For a list of all our articles, see Bordeaux 2013 – a guide to our coverage.
Very much a mixed bag from Pessac-Léognan and Graves, with no rhyme or reason to what worked and what didn't. The majority of it is pretty average stuff, with the two bogeymen of 2013, lightness and unbalanced tannin, proving the major drawback in many cases.
The tasting notes are listed in alphabetical order.
17 +
/20
Red
Coffee, chocolate, rich black fruit. Delicious purity and attractive structure – just enough tannic pinch to give shape, but not dominate. Smoky, rich, scented, fragrant. Again, that 2013 lightness is very distinct. (RH)
Drink:
2017
–
2030
15.5
/20
Red
Juicy red fruit, scented vanilla oak, dry and astringent on the palate. The lightness of the body upstages the rest of the wine, leaving it a bit disconnected. An honest wine, but the vintage has not been kind. (RH)
Drink:
2017
–
2024
Red
A bit of VA here, but the fruit character is very ripe and perfumed. Super-charged tannins which are very fine but still don’t quite fit into the structure. Perhaps deserves the benefit of some bottle age, to do justice to the pleasant aromatic range. (RH)
Drink:
2018
–
2028
Red
Slightly confected fruit. A little crude and clumsy on the palate too. (RH)
Drink:
2016
–
2020
17 +
/20
Red
Beautifully ripe, modern cassis character. Creamy texture, smooth and aromatic. A well-judged leafy element, firm but not impenetrable tannins, and refreshing acid. Comparatively light, but has convincing enough flavour and balance. (RH)
Drink:
2017
–
2029
16.5
/20
Red
Charming, really pure and ripe red fruit with an attractive smokiness too. Chunky tannins with enough – just – concentration to match. Classic Graves with a fruity twist – well made. (RH)
Drink:
2016
–
2026
17 +
/20
Red
Strong oak scent – fresh and sappy and powerful. Enough savoury black fruit on the palate to balance, and forthright tannins give firm grip on the finish. The nose needs to consolidate the oak, but otherwise this is full of promise – ripe, lengthy, classically structured and gastronomic. (RH)
Drink:
2018
–
2028
Red
Blackcurrants, milk chocolate, light body and something just a little bit underripe on the palate – a certain bitterness, plus grainy tannins. (RH)
Drink:
2016
–
2020
Red
Glossy, potent plum fruit and a good dose of wood-varnish character too. Very tannic grip on the palate, which the light body doesn’t quite match up to. The fruit flavours are very bold and complete, but the structure isn’t quite balanced. (RH)
Drink:
2018
–
2022
16.5
/20
Red
Bright, ripe berry fruit and intense black liquorice and aniseed on the mid palate. Hale and hearty – no ailments here. (RH)
Drink:
2016
–
2026
14.5
/20
Red
Cedar, tobacco, light black fruit and incredibly high tannins that totally overwhelm the rest of the structure. They aren’t going anywhere anytime soon, and leave the wine quite unapproachable. It might resolve with significant bottle age – but will the relatively light concentration have equivalent staying power? (RH)
Drink:
2020
–
2028
17.5
/20
Red
Blackcurrant leaf, bitter chocolate, dark-fruit character. Pretty compact and intense, but with great balance and much more weight on the palate than most. Impressively done. A rare 2013 candidate for cellaring. Lovely clarity of flavour. (RH)
Drink:
2018
–
2033
Red
57% Merlot, 16% Cabernet Franc, 27% Cabernet Sauvignon. Cedar and blackcurrant, and attractive medium-grained tannins. No bitterness, no leafiness – this is well coiffured. Again, it displays a lightness that betrays the tricky vintage. (RH)
Drink:
2017
–
2027
16.5
/20
Red
Closed nose, with better fruit concentration on the palate. Fine, dusty tannins with great persistence on the finish. Rather light body. Dry and savoury, but hardly brimming with potential. An early-drinking style. As Steven Spurrier says, beautifully polished. (RH)
Drink:
2020
–
2030
Red
Potent stemmy character here – quite distinctive and unusual, for bordeaux at least. Those green flavours continue on the palate, although the structure is by no means unripe. Curious – the flavours belong more to whole-bunch-fermented Pinot Noir or Syrah, really. I think there is a lot to enjoy here. (RH)
Drink:
2016
–
2024
Red
Confected fruit, black cherry, light body. Furry, wiry tannins. Okay length, but not enough fruit concentration to hold everything together. (RH)
Drink:
2017
–
2024
Red
Virtually non-existent on the nose. Some fruit on the palate – but mostly tannin. Not much flesh. Pretty skeletal. (RH)
Drink:
2017
–
2020
Red
Flashy, sweet oak. Pretty chunky tannins take over the palate, and there isn’t enough fruit concentration. (RH)
Drink:
2016
–
2020
Red
Jammy fruit, pencil shavings and a very light spicing. Very fine tannins dominate the finish. Brief finish. (RH)
Drink:
2017
–
2023
Red
52% Merlot, 32.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12.5% Cabernet Franc. Vegetal, leafy nose. Attractive chew to the tannins, but quite light. Missing core concentration. Very pretty – good, dainty balance and attractive floral perfume – but without huge substance. (RH)
Drink:
2016
–
2022
Red
65% Merlot, 32% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Cabernet Franc. Ghostly nose – just an impression of black fruit. Pretty full-on tannins, and more than a dash of leafiness. Very delicately rendered, apart from the pretty firm grip. (RH)
Drink:
2018
–
2025
Red
Earthy, animal character on the nose and dense black fruit. Firm tannins but they balance with the acid. Light body, once again – a real defining characteristic of 2013. Simple finish. (RH)
Drink:
2016
–
2022
15.5
/20
Red
Really rich and succulent blackcurrant fruit – very modern. Classic dry palate with smoothed-out tannins. Medium body, light tannins. An ‘everyday’ style of bordeaux. (RH)
Drink:
2016
–
2020
Red
Blackcurrant jam and a dash of something verdant too. Something of a battle between ripe and unripe. Austere tannins, not balanced with the rest of the structure. (RH)
Drink:
2018
–
2023
17
/20
Red
Lovely and rich, indulgent fruit and toasty oak. Attractive perfume too – really lifted. Silty tannic feel, and while the flavours are fully ripe and charming it doesn’t quite deliver enough length and fullness. (RH)
Drink:
2016
–
2026
Red
Redcurrant fruit, milk chocolate, light body and pretty aggressive tannins. Stubborn and hard on the palate. (RH)
Drink:
2018
–
2023
