1991 vintage guide for French wines

Year, Vintage 1991

Is 1991 a vintage close to your heart? Is it a year of birth, a year of marriage or some other symbol that makes you want to offer or drink a wine from that year? Let us decipher this vintage for you, to help you buy the bottle that best suits your needs.

 > Our 1991 wines in stock

 

The 1991 vintage in BORDEAUX

The creation of the 1991 vintage was fraught with difficulties in the early spring. Severe frosts, with temperatures as low as -8°, hit the Bordeaux vineyards and killed the first buds to emerge. The right bank was really hit hard, and the Pomerol and Saint-Emilion appellations saw their vines attacked. On the other side of the river, the AOCs of Saint-Estèphe and Pauillac were relatively spared. The period following these frosts saw the appearance of the second buds, fewer in number but of just as good quality. After this delay of a few weeks, we had to hope for a sunny, dry September to have healthy, ripe grapes with good acidity. Unfortunately, this was not the case, as the end of September was very rainy. On September 25, a huge storm hit the vineyards, dumping over 110 millimeters of water, twice as much as the rest of the month. Winemakers waited a while before harvesting, usually during the first 15 days of October for Merlot, but harvested diluted grapes, some with a little rot and others lacking acidity. Difficult to predict a fine vintage with this. The rest of the harvest will be different from one estate to another, since the winemakers who harvested their Cabernet in mid-October were spared torrential rains, but their grapes were still of very average quality and diluted. For the others, it will be difficult to bring in quality grapes without health concerns. As you can see, the 1991 vintage will not go down in the annals of Bordeaux wines. On the right bank, in the Pomerol and Saint-Emilion appellations, it is considered disastrous, even the worst vintage of the millennium. Many of the great Châteaux in these appellations have even downgraded their wines. On the left bank, on the other hand, there were some fine successes, such as the wines of Graves, Pauillac and Saint-Estèphe. Appellations that avoided the spring frosts were able to preserve their first buds and offer better quality, less diluted juices. As a result, you'll find good-quality wines all along the Left Bank, with juices that are fruity, soft and quite tasty. Benefiting from bad press, the 1991 wines remain inexpensive, but must be enjoyed within the first 10 years before they become much more mature.

 

The 1991 vintage in BOURGOGNE

Burgundy's vineyards were hit by a similar story to that of Bordeaux. Buds came out fairly quickly, even early, but were halted by a cold snap that hit the vines in the spring. Unfortunately, the frosts succeeded in doing their job, and we had to wait for the counter-buds to come out for a good part of the vineyard. For Pinot Noir, the vintage resembled that of 1987 to some extent, and produced some very fine wines despite the climatic hazards, even if on the whole they lacked a little substance, and were more delicate and fine than opulent. Some estates will still manage to produce complex wines, but they will be rare. The Domaine de la Romanée-ContiAnne et François Gros and Denis Mortet will be of particular interest in this delicate vintage. As for the white wines, you'll need to choose your estate carefully, as the quality is quite disparate. The lack of ripeness will not offer enough acidity to bring that all-important balance to these initially complex whites. Unless you can wait many years, these wines should be enjoyed within 5 to 7 years maximum. Some great estates will have succeeded in producing concentrated, aromatic juices, but these are very few in number.

 

Vintage 1991 in VALLEE DU RHÔNE

The frosts previously forecast for the French vineyards also hit the Rhône Valley in different ways. As a general rule, wines from the northern part of the valley were able to withstand the frosts. Appellations such as Côte-Rôtie, Saint-Joseph or even Hermitage will produce quality wines, but it's important to remember that wines from Cornas will steal the show with very rich wines, concentrated and above all well-balanced. For Condrieu wines, quality is also the order of the day, but they will have already reached their peak by the time they can be enjoyed today. It's a very different story for the wines of the southern Rhône Valley, which will offer poor quality, light wines with little volume. Only the wines of Gigondas fared better, reaching their peak fairly quickly. But let's get back to our great wines, because for the 1991 vintage, the reds of the Northern Rhône Valley are by far the best. In the Côte-Rôtie appellation, the winemakers produced a great classic of the appellation. Concentrated, long-keeping, yet with yields rarely seen in the appellation. In Hermitage, the wines are of memorable quality. Low-yield harvests produced wines that are both powerful and elegant. Just the thing to produce great wines. The must-taste wines of this vintage are from the CORNAS appellation. The 1991 vintage is probably the region's greatest success. The frosts spared the appellation, allowing the buds to flower quickly and the vines to cycle quite early. The grapes were well-balanced and healthy, and harvest conditions were perfect. Everything was in place to produce a powerful, well-structured wine for laying down. It's also a very interesting year in terms of price, as it comes after the three glorious 1988s, 1989 and 1990, and will be a little less expensive than its predecessors. Still good to taste, these wines now offer aromas of undergrowth, mushrooms and cigars.

 

Vintage 1991 in the REST OF FRANCE

In the rest of the vineyard, wines from the South of France are often preferred. Visit Champagneas in AlsaceIt was a good but not excellent year. The grapes were of good quality, although some were affected by rot. Juices of average ripeness produced easy-drinking, fruity wines with little ageing potential. In contrast to Burgundy Beaujolais benefited from a favorable climatic evolution, passing between the drops of ice. The vintage even recorded record alcohol levels for the time. Finally, the South-West and Languedoc-Roussillon wines also avoided the loss of buds, enabling them to offer a vintage of interesting quality, maturity and concentration.

> The best wines in stock from the 1991 vintage