The 2021 vintage in Haut-Médoc
Vintage character: Frost, mildew, then a cool summer brought back Bordeaux of old: taut, vibrant, elegant wines, with a more measured ageing span.
Overall reading of the year’s season across Haut-Médoc. An estate can depart from it sharply, in frost or hail years, where two neighbours did not make the same vintage. What this particular wine actually gave is on its technical sheet and in the scores above.
The vintage
Winter: warm and very rainy. Spring: cold and wet with some frost. Summer: chilly and rainy. Harvest: Merlot from 28 September to 8 October 2021; Cabernets from 4 to 14 October 2021.
Blend of the 2021 vintage
- 54 % Merlot
- 46 % Cabernet-sauvignon
Shares for this vintage, as recorded on the 2021 technical sheet. The vineyard itself is planted with 59 % merlot, 35.5 % cabernet sauvignon, 4 % petit verdot, 1.5 % cabernet franc, bordeaux 2050 — a vintage blend departs from the area under vine as the year dictates.
Figures from the 2021 sheet
- 26 yrsVine age
Winemaking
First round of sorting in the vines. Manual sorting on vibrating tables, followed by destemming using a Pellenc WINERY. Optical sorting. Cooling the harvest using a cryogenic tunnel (operated with liquid nitrogen). Vatting by gravity-flow using a funnel. Vinification in small-capacity wooden and concrete vats. Prefermentation cold maceration (8°C). Punching down entirely by hand. Low temperature alcoholic fermentation (28°C). Vatting period of 25 to 32 days. Bottling: spring 2023. Consultant oenologist: Michel Rolland.
Ageing
Ageing in barrels for 16 months, of which 30% are new.
Terroir
A thick layer of Günz gravel over clay.
An offer on Château La Tour Carnet 2021
Availability, allocations and terms: the Compagnie Médocaine will reply promptly. The estate and vintage are already filled in in the message.