2016 Bordeaux Vintage

Winter was warm and wet. The winter of 2015-2016 was the warmest on record in France since 1900, with January and February 2 degrees C warmer than average and January rainfall more than twice the norm. The warmth brought budbreak at the end of March, about a week earlier than average. Spring then turned cool and wet, around 1 degree C below average, and waterlogged soils slowed growth. Bordeaux escaped the hail and frost that hit much of eastern France and the Loire, apart from a few limited cases, and most vineyards, though not all, avoided mildew problems in the damp weather of May and June. Flowering got under way around May 25 and ran until mid to late June; Gavin Quinney called the early June flowering remarkably successful, especially on the Merlot. By the end of June, rainfall for the six months stood at 722.4mm, 62% above normal, with 18% less sunshine than usual. From June 23 the summer was hot and particularly dry, with only 13mm of rain over 80 days, and many areas saw just a tenth of normal rainfall between 23 June and 13 September. Three spells were particularly hot: July 17 to 19, August 13 to 16 and August 23 to 27. Soil water reserves carried most vines through July, though young vines on dry, porous ground suffered and some plots saw ripening stall in August. September ran around 1.5 degrees C warmer than average until heavy rain on the night of 13 September. A shower of around 40mm on 13 and 14 September, by Decanter's count, dropped temperatures a little and let the berries regain balance. One more night of rain fell on 30 September, and otherwise the weather for the harvest stayed dry and sunny. 2016 was a later harvest, in keeping with classic Bordeaux vintages, with a bumper crop for many.

Picking dates varied widely, driven sometimes by soils and sometimes by style choices. Haut-Brion brought in its first Sauvignon Blanc on September 1, while Chateau Carbonnieux, in the more outlying parts of Leognan, started about a week later, around 10 days behind 2015. The dry whites came in during September in fine weather. In the Medoc the red harvest began around September 22 in the earliest sectors, with almost everyone underway by September 26. Most of the Merlot across the region came in during the first week and a half of October, and several Medoc estates began on Cabernet Sauvignon in the first week of October while others waited until the 10th onwards. In Saint-Emilion, Cheval Blanc picked its last Merlot on October 1 and finished its Cabernet Franc around 10 days later, Chateau Canon harvested from September 22 to October 13, Chateau Angelus brought in its last Cabernet Franc by October 21, and Pavie, Lassegue and Guillemin-la-Gaffeliere were still picking at the end of October. Chateau d'Yquem began picking on October 7 and brought in its final crates on November 3.

Early reports pointed to deep color and measured alcohol. Jane Anson was told everywhere she went that color extracted easily, and she advised readers to expect deeply colored wines. At Chateau Montrose in Saint-Estephe alcohol ran around 13%, with fairly low acidity, and at Chateau Canon in Saint-Emilion it ran around 13.5 to 13.7%. Dry whites showed slightly lower acidity than in 2013 and 2014, with aromatic vats in Entre-Deux-Mers and Graves. In Sauternes and Barsac, noble rot was slow to arrive, and Laure de Lambert Campeyrot at Chateau Sigalas Rabaud described an "exceptional vintage." The CIVB describes the reds as juicy and black-fruited with rounded tannins and a strikingly deep color, the dry whites as lively and taut, and the sweet wines as pure.

Producers were upbeat from the start. Oenologist Pascal Henot said, "Bordeaux, by some miracle compared to many French wine regions, is preparing for an exceptional vintage." Hubert de Bouard, Angelus owner and consultant across the region, drew the comparisons: "There was never the sustained day and night heat of 2003, and the wines are more restrained in character than in 2009. For me it's closer to 2010 although a little lower in acidity." 2016 was the third year in a row, after 2014 and 2015, with minimal rot on the reds, and cumulative temperatures put its lateness on a par with 2008, 2010, 2012 and 2014. Kees van Leeuwen at Cheval Blanc pointed out, "The fact is dry vintages are always quality vintages." The CIVB places 2016 among the standout successes of the decade.

• Minimal rot on the reds for a third year in a row, after 2014 and 2015
• Lateness on a par with 2008, 2010, 2012 and 2014 on cumulative temperatures