The Compelling 2005 Red Bordeaux Revisited – Prior to Bottling by The Wine Advocate

Retasting all the 2005s a few months before they are bottled confirmed just about everything the pundits had declared last year. It is an extraordinary vintage and one that is different from anything I have tasted in the last twenty-eight years. As a general rule, the wines are very concentrated, extremely high in tannin, and backward, but the fresh acids combined with the massive concentration and higher than normal alcohols make for a distinctive vintage that will probably be one of the longest-lived I have ever tasted.

Some of the northern Médocs will have to be watched more carefully than the other areas as their tannins are elevated. Moreover, many northern Médocs do not possess the fat, opulence, or charm of the top 2003s, and increasingly I doubt they are as well-balanced and compelling as the finest 2000s. However, the very best St.-Juliens, Pauillacs, and St.-Estèphes are exceptional yet will require considerably more patience than their counterparts in 2003 and 2000. Expect these wines to last 30-50 years! With that caveat, there appears to be little doubt about the greatness in Margaux, Pessac-Léognan/Graves, Pomerol, and St.-Emilion. All four appellations have produced exquisite wines that possess exceptional longevity as well as remarkable fruit concentration, precision, and freshness.

In short, this vintage has no shortage of legendary wine. Although the wines came out at absurdly high prices (especially the first growths), no one seems to be complaining except those who did not buy them. Sadly, most of the stock that was offered has been completely sold through the marketplace. The big châteaux with 10,000+ case productions are holding back some wines, but there is little available through the trade, and replacement costs are already 50-100% higher than the opening prices, which I find both incredulous and shocking. In any event, this is a fabulous vintage, and no one who purchased these wines will regret having done so as prices will continue to set new records for young Bordeaux. However, patience will be a virtue for nearly every wine in this perfect vintage for the world’s greatest wines of longevity and elegance.