The trip to Los Angeles from San Diego is best accomplished by train. If you have visited L.A., you know the traffic can demoralize you before you arrive at your destination. A wine director friend and I made that two-hour train journey to attend the Union des Grand Crus de Bordeaux (UGCB). An event wherein more than 70 Châteaux offer their 2021 vintages for tasting and, of course, networking in a semi-cloaked manner.
The event itself is akin to En Primeur except there is no bidding, buying, and guessing. There is, however, a monumental amount of tasting. By design, the location was as spectacular, and one might say as opulent as much of the wine. A former cathedral in the heart of downtown Los Angeles.
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This was my first UGCB and leading up to the day, I was predictably nervous and equally thrilled to have been an invitee. Arriving at the converted cathedral on 3rd Street in L.A., I was greeted by ushers and hostesses who moved everyone through fast-moving lines to collect a pre-printed name badge for each guest. Mine smartly had a red band across the bottom of the badge and large white lettering that read PRESS. This grabbed my attention and a grateful smile as I pinned it to my blazer.
Union des Grand Crus de Bordeaux (UGCB) tasting event.
We had arranged to meet another colleague at the venue, and as we texted to find him, we walked past two ancient oak doors into what was an enormous marble and colonnade expanse that was previously the cathedral seating area. Other than the inscriptions on the walls and entrance, the place had been totally transformed. To the left were glass shelves that held hundreds of sparkling clean wine glasses for tasting. Banquet length tables ran along both sides of the room and two aisles ran along the centre of the room with more banquet tables.
Closest to the front of the room were tall tables festooned with crisp table linens and gleaming spill buckets. To the far right of the room were tiered expanses of cheeses, meats, crackers, breads, jellies, and jams. There were plates, napkins, cocktail sticks, knives and forks available at both ends of the food tables and a seeming endless supply of bottled water was on both sides of the room.
The patrons at this event, including myself, were there by invitation only and at no cost. Access to the general public was granted at a cost, and not until the invited guests had left. I was there to soak in the spectacle and to understand what it meant to the Chateaux to send people halfway around the world to pour their wines. To be clear, the wines being offered were not those you might find in your local market on any given day. Some of these wines are still on wish-lists, one-day-maybe lists, and I’m-ready lists.
The catalog provided to all of us contained the names of châteaux that often appear in magazines, behind glass walls in wine boutiques, and are discussed by those who have broad wine knowledge. The long-standing generational pride in family dedication to the craft of winemaking was on display at every turn. It was indeed an atmosphere of heightened anticipation and a chance to try wines that are most often curated by the wealthy.
“It wasn’t simply about tasting wines from highly regarded châteaux or seeking access to otherwise unattainable wines.”
Alongside many of the famous châteaux were those looking to make a name for themselves in a tightly packed market. The well-known names on the right and left banks of the Gironde and Garonne Rivers were well represented and much of the space was dedicated to the most famous amongst them. Less well-known AOCs and châteaux were included and their presence amongst the centuries-old wineries was refreshing. After one full circuit of the hall, it was time for me to begin the tasting process and to start asking questions.
Let’s just say it was difficult to know where to start. By Appellation alone there were châteaux from Pessac-Léognan, Graves, Saint-Émilion Grand Cru, Pomerol, Listrac-Médoc, Moulis-En-Médoc, Haut-Médoc, Médoc, Margaux, Saint-Julien, Pauillac, Saint-Estèphe and Sauternes. To illustrate just how important this event was to Bordeaux, members of Château Cheval Blanc, Château Mouton Rothschild, and Château d’Yquem were not only present, but they were also pouring their 2021 vintage and were happy to engage in conversation over the season, the harvest, the winemaking itself, and the challenges Bordeaux faces in cost, climate, and changing tastes.
Over the course of two hours, I met with and spoke to more than 50 professionals from the various châteaux and other attendees. I tasted until palate fatigue got the better of me. I ate from the array of food and drank water ensuring both my hydration and sobriety. I made notes and hoped I could recall the moments and the sensations later as I transcribed them for the Wine Scholar Guild – Bordeaux Master program.
The colleague I met at the venue worked his way around the room in a similar fashion to me. We tasted, compared, and wondered at the planning and organization it took to get all the châteaux representatives out to the far US West Coast – all at the same time. A migraine beset my traveling companion, which sadly rendered her incapable of any tasting but later that evening, after we left the venue, we all agreed that if this same event returns, we will attend having a different vision and understanding.
It wasn’t simply about tasting wines from highly regarded châteaux or seeking access to otherwise unattainable wines. For me, it became a connection to people who live in and with tradition. Who have an uncertain future as global investment in, and taste for wine is changing. People who will shape what Bordeaux, and its centuries of history, will become.
– Gillian Marks, PhD is a French Wine Scholar and contributing editor with VineRoutes
