There’s always a lot to enjoy in the best wines of the Médoc appellation. These usually provide good value for the regular Bordeaux drinker. As you would expect the 2024 vintage has rendered wines that are fresh, aromatic and sappy in the main. These should provide lively, satisfying Médoc in the short and medium term. This set of notes is limited to those châteaux that are members of the Grand Cercle. There were pretty consistent in quality. Obviously 2024 is not a big ripe year like 2018, 2019 or 2022, but there is real typicity here with the feel being more akin to 2012, 2014, 2017 or 2023. Amongst those tasted, Château Griviére, Château La Cardonne, Château Loudenne, Château Ramafort and Château Tour Seran all showed well. I’ve not had the chance to taste other leading Médoc properties such as Château Potensac, Château La Tour de By, Château Tour St Bonnet and Goulée. Hopefully I will fill these gaps soon.

Again the emphasis in St Emilion 2024 overall is freshness. The best exhibit vivid blue fruit characters and are appetising and moreish. There is heterogeneity though. If some are bracingly fresh and lively, others are solid and a bit unexciting. Others feel a bit green, and some are gentle, forward and probably early developing. Generally, the winemaking in the cellar feels sensitive enough, going with the material rather than against the grain. There are a few that feel a bit out of whack at present, either overly sappy or a bit drying. My experience is that these wines usually come good after élevage. Obviously 2024 doesn’t have the wow factor of the sunny, solar years here, like 2018 or 2022, the latter so seductive during primeurs. Still, it’s a journey, not a sprint and I’d be keen to see all these wines further down the track once they are bottled in twelve to eighteen months time as they will all probably pick up I expect.

Various wines tasted from the Bordeaux Supérieur, Côtes de Bordeaux and Fronsac appellations are fresh and have lots of zap and tension in 2024. They feel more in line with 2021 and 2017 in my book. I was impressed with Château Reignac’s regular bottling Bordeaux Supérieur and Château Leroy-Beauval’s offering. In the Bordeaux Côtes I enjoyed Château Haut Bertinerie in Blaye which was fresh and vivid, alongside Château Côte Montpezat, Cuvee Compostelle and Château Ampélia in Castillon. In Fronsac Château de La Dauphine was appetising with appealing black cherry notes. All these wines should fill out further during élevage. The following notes are taken from samples sent to the UK by the Grand Cercle on behalf of their members. I am grateful to them for supplying them. It is by no means a comprehensive range of the wines they represent, but it felt a decent sample. I look forward to tasting all these wines [and others] again after bottling.

Château Larcis Ducasse has one of the most enviable terroirs in Bordeaux. Perched up on the slopes of the sunny Côte Pavie in St Emilion, this ten-hectare hillside vineyard lies on a natural south facing staircase of soils which are a mixture of clay and limestone. This solar aspect is tempered by natural water sources that run deep beneath the limestone, water springs which can nourish the deep-rooted vines in the driest of summers. But how does it fare in a less solar vintages? Great terroir usually confers advantages in all seasons. Even in a wetter, less sunny vintage like 2024, a hillside vineyard allows for freer drainage and drying winds, tempering humidity and rainfall effects. For over twenty years Nicolas Thienpont has been the winemaker here at Larcis Ducasse, working with David Suire alongside. In July 2024 Nicolas retired and David Suire stays on as director for the Gratiot-Attmane family. Château Larcis Ducasse has been on a roll here in recent years with fantastic wines in my book in 2023, 2022, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2016 and 2015. So, what is the verdict on Larcis Ducasse 2024?