(Billets précédents : Part 1 - Part 2)
D'après data-business.fr, Ashenfelter aurait affirmé que le millésime 1986 serait médiocre, prenant le contrepied de l'avis évoqué par Robert Parker qui l'encensait à sa sortie :
En 1989, Parker publie dans son magazine, « The Wine Advocate », un article expliquant pourquoi selon lui le Bordeaux de 86 serait « très bon, voire exceptionnel ». Ashenfelter, jugeant que les précipitations au-dessus de la moyenne et la faible température « condamnent le cru à la médiocrité », critique ouvertement Parker dans un article du NY Times.
L'article en question semble être celui-ci : Wine Equation Puts Some Noses Out of Joint (New York Times, 04/03/1990), dont on peut apprécier le passage suivant :
Mr. Parker rates the 1986's as very good and sometimes exceptional. Peter A. Sichel, author of the influential Bordeaux Vintage and Market Report, said the 1986's have elegance and classic Bordeaux structure. New York stores, brimming with the vintage, are pricing the wines in the same range as the much-praised 1985's.
But according to the Ashenfelter system, below-average growing season temperatures and above-average harvest rainfall doom the 1986 Bordeaux to mediocrity. When the dust settles, he predicts, it will be judged the worst vintage of the 1980's, and no better than the unmemorable 1974's or 1969's.
L'amateur de crus bordelais sera sans doute surpris de ce jugement ... Certains avis sur 1986 sont aujourd'hui critiques, comme par exemple The Wine Cellar Insider (on peut se demander si ce n'est pas Ashenfelter lui-même qui a rédigé ce passage) :
"Critics at the time were enamored with 1986 Bordeaux wine, when they first tasted them. But time has not been kind to most 1986 Bordeaux wine. The fruit has fled over the past few decades and with few exceptions, only the brutal, hard tannins remain. 1986 Bordeaux wine has power, structure and concentration, but most lack charm, elegance or softness. 1986 Bordeaux wine is a stern, old school Bordeaux vintage that fans of what is known as “traditional Bordeaux” enjoy."
Il y est quand même dit :
"It is undeniable that a few great wines were produced"
Encore plus étonnant, le constat météo ne semble pas coller avec ce qu'en disait Ashenfelter. Il y est fait mention de chaleur et de sécheresse, à l'exception d'un épisode de fortes pluies mi-septembre :
"1986 Bordeaux wine was shaped by a difficult vintage created from heat and draught from start to finish of the growing season. The bud break occurred late, but flowering was normal. The summer was hot, sunny and very dry. By September, the vines were experiencing stress from drought conditions. The grapes had stopped maturing and were in danger of not reaching maturity, as the growing cycle was shutting down. The rain that fell in mid September changed that. The initial rain was followed by a massive storm that caused flooding in some Bordeaux appellations. This caused the Merlot to become diluted and bloated from too much water. The 1986 Bordeaux harvest got started September 23. For the next 23 days, Bordeaux enjoyed three weeks of hot, sun drenched and windy conditions that was perfect for the vines and the pickers."
Chez Berry Brothers & Rudd, le bilan est très positif (ils en ont peut-être encore à vendre ...)
A very large vintage (the biggest to date since the war) and one that has produced some sensational wines that are characterised by their concentration, power, and depth of fruit. After a harsh winter and extremely cold weather throughout April, the vines` development process was nearly a month in arrears. Luckily, May was warm and dry and Bordeaux enjoyed a hot, dry summer with July and August being particularly hot. There was some rain in September but not enough to seriously disrupt the harvest. The weather was perfect in early October and, for those producers who waited the quality of the fruit, particularly the Cabernet Sauvignon, was exceptional.
Chez Bob lui-même, les notes sont toujours bonnes, au moins sur la rive gauche : 90 pour Margaux, 94 pour St-Julien / Pauillac / St-Estèphe. Peut-être lui est-il difficile de se dédire, s'il a effectivement applaudi 1986 à sa sortie ...
Jancis Robinson en propose une lecture intéressante :
"Dense, brooding and viciously tannic at first. Some may impress in the end but have required enormous patience."
(Brooding: Wines that are brooding offer dark colors with intense concentration of flavor) Cela sous-entend que le millésime se révèle finalement de qualité, en dépit d'un début potentiellement difficile ... et on pourrait précisément être positivement surpris par la vision qu'en a très tôt eu Parker, et considérer que l'avis d'Ashenfelter ne trouve pas de justification a posteriori.
(A suivre)
