A Guide to Wine Buying at 2024 Bordeaux En Primeur

The biggest event in the wine-buying world is here - Bordeaux en primeur. 

If you’re unfamiliar, en primeur is an annual campaign in Bordeaux where people buy grand cru classé wines before they have been bottled. It’s a golden opportunity to invest in top wines below market price, but only if you know where to look. 

In this article, I sit down with our Head of Wine, Liz Dowty Mitchell, and chat about the 2024 Bordeaux en primeur campaign, what makes it special, and where buyers should look for value.

Karl Roskamp: What makes Bordeaux unique among fine wine regions?

Liz Dowty Mitchell: Bordeaux is the largest and most liquid market for fine wine in the world. Even though Burgundy and Champagne have outperformed it in recent years, Bordeaux remains a cornerstone of stability and reliability. The 2024 Bordeaux campaign could see its return potential rise due to favorable market conditions. In particular, the Chinese market relaxed its zero-Covid policy at the start of the year, and demand for Bordeaux has risen since. 

KR: What factors influenced the 2024 vintage? What makes it unique?

LDM: It was a very dry and hot year, which typically means wines with higher alcohol, less acidity, and sweeter fruit notes. That is the case for some châteaux, but many were well-equipped to handle these conditions and unexpectedly produced beautifully concentrated wines, but with freshness and refined tannins that should be built to age. Usually, merlot does not perform well in super-warm vintages. This year is the exception. It’s superb. 

KR: How does 2024 compare with previous vintages? Is there a specific vintage that it reminds you of?

LDM: Purely looking at the data of the growing season, one could compare it to the less successful 2003 vintage where the heat hit almost overnight following a normal, rainy spring that caused the vines to be shocked. The difference is that in 2022, the vines had to adapt to the heat from the beginning, creating different conditions for the vine and fruit set entirely. The 2022 vintage is being compared to, or at least on par, with 2010, 2016, 2019, and 2020. Some have even suggested the legendary 1961 vintage!

The entrance to Château Cheval Blanc, one of the big winners of the 2024 Bordeaux en primeur campaign so far.

KR: Which châteaux have been the big winners of this en primeur campaign?

LDM: With such a promising vintage, there are a lot of potential winners. One of the most notable is Château Cheval Blanc, which left the Saint Émilion classification last year. That required the château to give up its premier grand cru classé (A) status, but that has little to no effect on its en primeur price. 

Some of the other winners include:

• Château Canon
• Château Carmes Haut-Brion
• Château Figeac
• Château La Conseillante
• Château Latour
• Château Montrose
• Château Nénin
• Château Palmer
• Château Pichon Comtesse Lalande
• Château Troplong Mondot
• Vieux Château Certan

KR: Did any châteaux perform below expectations?

LDM: White wines were not successful in this vintage due to the heat. That mostly applies to the châteaux in Pessac-Leognan that did not produce their best wines this vintage.

A look inside a tasting at Beau Séjour Bécot, one of the promising releases of the 2022 en primeur campaign.

KR: Where can buyers find the best value?

LDM: Every year, there will be wineries that punch above their classification. This vintage is no exception. Some of the names that should perform well compared to expectations include:

• Château Beau-Séjour Bécot
• Château Branaire-Ducru
• Château Calon-Ségur
• Château Les Carmes Haut-Brion
• Château Rauzan-Ségla

KR: Any other thoughts?

LDM: This is the year that really rewarded châteaux that have updated and modernized their vinification and viticulture practices over the past ten to 15 vintages. It has never been more important to adapt to the environment, considering the looming impact of climate change. It’s exciting to see the wine industry adapting and being capable of producing classic and age-worthy wines even in adverse conditions.