“Vines, speak to us, please!” might be the clarion call of the Bordeaux wine establishment at the moment.

I’m just back from a brief immersion in this year’s en primeur campaign, during which samples of the latest vintage were shown to thousands of traders from around the world and scores of commentators. The most common word to describe these embryonic 2022s? “Surprising.” Just what was going on in the millions of Merlot and Cabernet vines growing in the Gironde department?

Last summer was scorching in France, especially the south-west, with temperatures way above average throughout the growing season. Wildfires broke out in the Bordeaux region. Even more testing for vignerons, there was no rain from the beginning of July until late August, and rainfall totals were seriously below average every month except June. One would expect the wines that resulted from these sub-Saharan conditions to taste soupy and as broiled as an Arcachon surfer.