Bordeaux Vintage Reports
Since 1985, our team has been traveling to Bordeaux each year to taste the vintage En Primeur. We’ve made many friends and many memories, but most importantly we have honed our palates and understanding of the market to bring you astute insights from the ground. Below is our collection of vintage guides: everything you need to help shape your buying and cellaring decisions. Cheers!
Most recent vintage first. Click a year to see what we have in stock; each year links to our own en primeur report where we wrote one.
2025 - A hot, dry summer, an early harvest and a small crop produced ripe, polished, concentrated wines with real freshness. What made the campaign unlike any other was the pricing: many châteaux released at their lowest prices in a decade, making this the best value futures campaign in years. Our report: Like Never Before
2024 - A cold, wet, mildew-plagued season gave lighter, fresh, classically proportioned wines in reduced quantity — honest Bordeaux rather than great Bordeaux. Futures offered little reason to commit early; the wines can be bought in bottle when they arrive. Our report: Futures Can Wait (PDF)
2023 - A large crop from a season of mildew pressure and August heat, rescued by a dry September. Mid-weight, charming, well-balanced wines across both banks, and an en primeur campaign that was, for once, sensibly priced. Our report: The Price is Right—So Far (PDF)
2022 - One of the hottest, driest seasons on record, and yet the wines are astonishingly balanced: dense, fresh, polished, with fine tannins and real energy. A modern great, mentioned in the same breath as 2016 and 2010. Buy and cellar. Our report: The Best Bordeaux Vintage Since 1870? (PDF)
2021 - A return to a classic, cool-climate rendition of Bordeaux, this will be one that traditionalists will adore for the wines’ expression of place, crisp acidity, low alcohols (many in the 12.5% range), and precision. It was, without a doubt, a year that favored Cabernet, and the wines with a strong proportion of Sauvignon or Franc showed the highest propensity for success. Yields were down after early season struggles with mildew and hail, but a long, cool growing season really shaped the character of the wines. For those that adore classic claret of the old days, but want an expression that showcases modern Bordeaux’s exacting winemaking, this will be interesting to follow over the years. 2021 will also be a vintage for great white wines from the region. Our report: Unexpected! Classic! Useful. Priceworthy? (PDF)
2020 - The third of a trio of strong vintages, from a hot, dry summer with a wet spring and a cool, early harvest: concentrated, dark, firmly structured wines with surprising freshness and moderate alcohol. Less immediate than 2019, more classical than 2018; the top wines will reward fifteen years. Our report: Fine Wines; Anything but Normal (PDF)
2019 - Another modern classic vintage in Bordeaux, 2019 was a warm vintage (again), but where 2018 was pressured by more early season extremes, there was an easier and less eventful nature to 2019. A few heat spikes led to concerns about a riper style of wine, but some late season rains alongside of meticulous management in the vineyard and cellar led to wines with great purity and aromatics. If the heat showed up anywhere, it was in the alcohol levels, which are a bit higher that previous vintages, even if the wines have the substance to support them. Insofar as appellations, the northern reaches of the Left Bank seem to have found favor, but the fact is that all communes produced some special wines in 2019. The purity and consistency really defines the hard-to-resist 2019s. Our report: Is Bordeaux Back? (PDF)
2018 - A wet, mildew-ridden spring and then a long, hot, dry summer gave deeply concentrated, powerful, polished wines — a velvet fist in an iron glove. Rich, ripe and tannic, with the structure to age for decades; the Right Bank and Pessac were especially strong. For the cellar. Our report: A Velvet Fist in an Iron Glove (PDF)
2017 - This was a vintage in Bordeaux that contained some great wines, but was highly variable due to some early season hail and mid-season showers. Most of the northern Médoc escaped any hail issues and some gems can be found in St-Julien, Pauillac, and St-Estèphe. Although affected by hail, some of the greatest wines were those of St-Emilion. Prices also dropped from 2016 levels, meaning there are opportunities to be found. At the best, the wines are ripe, with the structure and mid palate of great vintages, but as a whole not up to the levels of the three vintages preceding it. Our report: The Fourth Time Is a Charm, or Wild ‘7s? (PDF)
2016 - A rainy first half and a dry, luminous second half produced one of the great modern vintages: perfumed, precise, pure, classically proportioned claret with ripe tannin and bright acidity, excellent on the Left Bank from Margaux to St-Estèphe. Priced sensibly on release and still worth buying; a thirty-year vintage. Our report: Perfume, Precision, Purity… Perfectly Priced? (PDF)
2015 - A vintage that produced very pretty wines with lush fruit and delicate aromatics. Margaux was especially good as were parts of Pessac-Leognan. The wines should drink well in their youth, but can be aged for decades as the ripe fruit is balanced by fine tannins and acidity. A stunning vintage on the Right Bank, however, with a number of amazing wines. Our report: The ‘5s Have It (PDF)
2014 - An underrated sleeper vintage if there ever was one, the 2014s are tremendous values due to initial caution during en primeur evaluations. It's a classic vintage for Bordeaux with plenty of structure balanced by ample fruit and secondary flavors. A great vintage for those who plan to drink their wines rather than simply collect. Our report: Bordeaux is Back: Priced Right—for the Most Part (PDF)
2013 - The growing season started off cool and wet, but was saved from disaster by warm weather in August. The wines are lighter in style and will show well in their youth, but this is not necessarily a vintage to lay down in the cellar for long-term gains. There was more consistency on the Right Bank. Our report: More Than Meets the Eye (PDF)
2012 - Another underrated vintage that was initially underscored due to cold conditions during en primeur tastings in 2013. The wines show charming fruit, soft and playful aromatics, and plenty of typicity in the various communes. Built more for the short than the long haul, but definitely a vintage that will surprise careful consumers with its depth and quality. Our report: Bordeaux: The Value Vintage (PDF)
2011 - The yields in 2011 were small due to late rains in the region, but the result was a more concentrated and calculated set of wines. Overall the wines show juicy acidity with firm tannins and will need some time in the cellar. Far better on the Right Bank where prices are low due to blanket evaluations about Bordeaux as a whole. Our report: Prices Return to Reality? (PDF)
2010 - A huge and powerful vintage with enormous praise (and press) that coupled ripe fruit with structured and mouth-filling tannins. Considered a modern classic by many critics. The wines will need decades in the cellar before all that power begins to subside and the underlying complexities and characters begin to unveil themselves. Our report: Extremely Serious… Seriously Fresh (PDF)
2009 - One of the best vintages of the last three decades and certainly the harvest that put Bordeaux back in the spotlight after 2005. The wines are not only gorgeous in their youth, they're also built to last. One of the most versatile vintages in modern history with a number of wines that tempt drinkers with their early drinkability and easy-going nature. Our report: =1947X+1982Y+2005Z Or Pure Cashmere (PDF)
2008 - Another sleeper vintage that will likely show its true colors later on down the road. Saved by an Indian summer, the wines ripened late in the season and are lighter on the palate as a result. The prices remained reasonable and over time the wines have showed tremendous value potential during their limited evolution. There's a bit more heft on the Right Bank. Our report: The Price Is Right or "The Global Cooling” Vintage (PDF)
2007 - This is an inconsistent vintage where drinkers have to choose carefully as a number of wines overachieved while a number of other producers were hampered by less than ideal growing conditions. There are some superb values, however, if you know were to look. Our report: Clyde’s Vintage or It’s All About Price/Value (PDF)
2006 - This harvest was definitely overshadowed by the outstanding 2005 and was perhaps subject to unrealistic expectations as a result. It's a classic vintage in every way and is built for the cellar with wines that have firm tannins, racy acidity, and plenty of depth. Our report: Quality Varies While Values Abound (PDF)
2005 - Hailed by many as "the vintage of a lifetime," 2005 is the year that put Bordeaux back on the map as the king of the wine world. The wines are perfectly balanced across the board and there are few stragglers to be found. Our report: The Big Easy or What If They Had a Tasting and Everyone Came!? (PDF)
2004 - A sleeper vintage that is already drinking much better than originally given credit for. Many of the wines are classically structured and balanced, a la 2006. Our report: An Englishman’s Vintage or Saved By the Bell (PDF)
2003 - A very warm vintage that resulted in ripe and fruit-forward wines that were initially very popular with California cabernet drinkers. Big fruit, big mouthfeels, and big scores from almost every commune in the region, perfect for drinking in the near term. Our report: Global Warming or The Iron Fist in a Velvet Glove Vintage (PDF)
2002 - This was a cooler vintage with higher acidity levels and firm tannins with far less fruit. There are some winners to be found, likely at prices are are quite reasonable. Choose carefully. Our report: The Miracle Vintage or A Vintage of Highs and Lows (PDF)
2001 - One of the best sleeper vintages of the last few decades, packed with great wines and great price points that are just starting to show beautifully. The wines are beautifully balanced and are drinking exceptionally at the moment. Look for values across the board.
2000 - Another modern classic; less fruity than 2005 and 2009, but not quite as powerful as 2010. The wines will need time in the cellar as they're still quite structured almost two decades later.
1999 - There are a number of good wines from 1999 (as in just about any vintage), but there is some greenness from a lack of ripeness in places. Choose carefully as there are some great values to be had.
1998 - Almost the opposite of the 2008 vintage in that it stayed warm right up until harvest, then rained right at the end. Yet, many of the wines are similar in quality to the 2008 vintage in that there are plenty of well-priced, classically-structured selections still available on the market. A very good vintage for the Right Bank, however. Definitely look in that direction.
1997 - We've found more sleepers from 1997 here at K&L than practically any other "off-vintage," so if you know where to look you can find some fantastic values. Over all the wines are lighter in style and don't pack as much heft.
1996 - A fantastic vintage that yielded a number of powerful and robust wines (with big scores). The wines are in a perfect drinking window at the moment, but can definitely live longer in the cellar.
1995 - Perhaps the best vintage of the decade with fruit-driven, forward, and utterly-drinkable wines that have the versatility of a vintage like 2009. A fantastic year to collect or to drink over the next decade.