Blog: Steven Spurrier
"Our vineyards cover only 4% of the whole region, but represent 34% of wines sales and 95% of the estates are family-owned". This statement made at a morning conference at Vinexpo (the world's largest wine trade fair) in Bordeaux last June did not refer to the Haut-Medoc, but to the Napa Valley. Family ownership seemed the over-riding theme to this bi-annual jamboree, where low-ish expectations of the exhibitors in the current economic climate were transferred by the end to high-ish satisfactions. Everyone I spoke to, at every event I attended, underlined the vital importance of personal relationships in the world of wine.
For me, the Vinexpo week is an avalanche of tastings, meetings and socialising which always begins with a lavish tasting and dinner hosted by the Crus Classes de Graves. This year the tasting was held at Haut-Brion, the 520 guests being ferried over to a magnificent dinner at La Mission Haut-Brion where alternate courses were cooked by the starred chefs Daniel Boulud of New York and Alain Passard of Paris. Whites from 2007 to 1988 and reds from 2005 to 1983 were poured au hasard des tables, ending with magnums of La Mission 1990 to go with the outstanding cheeses from Bernard Anthony, the maitre fromagier.. The second night was the Grands Crus Classes du Medoc dinner, this year at Lafite-Rothschild, where I was lucky enough to be on the Pichon-Lalande/Montrose table, whose 2001 and 1996 kept us going until jeroboams of Lafite 1978 circulated to match the Brie de Meaux cheese from one of Baron Edmond de Rothschild's estates, followed by Yquem 1988. The third night was a more modest affair, a buffet barbeque, hosted by cult winemaker Stephane Derenoncourt and Bernard Thienpont where the high spot was an Imperial of Vieux Chateau Certan 1998.
The party I never miss is Olivier and Anne Bernard's Tour de France des Appellations dinner at Domaine de Chevalier, where they have been joined every Vinexpo since 1979 by Alphonse Mellot, Chateau de Fuissé, Paul Jaboulet Ainé, Faiveley, Olivier Leflaive, Pol Roger and Zind-Humbrecht. It's an event where many vintages of these producers' wines are offered on a self-service basis in an informal party atmosphere. Guests of honour were Adrian Bridge of Taylor's Port and Georg and Maximilian Riedel, whose many thousands of glasses grace the best tables throughout the week. It was almost without regret that I passed up the 1ers Grands Crus Classés Saint-Emilion dinner, cooked by Michel Troisgros and ending up with Figeac 1966, but one cannot be in two places at once.
Needing some rest on the fourth evening, I was preparing for a solitary dinner on the terrace of my hotel, but was happily joined by Maximilian Riedel, also on his own. He now runs the company from New York, while his semi-retired father devotes his spare time to running marathons.
The final evening was the Fete de la Fleur at the historic Chateau d'Issan in Margaux. Dinner for nearly 1,000 guests was prepared by an ever-youthful Michel Guerard, creator of la cuisine minceur, whose astounding dishes were accompanied by Haut-Bailly 2003 and Lagrange 2001, before moving onto d'Issan 2000 and Mouton-Rothschild 1988, before finishing with Climens 1996 with the wild strawberries.
During the days I also did an awful lot of tasting.
