Hyperbole is such a natural accomplice to each new Bordeaux vintage that the vintage of the century cliché is now routinely trotted out at the slightest sign that the new claret might at least be drinkable. The problem with the flip side of crying wolf is that when a once in a lifetime vintage comes along, how do you sort hype from reality and recognize its quality?

The newest kid on the Bordeaux block, barrel samples of which were swirled, slurped and dissected by the world’s wine trade and press in the week before Easter, is the fourth ‘vintage of the century’ this decade after 2000, 2003 and 2005. But could 2009 actually fit the bill?

Thomas Duroux

‘There are two remarkable things about 2009’, says Château Palmer’s MD, Thomas Duroux. ‘Firstly it has the highest ever concentration of tannins, but you don't have the sensation of such concentration. The second thing is that whereas the 2005s were exuberantly sunny, exotic wines, 2009 is closer to the identity of the place’.

According to Paul Pontallier, technical director at Château Margaux for nearly 30 years, ‘ it has the dual personality of the densest wine ever and one of the sweetest ones’. Margaux is indeed wonderful, but then as one of the first growths expected to fetch £5000 a case, you’d hope it would be.

While my instinct is not to distrust Messrs. Duroux and Pontallier, neither of whom are prone to exaggeration, the proof, as they say, is in the tasting. It will be up to two years before the raw wines even see a bottle, and much can change in a wine’s development in that time.

La Mission Haut-Brion

Yet a snapshot of the young wine at this early stage does give an idea, albeit a blueprint, as to its future. Allowing the wines to speak for themselves then, the week’s tasting soon brought home that 2009 is a potentially great vintage in which the region’s two main grapes, cabernet sauvignon and merlot, ripened to perfection after a textbook year in the vineyard.

With careful handling and selection, there are many wines whose building blocks of fruit, tannin, alcohol and acidity are exceptionally pure and concentrated, delivering an abundance of intense cassis, cherry and blackberry flavours. Vintage comparisons are a bit of a mug’s game but those who like to make them are talking 1982, the greatest vintage since 1961. Yet while many châteaux have excelled, the quality is by no means even across the board. Incidences of underripeness, excessive alcohol and tough wines are all in the mix.

Château Latour: the glory

It would be wishful thinking to assume that the depressed global economy will keep prices down when the châteaux take all the feedback on board to announce opening prices between now and June. UK wine merchants will follow quickly on with their own en primeur offers, giving consumers the chance to buy early at a discount to the final merchant’s price.

In today’s global market, demand from collectors and investors for the most desirable 50-odd châteaux will be intense and prices most likely at least as stratospheric as the record 2005s. The silver lining lies in the plethora of good to excellent wines soon to be offered in the relatively affordable £10 - £25 range. There should be more than enough to put a smile on the face of even the most cynical of Bordeaux watchers. My Top 100 Bordeaux 2009 wines: anthonyrosewine.com.

Something For the Weekend 17 April 2010

Under a Fiver

2009 Brachetto d'Acqui, Frizzante Dolce, DOCG, Araldica

At 5.5% alcohol, this special parcel is Italian rosé meets raspberryade from the quality-conscious Piemontese co-operative Araldica, an utterly irresistible berry fruit-laden confection that's light enough to leave you joyfully refreshed. £4,66, down from £6.99, Waitrose.

Under a Tenner

2008 Riesling Federspiel, Domaine Wachau

Federspiel is the term for a medium-bodied style of Austrian riesling and the elegance shows in this aromatic fruit cocktail of peach, apple and lemon that’s at once deliciously fruity and yet dry. £9.99, buy 2 = £8.99, Majestic

Splash Out

2008 Naia, Rueda

An aromatic, hugely moreish Spanish dry white, Rueda’s verdejo grape mingling flavours of kiwi and citrus in a richly textured yet zestily grapefruity style. £10.95 - £10.99, Woodwinters (01786 834 894), Halifax Wine (01422256333), Noel Young (01223566744), Define Food and Wine (01606882101).