Every now and then, the word ‘singularity’ is used to describe a particular wine that stands apart, for whatever reason, from other wines of its type. But just what is singularity, and how can wine express it? Wine writer Tamlyn Currin investigates.

What makes a wine truly singular? Tamlyn Currin explores the rare bottles that defy convention and challenge the rules of the wine world.

Searching for Singularity in wine

Searching for Singularity

I first sat down with winemaker Chris Phelps almost two years ago, diving into his remarkable journey. Having worked at the likes of Dominus, Caymus and Inglenook, it was chance – or maybe fate – that led him to establish his own wine label, Ad Vivum, in 2007.  He was sitting above a tank of just-fermenting fruit when he was struck by a “coup de foudre” – falling instantly for Sleeping Lady Vineyard, a site farmed by his good friend Larry Bettinelli. He bought the half-fermented must, and has continued to do so every vintage since.  The specific blocks that filled that tank sat up against the Mayacamas at the very top of the vineyard, which is the southernmost site in Yountville. Here, the vines are shielded from the blaze of the afternoon sun, preserving acidity and aromatics in the fruit, while a flow of underground water allows the site to thrive in even the driest of years. Each year, from just 1.5 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon, Phelps crafts another expression of the site.  The exact parcels have shifted very slightly over time. In 2007, the vines were all Clone 191 – the clone he felt was best on the site, but the block needed replanting so they started using fruit from an adjacent plot, planted with Clone 7. After a “carefully thought-out dance” balancing the two plots, the 2024 vintage marks a return to using fruit only from the original plot, now replanted with Clone 191 (and known as Clone 34, which is genetically identical to 191).  Phelps left his day job (working for other wineries) at the end of 2023, finally able to focus exclusively on Ad Vivum, as well as a newer project with his son Josh (Coil Wines). Although we’d tasted the current releases before, earlier this month we were able to taste a trio of back-vintages for the first time. They reinforced how special this site is, as well as Phelps’s talent when it comes to capturing it in bottle.  The three vintages we tasted were 2016, 2017 and 2018 – three very different years in Napa. All three, however, manage to combine great freshness with Napa polish – creating wines that are surprisingly approachable already.  2016 Ad Vivum  In Phelps’s words, 2016 was “a classic Napa vintage”; the weather was warm at the end of June, allowing the vines to focus on fruit ripening, while autumn brought cooler weather. Phelps harvested from 7th October, fermenting in 21% new French oak (the rest in stainless steel), with a total of 19 days on skins prior to maturation for 18 months in 65% new French oak. It has always had “a seamlessness”, Phelps noted, and that’s certainly true tasting the wine.  The nose offers sweet, dark fruit, graphite purity and hints of lifted florals as well as an herbaceous edge. The palate is linear and pure, with mouthwatering acidity and a savoury core of ripe fruit, sweet cassis and ripe tannins that provide a drying grip on the finish. Although the oldest of this mini-vertical, it almost feels the youngest and will certainly benefit from additional time in bottle. A blend of 56% Clone 7 and 44% Clone 191 Cabernet Sauvignon.   2017 Ad Vivum  The 2017 vintage is one that will forever be remembered for its wildfires in Napa, although fortunately Ad Vivum wasn’t impacted by them. After an early budbreak, the growing season was marked by three heatwaves – in mid-June, at the end of August and in mid-September. Having a cooler site, shaded from afternoon sun and with sufficient water reserves was key for Phelps. He harvested from 5th October, bringing in 55% Clone 191 and 45% Clone 7 Cabernet. It was fermented in 25% new French oak, spending 20 days on skins in total (Phelps noted how easily colour and tannin came in this hot vintage), before being aged 17 months in 70% new French oak.  The nose here is bright and perfumed, combining sweet dark fruit – black cherries and blackcurrant – with floral lift and pencil lead. There’s a glorious purity to the fruit here, which follows through onto the dense yet fresh palate, displaying a juicy elegance. There’s a satisfying chew to the tannins, firm yet velvet-like, framing the waves of fruit that flow towards to the long, saline finish. Mouthwatering and moreish, this is hard to resist now.  2018 Ad Vivum  Although the 2018 vintage in Napa started with relatively late budbreak, cooler, even temperatures made for a long growing season, and producing relatively plentiful yields – yet without any dilution, thanks to the extended season. Phelps harvested from 17th October, with the blend moving back towards around two thirds Clone 191 Cabernet from the original block and a third Clone 7. Fermented in 25% new French oak, Phelps left the 2018 on skins for 23 days – slightly longer than other vintages, feeling structured fruit needed more time to reach its potential, echoed with its maturation in 75% new oak for 20 months. Phelps notes how generous this wine has been from the beginning, but has developed further opulence and depth in bottle.  This is a beautiful wine: the nose is intense, exuberant with dark fruit and a satisfying herbaceous edge. Although the blackcurrant and black plum fruit is beautifully ripe and smooth, there’s bright acidity that brings gorgeous freshness – making for a lithe and vibrant palate. The tannins are round and sleek, lending effortless structure, while there’s a saline, savoury edge to the long finish.    Explore all current Ad Vivum listings, including a mixed case of 2016, 2017 and 2018, or read more about California   

Since 2007, Chris Phelps has been working with just 1.5 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon in Sleeping Lady Vineyard in Yountville. The resulting wine is Ad Vivum, a beautiful expression of this special site. We sat down with Phelps to taste through a mini-vertical of the project 

Exploring Chris Phelps’s Ad Vivum Napa Cabernet Sauvignon wine from Yountville’s Sleeping Lady Vineyard through three vintages, 2016, 2017 and 2018 

Tasting Ad Vivum Napa Cabernet Sauvignon – 2016-2018 

Tasting Ad Vivum: 2016-2018  

William Kelley + Yohan Castaing – Wine Advocate  Once again, the Wine Advocate’s Bordeaux en primeur coverage is shared by William Kelley and Yohan Castaing, with both providing scores, but Kelley writing the publication’s report. It’s telling that the highest potential score given for any of the 2024s is 94-96, with over half of the wines sitting below 90: in Kelley’s words, the year – which “tested growers’ limits” – “has produced few compelling wines”. Although there are some “notable successes”, the duo he feels that this is “clearly Bordeaux’s weakest vintage of the last decade”, with many wines that are “dilute, herbaceous and tart”.  The year is not homogenous, and Kelley attributes this simply to ripeness levels. He argues that those producers who “dared to wait” to harvest were rewarded. He is clear, however, that no particular variety or sub-region fared particularly better in 2024, with the year only able to be judged at a producer level. The best 2024s are, for Kelley, “intensely flavored middleweights with good structure and energy, exhibiting integrated acidity and ripe tannin”. Although the worst have acidity that can be “shrill”, with “astringent tannins and overt pyrazine character”, some – largely from early-ripening sites harvested late – “possess a density and mid-palate amplitude that transcends the year”. The vintage is, however, “a throwback”, closer to those of the 1990s than anything more recent. Elevage should help flesh out some of the wines, but Kelley is cautious of the wines’ fragility – and anticipates it “will only amplify the gap between the best and the rest”.  Kelley’s highlights: Cheval Blanc, La Conseillante, Pontet-Canet, Les Carmes Haut-Brion  Explore Kelley’s full report, notes and scores on the Wine Advocate (subscribers only)    Jane Anson – Inside Bordeaux  For Anson, 2024 exceeded her expectations: although there are, she acknowledges, "many disappointing bottles", the vintage is better than 2013 and – in the best cases – than 2021. She feels there are “more overall successes on the Right Bank than Left, simply because underripe Cabernet is very difficult to mask”, and generally speaking second wines don’t come recommended this year, with a notable step in quality. In the best reds, the acidity lends “juice, muscles and salinity”, with the Médoc offering linear, “floral, fragrant, nuanced” Claret. She highlights the quality of Saint-Julien in particular, and notes that there are “many excellent wines” in Pauillac, while Saint-Estèphe is more varied.  The Right Bank produced her wine of the vintage – Eglise-Clinet – but she notes how Pomerol is varied, with some successful wines that are “fabulous, lifted, aromatic, great quality” and some that are less successful, generally with the best hailing from the inner plateau. In Saint-Emilion, she notes how the limestone’s natural austerity needed to be managed – but “there are many tasty, successful if slim wines” in the appellation.  She emphasises the quality of the whites in the vintage, both sweet and dry, with “greater consistency and many excellent wines”. The dry whites offer great aromatics, but don’t have the density of the best wines, hence her ceiling on scores. She describes the sweet wines as “less luscious than the 2022s and 2023s”, but with “many balanced, delicious wines that are full of pleasure”.   Anson’s highlights: Eglise-Clinet, La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc, Coutet, Pavillon Blanc, Les Champs Libres, Margaux, Léoville Poyferré, Brane-Cantenac, Ausone, Laroque, Couvent des Jacobins, La Prade, Vieux Château Saint André, L’If, Pagodes de Cos Blanc, Rieussec, Suduiraut, Clos Albus, Les Hauts de Smith Blanc, Les Charmes-Godard  Explore Anson’s full report, notes and scores on Inside Bordeaux (subscribers only)    Antonio Galloni – Vinous  Galloni is the first of the two Vinous writers to publish their report on 2024 Bordeaux. Although he admits the wines are “all over the place in terms of quality and style”, he also feels that “the very best wines have a lot to offer”. After all, “Weather is no longer the critical element in determining the quality of wines and therefore a vintage.”  He emphasises how key élevage will be in the wines’ development, expecting “a very high level of variability in the finished wines” – feeling, as per the title of his report, that many of the wines sit on a “razor’s edge”. Galloni describes the 2024s as aromatic, leaning towards red fruit, with the best “exud[ing] balance” – although some can be “excessively light”, making for a “frustratingly erratic vintage”. It is, however, “far from the total disaster” suggested. For him, it’s a year where the Left Bank and Cabernet thrived, highlighting the wines of Saint-Estèphe and Pauillac, and finding those of Pomerol and Pessac-Léognan the most variable.   He emphases the quality of the dry whites in 2024, which are “some of the finest” in the vintage and can be “truly exceptional”, while also offering relative value. As for the sweets, they are – for him – very good, but not outstanding, not having the “thrill factor of the very best years”.  Galloni’s highlights: Beychevelle, Clos Puy Arnaud, Cos d’Estournel, Jean Faure, Larcis-Ducasse, Lascombes, La Conseillante, Rauzan-Ségla  Explore Antonio Galloni’s full report, notes and scores on Vinous (subscribers only)    Neal Martin – Vinous    Following on from Galloni’s report (above), Neal Martin covers the growing season defined by its “biblical” amount of rain. He feels 2024 is “a good vintage with limitations”, noting that the wines are inconsistent and the “maleficent season… widens the divide between the haves and have-nots”. He emphasises that those who triumphed had not the best terroir, but “the deepest pockets and those who made the right decisions at the right times” – and even then, it is “a growing season that is impossible to transcend”.  He, like others, notes how different the vintage would have been just a couple of decades ago, noting that it is “unequivocally far superior” to the likes of 1984, 1992 or 2013. Although it is not consistent, he admits there are wines that “touch the sky”, and the best are “pretty” – offering “delineated and focused” aromatics, balanced wines in which a “spine of acidity lends poise”, with “ample freshness and sapidity”. They are, he writes, “ideal restaurant wines that will provide easy-drinking pleasure whilst you wait for the 2019 or 2022s to mature”.  Martin highlights the quality of the dry whites – with cool conditions producing “riveting, tensile Sauvignon Blanc/Sémillon-based wines that often trump their red counterparts”. As for Sauternes, he reports that they are very good, but not classically opulent, instead “full of freshness and purity”.  Neal Martin’s highlights: Vieux Château Certan, Lafleur, Eglise-Clinet, Lafite Rothschild, Margaux, Montrose, La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc, Domaine de Chevalier Blanc, Malartic-Lagravière Blanc, Le Blanc de Lafite, Les Champs Libres, Doisy-Daëne, Coutet, Guiraud, Suduiraut  Explore Neal Martin’s full report, notes and scores on Vinous (subscribers only)    James Suckling  For James Suckling, tasting 2024 was a nostalgic experience – reminding him of “modern renditions of years such as 1985 or 1995”. Although he feels it is among the most heterogenous vintages he’s tasted, he describes the top 2024s as having “fine tannins and a crunchy, bright character”, “linear and fresh” with “vivid acidity”, noting that they’ll be approachable early. The best, he believes, come from early-ripening sites with the large teams necessary to tackle the year. He feels the dry whites, meanwhile, are very good to excellent – with Haut-Brion Blanc and Pavillon Blanc both among his top-scoring wines.  Suckling’s highlights: Haut-Brion Blanc, Evangile, Lafleur, Latour, Pavillon Blanc, Angélus, Ausone, Cos d’Estournel, Haut-Brion, Eglise-Clinet, La Mission Haut-Brion, Léoville Las Cases, Les Carmes Haut-Brion, Margaux, Mouton Rothschild, Pétrus, Smith-Haut-Lafitte Blanc, Vieux Château Certan  Explore James Suckling’s full report, notes and scores on his website (subscribers only)    Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW – The Wine Independent  The headline for Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW is that the best reds in 2024 are “lighter-bodied, soft-textured, refreshing and perfumed”, while there are “many spectacular dry white wines and small quantities of excellent wines from Sauternes”. She notes how the wines generally have ripe tannins, but flavour ripeness was more challenging – and has resulted in “a lot of good, delicious, drinkable, if not awe-inspiring, reds” although “many don’t have the flavor layers or intensity of a truly great wine”.  One thing shines through for her: “Quality levels are all over the show.” She, like us, feels the Right Bank is more consistent and notes that “many elegant, bright, refreshing, soft-textured and perfumed wines” come from Saint-Emilion and Pomerol. On the Left Bank, she finds that quality drops away as you move away from the gravel terraces and the finest terroirs, although many Classed Growths produced wines “worthy of their status” if in a lighter style than recent years.  The dry whites are, for her, “the silver lining” of the vintage – noting their consistency and quality. She finds that many have “an effortless sense of harmony”, the aromatics and acidity preserved by the cooler conditions. She highlights a number of dry whites to look out for – noted below. Quality in Sauternes and Barsac is “excellent”, she writes, feeling the acid backbone injects “vivacity” into the wines, bringing greater balance versus warmer vintages. The best have “great flavor intensity, plenty of botrytis-instilled complexity, and racy backbones” – and are wines well worth seeking out.  Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW’s highlights: Figeac, Haut-Brion Blanc, Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc, La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc, Pavillon Blanc, Eglise-Clinet, Montrose, Trotte Vieille, Pape Clément Blanc, Domaine de Chevalier Blanc, Valandraud Blanc, D’Aiguilhe Blanc, Larrivet Haut-Brion Blanc, Suduiraut Pur Sémillon, Les Champs Libres, Cos d’Estournel Blanc, Lespault-Martillac Blanc  Explore Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW’s full report on The Wine Independent (subscribers only)    Georgie Hindle – Decanter  Decanter’s coverage is being gradually released, and so far includes a report on the growing season, as well as an early look at the styles the year produced. Georgie Hindle says it is closest in style to 2021, looking at recent vintages, however highlights the drier, warmer summer which differentiates it. She emphasises that the year is not uniform, and the wines are generally shaped by a “taut, mineral freshness” rather than fruit depth or opulence. She says the best “offer flashes of aromatic precision, elegant and refreshing clarity with structure and length” – they “achieve balance between fruit, acidity and tannins”. Many are weak or thin and – as we and others have emphasised – you cannot generalise this year – and it shouldn’t be one you write-off, she urges.   She doesn’t feel that the dry whites fared better than the reds, with results similarly mixed – but some successful wines that are aromatic and appealing. As for the region’s sweet wines, they offer “an easy drinkability” but don’t all have “the density and consistency of stronger vintages”.    Explore Georgie Hindle’s coverage on Decanter (subscribers only)     Colin Hay – The Drinks Business This is the first year we’re including The Drinks Business. A trade publication, it has been expanding its coverage of Bordeaux and relatively recently started scoring wines, all tackled by Colin Hay. Despite the challenging growing season, he argues that “those with both the resources – human and financial – and above all the acumen to respond to its trials and tribulations have triumphed”. Although at the lower end of the quality tree, he finds the wines disappointing and the vintage far from even, he writes that “at the top of the pyramid” there are “wines that transcend the challenges of the vintage” – “fully ripe, elegant, refined, highly aromatic, with soft, delicate, finely grained tannins and a succulence, clarity and brilliance that is rare indeed”. He finds them “remarkable” – even without the context of the year. Although they don’t reach the heights of 2019, 2020 or 2022, he feels the wines can be favourably compared to other recent vintages – indeed, he feels the best sit above wines from 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006. 2007, 2008, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2017 and 2018. He writes that although the wines are “likely to be highly accessible in their youth”, they “still have quite significant ageing potential”. He is another to feel the vintage is slightly stronger on the Right Bank, and rave about the whites (“unique and spectacular”, “an undoubted highlight of the vintage” that he puts on a par with 2017 and 2021) and the sweets (although he confesses these are less consistent). Although there are exceptions, Pauillac is “the least flattered by the vintage”, and can be austere. He found that estates in Saint-Estèphe seemed to embrace the vintage, finding several highlights – including Montrose, “a wine of staggering depth and originality, yet also of an ethereal and aerial beauty and profound aromatic complexity”. In Saint-Julien, he finds “a reassuring sweetness to the fruit and a nutty creaminess”, coping with the vintage better, as Margaux also did, offering much “charm and typicity”. He finds the reds of Pessac-Léognan and Graves especially heterogenous, although he feels people will remember the vintage for its whites.  On the Right Bank, Hay finds that the best of Pomerol “indicate nothing of the difficulties of the growing season”, with elevated proportions of Cabernet providing “additional aromatic lift and florality”. In Saint-Emilion, he also discovers many vintage-transcending wines, “far more homogenous” than expected, especially versus the Left Bank, and many of them sit within its classification system – suggesting it is “an impressive guarantor of quality to the consumer”.  Colin Hay’s highlights: Mouton Rothschild, Montrose, Cos d’Estournel, Gruaud Larose, Palmer, Lafleur, Le Pin, Petrus, Eglise-Clinet, Trotanoy, Bélair-Monange, Rocheyron, Cheval Blanc, Figeac, Angélus, Beauséjour, Larcis-Ducasse, Pavie, Les Carmes Haut-Brion, La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc, Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc, L’Extravagant de Doisy-Daëne, Lafaurie-Peyraguey, Suduiraut Explore Colin Hay’s full report, notes and scores on The Drinks Business Jeb Dunnuck Although 2024 was a difficult vintage, it produced “charming, mid-weight, forward, moderately concentrated wines”, writes Dunnuck. He compares quality to 2021 but with more “openness and suppleness”, feeling it is neither a Left or Right Bank year, but one that needs to be analysed by estate. He does feel, however, that Pessac is “a shining gem in the vintage”. The wines are about “approachability over density”, and the Merlot-driven wines of the Right Bank show their terroir well, while Pomerol is darker in style. On the Left Bank, similarly, they are not blockbusters, but – he says – they “will certainly appeal to those who pine for the yesteryears of the 1980s and 1990s”, and will “unquestionably offer ample drinking and longevity”. He suggests they may follow a similar trajectory to the 2001s, wines “drinking beautifully today” – and some “have a balance and harmony that might surprise”.  As for the whites, although there are “some brilliant whites”, it is not universal – a good rather than great vintage. And that is trye for the vintage across the board, in his mind, selective buying is advised, but there are some good wines worthy of attention. Jeb Dunnuck’s highlights: Figeac, Haut-Brion, La Conseillante, Lafaurie Peyraguey Coeur de Terroir, Pavillon Blanc, Mouton Rothschild, Pape Clément, Suduiraut, Suduiraut Pur Semillon, Valandraud Blanc    Explore Bordeaux 2024 

As the floodgates open for Bordeaux 2024 releases, the world’s leading wine critics are offering their thoughts on the vintage. Here you’ll find a round-up of what the Wine Advocate, Vinous and more are saying about the vintage so far – and the wines they rated most highly 

Your essential crib-sheet to what the world’s leading wine critics are saying about Bordeaux 2024 en primeur–including Wine Advocate, Vinous,Decanter and more

Bordeaux 2024 en primeur – what the critics are saying 

Bordeaux 2024: what the critics are saying 

The 2023 vintage in the Rhône was – like elsewhere in France – hot and dry, but not as hot as 2022. The preceding autumn was wet, but from January through to March 2023 there was practically no rain (indeed, not a drop fell between 21st January and 21st February).  Rain arrived in mid-May and there were frequent, small showers until the end of June, providing just enough water to avoid major water stress. Flowering and fruit-set took place without any issues, but as the rain showers continued, the threat of downy mildew and black rot arrived – and needed managing to avoid damage to the crop.  Late August brought a new challenge, with a heatwave that saw temperatures hit 40-42°C, lasting two weeks. There were reports of blocked ripening and young vines dying, but fortunately the weather cooled off and September offered a substantial diurnal swing in temperatures, helping retain aromatics and acidity in the run-up to harvest. The whites were largely brought in in August, before the heatwave had finished, while the red harvest took place over an Indian summer, with the last fruit in around mid-October.  The Northern Rhône faced additional challenges, with hail in Cornas, Crozes-Hermitage and Saint-Joseph, then on 18th September torrential rain – with over 100mm falling in one night. The northern part of the appellation avoided this deluge, with just 20mm.  Here’s what the critics are saying about the wines.  Jeb Dunnuck  Jeb Dunnuck is gradually releasing his reports on Rhône 2023, starting with Châteauneuf-du-Pape and Gigondas.  In Châteauneuf-du-Pape, 2023 is “another solid vintage”, he writes, offering “a bevy of ripe yet not excessive, pure, charming wines with loads to love”. He finds them darker-fruited and cooler than “the sunny, exuberant 2022s”, with a “soft, plump elegant style, and beautiful overall balance”. They are not intensely concentrated, he says, but “shine for their balanced, layered, seductive style”. They combine freshness and depth, and are “on a par, if not slightly superior to, the 2022s”, says Dunnuck, feeling they’ll also be longer-lived than the 2022s – comparing them stylistically to the wines from 2020, 2018 or 2012. While it may not be “truly great”, drinkers will find “a wealth of beautiful wines”.  As for Gigondas, he finds the wines “pure, elegant, beautifully balanced” – reminiscent of 2020 or 2012, “fresher and more elegant than the 2022s”. The vintage was the first in which whites were permitted in the appellation, and these come highly recommended – “beautifully fresh, focused, yet concentrated whites that show the limestone, mineral-like character of the appellation”.  Explore Jeb Dunnuck’s reports, notes and scores on his site (subscribers only)  Drink Rhône – John Livingstone-Learmonth  So far, John Livingstone-Learmonth has only published thoughts on the Northern Rhône in 2023, where he feels it is “good” if not “spectacular”. The reds have “reasonable levels of tannin”, while the whites are, he writes, “a definite buy”. In Cornas, he writes, the wines have an approachability, but don’t have “great stuffing or structure to match the really long keeping vintages such as 2015 or 2019”. He feels the wines will appeal to a modern audience, balanced with refined tannins and the best set to drink over 20-plus years, although selective buying is advised. In Crozes-Hermitage, this is particularly true, Livingstone-Learmonth advises, highlighting both mildew and hail, even if the best are impressive – with “snug tannins” and “stylish content”, and potential five-star ratings. The 2023s of Côte-Rôtie seem to stand out in the line-up, aromatic with moderate alcohols, even if not overtly structured. The results are, in Livingstone-Learmonth’s mind, “very satisfying”, with “appealing exuberance and plentiful fruit” – wines he expects to drink for a good 25 years or so. Explore John Livingstone-Learmonth’s full report, notes and scores on his site (subscribers only)  Decanter – Matt Walls  Both in the north and south of the region, the vintage earns a modest 3.5 out of 5 rating from Decanter’s Matt Walls. He emphasises how the rain showers that arrived in May and June were “crucial” in the otherwise hot, dry year, even if they also brought disease pressure.   Unlike other recent vintages, Walls highlights how approachable the 2023s are – perfect for drinking while waiting for other vintages (including the 2022s) to come round. He says the wines are perhaps comparable in quality to the 2022s, although are much more open. Both in the Northern and Southern Rhône, he finds the whites more consistent than the reds – offering “intensity, freshness and energy”.  The reds are more mixed in quality. In the south, you’ll find “a clutch of juicy, approachable and early-drinking wines”,  he says, “ripe with soft tannins and gentle acidity”, but “nonetheless displaying detailed terroir expression”. He found that, while Châteauneuf-du-Pape was heterogenous (with some wines lacking in acidity and marked by alcohol), Vinsobres, Lirac, Beaumes de Venise and Rasteau all excelled this year. He advises looking out for wines with Mourvèdre in the blend, bringing “welcome sinew”.  In the Northern Rhône, things were trickier. Hail struck Saint-Joseph, Cornas and Crozes-Hermitage, and there was a huge rainstorm on 18th September – so heavy that it damaged vines and resulted in some dilution. Côte-Rôtie, Condrieu and northern Saint-Joseph dodged the storm (receiving 20 versus 100mm elsewhere) and made some “excellent” wines, according to Walls. While much of the Northern Rhône produced fresh, supple reds, there is some “very fine Côte-Rôtie” and Cornas offers “strict, mineral and refreshing” wines that are “distinctly herbal”. Walls notes that there are many vibrant, fresh whites, particularly in Hermitage – where the whites are set to outlive the reds.  Explore Matt Walls’ full report, notes and scores on the Decanter site (subscribers only)  Wine Advocate – Yohan Castaing  Yohan Castaing hasn’t yet released his full coverage of the 2023 vintage in the Rhône, but has offered two reports on the whites of Châteauneuf-du-Pape and Gigondas, where it is the first vintage for white wines within the appellation rules. Generally, he finds the Southern Rhône whites in 2023 “aromatic and elegant, with bright acidities, a well-defined core and good aging potential”. In Châteauneuf, the aromatic profiles are, for him, reminiscent of 2022 and he considers the wines very good to excellent, with acidity that “balances the natural power and typically high pH levels of Southern Rhône grape varieties”. He attributes this in part to greater precision in the vineyard and winery, although some wines, he writes, still lack “dymanism and tension”.  The first whites to bear the Gigondas appellation name (coming from around 12 hectares of white vineyards) offer “a promising glimpse” of what lies ahead. He favours the pure Clairette expressions of Gigondas’s complex soils, even if the grape still represents a minimum 70% of the blends. Nevertheless, the 2023s, in Castaing’s words, have “remarkable freshness, tension and complexity”, exemplifying “the elegance and purity that Gigondas Blanc strives for, balancing structure with vibrancy”.   Explore Yohan Castaing’s full report notes and scores on Châteauneuf-du-Pape whites and Gigondas whites on the Wine Advocate (subscribers only)  Vinous – Nicolas Greinacher  In Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Vinous’s Nicolas Greinacher finds that 2023 “promises to be a delightful year for both reds and whites”. In his coverage of the growing season, he notes that sites with more clay fared better than sandier soils, able to retain key moisture during the year’s warm weather. He feels the reds in this leading appellation are good to very good, more approachable than the 2022s, and “although generally not set to be as long-lived as the 2022s, the finest 2023s are built to last”. He finds many of them “alluring”, “perfumed” and “juicy”. As for the whites, he finds them generous in style – matching the reds for quality, and offering brighter acidity versus the 2022s.  In the Northern Rhône, the reds are – he writes – “surprisingly fresh, calm and balanced”, with ripe fruit and “gentle tannins”. They aren’t as structured and long-lived as the 2022s, much more open and accessible in youth, but there are “standout wines in every appellation that are sure to endure”. He finds that Côte-Rôtie stands out this year for its “hauntingly elegant” wines, while Cornas offers wines of “granite-based austerity, fleshiness, boldness and elevated flavor concentration” (even if they’re “not blockbusters”). Saint-Joseph is more mixed, while the whites of Condrieu are mostly “lively, fresh and expressive, albeit not as precise and elegant as in 2021”.  Explore Nicolas Greinacher’s full reports, notes and scores on Châteauneuf-du-Pape and the Northern Rhône on Vinous (subscribers only)  jancisrobinson.com – Alistair Cooper MW and James Lawther MW James Lawther MW has covered the Northern Rhône and Alistair Cooper MW the Southern Rhône for jancisrobinson.com. In the north, Lawther finds 2023 “more elegant and approachable” versus the power and concentration of vintages like 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2022. The reds are generally low in alcohol, with a maximum 13%, he says, and relatively high pHs, yet they feel very fresh, with supple tannins and “juicy, gourmand” fruit – offering a much more “classic” profile, he finds. Côte-Rôtie has produced some of the vintage’s best wines, and is more consistent than those of Cornas, Crozes-Hermitage (with hail in both) or Saint-Joseph, full of “balance and charm even if they are not destined for excessively long ageing”. In the south, the story is rather different, as Cooper reports – the year defined by its warm and dry conditions. Although Châteauneuf-du-Pape produced some “extremely high-quality red wines”, selection is key, with some wines jammy and high in alcohol, although the best are excellent, offering power and concentration. The appellation’s best whites offer freshness and minerality, although some drift into flabbiness, with picking dates key. Cooper found quality in Vacqueyras and Gigondas more variable – for the latter, he attributes this in part to its sandier soils (less able to retain water in the dry year). Generally, however, he found the southern crus “largely turned out good-quality wines” – with Cairanne, Lirac and Rasteau in particular home to “balanced and attractive wines aplenty”. Explore the full reports, notes and scores on jancisrobinson.com (subscribers only) We’ll be adding to this feature as other reports are released.    

The 2023 vintage was far from easy in the Rhône Valley – but has clearly produced some charming wines. As the critics publish their reports on the year, we round up what they’re saying about the vintage and its wines, from Châteauneuf-du-Pape to Côte-Rôtie  

As the Rhone starts to release its 2023s, here’s what the world’s leading critics–Jeb Dunnuck, Decanter, Vinous, the Wine Advocate–are saying about the wines 

Rhone 2023 – what the critics are saying 

Rhône 2023: the critics’ verdict 

Chris Phelps never really meant to start his own winery. But fate had other plans.  Wine had always been part of life, just in the background. Growing up in Livermore, east of San Francisco, Phelps’s parents would buy a ton of grapes from Napa or Sonoma, and make wine each year for themselves. Phelps even dug out a cellar by hand for them as a teenager. Nevertheless, when he set off for UC Davis, it wasn’t to study wine, but medicine. To pay for university, he took a job as a firefighter in Idaho (“kind of scary but super fun,” he tells me). By chance, he met a wine-geek friend, one who eventually convinced him to switch from pre-med to oenology. At Davis, he happened upon Alain Bertrand – one of the first scientists to use gas chromatography to delineate the different aromatic compounds in wine. The Frenchman didn’t speak much English, and Phelps spoke French – so they ended up becoming friends. Bertrand suggested Phelps attend the University of Bordeaux for a year after graduation. There, Phelps tells me, everything “started to fall into place”. Until then, wine had been intellectually interesting – but, during his time in France, it became much more.   There, another professor pushed him to apply for an internship – just in time for the 1982 harvest, a vintage that would turn out to be legendary. He already had offers from both Ch. Simon (Barsac) and Ch. Beauregard, but then was given the opportunity to interview with JP Moueix (of Pétrus). Unusually Christian Moueix insisted on joining the interview himself, alongside winemaker Jean-Claude Berrouet, and promptly gave him the job. The confident young American, however, said he’d think about it – and set off for a holiday in the south of France with his fiancée. Little did he know that Moueix had just bought a swathe of vineyard in Napa – and was planning for the future.  A few weeks later, Phelps was in Nice and bought three postcards from the Chagall museum – ready to make his decision about the three possible roads that lay ahead of him. He decided to take the position at Moueix, posted his rejections and acceptance, and carried on with his holiday. But, as harvest time approached, Phelps hadn’t heard anything back. He called Berrouet – only to find out that the French postal service had let him down, and the job at Pétrus had been given to someone else. It seemed like his luck had run out, but Berrouet said he might have another idea and would call him back in a few days.   While Berrouet couldn’t offer him anything as prestigious as Pétrus, he found Phelps a job at Ch. des Laurets in Puisseguin-Saint-Emilion – but he wouldn’t just be an intern, he’d be running everything. It was, Phelps said, a “trial by fire”, especially given his only hands-on experience to date had been six months at Louis Martini. He worked non-stop with just one cellar hand to help during the day, and managed to make it through the season.   When the wines were safely in barrel, he went to dinner at Christian Moueix’s house – where, sipping Champagne in the library, Moueix told Phelps about his plans for his Napa project, Dominus – and asked if he’d be the winemaker. “Of course, I said no,” Phelps tells me – recalling how the Frenchman opposite visibly sputtered at the American’s cheek (again). Phelps said he needed more money to live in Napa (and support his bride-to-be) – and more experience. Amazingly, Moueix agreed to let him start from 1984, given the 1983 vintage was set to be just a handful of experimental barrels, and to a pay rise. Off Phelps went, working around California and wintering at Pétrus before returning to lead the team at Dominus.   “We figured it out as we went along,” Phelps says, looking back on the early days of what is now one of Napa’s most prestigious estates. Today they might have the iconic Herzog & De Meuron winery, but things were much more rustic at the beginning – with a small team and little infrastructure. Phelps eventually moved on, joining Caymus in 1996 – but it’s what started happening after-hours, around his day job, that is interesting.  In 1990, Phelps met Larry Bettinelli at a Christian men’s retreat, and hit it off. It was only when they met up for lunch later that they realised they were both in the wine business, with Bettinelli a fifth-generation farmer who was growing grapes. Bettinelli wanted his vineyards to be the best in the valley – but he needed feedback on the fruit so that he could adapt his viticulture. He and Phelps hatched a plan: each year, Bettinelli would give Phelps a ton of fruit, trialling different clones, rootstocks, vine spacing and trellising, harvest methods, and Phelps would make a wine with it. The project was purely intellectual, so the two families drunk the wine themselves, and it also started being used as the altar wine at Phelps’s church (a much higher-grade communion offering than most). For two decades, they kept making tiny batches of their first-class “homebrew”, and Bettinelli became one of the valley’s best growers, working with an increasing number of sites around Napa.  Destiny seemed to abandon all subtlety in 2005. Phelps was hiking through the Sierra Nevada, leading a Scouts expedition, when they were struck by lightning. Two of the group died and Phelps was knocked unconscious. Unsurprisingly, it shook Phelps to the core. “Life is our most precious gift,” he says, “and if we use wine appropriately, it can enhance our lives.”  Two years later, Phelps was on top of a tank that had just been filled with crushed fruit from a relatively new Bettinelli site – and the smell was intoxicating. Following pure impulse, Phelps asked if he could – rather unconventionally – buy the tank’s contents, and Bettinelli said yes. Ad Vivum – inspired by the Latin “vinum” for wine and “vivere” to live, combined with “ad” which translates as “to” or “towards” – was born.  The vineyard was Sleeping Lady (previously Reese), the southernmost vineyard in Yountville, at the foot of the Mayacamas and on the southern end of the valley’s famous bench. There’s a flow of underground water that feeds a creek, with sufficient clay under the gravel and sand to retain water during the dry summer – and has, in Phelps’s words, a “beautiful ability” to self-regulate. Various other producers work with the vineyard, but his two blocks (representing a mere 1.5 acres) are right at the top of the vineyard, below a steep slope that aids the flow of cool air through the site at night. For him there was something special about these plots – producing fruit and wine with what Phelps describes as a “grace note”; it’s a whisper of something that takes the wine to the next level.  In a good year, production for Ad Vivum is 450 cases – but Phelps isn’t looking to grow. He makes one wine, from one site – and that’s the way he wants it to be. The wine is undoubtedly informed by his Franco-American roots, with an elegance, freshness and savoury structure that complements the plush Napa style. As he says, “I try to build wines that speak for themselves.”  Phelps’s – and Ad Vivum’s – story is one of happenstance. Or is it? With a man as devout as Phelps, it seems hard for anyone to believe it’s all an accident – and as Phelps himself says, looking back, it feels perhaps like it’s all part of a master plan.  Explore all current listings of Ad Vivum or read more about California 

Ad Vivum is a boutique Napa project from Chris Phelps. Sophie Thorpe spoke to him about how twists of fate saw him go from aspiring medic to star winemaker at the likes of Dominus, Caymus – and now his own label

Ad Vivum is a boutique Napa wine label from Chris Phelps. We spoke to the ex Dominus and Caymus winemaker about his journey – and its twists of fate

Discover Chris Phelps’s wine Ad Vivum, Napa

Divine intervention: Ad Vivum

If there is one new constant in Napa, it’s that each vintage seems to bring extraordinary conditions – once-in-a-lifetime circumstances now occur with regularity.   In 2020, the historic Glass Fire erupted near the end of harvest, cutting power for many wineries, damaging vineyards, and meaning many producers didn’t release any wine, due to potential smoke taint. The 2021 vintage, on the other hand, was quieter with no wildfire activity; however, the lingering effects of a severe three-year drought caused reduced yields and the need for meticulous water management. Completing a trifecta of climate change issues, the theme of 2022 was neither smoke nor drought, but intense heat.   Unlike the unusually dry winters that preceded the 2020 and 2021 vintages, the winter before the 2022 vintage marked a return to normal rainfall totals. With over 18 inches of rain between the end of harvest and the start of 2022 alone, the three-year drought was broken. Steady rainfall continued into the early months of 2022 and, after a warm spring, budburst and flowering were slightly earlier than normal. The summer progressed in classic Napa Valley fashion, dry and warm, and the ample water levels led to healthy, well-developed canopies, unlike the previous two vintages. Though two minor heat spikes occurred in May and June, both were brief and too early in the season to have significant impact. All of this changed in the first week of September, however, when a major heatwave was predicted. While most white grapes were already harvested, the timing was critical for red grapes, the majority of which were approaching ripeness but needed additional hang time to achieve optimal flavour development and ripeness. The question every winemaker faced was: just how bad would the heat be?   Winegrowers had two choices: act conservatively and harvest whatever was close to maturity, or bet that the fruit would tolerate the heat. Of course, many variables influenced the choice, including vineyard elevation, vine age, access to irrigation and other heat-mitigation techniques such as misters and shade cloth. For later-ripening varieties and cooler sites, there was little choice but to endure the heat with fingers crossed.  For those who chose to wait, the heat spike was both longer and more severe than predicted – record-breaking, even. The first few days of September were hot – with peak temperatures ranging from 32-35̊C – but beginning on 4th September, daily temperatures soared over 38̊C for six critical days. In some lower-lying areas of the valley, historical records were shattered with temperatures surpassing 46̊C.  For winemaker Mike Smith of Myriad Cellars, the decision was stressful, as most of the fruit he works with, including from To Kalon and Dr Crane vineyards on the valley floor, were not fully ripe. Ultimately, he decided to wait. He likens this experience to facing a stronger team on the playing field, where no matter the outcome, the weaker team will become tougher as a result. Though he is pleased with the resulting wines, he says he still wonders what they would have been like if picked earlier.  Other winemakers didn’t wait for the heat to begin, but instead shifted their plans well in advance. At Philip Togni Vineyard on Spring Mountain, winemaker Lisa Togni says she “jumped the gun on harvesting”, starting on 23rd August – the earliest harvest ever in the history of the winery. She was able to harvest one-third of the property before the heatwave began and says the remainder was able to be brought in shortly after the heatwave ended, at optimal ripeness or slightly higher than normal.   When the heat dome settled over Napa Valley, however, some winemakers quickly pivoted. Winemaker Allison Tauziet of Colgin Cellars remembers she was in St Helena every night when the heat began, tasting in the dark, because she was so concerned about losing freshness. “I could sense flavors moving faster than I’d ever seen,” she says. Just a few days into the heatwave, Tauziet made the snap decision to pick all the fruit that was destined for the Cariad and Tychson Hill wines. “We nailed it,” she says, “We got maturity but didn’t sacrifice anything.”    Many small wineries with fewer resources, however, scrambled to find picking crews, as demand surged. As Lisa Togni points out, “Developing a relationship with pickers is critical. When you need them, you really need them.” Fermentation-tank availability was another major concern. With a suddenly very compressed harvest, not every winery had sufficient space to process the fruit.  Even with varied picking decisions, the multitude of microclimates and site variations in Napa Valley also affected outcomes. Elevation helps to mitigate heat, and this was the case on Howell Mountain at Dunn Vineyard, says winemaker Mike Dunn. Located 2,000 feet above the valley floor, temperatures were six or seven degrees (Fahrenheit) cooler, though still “incredibly unusual” and led to fruit with higher-than-average ripeness. He notes that a few of the 2022 lots at Dunn will likely be de-alcoholised, a technique famously adopted by his father Randy Dunn to keep the wines in balance and below his preferred maximum of 14% alcohol. At Sleeping Lady Vineyard in Yountville, a location “hard up against the Mayacamas mountains”, as described by Ad Vivum winemaker Chris Phelps, the natural shading that occurs from about 3pm onwards always shields the grapes from the hot afternoon sun – a feature that proved especially useful in 2022.  On September 10th, the heatwave broke, and just a week later, winemakers were presented with another potential challenge: nearly an inch of rain in one day. This, too, was record-breaking for the month of September, which typically sees little to no rain. The rain event was not enough to be impactful after the long, dry stretch of summer, says Mike Dunn, who instead described it as just enough to wash the dust off the grapes. On Pritchard Hill, the rain measured three quarters of an inch, but Tauziet says it was “not at all a big deal” for Colgin, and the days following were cool and dry, so mildew pressure was low.  Like Mike Smith, Dunn describes the vintage as a learning experience that will help form future decisions. He is considering a sorting table, which Dunn has never used before. “We are one of the few that are that primitive and that is intentional,” he says, noting that while he and his father’s goal has always been to avoid overly homogenous fruit, a vintage like 2022 made avoiding desiccated berries difficult. Similarly, the brutal heat caused Lisa Togni to decide to build a shade structure over the winery’s crush pad, which she describes as a matter of “human safety” in an increasingly warm region.   Other wineries have already adapted to hotter conditions and more frequent heat events. Up on Pritchard Hill at the Colgin estate, where the fruit is typically harvested later – and in 2022, after the heatwave – shade cloths are used across the entire vineyard. Tauziet adds that misters are used on blocks that are more vulnerable, including thinner-skinned Cabernet Sauvignon clones. Rather than irrigate the vine, the misters instead reduce the air temperature inside the canopy.  When it came to managing the fruit in the winery, it seems approaches varied, although the naturally high pH for later-picked fruit posed a potential ferment – with risks of stuck ferments and the associated problems. Many producers said they did little different, although – as mentioned – many emphasised sorting out any dried berries, but it’s a vintage where generalisations are difficult.  Increasingly extreme weather in Napa – whether from fire, drought or heat – makes vintage comparisons to 2022 difficult. Mike Smith sees some similarities with the heatwave at the start of harvest in 2017, however, which also led to opulent, rich concentration of fruit which he also sees in the 2022 wines. Lisa Togni reaches further back, to 1991, for a comparison, noting that it was a very ripe year that wound up evolving gracefully, while Allison Tauziet likens the texture of 2022 to 2002, for the “amazing expression of fruit”, and she doesn’t see any reason to disparage the wines. “It’s kind of shocking that I really like them,” she says, noting that, despite the stress of the vintage, “there’s a lot of what we’re always seeking: flavor, minerality and perfume.”  Coming after the highly structured 2021 vintage, which was marked by densely packed tannins, the 2022 wines are likely to please those seeking more immediate pleasure. The word “soft” is one that Chris Phelps uses to describe the wines but cautions that he doesn’t mean that in a derogatory way. “There is a natural hedonistic aspect the 2022s have had in spades since – or even before -- they left the fermenter,” he says. “The wine is fresh and has been charming since it was in juice form prior to fermentation. There's plenty of acid for vibrancy and tension, but with just a very slight touch higher pH.”  Most of the wines we’ve tasted so far share a bold style, with opulent layers of fruit and supple tannins. It’s important to note, however, that this is clearly not a homogenous vintage. Vineyard location and aspect were crucial, with higher elevations and those areas better shielded from the sun faring better. It’s clear that the line between fully ripe and overly ripe fruit flavours is razor-thin in this tricky vintage, with many wines showing notes of cooked, even desiccated fruit – not surprising, given the conditions. But collectors should certainly not be put off the vintage, as many other wines show excellent balance and a juicy, friendly exuberance that makes them very pleasurable even in their youth.  The 2022 vintage began as routine, but – in what seems be the new normal in Napa – shifted virtually overnight, forcing winemakers to make quick decisions based on their own unique location and combination of contributing factors. While the resulting wines will share some characteristics, the 2022s are formed by their microclimate, as well as the resources and quick decision-making skills of the winemakers. Lisa Togni also credits her successful harvest to another factor: sheer luck. Much like 2021, when fire licked the edges of the Togni property but spared her parents’ house and the winery, Togni is grateful above all else. “I feel for everyone who didn’t have the luck we did,” Togni says. “2022 was a reminder to be ever vigilant. You can’t relax even for a minute anymore.”    Napa 2022: the vintage in brief   Ample winter rainfall ended a three-year drought The bulk of the growing season was uneventful, with normal temperatures and rainfall  Beginning the first week of September, a record-breaking heatwave lasted six days  Yields are lower than average, though not as low as the drought-impacted 2021  Quality is heterogenous, with the wineries that were able to make quick picking decisions impacted less by the heatwave  The best wines are opulent, dense and concentrated, with a juicy exuberance that makes them approachable early  The 2022 wines from some estates are now being released; keep your eyes out for Schrader and Double Diamond, launching soon 

A year of extreme conditions, 2022 demanded much of Napa’s producers. Rachael Ryan – Senior Buyer for our US arm, Vinfolio – spoke to the region’s top producers about the vintage, reporting on the growing season and the wines 

Your essential guide to the 2022 vintage in California’s Napa Valley, with information from Togni, Ad Vivum, Myriad, Dunn and Colgin

Napa 2022 vintage report

Napa 2022: the bold and the brave 

I was hesitant about meeting Ivan Massonnat. The man who created Domaine Belargus seemed to fill easy stereotypes. A background in private equity. Lived in Paris. A passion for wine – and a dream to make it himself. Big scores and some pretty punchy prices for a brand-new estate from the Loire. Reading between the lines, I feared there was a lot of cash and possibly too much polish. Thankfully, I was wrong.  Created in 2018 and based in Anjou, Domaine Belargus has rapidly become one of fine wine’s hottest new names. The first wines were released in 2021, in the midst of the global pandemic, but had already earned serious acclaim. Yohan Castaing wrote in Decanter, “Remember this name, as its production should meet with resounding critical success in the coming years.” The wines received glowing reviews in Wine Spectator and the Wine Advocate – where Stephan Reinhardt declared it “one of the most spectacular new entries in the history of [the publication]”, granting a coveted 100-point score for its 2018 Quarts de Chaume Ultra. But that was just the beginning. Ivan Massonnat is a man with big plans – both for his own wines, and the region as a whole.  Wine was a part of life for Massonnat from a young age – with his grandfather farming a small vineyard in their village in the Savoie. But, despite helping at harvest time each year, he didn’t end up drinking wine until he was 20, when he was “instantly hooked”, he says. He fell in love with Burgundy and the concept of “vin de lieu” – wine of place.  Massonnat made his money in private equity, based in Paris but travelling the world, where fine dining – and fine wine lists – only fed his terroir obsession. Two decades ago he was looking for a country house for his family, and – not having a car – settled on the Loire. “The more I was spending time there, the more I realised that the region was totally misunderstood,” he says. Prior to the upheaval of the French Revolution and the subsequent arrival of mildew and phylloxera, the Loire was one of France’s most prestigious wine regions – home to the nation’s kings, the fruit of its vines were the royal court’s natural choice. Post-phylloxera, however, quality was scrapped in favour of quantity. “Its image started to blur,” says Massonnat.  Combine the region’s history with its two great, native varieties – Chenin Blanc and Cabernet Franc – and Massonnat saw “an incredible diamond in the rough”. Wine had become an increasingly large part of his life – tasting widely and visiting producers as much as possible, especially in Burgundy where vignerons such as Philippe Pacalet and Thibault Liger-Belair friends and mentors. But it wasn’t just a hobby – Massonnat was starting to think this could be more, the adventure that lay beyond the world of finance.  As the adage goes, the world of wine is a brilliant way to make a small fortune – provided you start out with a large one. Massonnat, however, didn’t underestimate the challenges and set about getting to grips with the mechanics of the business. “It started really to become a project 10 years ago,” he says – talking to importers, consultants, journalists and merchants. And, perhaps unsurprisingly given his successful career, Massonnat wasn’t looking to make any wine – he was determined to create something exceptional.  After a failed attempt to buy a Chinon estate in 2015, he turned his attention to great Chenin Blanc sites in Anjou Noir, between the Layon and Loire rivers – low-yielding hillsides where producers were struggling to make money and consequently there was land to buy. More than just availability, it was here that Massonnat saw great potential. The area’s dark, schist soils (cause for the “noir” in the region’s name) were littered with tiny appellations, echoing those of Burgundy, with a much hillier landscape, and the only Premier and Grand Cru vineyards in the region.  Between 2016 and 2018, Massonnat started visiting every vineyard he could find – looking for the exceptional. Then the local winemaker Patrick Baudouin introduced him to Jo Pithon – a legend of the Loire. Pithon had been making wine since 1978, a pioneer of organic farming, crafting fine dry and sweet wines – but the talented vigneron was by no means a businessman. By the early 2000s, his lack of commercial knowhow lost him the rights to his name, along with the majority of his vineyards – all but one plot, the Coteau des Treilles.  Massonnat met Pithon at the Angers wine fair in 2018; they got on well enough and he arranged to see Pithon’s vineyards the following day. The next morning, it was snowing and he regretted his decision . But then, at 8.32am on 6th February 2018, “It’s as if I was struck by lightning,” Massonnat says. Pithon had brought him to Coteau des Treilles. Long farmed organically, it has slopes at a gradient of 70%, embedded in a natural reserve, with a Mediterranean microclimate – and Massonnat knew instantly it was what he had been looking for. He bought the Pithon-Paillé operation that Jo Pithon had created a decade earlier.  Luck continued to be on Massonnat’s side – and he bought two other vineyards over the next six months, adding to his collection of prime sites. He managed to buy a quarter of the Quarts de Chaume appellation – the only Grand Cru vineyards in the region – which amazingly had been on the market for 10 years. “Nobody wanted to buy it… They were looking at it as a sweet wine terroir. But actually, a great terroir is a great terroir… you will do dry wines that are quite exceptional,” Massonnat explains. Then he snapped up a parcel in Savennières – the only plot to have been sold in the last seven years.  He hired a young team and Pithon stayed on to consult – and the real work began. “Belargus is a 100-year project. Everything we do, we have that horizon,” Massonnat says. The vines are all organically certified, but they’re now working towards biodynamic accreditation. Yields are low, and they’re trying gradually to increase them to around 35hl/ha in a good vintage (currently the highest they’ve managed is 29hl/ha). “Our obsession is to have the right maturity,” Massonnat explains. To battle Chenin Blanc’s natural heterogeneity, they pick in multiple passes, minimum two or three but up to six, depending on the year – and that is just for the dry wines. The general approach is minimalist – with stainless steel and mainly larger, old oak, indigenous yeast, letting malolactic fermentation happen (or not), keeping wines on the lees and using only essential levels of sulphur. A new winery is being planned to take things to the next level, with, for example, a Coquard press (allowing especially gentle pressing, commonly used in Champagne).  The project is about expressing the different terroirs of this corner of Anjou Noir. The first release (which sold almost instantly given the hype from the critics, with 80% exported) consisted of 14 cuvées – nine dry wines and five sweet, focusing on nine specific plots across the estate’s vineyards. The dry wines are powerful, tightly wound and intense – as Massonnat says, “It’s not wine for every day,” comparing them to white Hermitage or Corton-Charlemagne, wines that need food and time. Although 90% of production is dry, Massonnat confesses, “We are obsessed with sweet wines.” These, he feels, are what will really set Anjou Noir on the world stage – if, perhaps, what he calls “the sugar pandemic” ever stops.   With Massonnat’s finance background comes a flexibility that few others have. He hopes to hold all the wines back four years eventually, but for now it is between three and four – and he was able to release the 2020s before the exceptional 2019s. It also allowed him to set prices unusually high compared to his neighbours. “I had the luxury to make that choice for the region,” he explains. “I wanted to break the glass ceiling.” And although he thought it would take time – his first release proved that there were plenty of people ready to snap up the value that these wines offered, including many of those now priced out of Burgundy.  And this is his real dream – for the Loire to be recognised as Burgundy is, as “a tier-one region which any collector needs to have in its cellar, that needs to be understood”. It’s easy to imagine other producers might have bristled at an outsider’s arrival, pitching their very first wines at unheard-of prices; but Massonnat is intent on leading the crusade for the entire region, not just Domaine Belargus. He volunteered to run the Paulée d’Anjou – a celebration of the region’s wines – in 2019, and made it bigger and better. In 2021, he became co-president of the Quarts de Chaume appellation, alongside Marie Guégniard from Domaine de la Bergerie. Together they are fighting for the appellation to permit both dry and sweet wines, as Savennières technically can, and Quarts de Chaume could until 1996. “Anjou was a dirty word. And look at the revolution now,” he says.  Like the precious blue butterfly that gives its name to the Belargus estate, Massonnat isn’t happy sitting still – and he’s already got another project – having had the chance to buy the Chinon estate he’d originally had his eye on in 2015. The best wine he ever tasted was a Chinon, a 1989 from Charles Joguet. “There was a whole civilisation in this wine,” he told me, trying to explain how moving the experience had been. There’s no doubt that Massonnat is a canny businessman, but his vision is extraordinary – and one that he seems set to realise.  Explore all current listings of Domaine Belargus or read more Editorial 

Since it was created in 2018, Domaine Belargus has become a name to watch. Sophie Thorpe sat down with Ivan Massonnat, the man behind the project, to find out more about the Anjou estate and his vision for the region

With top reviews for its first releases, Anjou estate Domaine Belargus has become a name to watch. We sat down with founder Ivan Massonnat to find out more

Talking to Domaine Belargus’s Ivan Massonnat

The archangel of Anjou: Ivan Massonnat

James Suckling  James Suckling was the first out with part one of his report, published on 15th April, before most people have even touched down in Bordeaux. Based on his tasting of over 900 barrel samples, he is clearly a fan of the 2023 vintage.  “The best show balance and freshness with deep center palates of ripe fruit and a complement of polished tannins,” he writes – saying that he even likes them more than the very highly rated 2022s. He feels they’re more classically built, with “tensioned mouthfeels and energetic finishes” which makes them “so Bordeaux”.  It is, however, not “an across-the-board home run”, with some wines not matching 2022 for quality at the lower level – but “top terroirs and top winemakers delivered terrific-quality wines”. He compares 2023 to the 2019, 2001 or even 1990 vintages for the reds, with lower alcohol and vibrant acidity levels that make them “some of the brightest and liveliest red Bordeaux [he’s] tasted in years”.  In the second part of his report, he added 2016, 1996 or 1995 to his list of comparable years – those with “ripe, balanced fruit and firm tannins with slightly lower alcohol and lower pH”. While some have noted “the inconsistent nature of the vintage”, this isn’t something he agrees with, writing, “I found a very high level of quality”. For him, their “transparency and freshness” made them some of the most enjoyable wines to taste en primeur, comparing them to 2019 for their brightness. The question, of course, is price – and he’s hopeful that producers will get it right. Suckling’s highlights: Canon, Le Pin, Margaux, Pavie, Montrose, Pétrus, Ausone, Cheval Blanc, Cos d’Estournel, Haut-Brion, Hosanna, Lafleur, Latour, Les Carmes Haut-Brion, Mouton Rothschild, Pavie-Macquin, Pichon Comtesse, Smith Haut Lafitte, Trottevieille  Read part one and two of James Suckling’s report, along with his full notes and scores William Kelley – Wine Advocate For Kelley, 2023 is “make or break” for Bordeaux in terms of pricing, warning that if prices don’t drop significantly “difficult times lie ahead”, but he is clear on the quality of the wines: “The best 2023s are just as exciting as the best 2022s”. Running through the growing season, he emphasises how the time between flowering and harvest was typical – meaning that the best combine “the depth, density and ripe tannin of a sunny vintage but also the vibrant, expressive aromas and flavors of a more traditionally ‘Atlantic’ season”. Mildew impacted yields in some instances, but it seems for him that picking dates and sorting were those that influenced the quality of the vintage most. It is “a hybrid vintage” he says – combining characters of both modern, sunny vintages and more traditionally classic years. They offer “fully ripe tannins and suave, seamless mouthfeels” but “vibrant aromas and flavors, evocative of fresh fruits and flowers” – yet are “far from frivolous” with the structure and pH that will allow them to age. Those who picked a little early have produced wines dominated by their tannin, however generally this is a vintage that “tended to amplify the voice of each estate and terroir”. As with last year, individual reviews were divided between Kelley and Yohan Castaing – so there are notes from both. The Wine Advocate’s highlights: Lafleur, Cheval Blanc, La Conseillante, Montrose, Pétrus, Pichon Comtesse, Lafite Rothschild, Les Carmes Haut-Brion, Pontet-Canet, Beau-Séjour Bécot, Beauséjour, Figeac, Canon Read the Wine Advocate's full report, notes and scores
 
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW – The Wine Independent Following on from her preliminary coverage, Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW has published her full report. She emphasises the unpredictability of the growing season, a “game of Jumanji” that came with “a roll-of-the-dice element of luck” when it came to rain. While she emphasises that this is not “a ‘classic’ great growing season nor a consistent one”, there are “some classically styled wines at the pinnacles of greatness” that have “emerged from the 2023 Bordeaux jungle”. It is, she says, a “devil-in-the-details vintage”, with these details revealing why some triumphed and others didn’t. She echoes others describing the more classic feel to the year, “delivering fresher, more elegant, energetic styles” that will appeal to more traditional Bordeaux drinkers. Some producers “have potentially produced their best wines ever”. Talking about the mildew threat and its impact on yields, she explains that large estates with the financial means or smaller, family-owned estates that could offer the necessary overtime could both succeed, but others lost more of their crop, and – if diseased fruit was not sorted out – could impact quality, giving “rustic characters to some of the 2023 wines”. It was also key, she notes, to sort out any sunburnt or dried fruit. Other important decisions were picking each parcel when it was perfectly ripe, and avoiding potential dilution – something not all managed. She highlights that the Pomerol plateau and limestone/clay terroirs of Saint-Emilion produced “more winners”, while there are “wines of true greatness” on the Left Bank, courtesy of “herculean efforts” by producers. She ends noting how Bordeaux continues to offer great value at the lower end – “down-right delicious bargains worth seeking out”. Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW’s highlights: Ausone, Canon, Haut-Brion, Lafleur, Le Pin, Pavie, Pétrus, Vieux Château Certan, Margaux, Cheval Blanc, L’Eglise-Clinet, La Conseillante, Lafite Rothschild, Montrose, Pontet-Canet Read Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW’s full report 
Neal Martin – Vinous Neal Martin has rushed out his report ahead of the first releases, rapidly followed by Antonio Galloni (below). Running through the growing season, Martin describes how “Mother Nature kept winemakers guessing”. He tries to clarify the concern over mildew – pressure that varied by microclimate and estate, and was inflated by early media coverage, but the impact of which depended entirely on how producers handled it. He has dubbed it “The Dalmatian Vintage” – writing that it offers “spots of astounding quality”, but that it is heterogenous, and therefore not “a bona fide great vintage”, but putting it firmly alongside 2016, 2020 and 2022 with some “magical wines”. He describes them as more classical in style, not possessing “the opulence and Rubenesque bodies” of 2022, but “more linear and vertical” but with more fruit than 2021, a style that he confesses “appeals to [his predilection”. He highlights a “nascent energy” that he observes in the best wines, and that terroir seems to shine through particularly strongly. He declares it “a great vintage for dry whites”, but suggests the Sauternes fall just short of great (although Suduiraut is one of his top-scorers). Throughout, he highlights how financial resources were key – to spray as and when needed against mildew, to sacrifice yields, to pick and vinify by plot, not to mention precision in the winery. Ultimately, “human decisions were critical throughout” – but 2023 is “bejeweled with a clutch of spellbinding wines”. Neal Martin’s highlights: L’Eglise-Clinet, Margaux, Lafleur, Le Pin, Suduiraut, La Conseillante, Pichon Comtesse, Haut-Bailly, Mouton Rothschild, Haut-Brion, Montrose, Figeac, Cheval Blanc, Ausone Read Neal Martin’s full report, notes and scores on Vinous Antonio Galloni – Vinous Following just behind his colleague Neal Martin, Antonio Galloni managed to get his report out as the campaign started. He attributes the “fine, almost classical, balance” of the wines to the year’s more generous yields, and – like others – notes how the best estates were able to manage mildew pressure to avoid significant impact. The best wines, he says, are “intensely aromatic and perfumed” with “bright acids, red-toned fruit and linear, vibrant tannins” – generally with “very clear markers of place”, although he argues that the weakest 2023s “can feel light and/or vegetal”. For him, the Left Bank was marginally more successful than the Right, with Saint-Estèphe a standout commune in his tastings – declaring the wines “superb, pretty much at all levels”, along with those of Marguax – highlighting Palmer, Margaux and Rauzan-Ségla, in particular.  He disagrees with Martin when it comes to the whites – both dry and sweet: for him the dry whites are “a mixed bag”, while the Sauternes are “the most exceptional group of young wines [he has] ever tasted here”, finding it an “epic vintage” for Sauternes and Barsac.  Antonio Galloni’s highlights: Palmer, Figeac, Giscours, Troplong Mondot, Domaine de Chevalier Blanc, Suduiraut, L’Extravagant de Doisy-Daéne, Suduiraut Pur Sémillon, Doisy-Daéne Blanc Sec, Lascombes, Beau-Séjour Bécot, Clos Saint-Julien, Grand-Puy Ducasse, Guillot-Clauzel, Haut-Bergey, Laroque, Pressac, Reynon, Marjosse Blanc Read Antonio Galloni’s full report, notes and scores on Vinous
 
Jane Anson – Inside Bordeaux  For Jane Anson, the 2023 vintage shows the “effortless construction” that Bordeaux does best – “producing well balanced, structured wines that are made to delight over the long term”. She has given all her potential 100-point scores to the Left Bank and feels that it is “a Cabernet Sauvignon year, particularly in the sweet spot of the northern Médoc”.  As with others she notes that, while there are some excellent wines, it is a variable vintage and “in 2023 if you made the wrong choice, you were punished particularly quickly”. She finds Margaux and Pessac-Léognan less consistent than Saint-Julien, Pauillac and Saint-Estèphe.  She praises the “more nuanced, terroir and estate-driven feel to the wines” on both Left and Right Banks, something she favours over the richness of the 2022s. She writes that there will be little need to wait to drink the wines, but “many have the structure to go the distance”.  For her, there are some “exceptional white wines” – “nuanced wines with excellent aromatics”. The sweet whites are richer, yet with bright acidity – wines that she “seriously recommend[s] buying”. For each of her reports, on the Left Bank, Right Bank and whites, she has provided a list of value buys – alongside her top-scoring wines.  Anson’s highlights: Haut-Brion, Mouton Rothschild, Lafite Rothschild, Pontet-Canet, Beauséjour, Cheval Blanc, Figeac, Haut-Brion Blanc, Lafleur, Latour, Léoville Las Cases, Léoville Poyferré, Margaux, Montrose, Pichon Comtesse, Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc  Read Jane Anson’s report on the Left Bank, Right Bank and white wines  Read Jane Anson’s commentary on the early releases  
Georgie Hindle – Decanter  The Decanter team released their report in sections, with Panos Kakaviatos helping support the heavily pregnant Georgie Hindle. Their extensive coverage of the growing season dives into the complex conditions that defined the year. For Hindle, the wines “set a new tone for fine, controlled and accessible Bordeaux” with moderate alcohols, low pHs as well as juicy, ripe fruit. They combine “finely-integrated tannins” and “plushly textured bodies” of warmer years, with “a raciness, tension, spice, minerality and delicate floral aromatics more commonly found in cooler vintages”, and speak of their appellation and estate.  Qualitatively, she puts it well above 2017 or 2021, yet confesses does not have the consistent quality of 2019, 2020 or 2022; even though some 2023s out-do their 2022 counterparts, with “elegance and energy”. Because of the inconsistency, it is a vintage that earns a 3.75 rating (out of five) for reds, and four for both dry and sweet whites. The best reds, she writes, are “precise, pure and approachable”; that said, “not everyone got it right in 2023” – often those from “less vaunted terroirs” that she admits are “mostly likely to be found outside the sphere of the wines sold en primeur”. Despite that, there are “lovely wines at all price-points”. The highlights we have picked out below combine some of their top-scoring wines, along with their most improved and “under-the-radar” selections.  Decanter’s highlights: Beauséjour, Bélair-Monange, Canon, Figeac, La Conseillante, Léoville Las Cases, Latour, Margaux, Montrose, Palmer, Pichon Comtesse, Vieux Château Certan, Lascombes, Pavie, Monbousquet, Barbe Blanche, Vieux Château St André, La Vieille Curé, De Chambrun  Read Decanter’s reports on the growing season, yields, the style of the wines, verdict and top-scoring wines  Jeb Dunnuck  It seems that the style of the 2023s doesn’t suit Jeb Dunnuck’s palate, feeling they are “ripe yet not massive or incredibly concentrated” and finds there are “divergent styles”, with some closer to the sunny 2019 and some more structured and cooler like 2020. He agrees that: “Yields, blends, pick dates, and luck with mildew and rain all make generalizations regarding 2023 fraught with peril.”  For him the combination of “ripe aromatics, good freshness, and focused, more medium to medium to full-bodied, linear profiles that make the vintage so interesting” – something he attributes to the condensed ripening period at the end of the season. He feels that although there are “unquestionably impressive wines from the Right Bank”, the Left Bank won this year – offering “another level of harmony and overall balance”.   Jeb Dunnuck’s highlights: Montrose, La Mission Haut-Brion, Margaux, Cheval Blanc, Doisy Daëne, Haut-Brion, Mouton Rothschild, Palmer, Smith Haut Lafitte, Suduiraut, Valandraud Blanc, Vieux Château Certan  Read Jeb Dunnuck’s full report  NB Jeff Leve, aka The Wine Cellar Insider, has released his notes and scores but no report. Check his scores in our comparison chart, or find them all on his site  Compare all the critics’ scores in our comparison chart, or find out more about Bordeaux 2023 

After weeks and months of tasting, the world’s leading wine critics are announcing their verdict on the latest Bordeaux vintage. Here you’ll find a round-up of what they’re all saying, with a summary of each report and the wines they rated most highly added as they’re released 

Your essential crib-sheet to what the world’s leading wine critics are saying about Bordeaux 2023 en primeur 

Bordeaux 2023 – critics’ round-up

Bordeaux 2023: what the critics are saying

Yohan Lardy

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