I approached this tasting, on 24 September in London, with a little foreboding. I had not heard much positive news about the 2013 vintage in Bordeaux and feared being faced with a raft of green-tasting, thin wines. Either that or harshly extracted wines with oak in lieu of fruit.

However, like many of the other tasters there, I was pleasantly surprised. I tasted mostly wines from the Médoc and Haut Médoc appellations (and they formed  by far the bulk of the tasting) and found many with lovely fresh fruit and a light touch making for attractive wines to drink soon – very soon perhaps. And with many of the UK available wines retailing between £10-20, they are the face of affordable Bordeaux.

For me, the tasting highlighted the value of the selection process and the ability of châteaux to work with the vintage, rather than trying to fight it.