BORDEAUX, FRANCE. September 2nd, 2026 – On 1st August 2026, Château Méaume brought together sixty consecutive Bordeaux vintages, spanning 1966 to 2025, for what is believed to be one of the most extensive vertical tastings ever held by a privately owned Bordeaux estate.
Seventy guests attended the private six-hour tasting, travelling from France, the United Kingdom, Switzerland and the United States. The event opened at 6pm with an introduction to the estate, its history and the task ahead: to taste six decades of wine side by side.
Forty-nine vintages came from Château Méaume itself, covering the years from 1977 to 2025 and charting the period from the stewardship of Alan Johnson-Hill through to that of Mark and Sandra Johnson Hill. The earlier years, from 1966 to 1976, were represented by wines sourced from two neighbouring Saint-Émilion châteaux, completing the unbroken sequence.
Together, the wines offered a rare record of how one part of Bordeaux has responded to changing weather, vineyard replanting, evolving farming methods and changing approaches in the cellar.
The most widely favoured vintages among those attending were 2009, 2005, 1998 and 1989. The acclaim for 2009 and 2005 came as little surprise, with both widely recognised as outstanding Bordeaux years. However, the 1998 and 1989 wines proved to be two of the day’s quiet successes.
The 1998, a particularly strong Right Bank vintage, was repeatedly discussed and recommended by guests throughout the evening. The 1989 also showed beautifully, demonstrating the quality and staying power of a well-made Bordeaux more than three decades after the harvest. Bottles of 1998 and 1989, alongside the 2009 and 2005, were among the first to be finished.
Several of the most celebrated vintages, including 1982, 2005, 2009, 2010 and 2022, were poured from magnums. The larger format is known for its slower ageing, giving these important wines the best possible chance to show their character and freshness.
The tasting also brought a more honest view of the less celebrated years. The wines of the 1970s were not finished, and generally showed their age more clearly than the bottles from the 1960s. With the exception of the highly regarded 1970 vintage, the decade is not widely considered among Bordeaux’s strongest, and the response from guests reflected that.
Three participants set themselves the considerable challenge of tasting every wine opened during the evening. With no intention of spitting, they dedicated themselves fully to drinking and appreciating the wines throughout the six-hour event. By the later vintages, after such a vast number of wines, their descriptions had understandably become rather shorter.
Mark Johnson Hill, proprietor of Château Méaume, said: “The purpose of the tasting was to see the full story, including the great years, the difficult years and the surprises that appear only when wines are tasted together across such a long period of time.
“What stood out was how well some of the older wines performed. The 1998 and 1989, in particular, reminded everyone that a good Bordeaux can give enormous pleasure many years after it was made. It was also wonderful to welcome people from so many countries to share in a very special moment for Château Méaume.”
The tasting was professionally filmed and will form a permanent archive of sixty consecutive Bordeaux vintages, preserving an important part of the estate’s story for future generations.
The event followed the sixtieth birthday of Mark Johnson Hill, whose connection with Château Méaume began almost fifty years ago during childhood visits to Bordeaux. The estate has been owned by the same English family for more than fifty years and continues to make classically styled, Merlot-led Bordeaux wines.
ENDS
