Bordeaux 2014 Harvest

Last week the Bordeaux harvest  began for the 2014 vintage, and hopes are high, thanks to some beautiful weather in the region.

Typically it is the Merlot grapes that are picked before the Cabernet Sauvignon, making the Right Bank busier in the opening week of the Bordeaux red harvest. We are already getting reports from Pavie and Angelus and the signs are good so far, great news for Bordeaux.

After the woes of 2013 Bordeaux desperately needs a good vintage with quantities able to support the global demand for the world's most famous wines.

The risk is to wait and wait until the grapes are at their ripest, without the weather turning and rot setting in. In 2011, 2012 and 2013, rot set in early, due to poor weather conditions, so chateaux had to pick earlier than they'd like. If the next fortnight remains fair, the harvesting can take place a little later than the previous three vintages and the fruit should be riper, hence the wines should be more structured, brighter and less vegetative and green.

Capital Vintners will track the progress of the Bordeaux 2014 harvest as we enter October.