The IMW annual Bordeaux tasting

The Institute of Masters of Wine

Vintage 2015

Bordeaux Tasting

Sunday, 5th of June 2022

4.30pm to 7.00pm

Barangaroo House
Level 1 – Bea Restaurant
35 Barangaroo Ave,
Barangaroo NSW 2000

The annual Bordeaux tasting in Sydney mirrors the long-established annual Claret tasting in London, UK, and will showcase wines from the Grands Crus Classés of the Médoc and their equivalents from the Right Bank and Graves (including Sauternes). As is customary, the vintage to be tasted is five years prior to the year of the event (2015) allowing for professional assessment of the wines at a more accessible and revealing stage in their evolution.

Expectations were very high for the 2015 vintage, largely due to the quality of its numerical forebears - such as the fine vintages of 2005, 1995, and 1985. And initially the weather did indeed oblige, providing very warm and very dry conditions leading to an early budbreak and efficient flowering. But some vineyards suffered in the prolonged drought-like conditions, while heavy August rains - which continued in certain areas through September and early October - mean that the vintage is not quite as consistent as hoped, even though many great wines were undoubtedly produced. Vintage generalizations can often be misleading, but the wines of the right bank may have a slight edge over their Cabernet Sauvignon-based neighbors across the Gironde. The best reds of the vintage show full ripeness of fruit (with accompanying high alcohol levels), aromatic complexity, and silkiness of tannins. The 2015 vintage is also an excellent one for the sweet wines of Sauternes, where the onset of pourriture noble came very early, leading to rich, opulent wines but without any lack of freshness.

Tickets for the IMW annual Bordeaux tasting (2015 vintage) are:

Public - $135 + booking fee

MWs and MW students - $105 + booking fee