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Vintage report: 1996

Detailed analysis of published tasting notes for the 1996 vintage.

3
Tasting Notes
16.0
Avg Rating
16
Top Rating
1
Countries
1
Regions

Average ratings by country & region

Average points (out of 20, to one decimal place). Click on an entry to reveal vintage descriptions where available.

France: Bordeaux (white) (3 notes) 📖 details
16.0 / 20

Very good vintage in Bordeaux, especially in the Médoc, with a good mix of warm temperatures and occassional rainfall when it was needed. For Pomerol and St. Émilion on the right bank, however, prolonged droughts throughout the summer and heavy concentrated rainstorms in August meant conditions were not as perfect for the Merlot grapes there, although eventually healthy grapes were picked there, too. Some excellent dry whites in Graves and sweet whites in Sauternes (perhaps the best vintage after the excellent 1990).

Top wines of the 1996 vintage

Ranked from best to worst. Showing wines rated 8 and higher.

Tasting notes by country

Distribution of published notes across countries for 1996.

France
100.0%
3 notes

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My rating scale

Wines are evaluated using the 20-point scale:

  • 20: one-of-a-kind
  • 17-19: grand vin
  • 13-16: excellent
  • 9-12: very good
  • 5-8: good
  • 3-4: passable
  • 1-2: subpar
  • 0: poor

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