2023 Petrus

“We had high solid to juice ratios, Technical Director Olivier Berrouet explained at Petrus. “Typically, we have 3 grams per liter of tannin. In 2023, we had 4. The goal was to control extractions through longer macerations and slower, more gradual pumpovers.” Harvest took place from September 9 to 20.

Olivier Berrouet offered insight into his latest vintage at Petrus, though I thoughtlessly failed to phone ahead in case Jay-Z was visiting. “The season began with some mildew pressure, but for once, we had good conditions for the flowering. Therefore, we had a great yield potential and reached 40hL/ha, which is much better than previous vintages. It was warm, but not over a long period. It was more like short heat waves with cooler weather in between, so it did not impact the vines so much. The rain in July and August was very important. The difficulty was deciding when to pick. Everyone was nervous at the beginning of September. We picked from September 11 to 20, but you had to wait for ripeness on the blue clay soils, and the window is often shorter. If you don't pick ripe, then you will lose something. What surprised us during vinification is that the wine was very aromatic in the vat but without jammy aromas, more raspberry and violet scents. Even though there was a lot of sugar, we could feel the structure of the wine: we have 30% more tannins than in 2022. The alcohol is 14.5% with a pH of 3.65.”