Our Comprehensive Guide to Bordeaux's 2022 Vintage

Today's Newsletter is our long-awaited, comprehensive report on all things Bordeaux 2022 En Primeur. After a whirlwind trip to the region in April, our team returned full of enthusiasm and insight for what can only be described as an unprecedented modern vintage. While the growing season was not without its challenges, numerous properties crafted renditions that will rank with their very best, and while prices are undeniably up from 2021, there are still remarkable values to be had when you know where to look. As with any potentially great vintage, the hype and hyperbole must be put into proper context to help our customers make their very best buying decisions—this year's En Primeur newsletter does just that. Please note - these wines are all being offered on a pre-arrival / futures basis.

Bordeaux En Primeur: Yielding to Merlot

Yields are down. A common colloquialism among many in the supply side of the wine world. Since wine crops are so measurable, it is not just out there to garner sympathy—it is usually a meaningful component to quality of a vintage and the marketplace for the wine. But low yields are a symptom that can be ascribed to many different issues, good and bad. We take a look at what it means for the 2022 vintage.

2022 Bordeaux En Primeur: Rule #1 - Don't Start with Conclusions

This year, we started our visits with the infamous Bill Blatch, a fount of knowledge who tasted us on Sauternes, but is as well-versed in Bordeaux as anybody you’d meet. When asked about the vintage for sweet wines, his answer was very refreshing and grounding. Instead of reaching for superlatives and quotables, he produced a series of charts that showed the weather conditions in the region for every single day. We asked for conclusions. Instead, he gave us information, paired it perfectly with the wines, and set us down our own paths.

K&L Wine Merchants

www.klwines.com