What to drink this week

2017 Bordeaux en primeur

I have a good feeling about the 2017 vintage in Bordeaux. For one thing, it hasn’t been accompanied by excessive hype—almost, you could say, the reverse. For many, 2017 will always be the year of the frost (on April 27–28) that decimated yields and reduced the size of the overall Bordeaux harvest by almost 50%. However, many—and probably the majority—of the top properties were not badly affected by the cold, which hit lesser appellations hardest. Apart from this, weather conditions were highly favourable and quite a bit drier than normal, with lots of warmth and early ripening. Some September rain may have caused a certain dilution, but it was also welcome after a dry summer.

This vintage is attracting less hype than it deserves, concludes Harry Eyres Why you should be buying it

The most important thing is that the wines taste lovely: there is a most attractive freshness across the board and a notable elegance. That doesn’t, however, mean that the wines are light and thin. In fact, they are ripe and more substantial than the attractive 2014s.

What to buy

In my view, 2017 isn’t either a Left Bank or a Right Bank year. There are successes across the region, from Pomerol and St Emilion to St Julien and St Estèphe. Wines I’ve been impressed by include Bourgneuf (£425 IB; www.privatecellar. co.uk), Certan de May and Trotanoy in Pomerol, Canon and Bélair-monange in St Emilion, Smith Haut Lafitte (right) in Pessac-leognan and Branaireducru (£411 EP; www.leaand sandeman.co.uk) in St Julien. Check other websites, too, such as www.bbr.com, www.justerinis.com and www.biwine.com, for the latest releases. With prices down as much as 20% on 2016, this is a year to buy.