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Week 3, 18-22 May: MELEE
• Bordeaux sweet white : Haut Bergeron, Suduiraut, Lafaurie Peyraguey
• Left bank / Graves / Médoc : Mauvesin Barton, Chasse Spleen
• Pessac-Léognan red : Couhins, Latour Martillac
• Margaux : La Tour de Mons, La Gurgue, Labégorce, Prieuré Lichine, Ferrière, Marquis d'Alesme, Durfort Vivens
• Saint-Julien : Sarget de Gruaud, Connétable Talbot, Langoa Barton, Branaire Ducru, Gruaud Larose, Léoville Barton
• Pauillac : Pédesclaux, Haut Bages Libéral, d'Armailhac, Clerc Milon, Lynch Bages
• Saint-Estèphe : Ormes de Pez, Lafon Rochet, Cos Labory, Pagodes de Cos, Haut Marbuzet, Cos d'Estournel
• Pomerol : La Petite Église
• Saint-Émilion : Clos La Gaffelière, Moulin Saint-Georges, Clos de l'Oratoire, Dragon de Quintus, La Gaffelière, Canon La Gaffelière, La Clotte, Carillon d'Angélus, Quintus, Angélus
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Bordeaux 2025
Bettane+Desseauve's view
A few days ahead of "La Revue du Vin de France" (on newsstands on 27 May – we’ll be covering it next week), the team at "En Magnum", led by Michel Bettane and Thierry Desseauve, has just shared its insights on the 2025 Bordeaux vintages.
Under the headline “Bordeaux changes its language”, they note that "In a hot, dry year, the Bordeaux vineyards have managed to preserve freshness, precision and clarity in their red and white wines. The great 2025s impress less with their power than with their texture and balance. The tannins appear silky in Pomerol, chalky in Saint-Émilion, smooth in Margaux, mineral in Pauillac and even salty in Pessac-Léognan. This new vocabulary perfectly illustrates the stylistic evolution of Bordeaux wines, which benefit from more precise viticulture and more integrated ageing, resulting in ever-more-distinct expressions of terroir".
Eleven wines occupy the top three spots on their 2025 ranking:
• 99/100. Latour, Petrus, Ausone
• 98-99/100. Léoville Las Cases, Lafleur, Trotte Vieille
• 98/100. Lafite Rothschild
La Conseillante, Angélus, Figeac, Pavie
Following the grands crus, which, as expected, dominate the top spots in their ranking, here are the “most notable successes” by appellation:
• Sauternes. "Suduiraut displays impressive aristocratic depth and confirms its status as one of the vintage’s absolute benchmarks. In Barsac, Coutet impresses with its exemplary classicism and aromatic character."
• Pessac-Léognan white. "Domaine de Chevalier also produces one of the vintage’s very finest white wines, thanks to a highly complex aromatic expression with a particularly mineral character."
• Pessac-Léognan red. "One of the standout wines of this 2025 En Primeur campaign is undoubtedly Les Carmes Haut-Brion, a wine of supreme refinement, with its velvety texture and immense aromatic precision."
• Margaux. "Among the most impressive estates this year, Giscours has made a strong impression on our tasters with its fullness and aromatic depth, whilst Brane-Cantenac confirms its exceptional consistency with a harmonious wine of great finesse."
• Saint-Julien. "Langoa-Barton impresses with its exceptional value for money, and among the most compelling estates this year, Branaire-Ducru confirms its new, very high level of precision and elegance."
• Pauillac. "The vintage reveals the superb form of Pichon Baron, powerful and distinguished, as well as the remarkable elegance of Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande. Pontet-Canet finally confirms its unique identity with a wine of great sincerity of expression and a very seductive natural."
• Saint-Estèphe. "Phélan-Ségur is one of the great sensations of the vintage, ranking among the best classified growths of the vintage thanks to its complexity, balance and immense nobility of expression in this vintage. Still highly recommended for their value for money, Meyney confirms its status as a safe bet thanks to its depth and natural energy, whilst Capbern impresses with its remarkable quality and highly accessible style."
• Pomerol. "La Conseillante is one of the vintage’s truly great wines, thanks to its exceptional refinement and controlled tension. La Violette reaches a particularly spectacular level thanks to its velvety tannins and magnificent finish."
• Saint-Émilion. "The vintage also reveals Canon to be in superb form, with tannins and a length on the palate that are among the most impressive of the vintage. A great success too for Troplong-Mondot, which confirms its quality with a concentrated, elegant and particularly harmonious wine."
We have reproduced their scores and comments for all the selected 2025s on our website, and if you would like to find out more, their full tasting notes (500 wines) are available to view for free online (but in french): Bettane+Desseauve Cahier Spécial Primeurs 2025.
Week 3, 11-15 May: PARADE
• Bordeaux sweet white : ---
• Left bank / Graves / Médoc : Poujeaux, Sociando Mallet
• Pessac-Léognan red : Esprit de Chevalier, Carbonnieux, Malartic Lagravière, Domaine de Chevalier
• Margaux : ---
• Saint-Julien : Saint-Pierre
• Pauillac : Duhart Milon
• Saint-Estèphe : ---
• Pomerol : Gazin
• Saint-Émilion : La Dominique, Larcis Ducasse, Cheval Blanc
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Bordeaux 2025
Neal Martin's view
Following Antonio Galloni, it was his colleague at Vinous, Neal Martin, who gave his verdict on the 2025 Bordeaux wines this week. As each had organised their own visits and tastings in Bordeaux during April, their scores and comments differ, offering two distinct perspectives on the 2025 vintage.
Nevertheless, Neal Martin’s overall assessment echoes that of Antonio Galloni « 2025 was like 2022 until the weather changed in August, thus engendering more classically styled wines. Fruit profiles lean more towards black than red. There is plenty of freshness; acids cut sharper thanks to lower pH levels than anyone expected, so that the best wines possess éclat, or brightness. And hoorah! Alcohol levels are lower. Twenty-five is a dialled-down and more precise 2010, remixed by the weather. ».
19 wines occupy the top three spots on his 2025 podium:
• 98-100/100. Haut-Brion, Lafite-Rothschild, Montrose
• 97-99/100. Latour
Lafleur, Petrus
• 96-98/100. Lafaurie-Peyraguey, Suduiraut
Haut-Bailly, Léoville Las Cases, Lynch-Bages, Margaux
Ausone, Canon, Clinet, Figeac, L'Église-Clinet, L'Évangile, Troplong-Mondot
Here are his favourites by appellation:
• Sauternes. "The purity of botrytised fruit illuminates the most exceptional wines, not least Suduiraut, Lafaurie-Peyraguey, Doisy-Daëne, Coutet and Guiraud. (Yquem and Climens no longer show the wines en primeur)."
• Pessac-Léognan blanc. "Mission Haut-Brion comes out on top, ahead of Smith Haut Lafitte (unusually for this vintage, the white is better than the red)."
• Pessac-Léognan rouge. "Leading the pack at this primordial stage is Haut-Brion, Haut-Bailly is one of the best editions I have tasted from barrel, a complete wine without a hair out of place."
• Margaux. "One pleasing feature of the vintage is the impressive quality across the Margaux appellation. The 2025 Château Margaux will rank among the great wines under Philippe Bascaules [managing director since 2017]. Basking in the glow of their phenomenal 2022, Brane-Cantenac maintains its sizzling run of form, while Rauzan-Ségla and Cantenac-Brown are both splendid."
• Saint-Julien. "Léoville Las-Cases and Léoville Poyferré are sublime and perhaps the standouts. I also adored the 2025 Beychevelle, likewise the ever-dependable and fairly priced Lagrange."
• Pauillac. "The standout in Pauillac and contender for wines of the vintage is Lafite-Rothschild, which overflows with the same elegant grandeur as the 1953, 1959 or 1982. Elsewhere, Pichon Baron is brilliant, Grand-Puy-Lacoste revels in classicism, and the 2025 Lynch Bages will vie with the stupendous 2022 »
• Saint-Estèphe. « As Lafite-Rothschild crowns Pauillac, so Montrose rules in Saint-Estèphe. Unsurprisingly, I was charmed by Ormes de Pez and Calon Ségur. Cos d’Estournel is a bit like Palmer and channels a tad more ripeness and opulence."
• Pomerol. "The Petrus reveals an unerring symmetry and persistence. Lafleur delivers everything you want from this geographic Pomerol. There are also outstanding wines from L’Evangile, La Conseillante, Vieux Château Certan and L’Église-Clinet."
• Saint-Émilion. "On the limestone plateau: Beau-Séjour Bécot, Beauséjour Duffau, Canon, Berliquet, Troplong-Mondot, Poesia and Laroque. On the more gravel-based soils: Cheval Blanc and Figeac."
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Week 2, 4-7 May: EXPANSION
The ‘Primeurs 2025’ campaign is expanding this week with the release of around twenty dry, sweet and red wines from both banks of the Garonne, including both Petit Crus and Grand Crus:
• Bordeaux sweet white : Clos Haut Peyraguey, Coutet, Doisy Daëne, Rayne Vigneau, Guiraud
• Left bank / Graves / Médoc : du Retout, Clos Floridène
• Pessac-Léognan red : Haut Bergey, Larrivet Haut Brion, Pape Clément
• Margaux : Malescot Saint-Exupéry
• Saint-Julien : ---
• Pauillac : Lacoste Borie
• Saint-Estèphe : ---
• Pomerol : ---
• Saint-Émilion : Fombrauge, Petit Gravet Aîné, Clos Saint Julien
On the pricing front. The trend set in motion last week by Pontet Canet – namely that 2025 prices will be similar (identical or up by a minimal amount <10%) to those of 2024 – is continuing. In these circumstances, we cannot emphasise enough the remarkable value for money offered by these 2025 Primeurs.
WhatsApp. As volumes are particularly low for 2025 (roughly half a harvest for dry white and red wines), we have set up a WhatsApp group to keep you updated in real time on the various releases. There you will find a summary of prices, changes compared to 2024, our comments, the most significant news... Notifications are disabled by default so as not to disturb you, but if you wish to be notified of each release, you can enable them using the ‘bell’ icon (top right of the WhatsApp page).
Here is an invitation to follow the Bordeaux - Primeurs 2025 sur WhatsApp.
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Bordeaux 2025
Antonio Galloni's view
The first to make his move this year, Antonio Galloni (Vinous) has just released his ranking and comments on the 2025 Bordeaux wines, covering the nearly 700 (!) 2025 Bordeaux wines he tasted during April.
Firstly, he notes that « After a problematic 2024 vintage, Bordeaux is bouncing back with the 2025s. It is too early to know where 2025 will stand in relation to the most renowned recent vintages, but the best 2025s are quite simply thrilling ».
13 wines occupy the top three spots in his 2025 rankings:
• 98-100/100. Beau-Séjour Bécot, Canon
• 97-99/100. Domaine de Chevalier (white)
La Mission Haut-Brion rouge, Margaux, Lafite-Rothschild
L'If, La Gaffelière, Troplong-Mondot
• 96-99/100. Cos d'Estournel, Ducru Beaucaillou
Cheval Blanc, Valandraud
Here are his favourites by appellation:
• Pessac-Léognan white. « Domaine de Chevalier and Pape Clément White lead the way; with Smith Haut Lafitte not too far behind »
• Pessac-Léognan red. « La Mission Haut-Brion is fabulous. Les Carmes Haut Brion continues to impress »
• Margaux. « Château Margaux and Palmer are both magnificent, but there are so many wines that are just behind »
• Saint-Julien. « Ducru-Beaucaillou is exceptional. I expect it will be one of the wines of the vintage »
• Pauillac. « Pauillac is jam-packed with great wines in 2025. Lafite-Rothschild and Pontet-Canet are especially compelling »
• Saint-Estèphe. « Cos d’Estournel is magnificent. Calon Ségur is also very fine »
• Pomerol. « La Conseillante and Petrus are especially elegant »
• Saint-Émilion. « Beau-Séjour Bécot, Canon and Clos Fourtet are all exceptional. Troplong Mondot and La Gaffelière follow closely »
By clicking on the wines currently on sale, you will find Antonio Galloni’s full ratings and comments (we will add those of Neal Martin (Vinous), Michel Bettane (En Magnum), Jacques Dupont (Le Point), Jean-Marc Quarin and La Revue du Vin de France as they are published).
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Week 1, 27–30 April: KICK-OFF
• Bordeaux sweet white : ---
• Left bank / Graves / Médoc : Petit Manou, Clos Manou
• Pessac-Léognan red : ---
• Margaux : ---
• Saint-Julien : ---
• Pauillac : Pontet-Canet
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Bordeaux 2025: prices
For white wines, it is easy to predict that the châteaux will maintain prices at roughly the same level as last year:• dry whites, currently in favour, have a growing market but also increasing production – and therefore competition – (2025 is the first year of the new ‘Médoc blanc’ AOP).
• sweet whites have traditionally kept their prices unchanged and are unlikely to deviate from this trend this year, satisfied with a harvest of good quality and quantity in 2025.
On the other hand, several factors are leading red wine producers to conflicting pricing assumptions:
• Inflationary considerations
- the high quality of the wines (soon to be highlighted by critics) placing 2025 above 2024 or even 2023,
- the small size of the harvest, practically half that of a normal vintage.
• deflationary considerations
- an unfavourable national and international environment with prospects that are uncertain to say the least,
- a luxury goods market in contraction across all continents (except Africa),
- an overall decline in demand for red wines in Western countries,
- significant stock levels among the main distributors (wine merchants, importers, wholesalers, etc.).
In these context, it seems reasonable to us to envisage the following for the ‘2025 Primeurs’, compared with last year’s ‘2024 Primeurs’ prices:
- a moderate (single-digit) price increase for the 20 (maximum) statutory Bordeaux labels that are subject to consistent international demand. In this case, the price of the ‘2025 En Primeur’ wines will remain lower than that of the ‘2023 En Primeur’ wines,
- price stability (2025=2024) for the vast majority of classified growths. In this case, given the genuine quality of the wines, the ‘2025 En Primeur’ wines will represent excellent value for money.
As the first significant premier cru to release its 2025 vintage, the launch (29 April) of Château Pontet-Canet, with a symbolic price increase of 2.8%, bodes well and, in our view, sets an exemplary precedent for all forthcoming classified growths. To be continued...
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