ETS. JEAN-PIERRE MOUEIX 2022 VINTAGE EN PRIMEUR

ETS. JEAN-PIERRE MOUEIX

Front cover: The Monolithic Church of Saint-Émilion and its Bell Tower’ ©Herzog & de Meuron

THE 2022 VINTAGE: ICARUS LIVES

This is the vintage that nearly got its wings burnt, but somehow ducked and weaved its way into clear blue sky. It culminated in some of the most remarkable wines in years and may just mark a watershed for winemaking in the era of climate change – a way forward for an increasingly warm Bordeaux.

Summer 2022 in Bordeaux saw 11 hours of sunlight a day, for 62 days in a row, with heatwaves in June, July and August peaking at over 40°C. As Édouard Moueix put it when we spoke to him recently, “There are things we can’t explain… the self-preservation of the vines under these conditions.”

The 1,175 hours of sunshine recorded between June and September was the highest since 1949. As I said in the general C&B Bordeaux 2022 vintage report*, the famously hot vintage of 2003 pales in comparison to 2022, whilst 1989 belongs firmly to another (cooler) era.

*Read the 2022 vintage report here

“The type of sunlight you find in Greece, not in Bordeaux…”

ÉDOUARD MOUEIX, MAY 2023

The winter of 2021-2022 was mild, dry and sunny, with the exception of December, which saw 50% more rain than usual. Spring was similarly mild, with only a few nights below zero in early April. Wind turbines, now common in Pomerol and Saint-Émilion, seem to have been largely effective. Vine growth slowed after these spring frosts however.

Budbreak happened in Saint-Émilion on 28th March and in Pomerol on 30th March, in line with the 10-year average. The sudden heat of May jolted flowering to life, in the week of 16th-21st May. This was very early and abundant yields were forecast.

This warmth barely let up through to harvest. The following heat spikes were recorded in the Moueix vineyards:

• 15th-19th June: high of 40.5°C

• 12th-15th July: high of 40.1°C

• 31st July-13th August: high of 39.2°C

Of particular note is the length of these hot periods, particularly the third, which lasted for nearly two full weeks. With admirable foresight, the Moueix team did not remove any leaves from the vines in the first half of summer, to maintain shade. Édouard Moueix stressed that green harvesting was also crucial in this heat and contributed to “thick skins, soft tannins and intense fruit.”

80mm of rain at the end of June and a few showers on 20th July (15mm) and 15th August (10mm) eased the drought pressure, aiding balanced ripening. Even with these precious showers, the period from July to September saw less than half the amount of rain than the AprilJune period. For the year as a whole (1st November 202131st October 2022), 510mm of rain fell in Saint-Émilion and 458mm in Pomerol, versus a long-term Bordeaux average of 944mm. Dry, but not historically dry – the crucial element in 2022 was the unusually high demand for water, due to high levels of evapotranspiration.

Véraison (colour change) in the second half of July led into a warm, dry August and then an early September harvest, amid beautiful conditions. Despite the smatterings of rain mentioned, drought conditions had persisted since the winter. The first Merlots in Pomerol came in on 1st September, with picking lasting a leisurely fortnight. Saint-Émilion was a week behind, starting with the Merlot on 8th September. The Cabernet Franc was harvested on 19th September in Pomerol and on the 30th in Saint-Émilion.

Adam’s notes in this offer are based on two tastings, one on 22nd April in Libourne and the other on 10th May in London. The wines showed consistently (well!) at both tastings. At the former, we got a glimpse of the magnificent new cellar at Bélair-Monange. Designed by Swiss architects Herzog & de Meuron, it was described by Édouard in our video interview [watch here] as “an hommage to Saint-Émilion”.

The Moueix 2022s will rival the best modern vintages and sit in the same quality bracket as the 2016s, the previous high-water mark. It is astonishing that the innate Moueix sense of proportion and elegant balance has remained unperturbed by such extreme conditions. The wines are so expressive, from the silky finesse of Latour à Pomerol, the succulence and focus of La Fleur-Pétrus and the limestone minerality of Bélair-Monange, all the way down to the crunch, vibrancy and concentration of Barry White (Barrail du Blanc), which you will be delighted to hear is back and better than ever.

GUY SEDDON Head of Fine Wine Buying June 2023

2022

TASTING NOTES

By Adam Brett-Smith

Château de Bel-Air

Lalande de Pomerol

This is a smart buy in 2022 again, old-vined (40 years) and with an intriguingly small proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon in the otherwise classic Lalande de Pomerol blend. This is an unusually profound Bel Air, with dark, clenched red and black fruit on the nose and that characteristic sweetness and charm on the palate. But it goes further than mere charm (“charm is the great British blight”) offering a silken density and a fresh, chewy redfruited power that is half succulent but wholly satisfying. Love it.

Corney & Barrow Score 17+

Recommended drinking from 2025 - 2030+

£190/CASE OF 12 BOTTLES, IN BOND UK

£95/CASE OF 6 BOTTLES, IN BOND UK

£200/CASE OF 6 MAGNUMS, IN BOND UK

Vineyard size:

15 hectares

Soil types:

Quarternary gravel on clay, iron-rich subsoil

2022 vintage blend:

70% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon

Château Barrail du Blanc

Saint-Émilion Grand Cru

Barry White is back! This jewel-like estate of just seven hectares suffered terribly in the 2021 frosts and was therefore not offered. As if in recompense, 2022 is utterly gorgeous with its profound ruby colour and a dark, spicy, earthy, rich, almost soaked perfume of red fruits. The palate is sweet on entry, lushly flavoured, beautifully extracted and with a dancing, fresh finish. An absolute joy and, let us not forget, a grand cru at way less than £20 a bottle is a no brainer. Might even shade the 2020.

Corney & Barrow Score 17.5 - 18

Recommended drinking from 2025 - 2030+

£220/CASE OF 12 BOTTLES, IN BOND UK

£110/CASE OF 6 BOTTLES, IN BOND UK

£230/CASE OF 24 HALVES, IN BOND UK

£230/CASE OF 6 MAGNUMS, IN BOND UK

£115/CASE OF 1 DOUBLE MAGNUM, IN BOND UK

Vineyard size:

7 hectares

Soil types:

Gravel & Clay

2022 vintage blend:

70% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc

Château Peymouton

Saint-Émilion Grand Cru

We originally offered this last year as a substitute for Barrail du Blanc and it was so good again in 2022 that we had to buy it. Part of the Château Laroque estate and immediate neighbour to the compelling Château Rocheyron of Peter Sisseck, this sits on clay-limestone soil that appears to have shrugged off the torrid conditions of the growing season. Here the nose is more high-flown, with piercingly fresh red fruit. The palate is almost liquorous in its sweetness, with an elegant succulence, a dark structure and fine length. The antithesis to Barrail du Blanc in 2022, the perfect foil

Château Lagrange

Pomerol

100% Merlot and perfectly married to its heavy clay soils, this nine hectare vineyard was acquired by the Moueix family in 1953. It is a favourite of C&B’s and a lovely wine in 2022. Inkily fruited on the nose with a perfume of wild summer pudding. The palate is darkly flavoured with silken dry extract and density but graceful with it. It wears the seriousness of this vintage with charm and really fine length.

Corney & Barrow Score 17 - 17.5

Recommended drinking from 2026 - 2032+

Château Plince

Pomerol

An old favourite of ours and rather grandly sited between Châteaux Nenin and La Pointe this is a beautiful wine in 2022, deep-coloured and with a savoury, dark, meaty rich nose. The palate is full and creamy with a fresh chewy power, very well-extracted and with a generous mouthfilling length. One of the best young Plinces I have tasted.

Corney & Barrow Score 17++

Recommended drinking from 2026 - 2030+

£310/CASE OF 12 BOTTLES, IN BOND UK

Château La Grave

Pomerol

With perhaps the finest light gravel soil in Pomerol, this historic vineyard was acquired by Christian Moueix in 1971. Intriguingly, that same gravelly thread passes through Cheval Blanc and Figeac. If Château Lagrange was redolent of summer pudding on the nose then La Grave’s perfume was created by a masterchef of the dish… Here the fruit is of deepest ruby red, mouth-watering (can a nose be more mouth-watering? Well, yes.) The palate offers that hallmark silken, supple density but more weighty, almost meaty in 2022 with an extracted undertow that is deeply serious. This is a lovely La Grave,

Château Bourgneuf

Pomerol

Neighbouring Trotanoy and with some of that fabled property’s dense clay soils, there is always a brooding density to this wine in youth. This is a fine result in 2022 with an imposingly black and red fruited nose, inkily dense, and a palate that is tightly wound, concentrated but sweetly extracted. This is an ambitious Bourgneuf, powerful, fresh, very pure and of fine length. My score may be conservative.

Corney & Barrow Score 17

Recommended drinking from 2028 - 2036+

£545/CASE OF 12 BOTTLES, IN BOND UK

£272.50/CASE OF 6 BOTTLES, IN BOND UK

£555/CASE OF 6 MAGNUMS, IN BOND UK

£277.75/CASE OF 3 MAGNUMS, IN BOND UK

Vineyard size:

9 hectares

Soil types:

Gravel and clay, iron-rich subsoil

2022 vintage blend:

85% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc

Château Latour à Pomerol

Pomerol

This fabled property was of course acquired by Madame Loubat in 1917 – she famously was the owner of Petrus and that thread of family connection between Moueix and Loubat continued through to 1962, when the Moueix began farming the property. It is, as I have said before, the ‘insider’s’ Pomerol, more consumed than just traded and we love it. Once again, 100% Merlot and drawn from two tiny plots (1/3 clay/loam, 2/3 deep gravel/clay), this has the characteristically elusive nose of a very young Latour, with flashes only of creamy red fruit (strawberry, raspberry) but utterly vinous. The palate, however, is close to sublime; beautifully extracted, with silken rich, fresh, fresh fruit, a subtly dense concentration and beautiful length. Again, my score may be conservative.

Exclusive to Corney & Barrow in the UK

Corney & Barrow Score 17 - 18+

Recommended drinking from 2028 - 2035+

£445/CASE OF 6 BOTTLES, IN BOND UK

£455/CASE OF 3 MAGNUMS, IN BOND UK

£340/CASE OF 1 DOUBLE MAGNUM, IN BOND UK

Vineyard size: 8 hectares

Soil types:

Deep gravel and clay (2/3), Clay and loam (1/3)

2022 vintage blend: 100% Merlot

Clos Saint-Martin

Saint-Émilion Grand Cru Classé

This jewel of a property is the smallest Grand Cru Classé in St-Émilion, at just 1.3 hectares. It is owned by our good friend Sophie Fourcade and beautifully sited on classic clay-limestone soils between first growths Beau-Séjour Bécot and Duffau-Lagarrosse. Bright, pure raspberry and cherry aromas. The palate opens with bracingly bright red cherry fruit, opening onto a medium-bodied midpalate of luminous, rich raspberry and wild strawberry, guided by fine tannins and sustained by fabulous freshness. The finish is pithy and focused. 80% of the crop was aged for 20 months in barrels (100% new oak) and 20% in amphorae, including one glass Wine Globe. A real standout wine of exuberance and brightness.

Corney & Barrow Score 17.5 - 18

Recommended drinking from 2027 - 2036+

£575/CASE OF 6 BOTTLES, IN BOND UK

£585/CASE OF 3 MAGNUMS, IN BOND UK

Vineyard size:

1.3 hectares

Soil types:

Clay on limestone

2022 vintage blend:

80% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon.

Château Certan de May

Pomerol

A relatively high percentage of Cabernet (30% Cabernet Franc, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon) gives this great, beautifully-sited property a certain maverick quality, elegantly interpreted by consultant oenologist, the legendary Jean-Claude Berrouet. 2022 offers that characteristic cocktailed, arterial red fruit perfume, bright-berried and bursting with energy. The palate is (slightly) calmer, with cool, supple concentration, medium density, fine extract and length. Certan de May possess that rare quality of being approachable in youth but capable of long cellaring.

Corney & Barrow Score 17

Recommended drinking from 2026 - 2035+

£595/CASE OF 6 BOTTLES, IN BOND UK

£605/CASE OF 3 MAGNUMS, IN BOND UK

Vineyard size:

5.5 hectares

Soil types:

Clay and deep gravel

2022 vintage blend:

60% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon

Château Hosanna

Pomerol

Hosanna, just 4.5 hectares in size, sits in the most perfect location. Petrus to the east, La Fleur-Pétrus to the west, Vieux Château Certan to the south and Lafleur to the north… that’s as good as it gets really. And what a beautiful wine in 2022, with a glorious nose of clenched but sensuous Cabernet Franc perfume, leafy dark, creamily elegant. The palate is sweetly concentrated, silken in texture, with fresh, chewy, beautifully extracted flavours and perfect length. Quite lovely.

Corney & Barrow Score 17.5 - 18+

Recommended drinking from 2027 - 2035+

£700/CASE OF 6 BOTTLES, IN BOND UK

£710/CASE OF 3 MAGNUMS, IN BOND UK

£510/CASE OF 1 DOUBLE MAGNUM, IN BOND UK

Vineyard size:

4.5 hectares

Soil types:

Blue clay on red gravel, iron-rich subsoil

2022 vintage blend:

74% Merlot, 26% Cabernet Franc

Château La Fleur-Pétrus

Pomerol

This was actually Jean-Pierre Moueix’s first property when he bought it in 1950. Through judicious purchases of additional fine plots (notably Le Gay In 1995 and Château Guillot in 2011) the style of this wine has deepened and concentrated without losing that “grace under pressure” quality for which the estate is renowned. The nose is still compressed in youth but with hints of super classic cedary perfume and with a dark, richer vein of red, red fruit. The palate is layered (always a quality of greatness), part silken, part dense power, wholly generous and above all, balanced. This is a delectably rich but beautifully extracted wine, fresh and pure to the long finish. Very, very good indeed.

Corney & Barrow Score 18 - 18.5

Recommended drinking from 2028 - 2040+

£1,130/CASE OF 6 BOTTLES, IN BOND UK

£1,140/CASE OF 3 MAGNUMS, IN BOND UK

£795/CASE OF 1 DOUBLE MAGNUM, IN BOND UK

Vineyard size:

18.7 hectares

Soil types:

Deep gravel and clay on iron-rich subsoil

2022 vintage blend:

96.5% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, 0.5% Petit Verdot

Château Bélair-Monange

Saint-Émilion 1er Grand Cru Classé

With the astonishing new cellar and winemaking complex designed by Herzog and de Meuron just launched, it is as if the extraordinary investments made at this great property begun some 14 years ago have come of age –all geared to returning Bélair-Monange to becoming StÉmilion's greatest – and I mean greatest – estate.

The 2022 is a beauty. Impossibly elegant, almost cedary black and red fruit perfume. The palate is silken, with those hallmark super-fine tannins and a supple, layered density. In virtually perfect balance and of remarkable freshness and purity, it may well shade the brilliant 2020.

Corney & Barrow Score 18 - 18.5

Recommended drinking from 2030 - 2040+

£850/CASE OF 6 BOTTLES, IN BOND UK

£860/CASE OF 3 MAGNUMS, IN BOND UK

Vineyard size: 23.5 hectares

Soil types:

Asteriated limestone on the plateau, blue clay on limestone in the slopes

2022 vintage blend: 98% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc

Château Trotanoy

Pomerol

Trotanoy is, of course, a legend. It is always offered separately as a gesture of profound respect for a great wine but we saw no harm in including it in the pantheon of Moueix properties in this offer.

Deepest ruby colour. In this wine is perhaps most perfectly expressed the power and beauty of the vintage. It is profoundly vinous on the nose, that is to say, the quintessence of a perfume of old, old vine fruit, clenched, creamy, almost impenetrably dense. The palate presents the other side of the coin. It is of utterly beautiful extraction in its combination of silken grace and elemental power, freshness, concentration, sweetness and length. About as good as it gets really.

Exclusive to Corney & Barrow in the UK

Corney & Barrow Score 18.5 - 19

Recommended drinking from 2033 - 2040+

To be released at a later date

Vineyard size: 7.2 hectares

Soil types:

Gravel on clay and black clay on iron pan

2022 vintage blend:

96% Merlot, 4% Merlot

Tasting Guide

Our tasting notes provide full details but, at your request, we have also introduced a clear and simple marking system. We hope these guidelines assist you in your selection. For the benefit of simplicity, wines are scored out of 20. We will often use a range of scores (e.g. 16.5 to 17) to indicate the potential to achieve a higher mark. When a ‘+’ is shown it adds further to that potential. Wines from lesser vintages will, inevitably, show a lower overall score.

Wines are judged, in a very broad sense, against their peers. Why? Well, you cannot easily compare a Ford with an Aston Martin, other than they are both cars and have wheels. It is not that different with wine. A score is a summary only. The devil is in the detail, so please focus on the tasting notes and, as always, speak to our sales team.

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