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2 bordeaux 2000

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the vision of a perfect bottle henning thoresen chairman ceo bordeaux winebank i still remember my very first trip to bordeaux in 1996 as a small norwegian wine importer driving up the majestic driveway to château margaux in my rented renault twingo to take my first pictures of the famous grande dame of bordeaux how funny to think that 14 years on we are one of the largest holders of their wines that 1996 trip was a definitive moment in my career as by the end of it i knew this was the place to be as i drove from village to village to taste the wines i would also enquire if there were any chateaux for sale as i had already decided that one day bordeaux would be my home and so it did in 2006 why because bordeaux is unique the complexity the finesse the elegance the châteaux the history and all that hard detailed work but most importantly bordeaux cannot be copied you can plant vineyards in many great places around the world from burgundy to california to south africa to australia to china but the terroir that unique combination of soil and micro climate for the great blends of cabernet sauvignon and merlot cannot be copied it is just not possible and will leave bordeaux unchallenged forever in 2003 when we created bdxv luxury wine company in singapore now bwb singapore we took the important strategic decision to only ever source wines directly from the châteaux in bordeaux through a handful of top négociants and not from any international merchant or market place bdxv quickly became the ex-château specialists and in 2006 we decided to set up bdxv france now bwb france our first fully fledged and fully owned bordeaux négociant company with the financial backing of more than 300 high net worth private wine customers all passionate collectors and drinkers of ex-château wines we set about an ambitious buying campaign which secured the biggest market slice of a top vintage ever the famous 2005 with a good holding of ex-château 2000 s already well-stored in our bordeaux warehouse and with more than 80 million euros worth of wine under management on behalf of both private and institutional collectors the name bordeaux winebank bwb was a natural choice when we decided to expand and do a re-branding in 2010 wine is fragile handle with care wine is fragile and wine collectors often do not know where their wine has come from how it has been stored and transported or where it has been since the release from the château wines can change hands many times before they reach the end user being moved from place to place in and out of different temperature zones harshly shaken and stirred but the wine collector will not know until he opens the bottle to taste it but then it is too late as the pioneers of provenance we therefore created and patented the term five star provenance in 2009 as our objective remains to be the most dedicated provenance-driven wine company in the world every case in our management has been sourced ex-château and carries the unique five star provenance certificate reassuring collectors that the wine they buy will reach them in optimum condition just as the winemakers intended to be enjoyed for many generations to come the objective of bordeaux winebank will always be to offer wine lovers around the world the possibility to collect drink and enjoy the great wines of bordeaux in the same condition as they would at the château irrespective of whether they are in new york london hong kong tokyo or elsewhere the 2000 vintage is one of the greatest vintages ever and i would like to take this opportunity to thank everybody who has made these two milestone auctions possible thank you bordeaux 2000 3

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4 bordeaux 2000

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2000 the first vintage of the century serena sutcliffe mw head of international wine department sotheby s the expectation not to mention the excitement attached to this first year of the new century was always in the stratosphere and miraculously 2000 turned out to be a fabulous bordeaux vintage someone `on high must have had the interests of wine lovers at heart because the brilliance and the consistency of these wines with `the three zeros have never been in doubt in fact the reality was so stupendous that it was not too fanciful to think that the quality of 2000 could be compared to the incomparable 1900s while admitting that i was not around to taste that historic vintage while it was young it is fair to say that there have been such huge changes in climate the vineyard and the cellar in the hundred years between 1900 and 2000 that the character of the wines is somewhat different however it is certain that great intrinsic quality is common to both these landmark years it is frightening to think that if the climatic conditions of the first part of 2000 had been experienced 30 years before much of the vintage would have been lost by the end of july the worst attack of mildew since the 19th century was controlled by treatments and some warm weather in june bordeaux 2000 was made by the exceptional weather between 29 july and 10 october august was very hot and temperatures between 8-11 september rose to 30 °c 33 °c the merlots were picked from 14 september on the right bank and from 16 september in the médoc thick skins and high alcohol levels gave exceptional quality cabernet franc excelled on the right bank providing power as well as their signature finesse they were mostly picked during the week of 2 october the cabernet sauvignon then took over between 2-10 october they were superb and thus we have great médocs the taste of bordeaux 2000 in short the wines are stunning great grapes were gathered in ideal conditions with virtually no rain during harvest and this is good news when this happens only an idiot can get it wrong there is wonderful fruit aromatic spiciness thick texture with lots of sweet glycerol and fantastic tannic structure there were tannin readings of 90 on the index but they are totally covered by the fruit and glycerol never tasting aggressive at any stage of their short life so far so what is the extra special hallmark of 2000 amazingly given the rich tannic elements of the wines there is also delightful freshness which leaves one longing for more always the sign of a perfect bordeaux this is not a right bank versus left bank year it is a vintage where great wines were made on great terroirs every top château really shows its true personality which is a mark of an outstanding vintage this is also illustrated by the fact that excellent wines were made at all levels a very reassuring aspect of the vintage bordeaux 2000 is a sumptuous yet classic year combining everything that this noble region of france represents i returned from the en primeur tastings of this vintage feeling totally exhilarated and i still feel this way every time i pull the cork of a 2000 these wines make you feel lucky to be alive bordeaux 2000 5

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6 bordeaux 2000

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wine is not about price but provenance michael egan director of authenticity and auctions bordeaux winebank the top bordeaux châteaux take immense care in the husbandry of their vineyards and the selection that goes into making their wine each year s production has complete accountability that must be delivered to the french authorities because of this attention to quality and detail at the château the resultant product is pristine and deserves to be properly handled and to have a satisfactory history of its traceability from the moment it leaves the premises up until now much of the provenance information has been without tangible evidence and many wine transactions have relied on trust this state of affairs has sadly been open to abuse when i left sotheby s wine department in 2005 to live in bordeaux clients hired my expertise to cope with the aftermath of their bad buying experiences i detected fake and dubious wines in their collections chiefly purporting to be claret from such great vintages as 1945 1947 1961 and 1982 there is now the threat that younger vintages will be targeted as their values increase when the opportunity arose to join bordeaux winebank i took it gladly here was a bordeaux négociant who only purchased directly from the château or from the very first merchants in the chain the provenance of their stock amassed over the last ten years is exceptional and is guaranteed to ensure this continuity of provenance each case is now rendered unique tamperproof seals supplied by the company advanced track and trace are applied to each case these also have information that is scanned into advanced track and trace s database upon collection from the warehouse and is rescanned upon delivery to the destination warehouse to determine that it is the exact same case this ensures that the contents cannot be substituted during transit a certificate of provenance is issued by bordeaux winebank for every case sold this also has an advanced track and trace seal applied linking the certificate to the case for the auctions at sotheby s these certificates will be issued to sotheby s for onward transmission to their successful bidders although the great majority of wine merchants and auction houses take every precaution to ensure correct treatment during transport and storage there is always the chance that the case of wine that an individual purchases has not been through the correct chain of care resulting in irrevocable harm to the wine even when very young a wine can be forever tainted by extreme heat if it has been stranded in a container on a dockside or airport at the equator for example or by extreme cold such as a voyage over the rocky mountains in a lorry that is not temperature controlled or insulated this cannot be detected by the human eye unless exposure has been for a very long time so if hercule poirot the famous fictional detective gathers ten cases of the same wine into the drawing room for the dénouement it will not happen the culprit the one case that has undergone an impromptu 48-hour equatorial heat treatment will go free the truth will only be apparent much later when a bottle is opened and the wine tastes far older than it should be thanks to the direct provenance and traceability of all wines coming from bordeaux wine bank this is not an issue it is gratifying to see more and more bordeaux châteaux embarking on their own programs to guarantee the provenance and traceability of their wine these include the etching of a unique number on each bottle and anti-copy devices secreted in the labels and capsules these should prevent counterfeits and bring more peace of mind to wine lovers in summary one should pay more heed to the provenance of a wine than to its price bordeaux winebank and its subsidiary companies safeguard the quality of the best wines of bordeaux so that you the consumer can receive them in the best possible condition almost as if they had come straight from the château bordeaux 2000 7

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an introduction to the principal bordeaux wine regions 8 bordeaux 2000

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10 bordeaux 2000

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the mÉdoc this great tract of land lies to the north of bordeaux and can be treated as a peninsular its three perimeters being the atlantic ocean to the west the gironde estuary to the east and bordeaux to the south the landscape is mainly flat so any elevation is very noticeable along the gironde estuary there are a series of ridges which are mainly formed of gravel this gravel was brought all the way down from the pyrenees mountains in prehistoric times by an enormous river the gironde estuary is its vestige to the west a wider plateau runs parallel to these ridges the wines from the plateau are good and have a strength and minerality however the best vineyards are sited on the gravel ridges near the estuary these produce the wines with the finesse and breed of the cru classé in the middle ages when much of the médoc was marshland any higher ground was prized and commanded a premium thus this strip of gravelly hillocks and mounds has always been owned by the wealthier families it is significant that the origins of the names lafite and mouton are from the gascon for hillock in the 17th century more land was made available thanks to the dutch engineers who managed to drain many of the marshes because of the proximity of the atlantic the climate is temperate with mild winters and summers that generally are not too hot the prevailing winds are from the west north west rainfall can be severe and prolonged but the land has a great capacity to soak it up particularly the higher ground also the accompanying winds dry he vines the water table is high hence there are few châteaux with very deep cellars the vineyards situated very near the estuary have the bonus that this great body of water provides protection against most frosts for wine production purposes the médoc is divided into eight districts or appellations there are two broad appellations médoc which lies to the north beyond the village of saint estèphe and haut médoc which is the larger and which runs down to bordeaux within the latter appellation there are the four great appellations of the communes margaux saint julien pauillac and saint estèphe all of which are on the estuary side then there are the communes of moulis and listrac which are situated further west on the plateau the wines of margaux are generally the most perfumed and feminine in youth and some can be deemed insubstantial when tasted against those from the more northern appellations however this is misleading when the wines are more mature the fragrance remains underpinned by a broader more complex structure the best vineyards are around the town of margaux itself for example château margaux and château palmer where the wines have more finesse due to the lighter stonier soil generally those from the satellite villages of labarde cantenac soussans and arsac are firmer and more powerful the soil of saint julien is gravelly and has more clay than margaux the wines have more discernable tannins and body the wine from the best sited vineyards such as château léoville-las cases and château ducru beaucaillou has a verve and depth of flavour which one can immediately associate with saint julien pauillac is famous for having three of the five premier cru classés within its boundary château lafite rothschild château latour and château mouton rothschild it is very difficult to generalize on the wine type the lesser wines can be very hard and stubborn to yield their flavour even in maturity the best can be sublime even in youth and have the power and balance to become the longest lived such as château pichon longueville comtesse de lalande these have the most power of all the four town appellations discussed here saint estèphe is the most northerly of the great appellations there is a smaller ratio of cru classés to other producers the lesser wines can be very tough and tannic and have less roundness than pauillac the best wines such as château cos d estournel and château montrose have superb fruit and a natural concentration and vigour which ensure a very long life in the médoc the aim is to grow grapes with a high concentration of flavours acid minerality and tannin the general practice in the great vineyards is to have a very high density of vines up to 10,000 per hectare this density and the fact that the rows between the vines are regularly ploughed to prevent the vines from growing side roots forces the plants to grow their roots downwards not sideways where they can always obtain water and nutrients from the clay subsoil the poor gravel soils are excellent for natural drainage but contain little food for the vines the predominant variety is cabernet sauvignon which thrives on this terrain in 1855 the bordeaux chamber of commerce commissioned a classification of the top châteaux in the médoc for the presentation of a selection of bordeaux wines at the exposition universelle in paris the same year five categories were created premier cru classé for four châteaux deuxième cru classé for fifteen châteaux troisième cru classé for fourteen châteaux quatrième cru classé for ten châteaux and cinquième cru classé for eighteen châteaux this classification has never been changed with the exception of château mouton rothschild which exceptionally became a premier cru classé in 1973 bordeaux 2000 11

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12 bordeaux 2000

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the graves pessac-lÉognan this large region begins in bordeaux at the jalle de blanquefort the stream that forms the boundary between the médoc and the graves regions the graves then extends sixty kilometres south down to langon the east boundary is the garonne river the climate is the same as the médoc with a little less rain and less exposure to wind the proximity of those vineyards to the garonne river affords them more protection against frost substantial vineyards had already been established in the middle ages and for centuries more hectares were under vine than in the médoc before its marshes were drained in the 17th century for example two leading châteaux date back to the 13th and 14th centuries château olivier and château pape clément the close proximity of many vineyards in the graves to bordeaux has always been an advantage in accessing the wine market the graves appellation covers both red and white wine therefore most châteaux make both red wine forms two thirds of the total production the grape varieties are the same as the médoc cabernet sauvignon cabernet franc merlot and in smaller quantities petit verdot and malbec the chief characteristics of the red wines are their immediate clean tang of young red fruits and often an aroma of violets to benefit the best from these wines one should drink them within six to ten years the white wines can be made from the sauvignon semillon and muscadelle grapes the type of wine varies immensely as some châteaux make their white wine from 100 sauvignon others from 100 semillon and others from all proportions of blends in between also some use oak in the fermentation or ageing others not the result is a large variety of styles the best wines have a zest and freshness whilst the worst can be flabby and over-oaked sweet white wine is also produced and has the appellation graves supérieur these can be very good and in the barsac style the best examples of the graves wines come from the northernmost part around the towns of pessac and léognan both of which are very near bordeaux after years of lobbying by the leading producers this area was formerly accorded its own appellation in 1987 appellation pessac-léognan controlée this covers ten communes and all the cru classés are located within this appellation including the premier cru classé château haut brion and the grand cru classé château la mission haut brion the grand cru classés of which there are thirteen red wines and eight white wines were officially listed in 1959 the soil structure here is very similar to the médoc ancient gravel brought down from the pyrenees by the great ancestor of the garonne river thus the best vineyards are situated on this swathe of land giving their wines a tremendous powerful bouquet of tobacco and coffee as in the médoc the vineyards are densely planted and the predominant varieties are cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc the châteaux in this appellation also produce dry white wines which are very fine and improve with age like great white burgundy these are made from the sauvignon and semillon grapes bordeaux 2000 13

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