Vintage report 2013
2013 – A Challenging Vintage
The 2013 vintage was perilous for the vignerons in Bordeaux. There was always great hope at the same time as much uncertainty. The significant drop in the amount of wine produced is something we obviously lament but we have to congratulate each other on the quality of the wine produced and the obstacles overcome. It was very much a wager of intuition and adaptation – a successful wager in the main.
2013 is without doubt a vintage for the wine-grower and the oenologist. The former, whose familiarity and direct contact with nature allowed him or her to come to terms with the demands of some unprecedented weather conditions and to understand their effect on the different parcels of vines. When the vines were suffering, the wine-grower was there to intervene. Over a growing season which seemed very long, he or she examined the vines in order to prevent diseases of all forms and to eradicate them before they posed a problem. As for the oenologist, initially the grapes were constantly tasted in order to determine the most opportune time for the harvest, then the must was scutinised so as to obtain as much aromatic precision and elegance of tannin as possible.
The foundations for a vintage are always set in spring. For this vintage, the low temperatures combined with high humidity resulted in a sprouting generally two or three weeks later than normal. As the season progressed and during
the flowering we feared for the Scylla and Charybdis of coulure and millerandage which would further reduce the eventual harvest. At this stage were carried out a series of foliar analyses designed to determine the physiological balance and nutritional needs of the vines. This combined with a millimeter by millimeter study of the soil and vegetation allowed for an input of trace-elements and other minerals through foliar-feeding. Procedures such as these, introduced just before the first leaves appeared helped to avoid as much as possible any inconsistencies in the vineyard and consequent losses in production.
Following a cold and humid spring, the problems relating to mildew and powdery-mildew became more and more time-consuming. The means for battling against these diseases are nowadays very precise and efficient and help us to maintain the vineyards in a healthy condition. Despite a really splendid July and beautiful August, the threat remained very strong and the vineyards required an almost constant vigilance. This was not a vintage for working approximately – only precision would suffice.
The fattening of the berries took place in the total absence of any hydraulic stress. The summer veraison happened very quickly and evenly giving the promise of a good maturity at harvest time- something which was a huge encouragement bearing in mind the problems encountered throughout a difficult spring.
With the flowering and budding taking place successfully and with a number of parcels requiring a green harvest to control their eventual harvest, we were fairly sure to be expecting a “classic” vintage for the 2013.
A hot and sunny August promised a regular and even maturity with the harvests set for the end of September for the whites and the beginning of October for the reds – a later vintage than we had seen in the preceding years. Amongst the other problems, on 5th August, a hailstorm hit 10,000 hectares of vines in the Gironde. The majority struck with a limited amount of damage.
However those less fortunate saw their entire crop taken whilst as always occurs during stormy periods, there were some properties which received barely any rain at all.
The first merlots were harvested from the 1st October. Despite humid conditions and an aggressive botrytis being the principal factors in triggering the picking, the harvest was spread out over three weeks. The selection, taking various forms, contributed to the good quality of the fruit harvested. The systems and philosophy of grape-selections were mainly put in place during the ‘90s and never have they been as justified as they were with the 2013 vintage. The general healthy condition in the vineyard, despite a great diversity of terroirs, allowed us to wait for the Cabernet Sauvignon to reach its maturity. Four weeks of fermentation were generally considered sufficient and ideal for the merlot. The work in the cuvees had to be perfectly done in order to adapt to the particularities of the vintage and to respect the quality of the fruit.
This incessant quest for quality will be recompensed in a few months. There is something truly surprising about this vintage, something we didn’t expect to find which should put a halt to all the pessimistic predictions of the press which looks always towards desolation and catastrophe. So no more miserable forecasts: the 2013 vintage is surely a human success-story and a victory for know-how and technique.
Chateaux-Owners give their perspective on this 2013 vintage:
Daniel Cathiard (owner of Château Smith Haut Lafitte)
“A challenging vintage. Nothing happened as expected – with the lateness in the vineyard, we were relying a great deal on autumn. Due to the late-starting harvest finishing very early, we had to be very quick and efficient : 250 grape-pickers were mobilized every day. We harvested beautiful grapes which had an excellent maturity. I am remaining confident: we will succeed in producing grands vins. For the white wines, it was a lot easier because with the Sauvignon Gris and Blanc we had more time to harvest. We look for maturity in the white wines and we certainly find it! We should also say that this constant search for quality in this vintage required technical means and sophisticated infrastructure. For this reason we equipped ourselves with a new optical-selection machine, both for the first wines and the seconds, in order to perform a very strict selection of the grapes.”
Alain Vauthier (owner of Château Ausone)
“We must remain cautious since the malolactic fermantations have not yet finished. Let us say that above all the harvest is very low in quantity, two-thirds that of the 2012 vintage. Oenological techniques enabled us to reinvigorate this vintage: for example at first it was difficult to find the fruit in the wine, particularly after the use of sulphites, but thanks to these new techniques we were able to rediscover it. This vintage demanded an enormous amount of work and in the terroirs such as Ausone, we have good rewards for our labour. To conclude therefore, good wines in limited quantities.”
Hervé Berland (director of Château Montrose).
“I am not at all pessimistic – in fact quite the opposite. The Cabernet Sauvignon are remarkable, with a similar quality and content as the 1980, 1987, 1988. I think we can congratulate ourselves for having made very good wines despite the difficulties encountered: in the spring, the flowering was complicated and of course in August there was the terrible storm -at Montrose however there was not one drop of rain. During the harvest we saw rain in Bordeaux. We had to pray for the merlots. In the end however we were very pleased with the excellent health of the vines. The grape-picking was organised with such dexterity that we could almost call it “surgical precision”. The Cabernet Sauvignon have revealed an excellent quality: of fruit and of power. We are not too far from the 2012s but the wines don’t quite come from the same mould. Nicely mature, without any vegetal note and with plenty of fruit thanks to the river aerating the best parcels of vines.
It is a vintage which will age for a long time. At Montrose, we will be adding the 2013 to the likes of other great vintages such as the 2004 and 2001. Others have wrongly buried this vintage. It is not as if this is the first time we have created great wines when it has rained. We look forward to seeing you in the spring for the tastings.”
Michel Rolland (Consultant Winemaker)
“We will not say that everything was marvelous. This is one of the most difficult vintages of the last 25 years. Once again, it is useless and regrettable to complain about the meteorological conditions whitout paying homage to the huge technical progress employed with care and intelligence in the vineyard and in the chais. They have enabled us to find solutions to the extreme conditions. A sad thought remains with me for those who have suffered so badly from the hail – it is one of those rare phenomena like the frost for which we don’t yet have a satisfactory solution.
This is a vintage which must be tasted since it is not completely consistent but there are excellent quality wines on both sides of the river. And we should not forget the whites which in certain cases are superb.”