The opening event was the Press Tasting at Cité du Vin, where we were able to gain a very solid overview of the vintage through around 150 wines.

This was followed by impressions from the Left Bank, featuring numerous Premiers Grands Crus Classés such as Château Margaux, Château Lafite Rothschild, Château Haut-Brion—where I also had the opportunity to interview Jean-Philippe Delmas—as well as Château Mouton Rothschild, where I was able to speak with Philippe Sereys de Rothschild. Among the “Super Seconds,” the focus was particularly on Château Montrose and Léoville Las Cases. This was complemented by further important visits such as Château Lascombes, where considerable momentum and a clear qualitative upward trend are currently evident. Among the Troisièmes Crus, Château Palmer and Léoville Barton also deserve special mention, completing this highly distinguished picture.

These visits were seamlessly followed by those on the Right Bank. Particularly impressive was Château d’Angélus with its spectacular new cellar, which is architecturally in a class of its own. Hubert de Boüard de Laforest and Stéphanie de Boüard-Rivoal personally guided us through the estate and organized an excellent tasting.

The Right Bank visits were divided as follows:

Saint-Émilion:
Alongside Château d’Angélus, the schedule also included Château Ausone, Château Beauséjour (Duffau-Lagarrosse), Château Troplong Mondot, Château Cheval Blanc, Clos Fourtet, Château Bélair-Monange and Château Tour Saint-Christophe.

Pomerol:
Here, the range extended from icons such as Pétrus and Le Pin to L’Église-Clinet, Vieux Château Certan, Château Lafleur and Château Clinet.

A central highlight were the visits to the absolute and only selectively accessible icons Pétrus and Le Pin, where I was able to interview both Olivier Berrouet and Jacques Thienpont—both in excellent form and in outstanding spirits. These interviews will be available shortly in the subscriber area.

Another major highlight was the visit with Christian Moueix—a grand seigneur of Bordeaux and, without exaggeration, one of the defining personalities of the region. There I was able to taste the entire collection and subsequently conduct an exclusive interview with him.

Further conversations were held, among others, with Hubert de Boüard de Laforest, Aymeric de Gironde, Pierre-Olivier Clouet, Hélène Genin, Nicolas Glumineau and Ronan Laborde, with whom I discussed the market situation and pricing expectations in depth. It was a highly fascinating conversation that offered valuable insight and nourished hopes that prices could soften further: “We will surprise the market with our prices,” he stated in the interview.

Another highlight was the, as always, outstanding tasting at the négociant Ulysse Cazabonne, where I was able to re-taste the wines that had already stood out at the Press Tasting, and in addition sample impressively mature wines from large-format bottles once again. I have already described a selection of them—the corresponding notes will follow shortly.

Conclusion:
After around 500 wines tasted—many of them multiple times—approximately 40 château visits, several panel tastings, and around ten interviews, a very clear picture emerges for me: 2025 is an outstanding vintage that has no need whatsoever to hide behind the great benchmark years—quite the opposite. It combines remarkable freshness, exceeding even 2022, with almost comparable concentration, yet at more moderate alcohol levels. Stylistically, there is a certain affinity with 2016, while on the Right Bank one often finds an exciting combination of the opulence of 2022 and the structure of 2010.

Also striking was the enormous influx of visitors. Although Bordeaux is often said to be in crisis—particularly with regard to inventory levels—the mood on site was decidedly positive. Tastings at the châteaux were consistently very well attended, and the radiant weather further contributed to this highly positive overall impression.

Next week, the first châteaux will release their prices, and anticipation is high as to whether the repeatedly signaled willingness to offer the market attractive pricing will indeed be confirmed.

Stay tuned—you will be comprehensively informed here with detailed tasting notes, vintage analyses, best-of lists, and numerous live interviews. Feel free to also follow my Instagram channel Fine Wine Guide.