Wine 2009

Our view on the 2009 vintage

The Bordeaux wines of the 2009 vintage are excellent wines. We can even say that the quality is close to 2005, but more palatable in their youth and fruitier. The Medoc produced excellent 2009 wines as well as the Graves sector and Pomerol. The 2009 Saint Emilion are just a little bit below by their warmer character. In Pessac Leognan, the 2009 white wines such as 2009 Haut Brion and 2009 Domaine de Chevalier are very good. The 2009 Sauternes are splendid. In Burgundy, the 2009 vintage gives the advantage to red wines which are very mature. The wines are full with fruity aromas and silky tannins. The 2009 white Burgundy wines are generous but a bit below the reds (however beautiful 2009 Corton Charlemagne have been produced as the area is cooler). The Cote Chalonnaise (Rully, Mercurey, Givry) produced beautiful wines and Beaujolais produced extraordinary red wines (particularly in Morgon, Brouilly and Moulin a vent). In Champagne, the 2009 vintage is average and notably lower than the 2008 vintage. The Rhone wines, are particularly successful, from the Northern to Southern regions. The hot summer helped to limit yields, and resulted in very colourful and concentrated wines (however less extreme and warm than 2007 in Chateauneuf du Pape). 2009 Hermitage and 2009 Cote Rotie offer beautiful wines and we can estimate that these red wines will be able to be kept for a long time. In Alsace, the 2009 vintage is atypical because of the sudden increase of the temperatures, leading to more powerful wines, warmer than usual. Their lower acidity will reduce their ageing capacity and the 2009 late harvest sweet wines and SGN are especially marked by the passerillage. In the Loire Valley, 2009 was a successful vintage in red wines (Saumur Champigny, Chinon, Sancerre), dry white wine in Muscadet, and on the off-dry and sweet side (Anjou, Vouvray). In the South West, there is excellent 2009 wines in Cahors, Madiran and Monbazillac.