged older vintages ready to drink on our shelves.
