The 2022 vintage at the Castel Family Estates.
Cédric Pla, Technical Director of the Castel Family Estates, looks back at a vintage that illustrates the vine’s resilience to the elements, and winemakers’ ability to adapt to changes in climate.
Preliminary tastings provide a glimpse of a high quality vintage on the Left and Right Banks of Bordeaux, in the Languedoc, in Provence and in the Loire.
A vintage marked by climatic contrasts
"The 2022 vintage began with a mild and dry winter, but with sufficient water reserves in the soil. Mild temperatures in February and March favoured early bud break. A significant attack of frost affected the whole of France, most severely in the west. Encouraging growth of the secondary buds enabled the majority of affected plots to recover.
The flowering stage was spread over a longer period, due to relatively cool temperatures. However, the result was more than satisfactory for all grape varieties. A spring with little rain enabled us to limit the development of weeds and cryptogamic diseases. In the summer months, a series of heatwaves affected the vineyards with the largest surface area.
An attractive vintage even when enjoyed young
The harvest period arrived relatively early, beginning on 16 August with the white varieties at Château Ferrande in the Graves and Domaine de la Clapière in the Languedoc. Our Family Estates in the Loire and Provence got started a week later. Finally, we began harvesting the red varieties in the Bordeaux region on the first day of September.
Cooler temperatures and occasional rain in September allowed us to delay the Cabernet harvest until the beginning of October. This allowed the skins to mature and the tannins to soften during their last few days on the vine.
In the tanks, the overall balance of the vintage has surpassed our expectations, offering interesting freshness, bold fruit, structure and concentration. This relatively low-yield vintage is looking very promising. The wines’ sunny profile will enable them to be enjoyed young. Wines from plots that were able to resist the intense heat resemble the 2009 vintage."
