What are the most common things today's critics have with which to castigate the Bordelais? Chiefly - and this is a deeply reaching allegation that partly explains all of the rest - that it is the most backward, the most out of touch, the least exciting of all the world's fine wine areas. For all the jet-setting of the leading proprietors, they fail to listen to the consumer or to the merchants who buy their goods.

Prices continue to rise well above those of other regions, sometimes, as with the 1997s, when the vintage is clearly inferior, and despite a series of record-breaking, plentiful harvests.

Quality, moreover, is not as exciting as it could be. None of the vintages since the 1980s have been great. And it is arguable how good those 1980-era vintages were when one compares them with 1961, 1959 and the best vintages of the 1940s.

The explanation is two-fold. Yields are too high. And most of the Bordeaux bosses never actually get their hands dirty making the wine. Most seem more concerned with marketing (and ensuring that a neighbor does not steal a march on them with a higher price) than with the wine itself.

When one visits Burgundy, the contrast is total. In Burgundy, there is a generation of very able perfectionists guiding the grapes through their journey from vineyard to bottle. In other words, the owners make the wines. They are too adult to be jealous of each other. They are friendly rivals ever too ready to offer a helping hand.

In Burgundy recently, when one grower suffered the same problem with a taint in his wine following a cellar treatment against woodworm that has bedeviled at least a dozen Bordeaux châteaux, other growers in the village offered cellar space for the next vintage while he sorted the problem out. The same wouldn't have happened in the Gironde. Additionally, our Burgundian recalled his stock.

For many years, the Bordelais would not admit there was a problem. It is now ours, for we have these tainted wines in our cellars.

The above-mentioned concerns pertain to wines at the finer end of the quality scale. There is a problem at the opposite end, too. Bordeaux rouge isn't usually very good. In Europe, house "claret" is a hugely important item on every merchant's list. It is difficult to imagine why. Most are weak and wishy-washy, despite a total of some three million hectoliters - it is France's largest appellation contrôlée - from which to choose. The Midi, Chile, Australia and California can all provide Bordeaux look-alikes that are better value for the money.

When Charles Sichel, one of Bordeaux's more enterprising merchants, held a blind tasting of generic Bordeaux rouge for a number of wine journalists - which proved what we had all been saying - he was almost lynched by his fellow négoçiants.

Pretend everything in the garden is lovely. Keep upping the prices. Laugh all the way to the bank. That seems to be today's Bordeaux attitude.

The curious thing is that in the last decade we have seen a pattern emerging. The Burgundians are alive, go-ahead and perfectionistic; they haven't had a bad vintage since 1984. The Bordelais are often greedy and moribund. They haven't had a fine vintage since 1990. It almost makes one believe there really is a God.

These things have a habit of going in phases. Bordeaux has not had as much luck with the weather over the past ten years as has Burgundy. After rather better harvest conditions than in eastern France in 1981, 1982 and 1983, and again in 1986, similar difficulties in 1987, but successes in 1988, 1989 and 1990, the beginning of the 1990s decade (decades begin with 1 and not 0, millennium celebrations notwithstanding) was almost literally a washout. In 1991, 1992 and 1993, and even, though to a lesser extent, in 1994, there was too much September rain to produce serious wine in the Bordeaux area. This pattern has continued since, and though 1995, 1996 and 1998 have produced some very good wines, they are rarely up to the standard of the best of the 1980s. Moreover, while vintages, such as 1982, 1985 and 1990, have given us quality, both geographically and all the way up the hierarchy from petits châteaux to premiers crus, the more recent vintages have been less even.

In difficult years, the most punctilious feel morally obliged to take the steps necessary to produce fine wine. Others do not. So, not only have the 1990-era vintages not been as good, the number of exciting wines, even worthy bottles, has been greatly the fewer.

Meanwhile, Bordeaux prices have edged ever higher, despite this not-so-brilliant quality and despite a series of very large harvests. With the exception of 1991, Bordeaux has produced more than 4.8 million hectoliters of red wine every year since 1989 and in the last five years an average of more than 5.5 million hectoliters.

Are the Bordelais getting rather greedy? The answer has to be yes.

Reevaluating 1989-1998

Please note, the ratings by region are absolute within a 20-point scale. Value judgments, e.g. "Fine," are within the context of the vintage. A summary of the best wines appear at the foot of each vintage section. The wines of Médoc/Graves are indicated as such with the letters M/G; the wines of Saint-Emilion/Pomerol with the letters SE/P; and the wines of Sauternes with the letter S.

1989

Médoc/Graves: 16.5/20
Saint-Emilion/Pomerol: 17.5/20
Dry White Graves: 16/20
Sauternes: 18/20

A large vintage, an early harvest and a most successful year across the board, 1989 was well-received from the outset. If anything, it has gained in reputation as it has evolved. Indeed, at a recent comprehensive ten-year-on tasting it was unanimously preferred overall to 1982.

An early bud burst and a fine May led to a flowering that was over by the time it normally begins. The summer that followed was the second warmest and the second driest since 1945 (only being surpassed in this respect by 1949). This sparsity of precipitation led to a certain amount of stress in the vines, especially the young plants on well-drained soils. These conditions meant that at the time of the harvest, the fruit, while being ripe from a sugar/acid point of view, would have rather unripe tannins. There were fears that the merlots would be too alcoholic with not enough acidity, and that the tannins would be rather astringent in the cabernets.

While some wines showed these tendencies at the outset, ten years down the line most are rich, concentrated and balanced. While 1989 is not a great vintage, for it lacks the elegance and grip of a truly great year, it is very good, indeed. The best wines will still keep well. The dry white wines are very good, but are a little heavy in some cases. A great vintage for Sauternes - the best of the 1988-1989-1990 trio.

Last tasted comprehensively in September 1999:

The Wine of the Vintage: M/G: Haut-Brion

Very Fine: M/G: Léoville-Las-Cases, Margaux, La Mission-Haut-Brion; SE/P: Cheval-Blanc, Lafleur, Pétrus

Fine: M/G: Domaine de Chevalier, Cos d'Estournel, Grand-Puy-Lacoste, Lafite, May, Clinet, L'Eglise-Clinet, Léoville-Barton, Mouton-Rothschild, Pichon-Longueville-Baron, Pichon-Lalande; SE/P: Angelus, Certan-de-May, Le Pin, Trotanoy, Vieux-Certan-de-May

Very Good: M/G: Clerc-Milon, Ducru-Beaucaillou (if a good bottle), Les Forts de Latour, Haut-Bailly, Lagrange (Saint-Julien), Langoa-Barton, Léoville-Poyferré, Lynch-Bages, Pape-Clément; SE/P: Figeac, La Fleur de Gay, Gazin, Gruaud-Larose, Lagrange (Pomerol), Latour-à-Pomerol, Magdelaine, Le Tertre-Roteboeuf

The Best Sauternes: Climens, Coutet, Coutet Cuvée Madame, Doisy-Védrines, De Fargues, Lafaurie-Peyraguey, Rayne-Vigneau, Rieussec, Suduiraut Crème de Tête, La Tour Blanche, d'Yquem

1990

Médoc/Graves: 17.5/20
Saint-Emilion/Pomerol: 17/20
Dry White Wines: 17/20
Sauternes: 17.5/20

In view of subsequent vintages, 1990 stands out. Very few recent harvests rival it for consistency and the number of high quality wines produced. In the Médoc and the Graves, it has the edge over 1989 (though there are some noticeable exceptions) even, in general, over 1982, as well as with the rest, though one can pick out some wines in both 1986 and 1996 that can be rivals. In Saint-Emilion and Pomerol, 1989 could be considered superior, and, again, one can pick out more than a handful of great 1982s. But the 1990s are consistent up and down the hierarchy, as well as geographically. The key is a better level of acidity over 1989, and more sophisticated tannins.

It was the second very warm, dry summer in a row, but not quite as hot or parched as the previous vintage, and the vines were less stressed. Similarly, it was another early harvest and another very large vintage.

The white wines are rich and well balanced. The Sauternes are fine, too. Nature smiled on Bordeaux in 1990.

Last tasted comprehensively in October 1997:

The Wine of the Vintage: M/G: Latour

Very Fine Indeed: M/G: Haut-Brion, Léoville-Las-Cases, Margaux; SE/P: Cheval-Blanc

Very Fine: M/G: Lafite, Léoville-Barton, Pichon-Longueville-Baron; SE/P: Pétrus, Trotanoy

Fine Plus: SE/P: Canon, L'Evangile, Vieux-Château-Certan

Fine: M/G: Cos d'Estournel, Léoville-Poyferré, La Mission-Haut-Brion, Palmer; SE/P: Certan de May, Lafleur-Pétrus, Magdelaine, Pavie

Very Good Indeed: M/G: Domaine de Chevalier, Montrose; SE/P: Angelus, Figeac, Lafleur, Larmande, Latour-à-Pomerol, Le Pin, Le Tertre-Roteboeuf, Troplong-Mondot

Note: Some of the Ducru-Beaucaillou stock is tainted. In good condition the wine is "fine."

The Best Sauternes: Climens, Coutet, Doisy-Daëne, Lafaurie-Peyraguey, Rayne-Vigneau, Sigalas-Rabaud, La Tour-Blanche, d'Yquem

1991

Médoc/Graves: 11/20
Saint-Emilion/Pomerol: 10/20
Dry White Graves: 11

After the years of plenty, the years of famine arrived. Having become jaded by the riches of the 1980s, the first few vintages of the 1990s would prove to be disappointing in Bordeaux. Nineteen ninety-one was a double disaster: as a result of spring frost, the crop was barely 40 percent of the average total during the 1989-1998 time frame.

The frost hit the merlots more than the cabernets, to such an extent that many producers in Saint-Emilion and Pomerol declassified their entire harvest. There are others in the area whose results were so poor that one's reaction is that they should have been declassified, too. Only a few vineyards close to the Gironde, in Bourg, and in the Médoc from Saint-Julien to Saint-Estèphe, escaped relatively unscathed.

While May and June were poor, climatically, July was warm, and August hotter still. This formed the basis of something at least acceptable, which the rain in September could not entirely diminish (at least in the best-drained soils of the Médoc and the Graves). Here we find some red wines that are clearly more interesting than the 1992s, though they are now beginning to show age.

The dry white wines are weak and now tired, though, and there were no Sauternes.

Last tasted comprehensively in November 1995:

The Wines of the Vintage: M/G: Haut-Brion, Latour, Léoville-Las-Cases, Margaux

The Best of the Rest: M/G: Domaine de Chevalier, Cos d'Estournel, Cos Labory, Ducru-Beaucaillou, Lafite, Lascombes, Léoville-Barton, Malescot-Saint-Exupéry, La Mission-Haut-Brion, Montrose, Mouton-Rothschild, Palmer, Pape-Clément, Pichon-Baron, Pichon-Lalande, Pontet-Canet, Saint-Pierre; SE/P: Pavie, Le Tertre-Roteboeuf

1992

Médoc/Graves: 10/20
Saint-Emilion/Pomerol: 9/20
Dry White Graves: 11/20

Of recent Bordeaux vintages, the wooden spoon goes to 1992. It was the wettest summer in more than 50 years, and the sun didn't shine much either. Having said that, 1992 is by no means a disaster on a par with 1963, 1965 and 1968.

The wines are short and diluted, but they are not rotten. In general, the vintage is best in the Médoc and the Graves, worst in Saint-Emilion and Pomerol (watery cabernet being preferable to watery merlot). Most 1992s are already past their best. It was a large vintage with only the top wines still showing any life. Modern techniques provided some adequate dry whites. It was not a vintage for Sauternes.

Last tasted comprehensively in November 1996:

The Wines of the Vintage: M/G: Haut-Brion, Léoville-Las-Cases

The Best of the Rest: M/G: Domaine de Chevalier, Ducru-Beaucaillou, Gruaud-Larose, Montrose, Palmer, Pape-Clément, Pichon-Lalande; SE/P: Trotanoy

The remainder of the first growths are no better than the best of the rest.

1993

Médoc/Graves: 11/20
Saint-Emilion/Pomerol: 10/20
Dry White Graves: 12/20

Nineteen ninety-three brought with it a cool summer that held much promise - as did 1995 - right up until the second week in September. It then started to rain, and hardly stopped for the next six weeks. The reds are light with just a little more personality than the 1992s, and as ready as they ever will be. Generally, the best are found in the Médoc and Graves.

There were some decent dry whites, collected early before the rains began to have a serious effect, but no Sauternes. A large but disappointing vintage.

Last tasted comprehensively in November 1997:

The Wines of the Vintage: M/G: Latour, Léoville-Las-Cases

The Best of the Rest: M/G: Clerc-Milon, Cos d'Estournel, Cos Labory, Haut-Bailly, Haut-Brion, Lafite, Lagrange, Léoville-Barton, Léoville-Poyferré, Malescot-Saint-Exupéry, Margaux; Mouton-Rothschild, Palmer, Pichon-Baron, Pichon-Lalande; SE/P: Angelus, Canon-La-Gaffelière, Clinet, Trotanoy, Vieux-Château-Certan

1994

Médoc/Graves: 13/20
Saint-Emilion/Pomerol: 12/20
Dry White Graves: 12/20
Sauternes: 12/20

Nineteen ninety-four was yet another of those frustrating vintages that promised everything on the first of September, but in the end resulted only in something adequate. At least it was better than 1991, 1992 and 1993, and there was plenty of it.

After a poor spring, with some frost almost everywhere, conditions improved in May, and, after an early and successful flowering, Bordeaux enjoyed an excellent summer - generally fine and hot, but with rain when it was needed. It was all very promising.

The red wine harvest was due to begin on September 14, almost two weeks early, but it started to rain on the 7th. The rain continued, on and off, with a three-day respite at mid-month, until the beginning of October. Naturally, this rain swelled the grapes and turned what would have been a high-average crop size into a large one, with the consequent effect of dilution in the wine. The reds are better in the Médoc than in Saint-Emilion and Pomerol, largely because of the cabernet sauvignons' greater inherent concentration and higher acidity.

Adequate wines for the medium term. A few acceptable sweet wines.

Last tasted comprehensively in November 1998:

The Wines of the Vintage (Very Fine): M/G: Haut-Brion, Latour, Léoville-Las-Cases, Margaux;

SE/P: Evangile, Pétrus

Fine Plus: M/G: Ducru-Beaucaillou, Mouton-Rothschild, Pichon-Longueville-Lalande;

SE/P: Trotanoy

Fine: M/G: Clerc-Milon, Lafite, La Mission-Haut-Brion; SE/P: Angelus, Cheval-Blanc, Figeac, Latour-à-Pomerol, Le Pin, Vieux-Château-Certan

1995

Médoc/Graves: 14/20
Saint-Emilion/Pomerol: 14/20
Dry White Graves: 13/20
Sauternes: 14/20

The 1995s arrived on the scene after a fairly disappointing run of Bordeaux vintages. It proved at least adequate. Demand, after the usual lull - these things seem to go by fits and starts: two vintages of solid increases followed by four where prices plateau - was beginning to increase. So the 1995 vintage was welcomed and inevitably hyped beyond its possibilities. Prices showed considerable increases over the 1994s.

The first half of 1995 was climatically superb: a fine, early flowering and a dry, hot June. Following a wet start to July, the rest of the summer was so parched that some vines were stopped in their progress toward maturity. And then, for the fifth year in succession, it began to rain just as the harvest was about to get under way. After the equinox, the weather improved crucially, and the cabernet sauvignons in the Haut-Médoc, last as always to be picked, could improve on the vine.

The red wine quality is even across the board, more of the softer merlot than normal often having been used to compensate for the denser cabernet. But the wines are rarely exciting, and will mature in the medium term. Nineteen ninety-six produced better Médocs; 1998 better Saint-Emilions and Pomerols. There were some useful Sauternes, but they lacked noble rot.

Last tasted comprehensively in January 1999:

The Wine of the Vintage: M/G: Latour

Very Fine Indeed: M/G: Ducru-Beaucaillou, Haut-Brion, Léoville-Las-Cases, Margaux

Very Fine: M/G: Lafite, La Mission-Haut-Brion; SE/P: Ausone, Pétrus

Fine Plus: M/G: Grand-Puy-Lacoste, Léoville-Barton, Palmer

Fine: M/G: Léoville-Poyferré; SE/P: Cheval-Blanc, Figeac, Vieux-Château-Certan

Very Good Indeed: M/G: Gruaud-Laroze, Haut-Bailly, Pape-Clément, Rauzan-Ségla; SE/P: Angelus, L'Arrosée, Trotanoy

1996

Médoc/Graves: 15/20 to 17/20
Saint-Emilion/Pomerol: 13/20
Dry White Wines: 16/20
Sauternes: 15/20

Most people in Bordeaux, and almost everyone elsewhere, pretended that 1996 was better than it was. They had to. The market was hot, prices were very high, in some cases double that of the 1995s. There are some good, indeed, very good wines, but the pattern is patchy, the real successes confined to the persistent overachievers, the dedicated winemakers. You will find these in the top growths of Saint-Julien, Pauillac and Saint-Estèphe, in the top white Graves and in Sauternes. Elsewhere, it is no better - indeed, inferior in Saint-Emilion and Pomerol and most of the petits châteaux - to the good but not great 1995 vintage.

Once again, yields were very high, indeed. The vintage started out well with an early and rapid flowering. There was a lot of rain in July and early August, and while conditions in early September were fine, enabling the dry white wines to be harvested in good conditions, the weather changed after the middle of the month and did not clear up until the beginning of October. There was then a splendid Indian summer, enabling the latest-ripening fruit, i.e. the cabernet sauvignons in the northern Haut-Médoc, to achieve a healthy concentration. Here, the red wines are in some cases truly fine, up to 1990 levels, and are proper vins de garde.

Last tasted comprehensively, in bottle, January 2000:

The Best: M/G: Domaine de Chevalier, Haut-Brion-Blanc, Lafite, Léoville-Las-Cases

Very Fine Indeed: M/G: Ducru-Beaucaillou, Léoville-Barton, Margaux

Very Fine: Haut-Brion, Latour, Pichon-Lalande; SE/P: Cheval-Blanc

Fine/Fine Plus: M/G: Ausone, Domaine de Chevalier, Cos d'Estournel, Duhart-Milon, Grand-Puy-Lacoste, Haut-Bailly, La Mission-Haut-Brion, Palmer, Rauzan-Ségla, Sociando-Mallet; SE/P: L'Arrosée, L'Eglise-Clinet, Lafleur, Magdelaine

Fine: M/G: Laville-Haut-Brion, Couhins, De Fieuzal

Sauternes

The Best: Climens, Doisy-Daëne L'Extravagant

Very Fine Indeed: Coutet

Very Fine: Sigalas-Rabaud, Mouton-Rothschild

Fine/Fine Plus: Doisy-Daëne, Doisy-Védrines, Lafaurie-Peyraguey, De Malle, Nairac, Rieussec, La Tour-Blanche, Vieux-Château-Certan

1997

Médoc/Graves: 12/20
Saint-Emilion/Pomerol: 10/20
Dry White Wines: 11/20
Sauternes: 17.5/20

Climatically, 1997 was a very uneven vintage; qualitatively it was a disappointment; quantitatively, it was huge; monetarily, it was absurdly expensive. After savage increases in 1996 (up to 40 percent in 1995), the first growths rose from 300 francs per bottle ex-cellar (the price the château charges the Bordeaux négociant) to 500 francs. Others were not quite so greedy, but no one decreased their tariffs, as would have been justified by the quality.

As for the weather, it was an extraordinarily variable year, blowing hot and cold, wet and dry, calm and windy in a continually unsettled way. The flowering was early, but very long and drawn out. The harvest began extremely early, on August 18, at Haut-Brion Blanc, but did not finish until almost two months later. And despite a September that was really quite dry, the fruit never really recovered from a violent thunderstorm at the beginning of the month.

The red wines are small in stature, weak in virility and will make no more than pleasant bottles for early drinking. Most of the dry whites are similar. But there are some very fine Sauternes, perhaps the best since the famous trio of 1988, 1989 and 1990.

Last tasted comprehensively, in cask, April 1999:

Very Fine Plus: M/G: Lafite; S: Climens, Lafaurie-Peyraguey

Very Fine: M/G: Ducru-Beaucaillou, Latour, Léoville-Barton, Léoville-Las-Cases; S: Coutet, Rieussec, Suduiraut

Fine Plus: M/G: Haut-Brion; SE/P: Pétrus

Fine: M/G: Malescot-Saint-Exupéry, Mouton-Rothschild, Palmer, Pichon-Lalande; SE/P: Ausone, L'Evangile, Lafleur, La Mondotte; S: Doisy-Daëne, Doisy-Védrines, Rayne-Vigneau, Sigalas-Rabaud

Very Good Indeed: M/G: Cos d'Estournel, Domaine de Chevalier, La Mission-Haut-Brion; SE/P: L'Eglise-Clinet, Magdelaine, Pavie-Macquin, Le Tertre-Roteboeuf, Troplong-Mondot, Trotanoy, Vieux-Château-Certan

Very Good Plus: M/G: Carruades-de-Lafite, Clerc-Milon, Grand-Puy-Lacoste, Léoville-Poyferré, Margaux, Poujeaux, Talbot; SE/P: Berliquet, Canon-La-Gaffelière, Clos L'Eglise

1998

Médoc/Graves: 14/20
Saint-Emilion/Pomerol: 16/20
Dry White Wines: 14/20
Sauternes: 16/20

Nineteen ninety-eight is a vintage that, like many in the 1990s, began well and promised much. That it did not in the end turn out to be the "great one" we have all been waiting for since 1990 can be blamed variously on an August that was too hot and dry, to rain that fell on and off from the beginning of September onward and increasingly so after the 26th, and to the very large size of the crop.

While winegrowers need sunny, fine weather in the run-up to the harvest (as well, obviously, as during it), it must not be too hot or too dry, or the vines get stressed, and the photosynthesis (the progress toward maturity) just shuts down. This was what happened in 1998, especially in the young vines and the better-drained soils of the Médoc/Graves.

As August melted into September, the weather cooled, and it began to rain. With the exception of three days of storms, the prospects weren't too bad at first, and the merlots collected from September 20 onward were of good quality. After September 26, the weather deteriorated, not to clear up until October 12, by which time it was too late. It was during this period that the cabernets were gathered. The total yield, at 58 hectoliters per hectare (hl/ha), was very nearly at the legal limit of 60 hl/ha.

With merlots better than cabernets and the Libournais having less rainfall than the Médoc/ Graves, 1998 is not surprisingly a year that favors Saint-Emilion and Pomerol. Sadly, however, there are not enough really good wines. Happily, there are more than a handful of worthy efforts on the Left Bank, and some very good Sauternes. The top red wines have both depth and richness, and fullish body. Only the very best, however, have really good length on the palate, vitally necessary to preserve the elegance of the wine well into its second decade.

Last tasted comprehensively, in cask, April 1999:

Very Fine Indeed: SE/P: Cheval-Blanc, Pétrus

Very Fine: M/G: Haut-Brion, Lafite, Margaux; SE/P: Ausone, Vieux-Château-Certan, L'Evangile, Trotanoy, L'Eglise-Clinet; S: Climens, Coutet, Lafaurie-Peyraguey, Rayne-Vigneau, Suduiraut, Rieussec

Fine Plus: M/G: Ducru-Beaucaillou, Latour, Léoville-Las-Cases, La Mission-Haut-Brion; SE/P: La Fleur-Pétrus, Lafleur, Magdelaine, La Mondotte, Le Tertre-Roteboeuf; S: Sigalas-Rabaud

Fine: M/E: Grand-Puy-Lacoste, Léoville-Barton, Montrose, Palmer, Rauzan-Ségla; SE/P: Angelus, Clos L'Eglise, Figeac, La Tour (Pomerol), Troplong-Mondot, Valandraud; S: Doisy-Védrines, Nairac

Very Good Indeed: M/G: Carruades de Lafite, Domaine de Chevalier, Haut-Condissas, Haut-Marbuzet, Léoville-Poyferré, Malescot, Pavillon Rouge de Château Margaux, Poujeaux, Sociando-Mallet; SE/P: L'Arrosée, Berliquet, Certan-de-May, La Gomerie, Clinet, Curé-Bon, Pavie-Macquin, Clos L'Oratoire, Rouget; S: Doisy-Daëne

And what of 1999? This is a vintage I will taste for the first time in April. What is known at this stage is that it is a large vintage that was severely rain-affected in late September. So, as you read this, think of us hacks and wine buyers going 'round from cellar to cellar sampling the 1999s. I fear we will have to look hard to find anything special.

London-based European Editor Clive Coates, M.W., is editor and publisher of The Vine and author of Grands Vins and Côte d'Or.