My lone 2015 futures purchase just arrived, so I took one for a spin… Popped and poured. Beautiful, rich, seductive nose of mulberry, black cherries, and a whiff of vanilla. A touch candied even, but nothing heavy handed. Excellent fruit but grounded with a strong vein of minerals and acids. Plenty of fleshy yet fine tannins. Long, semi-sweet finish. Quite primary and grapey at present of course, but this is pretty terrific as is, with surprising depth, ample refinement, and world class QPR. 92-94 pts.
If this means anything about the general quality 2015 Bordeaux, all I can say is wow.
I should add to the AFWE in the crowd (of which I count myself one), this wine offers something for lovers of traditional Bordeaux despite the ripeness. It’s a traditionally made wine (see the structure and acid) in a ripe and full yet balanced rendition. For such a new wine, it has nearly zero new oak signature.
This is a wine that speaks to both Chinon and Napa (or Alfert and Leve, if you will).
I’ve not had a Siran near this good before (having enjoyed the 89, 95, 00 and 05 a lot).
Siran’s a property that produces superb wines even in off vintages. One of my favorites, and a really ‘showy’ wine in ripe vintages - thanks for the note -
Come on Jeffois, the Suckles says 2016 is much better!!! I cannot find 2015 locally but will source a few. Thanks.
So curious, Pat, of all others, and knowing your palate reasonably, what prompted you to be this sole Chateau in futures? Were you on one of those recent BWE trips?
Good questions, Robert. I missed the BWE trip so I’d not tried the 2015 Siran before. The main reason I only bought one 2015 future (and also only one for the 2016s, so far) is a loss of interest in futures in general and young wines in particular. Plus the 15 and 16 futures pricing has left me cold.
But there was lots of buzz on Margaux in 2015, Siran is a long time under the radar favorite of mine and it was $27. So when I got an email blast and read the “best ever” press, I ordered 3 bottles out of equal parts curiosity and weakness…
At least in Bordeaux and probably the Rhône, I’d say our palates align closely. When you like a claret or Cote Rotie, I pay attention. I think you’d really like this wine. With a few hours of air, the wine firmed up and deepened further. This wine is really impressively stacked but without any gloss or oak or heat or heaviness. It reminds me of some old school 2009s but with better acids and no evidence of elevated alcohol. I assume this will shut down eventually given the structure, but it’s really fun right now with tons of primary cherry and cassis fruit.
I tried the second half of the bottle last night after storing it in the freezer for the last few days… this has shut down pretty hard after it’s charming display on day 1. The structure is now much more evident, and there is a lot of tannin. In some ways, this is reassuring showing that this will develop like we expect Bordeaux to, even in a ripe year. I suspect these will go into hibernation shortly.
This is only one wine from 2015, but this display reminded me more of a young 2005 than, say, a 2009 claret. The 2015 Siran is probably a bit more flamboyant than the 2005 was at the same stage, but they have a lot in common.
FYI:
Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate: "The 2015 Siran is a blend of 55% Merlot, 38% Cabernet Sauvignon and 7% Petit Verdot picked between 17 September to 12 October. It is raised in 25% new oak plus one-year barrels.
Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate: "The 2016 Siran is a blend of 46% Cabernet Sauvignon, 44% Merlot, 9% Petit Verdot and 1% Cabernet Franc picked from 26 September until 20 October.
After doing a bit of research, it looks like the 2015 and '16 could be very similar in quality. I might bite on the '16 (15 is sold out where I am)… Hadn’t heard of this property before - thanks, Pat!
Good to hear. I’m awaiting arrival of a case of the 2015, along with a few other '15s.
I tasted a '15 Ch. Margeaux last week with a friend. Whoa! Gotta let that one sit for a few years before even considering opening it and a good 15+ years to really let it shine. Tons of good stuff waiting to develop and integrate, but quite a mouthful of tar and fruit today.
I don’t know, Julian. I posted primarily to let folks know they probably shouldn’t expect the '15 and '16 to be very similar. Now, maybe they do taste similarly, but I wouldn’t expect it.
Many chateau in Bordeaux do vary the blend a lot, depending on the vintage. This happens more on the Left Bank where they tend to use more of various varietals than on the Right, which gives them flexibility. One example—1996 was a great cab sauvignon vintage and many chateau put exceptionally high amounts of that grape in their grand vin. That’s a major benefit of a second wine as well— e.g. if the merlot is poor one year, bottle most of it under the second or even third label.