1999 Bordeaux

Sadly, the last of the 1990s vintages did not break the decade’s pattern of mostly unremarkable vintages, with the notable exceptions of 1990 and 1998 (on the right bank only).

 

After a winter of terrible storms, the spring of 1999 was benign, resulting in a precocious budbreak. Early on, it was looking like a large crop. However, rain in May and early June disrupted the flowering slightly and naturally brought yields back to just above average. That’s when the heat started. June and July were hotter than average, and August came in very hot. Thunderstorms and heavy downpours happened the first week of August, slowing veraison and, coupled with the tropical conditions, threatening outbreaks of mildew. Vigilance in the vineyards was necessary to keep the fungal pressure at bay, requiring the kind of labor commitment that only top châteaux could afford.

 

On September 5th, hail struck an isolated area of Saint-Émilion, affecting some properties on the limestone plateau, including Clos Fourtet, Beau-Séjour-Bécot, Beauséjour-Duffau Lagarosse, and Canon. The damaged area was small but significant because of the hallowed estates it affected.

 

Following this, undamaged vineyards in Saint-Émilion and Pomerol were just getting set to harvest Merlot when the rains began on September 12th. The ensuing drawn-out period of downpours triggered widespread, rapid harvesting, with little delay between the Merlot and the Cabernets. Dilution ensued, not to mention that optimal ripeness had not been achieved.

 

As portended at the beginning of the growing season, yields were higher than average in 1999, but quality was just so-so at best. Yes, the top estates managed to produce something decent, mainly because so little of the crop went into the grand vins, but even these are nothing to write home about. The reds of both banks tend to be chewy, under-ripe, and thin, especially wines from Saint-Éstephe. Further south in the Médoc, pleasant wines came from the deep gravels of Pauillac and Saint-Julien (e.g., Latour, Mouton-Rothschild, Léoville Las Cases, and Ducru-Beaucaillou) and the gravel terraces of Margaux (e.g., Château Margaux and Palmer). On the right bank, those that likewise have freer draining soils, such as Cheval Blanc, produced reasonable efforts for this maligned year. Even the best reds will not hold on for much longer and need drinking up.

 

Sauternes produced decent but unspectacular wines in 1999. Botrytis was not so much an issue as intensity. Without much stuffing and backbone, the style was mainly earlier drinking, and most have peaked by now. I recently tasted 1999 Climens, a pleasantly mature, lighter style (92 grams per liter of residual sugar).