The MW Institute usually has a good spread of wines from Margaux on show at its annual Bordeaux event. Seventeen 2019s were on tasting and generally impressed. While this appellation is quite large and covers varied terroirs, the qualitative heterogeneity of the appellation has lessened in the past decade. Gentler approaches in the cellar and better understanding in the vineyard and a move to earlier picking have all contributed to this improvement. There is greater emphasis on the purity of fruit and freshness, and it is evident in the wines in 2019. Undoubtedly Château Margaux has produced one of the wines of the vintage. It is already spellbinding in its aromatics and in its balance. Phenomenal. The line-up was sadly sans Château Palmer and the next best contender, and really not that far off the pace of Château Margaux, was Château Rauzan Ségla. Initially this was less forthcoming in the glass but it opened up wonderfully. Excellent wines has been made once again at Château Brane Cantenac. This property is supremely consistent and their 2019 ranks alongside super efforts here in 2016 and 2018. Château Giscours has put together, for me, its best ever recent wine. It is a beauty with terrific purity. Just behind these are very good wines from Château Cantenac Brown [showing increased finesse over previous vintages], Château d’Issan [full of promise but backward], Château Kirwan, Château Lascombes [full and lush as usual] and a fresh and vigorous Château Durfort-Vivens.

Bordeaux 2019, released in the height of the pandemic in June 2020, was perhaps the last sensibly priced vintage from the region. The quality also seemed great. Early on for me it had the poise of the 2016 combined with the richness and flamboyance of the 2009 with greater freshness. There were scores of impressive wines across all appellations, red and white [and sweet]. With the price hikes here with the exceptional 2022s, the 2019 vintage still appears pretty good value. What’s more the wines are drinking well. In October 2023 the MW Institute put on its annual tasting of ninety top wines and very few seem to have shut down [which isn’t the case with 2018s which have crept into their shells]. The quality too has held up in bottle and the vintage seems to have genuinely delivered on its primeurs promise. So, all in all, what’s not to like about this vintage?

The Margaux appellation is large and heterogeneous. This variety comes through in the wines in 2018. A hot year with wildly shifting conditions – first wet and humid, then dry and hot – is complex enough and likely to yield variation. When translated across a wide variety of soils [clay, sand and gravel] it adds another dimension of complexity. For me classic Margaux is defined by enticing perfume, purity of fruit and velvet tannins. In that respect Château Margaux itself alongside Château Brane-Cantenac and Château d’Issan lead the pack with these characteristics in spades in 2018. Not a hint of vintage heat in these wines, just layered, cool blackcurrant fruit tones. I’d have expected Château Palmer and Château Rauzan-Ségla to be in this set too, but they were not represented at the MW tasting. I’ve previously been a fan of both Château Giscours and Château du Tertre, but neither impressed greatly on the day. Château Lascombes and Château Cantenac Brown were comfortably the next best wines. The former is typically opulent and saturated, the latter inky and structured. Neither are classic Margaux as identified above, but they will be bold, satisfying glasses of wine for sure.

There was something magical about the top wines in 2018 when first tasted during primeurs. The finest wines had fabulous levels of extract and exotic fruit profiles that were reminiscent of 2009, 1989 and 1982. Just over a year ago the MW Institute put on their 2018 horizontal tasting of all the principal Bordeaux appellations at four years of age. It was instructive. Some of the wines were developing really well and impressed. Others had firmed up considerably and had shut down. There were quite a few others that now felt a bit ponderous and lacking in freshness. There can be no doubt that this heatwave vintage has yielded some remarkable wines, but overall, the vintage continues to lack the overall consistency of 2019 and 2016 vintages from what I have tasted. So, what were the highlights?