Mid-thirties for the whole of the last week of May is utterly bonkers. During the first fortnight, we were asking how we translate ’ne’er cast a clout till May is out’ as it was chilly and wet, and then it was all change.

Wine growers like us are often left scratching their heads these days, but the vines seem to be loving it. Below are a few snaps to rapidly scroll through, along with the crucial final placings of the Château Bauduc Fantasy League.

The two of us have just arrived for a week in Montreal, Canada, for our son Tom’s graduation from McGill University. He’ll be staying on with a new job here now, so we thought we should also help him settle into his new flat. (It’s a direct, 8-hour flight from Bordeaux. We both clicked the option to upgrade to Club for €250 as a treat when we checked in but, hilariously, only Angela’s went through.)

If you have any questions or comments, please email Georgie, Angela and Gavin by clicking this link, or simply reply to this email. Georgie’s at home holding the fort so we’re well covered.

All the best

Gavin & Angela Quinney

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A month of two halves

These incomplete weather forecast screenshots give you an idea of the complete contrast of the start of May to the last 10 days. In reality, it’s been even hotter towards the end of the month than envisaged. As it turned out, the rain we had in the first half of May proved to be more than helpful, given what was to come.

April, as well as May, was up and down too. Budbreak was really early in the middle of March, and then everything slowed during a cold fortnight. Then Easter week – the second week of April – was gorgeous with summer-like temperatures in the mid-20s, with some rain mid-month before the third week, which was even warmer.

Bauduc farmhouse, changeover Friday, 22 May 2026. From early April onwards, it’s been the luck of the draw for our guests, but they’ve all reported that they’ve enjoyed themselves. There’s still plenty to do when the sun’s not out, and the fireplace is put to good use rather than the outdoor barbecue. Meanwhile, over the last week, the extended family on a half-term break have appreciated the air-conditioning we installed last year in the bedrooms and downstairs. And the pool has come in handy, of course.

Sauvignon Blanc enjoying the change in the weather, 20 May.

We wouldn’t want you to think that we sit around waiting for everything to go green. Before Easter, we took the opportunity to replace two septic tanks, one for the farmhouse and the other near the winery. As you do.

Anyone might have thought we were digging yet another swimming pool, but this monster excavation was all part of the arrangement. Our approach to this sort of activity is only ‘Château DIY’ in extreme circumstances, as we prefer to hire in professionals.

Merlot at Bauduc after early budbreak. 22 March 2026.

Merlot, 31 March, and 12 April 2026.

We appeared in an Observer article on 17 May, and although I quite like the word wineyard, it doesn’t really exist, so I suggested they might want to change it to vineyard. This is the dodgy screenshot I sent to them before they edited it. Perhaps wineyard could catch on.

Their talented photographer, Celine Levain from Bordeaux, took a nice pic of the three of us with my iPhone. We often take photos of friends and customers on our doorstep. Especially if you rock up in a smart Ferrari like Nick and Oliver did this month, on their way down to San Sebastián.

Rhizlane and Najia, regular seasonal workers who live up the road, helping out with the Merlot.

Sémillion, 13 May. Old vines alongside the tree-lined drive.

The early budbreak, then the combination of rain and sun means we’re now surrounded by a sea of green. Merlot, 24 May.

We’ve had une belle sortie too, with plenty of potential clusters of grapes: the opposite of 2025, when we had fewer grapes and bunches. Flowering or floraison has almost finished on the Merlot, above, and is taking place with all the other varieties, comparatively much earlier to the usual. It’s a crucial time to have good weather, so we’re not complaining.

Wedged between more vineyard and vintage guff, some important news hot off the press. Last weekend saw another exciting climax for our Château Bauduc (Fantasy) Premier League mini-league, with over 200 customers and a few wine trade friends.

Huge congratulations to Colin Brown, who not only won but also came 881st out of 13.1 million ‘FPL managers’ worldwide. And a great effort by Tom Holt, who came second and an overall rank of 2,163.

The top 10 in our Bauduc league all came in the top 100,000 globally, and the top 50 are all in the highest-ranked 7%. Well done to everyone who took part in our league – here’s the link for the full list: https://fantasy.premierleague.com/leagues/1193825/standings/c

And just when you think that this is a game for experienced old nerds, the overall winner of Fantasy Premier League was a young Danish chap called Erik Ibsen in his debut season of playing the game. So all welcome next season, come August.

We have extended the 2025-2026 prize list to the Top 15 managers, who win a selection of Bauduc wines (mainland UK or delivery in France, or château collection):

1st place: 12 bottles
2nd-6th: 6 bottles each
7th-15th: 3 bottles each

As it’s ‘family hold back’ I'm delighted to pass my prize onto Ashleigh, the leading lady, in 16th.

If you’re a lucky winner, please click this link to email us all – or we’ll be in touch after 8 June.

With old friend and customer Colin Brown, who has won the Bauduc league and, on the right, exchanging bottles at Bauduc a while back with runner-up Tom Holt. Tom makes wine in Spain called paso-primero.com and, from his home in Shrewsbury, he sells direct in the UK as well. A rare breed.

Same vines showing changes each year

I’ve taken a photo of these Merlot vines by the château on the same date each year - 23 May - and it’s a vaguely useful guide as to how far advanced we are in the growing season. It’s also a record of the occasional disastrous vintage for us, and the odd winner.

23 May 2026
This year, we’re well ahead of the norm. Looks like an August harvest for the whites, which is early but becoming fairly standard. The rosé soon after, and the reds not long later.

23 May 2025
We went on to have a hot summer with heatwaves and prolonged drought. As the vines were in advance from the start, we ended up harvesting our whites early - all in August - and our reds from early in September.

23 May 2024
'24 was quite different as we had a lot of rain in the early months of the season. It was a more complicated vintage across Bordeaux, partly due to the risk of mildew. But a fine summer ensured we still harvested the whites relatively early.

23 May 2021
I’m not showing the images from every year, as it would be too repetitive. But you can see here that it was a slow start in 2021, and it never really caught up. Our Crémant was harvested relatively late in early September, and all the better for it.

23 May 2019
This one is included because 2019 ended up being a fine and classic year for both the harvest and the style of the wines. It wasn’t an early season or harvest, with the whites being picked in mid-September and the Merlots after and the Cabernets into October. I’m all for seasons that like to take their time, as long as the weather holds for a later harvest.

23 May 2018
This was a solar vintage, and the reds of Bordeaux reflect this, with ripe and sunny wines. The season got off to an early start, as you can see, although there was a high risk of mildew. The summer was hot.

23 May 2017
I wanted to show 2017 because it was the year when large parts of Bordeaux were devastated by a late April frost. But it depended very much on the location of the vineyards. These vines by the Château were untouched because they’re on the top of our plateau at about 100m.

19 May 2017
These were the Merlot vines further down the slope with the Sauvignon Blanc beyond. Being lower down, they were impacted by the frost in late April, and we lost at least half the crop on these parcels. Bordeaux as a whole lost the equivalent of around 300 million bottles from that one very cold morning when the new season growth was at its most vulnerable. But not everywhere was hit.

23 May 2015
A good year and pretty normal timing. I recall that Rick Stein came to film our Cabernet harvest on 12 October, so it wasn’t an early one.

23 May 2013
This was the year that never really got going after a slow start. Worse was to follow for us as we were hit by a hailstorm at the start of August, when we lost at least half the crop. Overall a poor vintage for Bordeaux reds, and it shows even at this premature stage. Good for whites and excellent for Sauternes though.

23 May 2011
A year which was well in advance - visually, the most advanced at this stage. It wasn’t to be a particularly good one for the reds of Bordeaux as the tannins were a little tough at the start. But many top wines are now drinking well now that the firmness of those tannins have softened over time. It was, however, a great year for Sauternes.

27 May 2009
This was to be a great vintage across Bordeaux. Unfortunately though, not for us. We were hit by not one but two hailstorms in May that year, around two weeks apart. This was after the second storm, and we took the full whack.

25 May 2009
Georgie with a handful of May hailstones in the garden.

26 May 2009
Trying to put a brave face on it with the freshly ravaged Sémillon.

13 May 2009
Vineyard manager Daniel, with a young consultant, and Palmer, our lab, looking at the battered vines along the drive. (‘Technically speaking, I think these are f*cked’.)

A reminder that it can always be worse.

Onwards and upwards.