I am again back at you with one of most fluid passions, wines. Of course not just any wine but the Médoc! And not just Bordeaux as if you have read my blog should know it is a genetic name covering a very large area north south, east of the city of Bordeaux! My favs are the Médoc! I am updating this older post with new text and links for you and me, Of course, this post will be in my black and white series, no pictures, Therefore, let me tell you briefly on the wines of the Médoc, Bordeaux !!! Hope you enjoy the post as I.
The Médoc is in the Gironde department 33 of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region. There are three parts to it: Bas-Médoc, Haut-Médoc and Landes, and two terroirs, the famous Médoc vineyard along the estuary, and Landes du Médoc towards the ocean. The coast is dotted with small seaside resorts: Soulac, Montalivet, Carcans, Hourtin or Lacanau, (see posts) ,which is wonderful and many times with the family here. The Médoc vineyard includes the following appellations: Médoc, Haut-Médoc, Saint-Estèphe, Pauillac, Saint -Julien, Listrac-Médoc, Moulis-en-Médoc and Margaux. Of course, the best in the world !!! At precisely the 45th parallel, with both micro-properties and vast wine estates, the temperate oceanic climate here encourages vine growth. The red grapes are about 66% Merlot, 22,5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9,5% Cabernet Franc, 2% others, ( Carménère, Malbec, and Petit Verdot), The white grapes are about 45% Sémillon, 43% Sauvignon Blanc, 5¨% Muscadelle, 7% others,(Colombard, Merlot Blanc, Sauvignon Gris, and Ugni Blanc) You have here some other classifications from the famous 1855, this when Napoléon III in the Universal Exposition of Paris asked for each wine region to establish a classification, The Crus Bourgeois AOC Du Médoc :The crus bourgeois are gathered in a list by the Bordeaux brokers, under the aegis of the Bordeaux Chamber of Commerce and the Gironde Chamber of Agriculture in 1932. And the classication of the Crus Artisans du Médoc. 36 AOC crus artisans. In Médoc, the name crus artisans has existed for over 150 years: these small wine estates often belonged to artisans: coopers, wheelwrights or farriers.
I like to give a brief rundown of some of my favorites properties over the years, (see Mouton-Rothschilds post),
The Château de Beychevelle. In the 17C, ships lowered their sails , bécha véla, in Gascon in honor of the owner, the Duke of Epernon, Grand Admiral of France and Governor of Guyenne. By the greatest of luck, its label adorned with a griffin-bow ship recalls the dragon boat, a sacred emblem in China.Located in Saint-Julien-Beychevelle on the D2 road . Located in the AOC Saint-Julien, classified fourth grand cru in the 1855 classification. Over 250 hectares wirh 90 ha of vines of the Grands Millésimes de France property, owned equally by the French spirits groups Castel and Japanese Suntory. The first castle was built in 1565 .The castle was rebuilt in 1757 by the Marquis de Brassier de Brudot. The family of Brassier, baron of Beychevelle, will give its first letters of marque to the wine of Beychevelle during the 18C. The the banker Armand Heine gave it to his daughter, Marie-Louise, who will marry Achille Fould. It is then that the dynasty of the Achille Fould family from 1890, and over three generations with in particular Aymar Achille-Fould, will be at the origin of Beychevelle’s prestige. In 1986, on the latter’s death, the GMF and Suntory bought the entire estate from the Achille-Fould family .Beychevelle is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful castles and parks in Bordeaux.
The Suntory Group also own Château Lagrange, 3rd classified growth, these two, the only ones not managed by a family. With its quadruple-column porch, the current building dates from 1824. It was built by one of Branaire’s descendants, Louis Duluc, who together with his brother Justin participated in the fame of the estate and its classification in 1855. They are the fourth family of owners . François Xavier Maroteaux now manages the Château Branaire-Ducru on behalf of their family group. A vineyard with a majority of Cabernet Sauvignon (65%), Merlot (28%), Petit Verdot (5%) and Cabernet Franc (4%). The four noble grape varieties of Saint-Julien. New projects are being undertaken, including the construction of a 100% gravity-fed cellar with 65 tanks. But, he is also the spokesperson for his peers. Elected to the post left vacant by his father as President of the Syndicat viticole de Saint-Julien , where decisions are taken unanimously, each counting as one vote, regardless of its size,
The Château Gloria was born artificially from this puzzle of prestigious lands. As a castle, a locality, the row of workers’ houses called “Gloria” at the entrance to the village. In 1982, the family acquired Château Saint-Pierre, a 4th classified growth . With its 17 ha, the smallest of the city/town hall for which the worldwide notoriety of Château Gloria has ironically in the life of the brands long served as a lever. It is so sometimes with names.
Who would have thought that the venerated Château Talbot (107 ha), named in honor of an English constable who took part in the Battle of Castillon in 1453 At Talbot, in the extraordinary kitchen with trompe-l’oeil wood paneling, the plates are stuck to the ceiling. A joke on the part of Nancy Bignon-Cordier and her sister Lorraine Cordier, who died in 2011. Great-granddaughters of Désiré Cordier, they presided over the creation of the second wine, Connétable Talbot, in the 1970s and at the creation of a cellar with concrete beams in the shape of a ramage. Château Talbot was a vacation home for girls. And one of my all time favorites.
Nowadays, a panoramic tower with ultra contemporary lines has replaced the ancient earthenware treasure of Château Gruaud Larose. Highlight of the wine tourism offer of the 2e cru Classé in a rather reserved appellation in this area, the belvedere was inaugurated in 2015. Culminating at 18 meters in height, the mirror-stainless steel building with a glass elevator reflects the variations of the Medoc azure. At a glance, you embrace the 82-hectare vineyard in one piece, but also the panorama extending to the Gironde river. The 17C castle, the cellars and the creamy and fragrant bushes of Gruaud Larose rosebushes created in 2016 in honor of the king of wines and wine of kings. Even further, the paluts or wet meadows along the river. On the west side, the Jalle du Nord and the Port-Bouey farm, where the sheep for grazing graze.
At the age of 27, the grandson of Anthony Barton, 88 years old and youngest son of Lilian Barton Sartorius, is one of the new faces of Saint-Julien with his sister Mélanie. As if the family of Irish origin still relishes the recent pride of Château Léoville Barton’s ,More than two hundred years after the arrival of his grandfather Thomas Barton in 1722 in Bordeaux as a merchant and the acquisition in 1821 by his grandson Hugh Barton of the charming charterhouse of “Langoa” (20 ha of vines) then of the 50 ha opposite which form Léoville Barton, the line is one of the oldest in Saint-Julien. Hired in 1940 as a liaison with the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers, he found his estate in a deplorable state after the Nazi occupation. In Langoa Ronald offers his nephew Anthony Barton to join him with the intention of bequeathing him the estates. Anthony Barton’s Fine Wines, while tending to the vineyards. Lilian joined him in 1978 and now it’s Damien and Mélanie. A beautiful family story where the traditions perpetuated from generation to generation make the style.
Thus, Châterau Léoville Poyferré (80 ha), prestigious 2nd classified growth over which Sara Lecompte Cuvelier has been watching since 2018 following her cousin David Cuvelier. between members of the same family from the Nord who are preparing to celebrate the centenary of the acquisition of the star cru of Saint-Julien. Because let us not forget that with Léoville Barton and Léoville Las Cases (98 ha), the three current Léovilles formed only one in the beginning. In other words, the largest wine estate in the Médoc in the 17C. Knights, marquis, nobility, immense fortune. The French revolution goes through this, forced immigration, requisition by the State, fair division between the heirs who ultimately tear each other apart. Expropriations and quarrels forever get the better of the land and the Charterhouse, split in two. About 3/5 of the former domain and, its original heart. A 55 hectare enclosure surrounded by walls at the exit of the village of Saint-Julien-Beychevelle on the way to Pauillac. Here, closely glued to the Château Latour vineyard, venerated Premier Cru of Pauillac, from which it is separated only by a jalle or small stream, the Grand Vin de Léoville Marquis de Las Cases flourishes. An iconic Médoc, 2e grand cru considered as a 1er. What it probably would have been if family bickering had not played their part in the 19C. But this hybrid status is not to displease; for consumers, Las Cases is a cheaper Premier Cru. For merchants, a 2nd which costs skin and bones.
This is a bit more on the Château Ducru-Beaucaillou, one of my favorites chateaux of the Médoc. The owner Bruno-Eugène Borie presents an extended range. Before, there was Château Ducru-Beaucaillou, the estate’s illustrious first wine. There is now Madame de Beaucaillou, from its Haut-Médoc lands, a fruity initiation wine that should be drunk young, the guarantee of a signature for 10,000 cases per year. And then there is always La Croix Ducru-Beaucaillou, a second, which does not have the name but above all a high-end, powerful, and fragrant cuvée. Next to it, we find Le Petit Ducru, the third wine of the family, whose 2019 present very round and silky tannins. These wines, very precise and very pure, can be consumed now or later. It is technical progress and the production of perfect berries that have given them the possibility of making it. A good range, a nice commercial arsenal indeed! All these changes should be crowned with the erection of a new cellar, XXL size, intended to accommodate the grapes from 105 hectares of vines of which 95 are planted. For the image, there is still the castle, an old Gironde house to which a Directoire façade was added during the 19C, then the park, with its gazebos designed for courteous games and joyful tasting. The interior of the main building has just been redesigned, superb, in tune with the times. It has huge rooms where the works acquired over time by Bruno-Eugène Borie stand. We meet Bacchus and Hermès there!! Gorgeous indeed!
The Château Batailley is a 55 hectare wine estate located in Pauillac in Gironde. Located in
AOC Pauillac, it is classified fifth grand cru in the official classification of Bordeaux wines of 1855. The name of this property comes from the word Battle which took place in 1453 on the vineyards and the Château. It was the 100 years war. During this war, the French reconquered Château Latour which was occupied by the English and which marked the end of the British reign in Aquitaine. In the 17C, vines were planted on these lands rich in history. The grounds of the Château were designed in the 19C by Barillet-Deschamps, landscape designer for Napoleon III. Batailley is a classic Pauillac, with a deep ruby color, well structured and pronounced notes of cassis. It is now owned by Borie-Manoux house of traders.
The Château Prieuré-Lichine, formerly Château Prieuré-Cantenac, is a wine estate located in
Cantenac in Gironde. In AOC margaux, it is classified fourth grand cru in the official classification of Bordeaux wines of 1855. Former priory, the estate was created in the 15C by the Benedictine monks of the Abbey of Saint-Pierre de Vertheuil. Confiscated and put up for sale during the French revolution, the Château Prieuré-Cantenac passed into the hands of many families before being bought in 1951 by
Alexis Lichine, who renamed the estate two years later. Alexis Lichine, of American-Russian origin, is known to be the author of the Encyclopedia of Wines and Spirits. He endowed his wine with new terroirs, modernized the existing facilities and renovated the estate. When he died in 1989, his son took over the estate until 1999, when the Ballande family took over.
The official wines of Bordeaux on the Médoc : https://www.bordeaux.com/us/Our-Terroir
The Bordeaux tourist office on a day in the Médoc : https://www.bordeaux-tourism.co.uk/6-wine-regions-bordeaux/day-medoc
The local Médoc Atlantique tourist office on wines of Médoc : https://www.medoc-atlantique.co.uk/activities/tasting-the-wines-of-medoc/
There you go folks, the Médoc is unique . A wonderful area for sights, beaches, and of course, the wine, A must while in or around Bordeaux, Again, hope you enjoy the post on the wines of the Médoc, Bordeaux !!! as I.
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 