Chronicle n° 131: dismal market for en primeur 2011. Scores out of 20 and scores out of 100 – updated equivalence

Dismal market for en primeur 2011 Wine merchants and JM Quarin’s grades Scores out of 20 and scores out of 100 – updated equivalence 2009 versus 2010 My own special coup de cœur for Béhéré 2010 – AOC Pauillac Pavie vertical – 1995 to 2009 Chronicle n° 131 (June 11, 2012) DISMAL MARKET FOR EN PRIMEUR 2011 I have sampled many 2011s again on three different occasions since May 15, in Paris, Lausanne and Prague. They were a hit with the public every single time, but when I called a Bordeaux wine merchant to talk about the 2011 campaign, his reply was a worrying “what campaign?” With no trade to speak of, Bordeaux is currently going through a rough patch that some do not hesitate to compare to the 1972-1973 crisis– around 20% of the 2010 trade volume and less than 10% of the 2009. Faced with such a bleak market, the Bordeaux merchants cannot afford to refuse the terms dictated by the estates for fear of losing their future volume agreements. To keep their heads above water, some cut their margins to a strict minimum and sell on below the recommended price. Such an attitude impacts on the traders wishing to remain faithful to the agreed terms with the estates. Prices are utterly disorganised. On the international market, the drop in the euro value has not encouraged people to make a stand. Why buy now if the euro is to fall further? Vinexpo Hong Kong has closed without triggering the jolt we all hoped for. In the general haze, the merchants find it hard to understand how the machine got jammed. The market is at a stand still and nothing proves that even very low prices could jumpstart it again. In such a context, it is not in the consumer’s best interest to rush to stock up on the 2011s - bar a handful of rare exceptions. I have in mind the Coups de Coeur and the wines that are bought for enjoyment rather than as an investment. We will have to wait to know more about the burgeoning 2012 vintage to get a clearer picture on the 2011 status. A more modest 2012 would help the 2011 pick up, a more flamboyant year would bury it – momentarily at least. WINE MERCHANTS AND JM QUARIN'S GRADES Many of you this year have voiced their concern to wine merchants who do not quote my grades – I am very grateful. Remember an excel file with my grades, both out of 20 and out of 100, along with the wine reviews in French and in English, is available to wine merchants on demand. Whilst recently taking part in a tasting session at a Bordeaux estate, which incidentally I do think highly of, one of the participants expressed his surprise at not seeing any of my grades mentioned on the château’s official brochure. “Why Decanter and not Jean-Marc Quarin?” he asked. The reply was surreal: « You’re right, Jean-Marc Quarin has a greater impact on our sales - but Decanter is good for our image ». SCORES OUT OF 20 AND SCORES OUT OF 100 - UPDATED EQUIVALENCE Reading through my en primeur wine reviews again of late, I could not help but compare what I wrote in French, and my grades out of 20, with my reviews in English and the grades I gave out of 100. I must say that I could not find in the grades out of 100 the enthusiasm I had felt for some of the wines. I, for instance, love Clos Puy Arnaud 2011 and gave it a well-deserved 16/20. But after reading the 88-89/100 grade rounding off my review in English, I could not feel the wine in quite the same way. On the international scene, 90/100 tends to be considered the threshold of high quality. So far, its equivalent was 16.5/20. I have just lowered it to 16, which, for the French, is a good grade indeed. And this seems to be the ideal opportunity for me to update my grading system. I have dropped the ¼ points for scores above 17/20 and between 15.5 and 14/20. The extreme precision that I used in the past in those grade brackets does not seem necessary anymore. Below the 14/20 score, you can still see the ¼ point for the sake of equivalence. I won’t be using them anymore in my next reports. Experience has shown that I always grade a wine below 14 for the same reason: dilution. The wines graded above 14/20 are the ones to focus on. Below is a table with corresponding scores out of 20 and out of 100. I have just used it to adjust the 27 000 scores available in my database. In the French version you can see the grade out of 100 when you click on the wine review. In the English version, a list is also available. 20 19,5 19 18,5 18 17,5 17 16,75 16,5 16,25 16 15,75 15,5 15 14,5 14 100 99 98 97 96 95 94 93 92 91 90 89 88 87 86 85 13,75 13,5 13,25 13 12,75 12,5 12,25 12 11,75 11,5 11,25 11 10 9 8 7 84 83 82 81 80 79 78 77 76 75 74 73 70 68 66 64 Turquoise : Outstanding Red: Excellent Fushia : Very good Vert : Good Grey: Fair to passable White : Unacceptable 2009 VERSUS 2010 I have just finished tasting the 2009s and 2010s again. Often enough the 2010s outshone the 2009s. They are more detailed and fresher on the nose, and even if they are as fat as on the palate, they show less slack on the mid-palate and more refine tannins on finish - particularly cabernet sauvignon based wines. In a word, they are more typically Bordeaux - a very good surprise the end of the elevage had in store for us. MY SPECIAL COUP DE COEUR FOR BEHERE 2010 - A 90/100 AOC PAUILLAC In Pauillac today, only around ten labels are not classed growths - among which 5 crus bourgeois in 2009 (Fonbadet, Haut-Bages Monpelou, Lafleur Peyrabon, Plantey and Tour Sieujean) - and about 30 hectares of vines produce grapes that are meant for the cooperative, la Rose Pauillac. At the going price of at least one million euros per hectare, many of the more modest owners have seen their land taken over by the wealthier classed growths. Those non-classed estates are worked and tended the old-fashion way. They yield 55hl/ha - the maximum allowed- do not always pick by hand, usually give green harvests a miss and only use 30% new oak for their elevage. They produce wines whose structures are seldom as precise as those of their more reputed or more expensive neighbours, but whose fragrance often reflects the wonderful wine-producing area they come from and vouches for a top quality soil. They usually age really well and tend to give their best once bottled as, for such modest labels, the en primeur market is leagues away from their main priorities. And once in a while, we are blessed with a true gem - precisely what happened for château Béhéré 2010. Not long after being bottled, it shines with vibrant aromas, its fleshy texture and its unbelievable sapidity. The top quality Médoc cabernet sauvignon is definitely here - and all for just 26 euros a bottle. Of course, I cannot but recommend it to you. It went for 18.5 euros a bottle en primeur (a true en primeur bargain!). The 2011 is currently going for 15.5 a bottle. This estate will be part of the updated selection for my next Guide des Vins. Owners: M and Mme Camou. Planted area: 3,80 ha. Soil: 3 ha of graves, 0,80 ha clayey-limestone. Planted with: 73 % cabernet sauvignon, 24,5 % merlot, 1,5 % petit verdot. Average age of the vines: 22. Vine density: 8500/ha. Harvest: up to now machine harvested but changes are on the card. Consultant: Christophe Coupez, from the laboratoire œnologique de Pauillac. Next-door neighbours, depending on the plots: Pibran, Les Forts de Latour, Pontet Canet, Pichon Comtesse, d’Armailhac, Aile d’Argent, Duhart Milon. Address : Château Béhéré 33250 Pauillac . France - Téléphone : +33 5 56 59 11 19 - Fax : +33 5 56 59 11 19 - Email : jean-gabriel.camou@orange.fr 2011 Score out of 20 : 15 Score out of 100 : 87 Deep dark hue. Nose of fruit, moderately fragrant. Mid-weight structure but delicious, supple, well-coated, extremely pleasant and fruity throughout. Average length. 2010 Score out of 20 : 16 Score out of 100 : 90 Needs to be aerated due to recent bottling . Absolutely gorgeous garnet colour with black hues. Intense, complex and fruity nose of ripe and fresh fruit. Very appetising and more-ish. Velvety right from entry, leading to a silky and fragrant performance run through with plenty of taste and a beautiful tactile feel. Delicately creamy and fine-grained on finish. Still very young but already hard not to swallow. Superb length. Will be at its best from 2018 and 2030. 2009 Score out of 20 : 15,5 Score out of 100 : 88 Deep garnet hue – browning slightly. Toasted nose of fruit with a hint of coffee and showing less lift than the 2010. Pulpy and thoroughly pleasant on the palate, with plenty of fruit. Mid-weight body, well-coated and fruity tannins. The cabernet sauvignon is less vibrant than in the 2010. Good length. PAVIE VERTICAL – 1995 to 2009 During the en primeur campaign, Château Pavie hosted a superb function at the Hostellerie de Plaisance, M. Perse’s renowned hôtel-restaurant in Saint-Emilion - M.Perse also owns Pavie. The big-wigs from the international wine press attended. Taste as I may at the beginning of the session, I still could not recognize the Château Pavie I am used to sampling. Too many bottles showed dryness on finish and I soon realized they had been double-decanted – a fact that was later, and quite candidly, confirmed by the sommeliers. For the 1998, I asked for a new bottle and 3 glasses. To two of my trusted American colleagues, I suggested that we taste the same bottle non-decanted, decanted and double-decanted. We all agreed that the decanted wine was superior to the double-decanted one. I shall write to M. Perse and suggest he organize this tasting again, the aim being to move forward on the matter and to communicate on the result of this experiment so that wine lovers in general, and Pavie’s enthusiasts in particular, can benefit from it. The absolute star of the evening was the 2009, graded 18.5 when double- decanted, which probably cost it one full point… ABOUT THE 2001 Within the next few days, a report on how the top 58 2001 leading Bordeaux labels have evolved will be put on line. The tasting was done, as ever, from bottles that were bought. You will read about many unexpected and disappointing results among the most prestigious châteaux and astonishing inconsistencies between bottles. Kind regards. Jean-Marc Quarin __________________________________________________________________________ © Copyright 2010. This publication is the original work of Jean-Marc Quarin Sarl, 10 allée de Ginouilhac, BP 40, Le Taillan-Médoc. France. - E-mail : jmquarin@quarin.com The news media and subscribing wine distributors, importers and retailers may use portions of this material (such as tasting notes, ratings or quotes) provided that it is not distorted, the proper wine and vintage are stated, www.quarin.com is given credit for the material utilized, and Jean-Marc Quarin (JMQ) is shown as the Copyright holder.

2012 Chronicles

Chronicle n° 131: dismal market for en primeur 2011. Scores out of 20 and scores out of 100 – updated equivalence

Subscribe

Subscription

Wine name	(Producer, appellation, etc.)