What is En Primeur?

En Primeur, also known also as Wine Futures, is best described as 'getting in first'. En Primeur is an opportunity to secure a large range of wines from Bordeaux while they are still in barrel. By doing this you pay significantly less than waiting to see these wines on retail shelves, as well as having access to many wines that never make it onto retail shelves.

How does it work?

In the first part of the process, the wine experts evaluate the vintage, through a series of tastings En Primeur. Meaning the wines are prepared from barrel samples to be represent the final wines. These samples are presented for tasting in Bordeaux. It’s this tasting that our General Manager, Liz Wheadon was at this year. The wines are then offered En Primeur through Bordeaux’s open market system ‘La Place’ A rather complex system of courtiers and multiple Negociants that works rather well. The timing of the releases should be throughout May and into June. The exact timing variable and dependent on each Chateau. Glengarry has longstanding relationships with the best negociants in France, and we have been offering En Primeur to our key customers for many years now – in fact we started offering En Primeur with the 1982 vintage (a rather good place to start)

How much do I save and how long do I wait?

The savings are obviously different depending on the wines concerned, but you can generally expect to pay 50% less than what the wines would fetch upon their final release on the open market. In addition, you are not being asked to pay the full price up front. Payments are made in two installments. The First is later this year. The Second and final is due on or before collection of the wines, which should be towards the middle of 2025.

What are the Advantages of securing wine in this fashion?

The benefits are many. The first is availability. Some of these wines are only available En Primeur, i.e. they will never reach the open market. Even if some of these wines do make it to the retail shelves eventually the quantities available will be extremely limited. Secondly, with supply and demand in force price is almost always well above that at which you would enjoy buying En Primeur. And you get some of the best wines in the world! It makes simple economic sense.

Glengarry Benefits

Within that French market, particularly at the upper level, Glengarry are very successful with our Bordeaux En Primeur offering. We lead the market in terms of cases shipped and dollar turnover mainly through our loyal customers and our longstanding relationships with the best negociants; enabling us to offer the best wines in reasonable volumes, even in high demand years such as 2005, 2009 and 2010. The Glengarry En Primeur service has been running since we offered the 1982 vintage. We are able to offer the security of experience and expertise in this exciting and growing wine service.

With our longstanding relationships and our experience honed over 40-odd years, we are old hands at this, and once again we are making the commitment to ensure you the best service and advice, with Liz Wheadon having been in Bordeaux in April to taste the 2022 vintage during the primeur week.

How do you get started?

ON-LINE

Go to www.glengarry.co.nz and click on En Primeur tab or straight to www.enprimeur.co.nz; there’s a simple registration form to complete and you are set. You’ll receive offers as they become available, by your preferred means of communication.

IN-PERSON

A number of our team specalise in En Primeur and would love to chat to you about the process, the wines or just fine wine in general. At Jervois Road, Dylan Lydford and Rory Crawford at Victoria Park, Zane Winskill and Alessio Arrighi and also at Victoria Park in our Head Office team Anthony Sorensen. In Wellington, at our Thorndon store, Meredith Parkin and in the weekends, Philip Rowe.

Contact details can be found here online

So, what’s the 2023 vintage like?

The reports out of Bordeaux around the 2023 vintage have a distinctly different feel, i.e. without the pomp and circumstance that leaves you wondering whether there really are that many 'Vintages of the Decade'. And to be honest, it's quite refreshing.

Instead, the message is 'come see and try the vintage'. Which is exactly what Glengarry GM and longterm Bordeaux fanatic Liz Wheadon will be doing in April during En Primeur Week. (As she has done since her first En Primeur tasting of the 2008 vintage.)

The 2023 growing season is full of twists and turns that needed navigating. After a mild winter, bud break was early, spring

was then early and development ahead of norms (if there are in fact norms anymore). Alternating periods of rainfall and sunshine followed, which kept producers on their toes. Late summer, the weather was very warm, and a long period of drought ensued.

Early indications suggest the dry white wines will be wonderfully aromatic, with careful skill required to keep them fresh – a talent in abundance in the Bordeaux region. The conditions for red wines were ideal, manifesting in excellent volumes.

Rain at the end of the season resulted in a lot of noble rot. The skies then cleared, the grapes harvested in Sauternes developing high levels of botrytis. Thus, we should expect wonderfully complex sweet wines.

Follow Liz on Instagram @lizziewine as she unpacks the vintage and helps you navigate the great wines of Bordeaux

These wines are ready to enjoy now and just perfect whilst you consider what to purchase from the 2023 vintage.