Which is better: Bordeaux 2015 or Bordeaux 2016?

The first Great Wines of the World Masterclass taking place in 2021 compared nine wines from the excellent back-to-back vintages in Bordeaux of 2015 and 2016, and tried to discover if one vintage, in this tasting at least, was clearly better than the other.

The answer: kind of.

The Château TrotteVieille St.-Emilion 2015 won the popular vote among the attending wine lovers and professionals who were tasting the wines, ranking first once all scores were recorded. The ratings were otherwise mostly mixed, though the 2015s did seem to be rated slightly higher in general. There were ‘oohs’ of surprise as the wines, which were tasted while watching exclusive video tasting notes sent in by the winemakers and winery owners (see video above), were revealed after the tasting.

This masterclass kicked off a new season of masterclass tasting sessions in Hong Kong at James Suckling Wine Central, with the Spring Edition of Great Wines of the World 2021 Masterclasses soon to start too, from March 22-April 17. Click here for more details.

The participants of about two dozen people in the masterclass rated the wines and we ranked them below. The white Valandraud was not included in the blind comparison.

1. Château TrotteVieille St.-Emilion 2015 (JS99 Points)
2. Château Valandraud St.-Emilion 2016 (JS98 Points)
3. Château Giscours Margaux 2015 (JS96 Points)
4. Château Bélair-Monange St.-Emilion 2015 (JS100 Points)
5. Château La Tour Carnet Haut-Médoc 2016 (JS93 Points)
6. Château Croix de Labrie St.-Emilion 2015 (JS96 Points)
7. Château Pape Clément Pessac-Léognan 2016 (JS98 Points)
8. Château Faugères St.-Emilion 2016 (JS95 Points)