Bordeaux Confidential showcases region's third great vintage in a row
A tough growing season didn’t stop Bordeaux wineries from enjoying yet another excellent year in 2020. The Bordeaux Confidential 2021 En Primeur tastings shone a light on some of the top wines.
Bordeaux Confidential – one of the most popular Bordeaux tastings in Asia – concluded this week, giving hundreds of Hong Kong wine trade and wine consumers early access to more than 120 en primeur wines from the 2020 vintage. And what a vintage it is. After the excellent quality of 2018 and 2019, many may have expected a drop in form for 2020. But it is clear that 2020 represents a third super-quality vintage in a row for the region.
“The 2020 growing season in Bordeaux was not without its challenges … but the good news is it marks the third excellent vintage in a row from the world’s most famous wine region,” said James Suckling, founder of JamesSuckling.com. “Many of the reds of 2020 are at the same quality level as highly regarded bottles from the already coveted 2019 and 2018. It may be the first time in the history of Bordeaux that we have a trilogy of super vintages. It’s certainly the first time I have encountered something like this for Bordeaux in my 40 years as a wine critic.”
The tastings took place every day in James Suckling Wine Central in the heart of Hong Kong’s SoHo district, and included offerings from 85 wineries, which were air-freighted from France to Hong Kong overnight to ensure optimal freshness. Bordeaux Confidential offered one of the few chances globally to taste a wide selection of en primeur wines outside of France, given the current prohibition on most travel to the country.
Tastings took place at individual tables to ensure social-distancing measures were in place, with sommeliers serving the wines. It was the biggest en primeur tasting in Hong Kong – lasting eight days and attracting 420 tasters, wine trade professionals and a few select private clients.
Also available for free to our global audience of wine professionals and consumers were a guidebook, which profiled all the featured wineries and included comments on the vintage from the winemakers, and exclusive video tasting notes sent in by the wineries. You can view/download the guidebook here, and see the video tasting notes here.
You can also read the wine notes for all the wines poured at the tastings below this report.
The tasting event was the second conducted in 2021 by JamesSuckling.com, and there are at least three other tasting events planned for the rest of the year. Great Wines of the World 2021 [Summer] is next, starting on May 18 and running until June 12. And later in the year we have two more Great Wines events: the Autumn and Winter editions. For more details on the Great Wines of the World 2021 Masterclass Series, click here.
