Even though the growers of St.-Estèphe are consciously trying to make a more supple style of wine, the wines of this region generally remain among the most backward and unyielding produced in Bordeaux. Part of the explanation is the soil. There is less gravel in St.-Estèphe, and there is a higher clay content. Consequently the drainage is slower. The resulting wines are relatively higher in acidity and lower in pH, and their textures are chunkier and more burly than, for example, wines made from vineyards planted in the light, gravelly soil of Margaux and Graves. However, this clay is beneficial in extremely hot drought years, such as was 1970. Moisture retention is better than the gravel beds farther south, and St.-Estèphe can soar in quality in such vintages as 1990.
At present, virtually everyone agrees that Cos d’Estournel is making this commune’s most popular wine, particularly since the early 1980s. Coincidentally, it is also the first châteaux one sees when crossing the Pauillac boundary into St.-Estèphe. The eccentric pagoda-styled château sits on a ridge overlooking the gardens and château of Pauillac’s famous Lafite Rothschild. Several recent vintages, particularly the 2001, 1996, 1995, 1990, 1986, 1985, and 1982, would even suggest that Cos d’Estournel has first-growth aspirations. Cos d’Estournel’s wine represents a brilliant combination of modern technology and respect for tradition. It is a wine supple enough to drink by age five or six, but made to age and improve for as many as 10–25 years.
The chief rivals to Cos d’Estournel are Montrose and Calon-Ségur. Montrose is hidden on one of St.-Estèphe’s tiny back roads, closer to the Gironde River. Until the mid-1970s, Montrose made one of Bordeaux’s biggest, deepest, and slowest-maturing wines. Many Bordelais compared it to Latour because of its weight and richness, in addition to its close geographical proximity to the river. During the mid-1980s, Montrose curiously lightened its style, but fortunately this flirtation with a more commercial style was short-lived. Vintages of Montrose still need a good 15–20 years to shed their cloak of tannin. The profound 1990 and 1989 Montrose represent a return to the style that made Montrose among the most heralded wines of the Médoc during much of this century. These reassuringly profound wines were followed by great classics in 1996 and 2000.
Potentially as complex and complete as any St.-Estèphe, as well as just about any Médoc, is Calon-Ségur, the white-walled château just outside the village of St.-Estèphe. When Calon-Ségur does everything right, as it did in 2000, 1996, 1995, 1982, 1953, 1947, 1929, 1926, and 1921, one cannot find a better Bordeaux. But Calon-Ségur has always been unpredictable, and when looking at its wines from the 1980s and 1990s, Calon’s propensity for inconsistency remains as troublesome as ever. Since Madame Capbern Gasqueton assumed full control over the estate following the death of her husband, Calon-Ségur has become more consistent in quality, while also representing excellent value.
Lafon-Rochet continues to improve, moving toward a more accessible, friendlier wine than the solid, tannic, backward style of wine that fanciers of hard, tough St.-Estèphe wines found so authentic in the 1970s and 1980s. The fifth-growth Cos Labory, once this commune’s most overrated wine, has rebounded nicely, with recent vintages showing improvement in quality.
One of the great attractions of St.-Estèphe is the glorious number of expertly made Cru Bourgeois wines, some of which merit elevation to classified growths.
Haut-Marbuzet, for openers, makes a splendid wine, flamboyantly spicy and oaky, and filled with the flavors and aromas of black currants. If one were to mistake it for a classified growth, I would not be surprised. Phelan Ségur is enjoying a renaissance and is a wine that lasts nearly as long as any wine of St.-Estèphe. Shrewd collectors are now beating a path to this property’s wines, but the quality in the late 1990s was surprisingly inconsistent. Meyney is another of St.-Estèphe’s reliable Cru Bourgeois properties. Superbly located north of Montrose near the river, Meyney is a large producer, and its reliability for big, rich, deep, fine wines makes this St.-Estèphe a wine to seek out, although vintages in the late 1990s were largely indifferent.
Perhaps the two Crus Bourgeois that bear watching the closest are de Pez and its neighbor, Les Ormes de Pez. De Pez is now owned by the Roederer champagne firm, and significant investments were made in the late 1990s. This is an ancient property (once part of the estate of the 17th-century Pontacs, who also owned Haut-Brion) that has considerable potential, although in 2003, much of it still remains unrealized.
Les Ormes de Pez is owned by the Cazes family of Lynch-Bages. This has always been an extremely reliable wine, juicy, fat, succulent, and fairly priced. Shrewd consumers have been stockpiling it away for decades.
St.-Estèphes are not wines to look for and buy in mediocre or poor Bordeaux vintages. The best performers in off-vintages are Cos d’Estournel, Montrose, and Haut-Marbuzet. However, the great vintages for this region are ones in which there are plenty of sunshine and heat, and all the grapes, particularly the Merlot, become fully mature. For these reasons, vintages such as 2000, 1996, 1995, 1990, 1989, 1986, 1982, 1970, 1961, and 1959 are superlative years for St.-Estèphe. Excessively hot and dry years, which can stress the vineyards planted on light, gravelly soil, are frequently outstanding vintages in the heavier soils of St.-Estèphe. Both 1990 and 1989, two of the hottest and driest vintages this century, are convincing case studies. Remember, the soils of this region are less porous, and so drainage is not as good as in other Médoc appellations. Vintages where there was abundant rainfall are frequently less successful in St.-Estèphe than in nearby St.-Julien or Margaux. For example, 1999, 1997, 1987, 1983, and 1980 were more successful in other Médoc appellations. An important factor for the success of the vintage in St.-Estèphe is a healthy, very ripe Merlot crop, which helps cut the normally higher than average acidity and tannins of St.-Estèphe’s wines. The years 2000, 1998, 1995, 1990, 1989, 1982, 1976, and 1970 all favored the Merlot grape, and as a consequence, St.-Estèphe produced numerous outstanding wines.
St.-Estèphe wines, as the least glamorous wines of the famous Médoc, offer excellent wine values. This applies not only to the famous classified growths, but also to the appellation’s excellent array of Cru Bourgeois wines.
ST.-ESTÈPHE
(An Insider’s View)
Overall Appellation Potential: Average to superb
The Most Potential for Aging: Calon-Ségur, Cos d’Estournel, Montrose
The Most Elegant: Cos d’Estournel
The Most Concentrated: Calon-Ségur, Cos d’Estournel, Montrose
The Best Value: Lafon-Rochet, Meyney, Les Ormes de Pez, Petit Bocq
The Most Exotic: Haut-Marbuzet
The Most Difficult to Understand (when young): Calon-Ségur
The Most Underrated: Calon-Ségur, Lafon-Rochet
The Easiest to Appreciate Young: Haut-Marbuzet, Les Ormes de Pez, Petit Bocq
Up-and-Coming Estates: Lafon-Rochet, Cos Labory
Greatest Recent Vintages: 2000, 1996, 1995, 1990, 1989, 1986, 1982, 1961, 1959
ST.-ESTÈPHE—AN OVERVIEW
Location: The most northern of the four principal Médoc appellations, St.-Estèphe is on the left bank of the Gironde River, approximately 28 miles north of the city of Bordeaux
Acres Under Vine: 3,404
Communes: St.-Estèphe
Average Annual Production: 765,000 cases
Classified Growths: Total of 5:2 second-growths, 1 third-growth, 1 fourth-growth, and 1 fifth-growth; there are 43 Crus Bourgeois
Principal Grape Varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot dominate, with Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot used in small proportions
Principal Soil Type: Diverse soils; the finest vineyards are on gravel ridges, but sandy and clay soils with some limestone are commonplace
A CONSUMER’S CLASSIFICATION OF THE CHÂTEAUX OF ST.-ESTÈPHE
OUTSTANDING
Calon-Ségur, Cos d’Estournel, Montrose
EXCELLENT
None
VERY GOOD
Haut-Marbuzet, Lafon-Rochet, Les Ormes de Pez
GOOD
Chambert-Marbuzet, Cos Labory, Coutelin-Merville, Lavillotte, Meyney, Petit Bocq, de Pez, Phelan Ségur, Tronquoy-Lalande
OTHER NOTABLE ST.-ESTÈPHE PRODUCERS
Andron Blanquet, Beau-Site, Bel Air, Le Boscq, Capbern Gasqueton, Cave Coopérative Marquis de St.-Estèphe, La Commanderie, Le Crock, Haut-Beauséjour, Haut-Coteau, Château La Haye, Houissant, Marbuzet, Pomys, Ségur de Cabanac, Tour de Marbuzet, Tour de Pez, Tour des Termes, Valrose, Vieux Coutelin
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: SCE Domaines Audoy
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 30 22; Telefax: 05 56 59 73 52
E-mail: cos-labory@wanadoo.fr
No visits
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 39.5 acres
Grape varietals: 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc
Average age of vines: 30 years
Density of plantation: 8,700 vines per hectare
Average yields: 50 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Fermentation at 30°C in temperature-controlled epoxy-lined concrete tanks with frequent but short pumping-overs. Maceration of 25 days. Aging in barrels for 14 months with 25% new oak. Fining, no filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Andron Blanquet: 70,000 bottles
Château Saint-Roc: 36,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 3–8 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
Despite its enviable location near Lafite Rothschild and Cos d’Estournel, this estate produces wines that are mediocre at their worst and so-so at their best, regardless of vintage conditions. One can find many Crus Bourgeois of a higher level than Andron Blanquet, and at fairer prices.
Andron Blanquet should produce better wine. The vineyard, which is close to those of Lafite Rothschild in neighboring Pauillac and the famous Cos d’Estournel in St.-Estèphe, is located on a plateau of gravelly soil that is considered to be slightly warmer than other microclimates in St.-Estèphe. The wine is vinified properly, with a relatively long maceration period, yet Andron Blanquet consistently lacks concentration, character, and charm. The institution of a second wine at the request of the oenologist and proprietor, Bernard Audoy, may lead to better quality.
Classification: Cru Bourgeois Exceptionnel
Owner: Castéja family
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Mailing Address: c/o Domaines Borie Manoux, 86, cours Balguerie-Stuttenberg, 33000Bordeaux
Telephone: 05 56 00 00 70; Telefax: 05 57 87 48 61
E-mail: borie-manoux@dial.oleane.com
Visits: By appointment only
Contact: Domaines Borie-Manoux
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 93.9 acres
Grape varietals: 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, 2% Petit Verdot
Average age of vines: 35 years
Density of plantation: 8,300 vines per hectare
Average yields: 54 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Three-week fermentation and maceration in temperature-controlled stainless-steel vats. Eighteen months aging with 40% new oak (the same proportion of the yield undergoes malolactics in barrel). Fining, no filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Beau-Site: 200,000 bottles
Château Haut Vignoble Seguin: 40,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 3–10 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
This estate, which merits its Cru Bourgeois status, has improved over recent years, but its wines remain rather austere. However, the quality/price ratio is interesting.
The lovely, well-situated Château Beau-Site was acquired by the well-known Bordelais family of Emile Castéja in 1955. The main part of the vineyard is situated on a plateau overlooking the Gironde River near the village of St.-Corbian. Beau-Site should be an excellent wine, but its performance in the 1960s and 1970s was spotty. Did the high percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon result in a wine that was too often tannic and tough? Whatever the reason, the decisions to harvest later and to utilize 40% new oak casks (with some malolactic in barrel) have all produced increasingly more supple and popular wines in the 1980s and 1990s. Nevertheless, this is still a fickle St.-Estèphe, with an abundance of tannin, although now the tannins are riper and smoother.
The wines of Beau-Site are distributed exclusively through the négociant firm of Borie-Manoux.
Classification: Third growth in 1855
Owner: GFA Calon-Ségur
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 30 08; Telefax: 05 56 59 71 51
Visits: By appointment only
Contact: Denise Capbern Gasqueton
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 130.9 acres
Grape varietals: 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc
Average age of vines: 35 years
Average yields: 40 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Prolonged fermentation (3 weeks) in temperature-controlled stainless-steel vats. Part of the yield undergoes malolactics in barrel. Aging in barrels for 18 months with 50% new oak. Fining, no filtration. Most of the Merlot is given malolactic fermentation in barrel.
WINES PRODUCED
Calon-Ségur: 240,000 bottles
Marquis de Calon: 40,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 8–30 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
Calon-Ségur has produced wines of first-growth quality from the 1920s to the beginning of the 1960s. After a period of slump, it came back on track in the 1990s, with profound wines in 1995, 1996, and 2000. Prices are reasonable, so much so that Calon is often considered as one of the best buys of the Médoc. However, quality is not always regular and it is advisable to be cautious when picking a vintage.
Situated on a bed of sandy gravel and iron-enriched limestone in the northernmost reaches of the commune of St.-Estèphe is Calon-Ségur, the most northerly classified growth. Like its nearby neighbor, Château Montrose, there is a live-in owner, the no-nonsense, suffer-no-fools Madame Capbern Gasqueton. The white château of Calon-Ségur dominates the landscape, with its two towers that have unusually rounded roofs. Surrounding the château is a stone wall, or clos, which, while common in Burgundy, is unusual for Bordeaux.
The history of Calon-Ségur dates back to Roman times, when the commune of St.-Estèphe was known as “Calones.” Notoriety as a wine-producing estate is no doubt enhanced by the famous 18th-century quotation attributed to the Marquis de Ségur, who surprised friends with his statement, “I make my wine at Lafite and Latour, but my heart is in Calon.” His emotional attachment to Calon has been immortalized with a heart on Calon’s label (the perfect gift for Valentine’s Day).
For much of the 20th century, Calon-Ségur did everything right, often producing wines that were every bit as compelling as the first-growths. There were extraordinary efforts in 1929, 1928, and 1926, and in the dismal decade of the 1930s a fine 1934 was produced. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, few properties in Bordeaux could match the stunning successes that Calon-Ségur enjoyed in 1953, 1949, 1948, 1947, and 1945. Following 1953, there was not another truly profound wine produced at Calon-Ségur until 1982. They were not bad, but even the top years during the 1960s and 1970s tended to turn out wines that were slightly oxidized, with tired fruit and sometimes musty, old-wood flavor, as well as excessive, astringent tannins. The feeling by knowledgeable insiders in Bordeaux was that bringing up the wine in the cellars—the so-called élevage—was suspect, the wines were bottled too late, and the racking and cleanliness of the old barrels was often handled in a casual, if not indifferent, manner.
Since 1982 Calon-Ségur has regained its form, turning out fine wines in 1990, 1989, and 1988, and prodigious wines in 2000, 1996, and 1995. This great historic estate, seemingly directionless in the 1970s, has come back strongly and, while totally different in style, the wines are capable of challenging Cos d’Estournel and Montrose. Madame Gasqueton (and before his death, her husband) would argue that of all the St.-Estèphes, Calon-Ségur remains the most faithful to the traditional style of long-lived wines that are slow to evolve and blossom. In that sense, she is correct, and traditionalists would be well advised to consider the recent efforts of this beautifully situated, historically significant estate that is the last (geographically speaking) of the classified growths in the famed 1855 classification.
IMPORTANT VINTAGES
ANCIENT VINTAGES
Between 1960 and 1981, most vintages were largely disappointing except for the 1966 and 1975. Largely forgotten today, Calon-Ségur has one of the greatest terroirs in Bordeaux. This property made extraordinary wines in the 1920s, 1940s, and early 1950s. The 1953, 1949, 1947, 1945, 1929, 1928, 1926, and 1924 can be exquisite wines. I have heard that the 1953 (96 points; last tasted 10/94) was sumptuous even before it reached 10 years of age. When drunk from magnum, the wine was a classic example of the glorious fragrance and velvety richness this vintage achieved. While most Calon-Ségurs possess a hefty degree of tannin, this wine offers a glorious concoction of cedar, sweet jammy fruit, full body, and remarkable intensity without the husky roughness Calon-Ségur can display. Although the color exhibits noticeable amber at the edge, this wine remains in magnificent condition.
The 1945 Calon-Ségur (90 points; last tasted 12/95) is a powerful, dense, dark garnet–colored wine with plenty of earth, mineral, and black fruits in its nose. Although tannin is still present, this is a formidably concentrated, thick, hugely extracted, amazingly youthful wine. It can be drunk now or cellared for another 25–30 years. The most opulent, generous, and decadent Calon-Ségur I have ever tasted is the 1947 (96 points; last tasted 7/97). It revealed considerable amber and rust in its color, but the sweet, jammy nose of fruitcake, cedar, and colossal quantities of unctuously textured black fruits is the stuff of legend. Thick and rich, with more glycerin, fruit, and alcohol than tannin, this is a juicy, fat wine that has been fully mature for 20+ years. It exhibited no signs of decline or fruit loss. I have experienced bottle variation with the 1949 Calon-Ségur (94 points; last tasted 12/95), ranging from bottles that were slightly austere and undernourished, to those that were superb. This bottle was an outstanding example. It did not possess the weight, unctuosity, and thickness of the 1947, or the power, youthfulness, and muscle of the 1945. It revealed considerable amber at the edge of its dark garnet color. The nose displayed a Médoc-like, cedar, spice, currant, mineral, and damp forest scent. medium-to full-bodied, with high tannin, excellent concentration, and an element of overripe fruit, this was an impressive, fully mature Calon-Ségur that can be drunk now or cellared for another 10–20 years.
The decade of the 1920s was a legendary one for Calon-Ségur. The 1928 (96 points; last tasted 12/95) revealed an opaque garnet color with a coffee-like look at the edge. Late-harvest-like in the nose, with a plummy, Asian spice, leather, and molasses-like aromas and flavors, this thick, extremely sweet, rich, full-bodied wine is astonishingly intense. It is all glycerin, richness, and intensity, with no hard edges, making one a true believer of the extraordinary longevity of Bordeaux’s greatest wines. This may be the greatest ancient vintage of Calon-Ségur, although the 1926 is a close rival.
The 1926 (94 points; last tasted 12/95) is not a wine for modern-day oenologists. The color is mainly orange/rust with some ruby remaining. Noticeable volatile acidity blows off within several minutes. The sweet, plummy, cedary, roasted nut, and clove nose is followed by a surprisingly sweet wine, with fine ripeness and chewy glycerin. The well-balanced finish is long, authoritative, and generous. Although the feeble color suggests a degree of decrepitude, such is not the case.
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: GFA des Vignobles H. Duboscq et fils
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 30 54; Telefax: 05 56 59 70 87
E-mail: henriduboscq@hotmail.com
Visits: By appointment only
Contact: Alfred Teixeira
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 17.3 acres
Grape varietals: 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot
Average age of vines: 25 years
Density of plantation: 8,300 vines per hectare
Average yields: 50 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Three-week fermentation and 28-day maceration in temperature-controlled concrete tanks with micro-oxygenation of the lees. Aging in oak barrels that are renewed by a third each year. No fining, no filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Chambert-Marbuzet: 48,000 bottles
No second wine is produced.
Plateau of maturity: Within 2–8 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
This Cru Bourgeois is worth its status, producing wines that are generally of good quality. However, do not expect Chambert-Marbuzet to be a great or long-lived wine.
The talented and flamboyant Henri Duboscq, proprietor of the better-known Château Haut-Marbuzet in St.-Estèphe, is also the owner of this small estate located near the village of Marbuzet. It was acquired by the Duboscq family in 1962. Like Haut-Marbuzet, the vinification consists of a relatively high fermentation temperature, a long cuvaison, the bringing up of the wine in at least 50% new oak casks, and the avoidance of any type of filtration at the time of bottling. The wines of Chambert-Marbuzet have exhibited rich fruit, married with abundant, sometimes excessive quantities of toasty new oak. They are easy to understand and drink. If Chambert-Marbuzet is to be criticized at all, it would be because at times the wine can be entirely too obvious, and their potential to age beyond a decade is suspect. Nevertheless, the quality is reasonably high, and the wine enjoys increasing popularity.
IMPORTANT VINTAGES
The best recent vintages have been the fully mature 1989 and 1990.
Classification: Second-growth in 1855
Owner: Domaines Reybier
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 73 15 50; Telefax: 05 56 59 72 59
E-mail: estournel@estournel.com
Website: www.estournel.com
Visits: By appointment only
Contact: Jean-Guillaume Prats
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 158 acres
Grape varietals: 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 38% Merlot and 2% Cabernet Franc
Average age of vines: 35 years
Density of plantation: 8,000 to 10,000 vines per hectare
Average yields: 50 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Three-week maceration in double-lined temperature-controlled stainless-steel tanks. Eighteen months aging in casks with 80% new oak. Fining, no filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Cos d’Estournel: 250,000 bottles
Pagodes de Cos: 120,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 10–30 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
A famed estate indeed, Cos d’Estournel has unquestionably produced some excellent wines during the 1980s and until the mid-1990s, when it was well worth a first growth. Today, though Cos is still good, it is not as consistent as one would expect a growth of its pedigree to be, and vintages from 1997 onward have been inferior to their predecessors, exhibiting slightly green and vegetal characteristics. Prices are high in view of the quality. The other St.-Estèphe crus classés represent better value/price ratios. The 2001 vintage should represent a return to the glory years.
Until it was sold in the mid-1990s to the group BernardTaillan SA, who resold it to Swiss magnate Michel Reybier, Cos d’Estournel (pronounced, surprisingly, with a sounded “oss” in Cos) had risen to the top of its class in St.-Estèphe under the inspired direction of Bruno Prats. Between 1982 and 1996, the wines had gone from one strength to another, and in most vintages Cos d’Estournel could be expected to produce one of the Médoc’s finest wines. This château, which resembles an Asian pagoda, sits on a ridge immediately north of the Pauillac border, looking down on its famous neighbor, Lafite Rothschild. Atypically for a Médoc, Cos is distinguished by the high percentage of Merlot used in the blend—40%—and the elevated use of new oak casks—60–100%. This proportion of Merlot is among the highest used in the Haut-Médoc and also accounts for the fleshy, richly textured character so noticeable in recent vintages of Cos d’Estournel. Bruno Prats, the manager and owner until the late 1990s, belonged to the avant-garde of new wine technology. This is one of the few major Bordeaux estates that was adamantly in favor of filtration of wine, both before cask aging and bottling. However, Prats had second thoughts, as he decided to eliminate the second filtration prior to the bottling of the 1989. In 2002, his son, the estate manager Jean-Guillaume Prats, eschews any filtration. The results speak for themselves—Cos d’Estournel, after having to play runner-up to Montrose in the 1950s and 1960s, emerged in the 1980s as one of the most popular wines in Bordeaux. Readers should also note that Cos d’Estournel has been particularly successful in difficult vintages, for example, 1993, 1992, and 1991. In spite of the changes in ownership in the late 1990s, this estate remains impeccably managed.
IMPORTANT VINTAGES
ANCIENT VINTAGES
Cos d’Estournel was largely a disappointment between 1964 and 1981. The best vintage was 1970, now tiring. The 1953 (93 points; last tasted 10/94), most recently drunk from magnums, is a classic example of the vintage, displaying a huge, fragrant, flowery, berry-scented nose. The 1928 (rated 95) can be outrageously sweet and delicious, but readers would have to drink it from a pristinely kept bottle.
Classification: Fifth Growth in 1855
Owner: SCE Domaines Audoy
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 30 22; Telefax: 05 56 59 73 52
E-mail: cos-labory@wanadoo.fr
Visits: By appointment Monday to Friday, 9 A.M.–to noon and 2–5 P.M.
Contact: Bernard or Martial Audoy
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 44.5 acres
Grape varietals: 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc
Average age of vines: 35 years
Density of plantation: 8,700 vines per hectare
Average yields: 55 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Fermentations at 29–30°C in temperature-controlled stainless-steel tanks of 150-hectoliter capacity with frequent pumping-overs. Maceration lasts 20–30 days. Twelve to fifteen months aging in barrels with 40% new oak. Fining, no filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Cos Labory: 65,000 bottles
Le Charme Labory: 45,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 5–12 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
Since the beginning of the 1990s, Cos Labory has improved. No longer producing mediocre wines, Cos Labory’s recent efforts are compatible with its fifth-growth status. Reasonable prices rank them amongst some of the most interesting values of the Médoc.
For decades one of the most disappointing of all the classified growths, Cos Labory has emerged over the last 10 years as a property well worth tasting as well as visiting. The resurrection of quality began with excellent wines in 1989 and 1990 and has continued through the 2000 vintage, although many of the vintages of the 1990s have provided raw materials that were far less promising than those Mother Nature provided in 1989 and 1990. The wine is now a well-made, deeply colored, rich, muscular, and tannic St.-Estèphe. A stricter selection by proprietor Bernard Audoy, malolactic fermentation in barrel, and bottling the wine without filtration have all helped to significantly elevate the quality of Cos Labory.
IMPORTANT VINTAGES
ANCIENT VINTAGES
My experience with the better vintages in the 1970s and 1980s has been disappointing.
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: Domaines Cuvelier
Address: Marbuzet, 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 57 77 11 50; Telefax: 05 56 86 57 16
E-mail: cuvelier.bordeaux@wanadoo.fr
Website: cuvelier-bordeaux.com
Visits: By appointment only
Contact: Isabelle Davin
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 79 acres
Grape varietals: 55.7% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26.6% Merlot, 12.9% Cabernet Franc
Average age of vines: 38 years
Density of plantation: 7,900 vines per hectare
Average yields: 54 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Three-week fermentation and maceration in concrete and stainless-steel temperature-controlled tanks. Eighteen to twenty months aging in oak barrels that are renewed by a third at each vintage. Fining, no filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Le Crock: 130,000 bottles
Château La Croix St.-Estèphe: 70,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 5–12 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
Le Crock is worth its Cru Bourgeois status, but no more. The wines are generally tannic and hard, quite austere, and priced much in the same way as many better Crus Bourgeois.
This attractive, two-story château, located south of the village of St.-Estèphe, has been owned by the Cuvelier family since 1903. While the superbly situated château—which sits on a hill overlooking a lake usually inhabited by numerous swans—is a site even the most jaded photographer could hardly ignore, the wines have rarely been exciting. The high percentage of Merlot used would seemingly insure plenty of flesh and suppleness, but my experience with the wines of Le Crock indicates they are entirely too tannic and tough textured and often give the impression of being severe and excessively austere.
There is nothing to criticize about the attention given by the Cuvelier family to the vineyard and the modern vinification. Nevertheless, the wines of Le Crock generally seem to lack fruit, although they are certainly full-bodied, dense wines capable of lasting 10–12 years.
IMPORTANT VINTAGES
Since 1982, the only vintage to merit a score above 86 was the rich, fully mature 1990.
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: GFA des Vignobles H. Duboscq et fils
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 30 54; Telefax: 05 56 59 70 87
E-mail: henriduboscq@hotmail.com
Visits: By appointment only
Contact: Alfred Teixeira
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 143.3 acres
Grape varietals: 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc
Average age of vines: 30 years
Density of plantation: 8,300 vines per hectare
Average yields: 45 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Three-week fermentation and maceration in temperature-controlled concrete and wooden tanks with bleeding of about 10% and daily pumping-overs. Aging in 100% new oak barrels. No fining, no filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Haut-Marbuzet: 360,000 bottles
Mac Carthy: 60,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 3–15 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
Two decades ago, Haut-Marbuzet, a pioneer in terms of new oak aging, ranked amongst the most exotic Bordeaux. Today, most wines are treated in this manner and have greatly improved, so Haut-Marbuzet is no longer considered an exception. However, this wine has its followers. Personally, I consider it as being of fourth- or third-growth level, even if the more recent vintages tend to show some aggressive woody characteristics. It also represents a good value in today’s marketplace.
Haut-Marbuzet is one of the oldest estates in St.-Estèphe, but fame can be traced only to 1952, when it was purchased by the father of the current proprietor, Henri Duboscq. The vineyard is beautifully situated facing the Gironde River, on a gradual slope of gravelly soil intermixed with calcareous clay. Duboscq, a flamboyant personality who tends to describe his wines by making analogies to the body parts of prominent female movie stars, has created one of the most immensely popular wines of Bordeaux, particularly in France, Belgium, Holland, and England, where the great majority of Haut-Marbuzet is sold. He believes in late harvesting, thereby bringing in grapes that are nearly bursting with ripeness, macerating them for at least three weeks and then aging the entire crop for 18 months in 100% new oak barrels. Indeed, his methods result in an intense, opulent, and lavish fruitiness, with a rich, spicy, exotic bouquet. To the wine enthusiast, Haut-Marbuzet produces one of the most obvious yet sexiest wines of the entire Bordeaux region.
Some Duboscq critics have charged that his winemaking style borders on vulgarity, but he would argue that the new oak simply adds a charm and unctuous quality to the traditional muscular, tough texture that emerges from so many wines made in St.-Estèphe. Other critics have suggested that Haut-Marbuzet fails to age gracefully. While the wine is usually delicious when released, my tastings of old vintages back through 1961 have generally indicated that Haut-Marbuzet is best when drunk within the first 10–15 years of life.
Despite the criticisms, no one argues with the success proprietor Duboscq has enjoyed. He produces a Bordeaux that behaves more like a decadent Burgundy or Rhône.
IMPORTANT VINTAGES
2001 |
The 2001 Haut-Marbuzet reveals copious quantities of sweet black fruits inter mixed with lavish quantities of toasty oak and earth. Spicy and savory, with more vibrancy to its fruit than usual and a medium-bodied, moderately long finish, it should drink well for 7–8 years. Last tasted, 1/03. |
2000 |
My first tasting of the 2000 Haut-Marbuzet revealed a brutally tannic, out of balance, and disjointed wine. When retasted two months later, the 2000 Haut-Marbuzet was performing at essentially the same level as the 2001. It was just more textured and fatter, but qualitatively no better. Last tasted, 1/03. |
1999 |
Opaque purple with better integrated wood than many young Haut-Marbuzets exhibit, this supple-textured, medium- to full-bodied 1999 is loaded with jammy black fruits, spicy wood, herbs, and cedar. Attractive and seductive, it will drink well for a decade. Last tasted, 3/02. |
1998 |
Medium weight, with a noticeable overlay of spicy new oak, this wine has rounded out in the bottle. Relatively soft, with notes of charcoal, strawberry/cherry fruit, and cedar, it is evolving quickly and requires consumption over the next decade. Last tasted, 3/01. |
1997 |
While good, the 1997 Haut-Marbuzet is not up to the château’s usual standards. This aggressively woody wine reveals a hollow mid-section, but it does offer soft, ripe, coffee, earthy, black cherry fruit presented in a pleasant, medium-bodied format. A bit more concentration, extract, and length would have been preferable. Drink now. Last tasted, 3/02. |
Telltale, lavish, toasty new oak aromas jump from the glass of the dark ruby/purple–colored 1996. Well made, attractive, and boldly wooded, the wine’s rich fruit easily compensates for all the oak. This medium-bodied, spicy, lush, open-knit 1996 will keep for another 5–6 years. Last tasted, 3/01. |
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1995 |
The 1995 reveals gobs of kirsch and coffee in its nose, along with smoky, toasty, oaky notes. Medium bodied, with smoky, black currant fruit, low acidity, good lushness, and a layered palate, this is a hedonistic, accessible Haut-Marbuzet to consume over the next 3–4 years. Last tasted, 3/02. |
1990 |
The fully mature 1990 is a classic, concentrated example of Haut-Marbuzet that needs to be drunk up. The wine displays a dark garnet color followed by a lavishly oaked, vanilla, roasted nut, herb, and sweet, jammy black currant, and olive-scented nose. Rich and opulent, with a thick, chewy texture, low acidity, and gobs of fruit, this hedonistic, decadently oaky, fruity wine will not improve, so why tempt the ill-effects of Father Time? It is the finest Haut-Marbuzet since the fabulous 1982. Anticipated maturity: now–2007. Last tasted, 3/01. |
1989 |
Haut-Marbuzet’s 1989 revealed considerable amber to its color, as well as a pronounced nose of cedar, jammy cherry fruit, seaweed, and spice. The wine tasted fully mature, is low in acidity, round, and sweet, and is just beginning to tire. Anticipated maturity: now. Last tasted, 3/01. |
1988 |
The 1988 was another flashy, seductive, full-bodied, amply endowed, generously oaked wine. The tannins have melted away and the fruit is beginning to fade. The wine still exhibits plenty of extract and size, but requires consumption. Anticipated maturity: now. Last tasted, 3/99. |
1982 |
This wine was one of the most decadent and seductive wines of the vintage between 1984 and 1995. It continues to offer copious quantities of vanilla-tinged, sweet, opulent, black cherry and currant fruit with intriguing aromas of coffee and cedar. Thick, juicy, and succulent, this plush, fat wine is beginning to tire ever so slightly. Intense, with no hard edges, this once-glorious example of Haut-Marbuzet, one of the most consistent and crowd-pleasing wines of the vintage, has finally lost its flamboyant, over-the-top personality. Still delicious, it demands immediate consumption. Anticipated maturity: now. Last tasted, 11/01. |
Classification: Fourth Growth in 1855
Owner: Tesseron family
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 32 06; Telefax: 05 56 59 72 43
E-mail: lafon@lafon-rochet.com
Website: www.lafon-rochet.com
Visits: By appointment Monday to Friday, 9 A.M.–noon and 2–4 P.M.
Contact: Isabelle Noizee
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 103.7 acres
Grape varietals: 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc
Average age of vines: 30 years
Density of plantation: 9,000 vines per hectare
Average yields: 54 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Twenty-one day fermentation in stainless-steel vats. Malolactics and 20 months aging in barrels, with 50% new oak. Fining and filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Lafon-Rochet: 120,000 bottles
Les Pélerins de Lafon-Rochet: 120,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 8–20 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
After a major slump in the 1970s, Lafon-Rochet has improved, especially from 1994 on, the 2000, 1996 and 1995 representing its finest successes to date. The estate now produces wines well worth their fourth-growth status, and sometimes better. Prices remain reasonable.
While this vineyard was ranked fourth growth in the 1855 classification, most observers today argue that the superbly situated Lafon-Rochet (adjacent to both Lafite Rothschild and Cos d’Estournel) should routinely produce wine with more character and flavor than it habitually does. The current owners, the Tesserons, purchased the property in 1959 and began a gradual but significant program to restore the vineyards and the run-down château. Today the estate has been totally renovated, and the new cellars are housed in a bright, almost vulgar, yellow-colored one-story château. Over the last decade, a combination of intelligent, quality-oriented decisions, such as (1) to harvest slightly later, (2) to increase the percentage of new oak, (3) to increase the percentage of Merlot in both the vineyard and the blend, and (4) to make a second wine from weaker vats, has resulted in more impressive first wines.
While Lafon-Rochet produced numerous disappointing wines (given the château’s pedigree) during the 1970s, the efforts made in the 1990s clearly support its position in the 1855 classification.
IMPORTANT VINTAGES
2001 |
If it were not for a pinched, compressed finish, I would have rated this 2001 higher. It offers a dark ruby/purple color, good acidity, medium body, moderate tannin, and a tangy, vivacious personality. Anticipated maturity: 2005–2015. Last tasted, 1/03. |
2000 |
This is a low-acid, black/purple-colored effort displaying a perfumed bouquet of smoke, herbs, leather, incense, and black fruits. Full-bodied, opulent, and viscous, it exhibits plenty of power as well as moderate tannin. A sleeper of the vintage. Anticipated maturity: now–2016. Last tasted, 1/03. |
1999 |
Scents of dried Provençal herbs, spicy new oak, red currants, and a hint of cassis jump from the glass of this dark ruby/plum–colored 1999. Soft and seductive, with cherry and licorice characteristics discernable in the flavors, it can be drunk now and over the next 6–10 years. Last tasted, 3/02. |
A dense purple color is accompanied by a tannic, smoky, concentrated, earthy wine with abundant blackberry and cassis fruit, underbrush, minerals, and a steely character, as well as a powerful, tannic finish. Anticipated maturity: now–2016. Last tasted, 3/02. |
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1997 |
This dark plum–colored, sexy, soft, medium-bodied, low-acid Lafon-Rochet reveals chewy black fruits intermixed with new wood and minerals. Exhibiting good density and ripeness, it is a very good effort in this accessible, drinker-friendly vintage. Anticipated maturity: now–2008. Last tasted, 3/02. |
1996 |
One of the sleepers of the 1996 vintage, Lafon-Rochet has turned out an atypically powerful, rich, and concentrated wine bursting with black currant fruit. The opaque purple color gives way to a medium-to full-bodied, tannic, backward wine with terrific purity, a sweet, concentrated mid-palate, and a long, blockbuster finish. This wine remains one of the finest values from the luxury-priced 1996 vintage and is well worth purchasing by readers who are willing to invest a few years of patience; it should keep for 12–15 years. Anticipated maturity: 2005–2020. Last tasted, 3/02. |
1995 |
Although it has closed down since bottling, this wine is an impressively endowed, rich, sweet, cassis-smelling and -tasting Lafon-Rochet. The wine’s impressively saturated deep ruby/purple color is accompanied by vanilla, earth, and spicy scents, medium to full body, excellent to outstanding richness, and moderate tannin in the powerful, well-delineated finish. Anticipated maturity: now–2018. Last tasted, 4/02. |
1994 |
A breakthrough vintage for this estate, the outstanding 1994 exhibits an opaque purple color, followed by a sweet, pure nose of cassis, new oak, and beef blood. Muscular and massive, with huge body and a boatload of tannin, this wine is crammed with extract and power. It will last for 20–25 years. Anticipated maturity: now–2025. Last tasted, 4/02. |
1993 |
A spicy, green pepper, vegetal component detracted from this dark, opaque-colored wine. While it possesses hard tannin, there is also plenty of fruit (especially for a 1993). The wine is likely to dry out quickly, but those who like a rough-and-tumble style of Bordeaux with plenty of guts and muscle are advised that this wine represents a good value. It will provide a beefy mouthful of claret to consume over the next five years. Last tasted, 1/97. |
1990 |
The 1990, a stunning effort for this property, offers further proof of just how successful 1990 turned out in St.-Estèphe. Very dark ruby with no lightening at the rim and a tightly knit nose of damp earth, olives, and black fruits, this well-endowed wine is a powerful and concentrated Lafon-Rochet. Just beginning to shed its cloak of tannin, this 1990 has force, volume, and increasing suppleness. Anticipated maturity: now–2020. Last tasted, 7/99. |
1989 |
Dark ruby with an intense bouquet of overripe cassis, this chewy, full-bodied wine has some dusty tannin, excellent concentration, and a slightly compressed finish. Anticipated maturity: now–2015. Last tasted, 7/99. |
1988 |
The herbaceous, austere 1988 has medium body, good ripe fruit, and decent harmony. Concentrated for the vintage, this dark ruby–colored wine has some rustic tannin that remains unintegrated. Anticipated maturity: now–2010. Last tasted, 10/00. |
1986 |
On numerous occasions this wine seemed forbiddingly tannic from cask and virtually impossible to evaluate, but it has turned out to be one of the estate’s best wines made during the 1980s. Deep ruby/purple, with a full-intensity, smoky, spicy, rich, curranty bouquet, this full-bodied, powerful, tannic wine lacks finesse, but readers who like big, monolithic, tannic behemoths will appreciate the style. Anticipated maturity: now–2015. Last tasted, 3/98. |
This 1982 is plump, rich, and concentrated, but essentially one-dimensional and simple. It offers thick, jammy fruit, but little complexity. There is some tannin in the finish. My instincts suggest this wine needs to be drunk up over the next 5–10 years. Last tasted, 3/99. |
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: Natexis Banque
Address: Blanquet, 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 71 96; Telefax: 05 56 59 35 97
E-mail: lilian-ladouys@château-lilian-ladouys.com
Website: www.château-lilian-ladouys.com
Visits: By appointment only
Contact: François Peyran (telephone 06 80 01 88 35; telefax 05 56 59 35 97)
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 113.6 acres
Grape varietals: 58% Cabernet Sauvignon, 38% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc
Average age of vines: 40 years
Density of plantation: 8,300 vines per hectare
Average yields: 55 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Twenty-one to thirty-five day long fermentation and maceration boosted with indigenous yeasts at a maximum of 31–33°C in temperature-controlled stainless-steel tanks. One to 18 months aging in barrels that are renewed by a third at each vintage. Racking every three months. Fining with egg whites, light filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Lilian Ladouys: 277,000 bottles
La Devise de Lilian: 69,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 5–15 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
Despite its enviable location (its vineyards are close to those of Cos d’Estournel and Lafite Rothschild), this estate only produces so-so wines that are generally hard, tannic, and lacking in fruit. It can surely do much better, judging by the quality of the 1990s and 1989s. Adventurous readers are advised to be cautious and to drink the better vintages sooner rather than later. Better Crus Bourgeois are available at the same price level.
IMPORTANT VINTAGES
Recent vintages 2001, 2000, 1999, and 1998 cannot be recommended. Readers lucky enough to find any pristine bottles of 1990 and 1989 are advised that these are the only two wines that have excited me.
Classification: Cru Bourgeois Exceptionnel
Owner: Prieur de Meyney SAS
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Mailing Address: Prieur de Meyney SAS, 109, rue Achard, BP 154, 33042 Bordeaux Cedex
Telephone: 05 56 95 53 00; Telefax: 05 56 95 53 01
E-mail: contact@cordier-wines.com
Visits: By appointment and for professionals of the wine trade only
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 126 acres
Grape varietals: 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, 2% Petit Verdot
Average age of vines: 35–40 years
Density of plantation: 9,000 vines per hectare
Average yields: 55 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Twenty to twenty-five day fermentation and maceration at 30–32°C with frequent pumping-overs. Fifteen percent of yield undergoes malolactics in new oak barrels. Twenty months aging. Fining and light filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Meyney: 293,000 bottles
Prieur du Château Meyney: 73,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 8–25 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
In the 1980s, Meyney was easily a fifth-growth in quality, producing superb wines. Since the mid-1990s, the estate appears to be going through a difficult period. Though still worth its Cru Bourgeois status, it does not seem to be as reliable as it was 10–15 years ago.
Meyney, the large vineyard of 126 acres immediately north of Montrose, with a splendid view of the Gironde River, has made notably flavorful, robust wines that offer considerable value to the shrewd consumer looking for quality rather than prestige. The wines have been consistent with some vintages rivaling the Médoc’s classified growths.
The quality during the 1990s declined. At best, Meyney is fairly big styled, with good fruit and excellent aging potential of 20–25 years. Some observers have even commented that Meyney’s distinctive perfume of licorice, prunes, and truffles is caused by a geological aberration; much of the Meyney vineyard sits on an outcropping of iron-enriched blue clay that has never been found elsewhere in the Médoc. Ironically, such soils also exist in Pomerol, particularly underlying the famed vineyard of Château Pétrus. For visitors to St.-Estèphe, Meyney also merits attention, because this is one of the few old ecclesiastical buildings in the Médoc and has been well preserved by its owner, the Cordier firm.
Fortunately for consumers, the wines of Meyney continue to be underpriced. Vinification and upbringing are controlled by one of Bordeaux’s most respected oenologists, Georges Pauli.
IMPORTANT VINTAGES
Note: The late vintages of the 1990s (1996–1999) were not kind to Meyney.
ANCIENT VINTAGES
In 1978, the superb oenologist, Georges Pauli, began to exercise his talents with the making of Meyney. Previously, the wine had a tendency to turn out overly tannic and astringent. Vintages of the 1960s, particularly 1966, 1962, and 1961, are good wines, but not comparable to the super Meyneys of the 1980s. The finest old Meyney I have tasted is the 1959 (rated 86 and drunk most recently in 1987). In the 1970s, only the 1975 (rated 91 in 10/99) proved to be an exceptional wine and a welcome surprise from this irregular vintage.
Classification: Second Growth in 1855
Owner: Jean-Louis Charmolüe
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 30 12; Telefax: 05 56 59 38 48
Visits: By appointment only
Contact: Philippe de Laguarigue
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 169.2 acres
Grape varietals: 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc, 2% Petit Verdot
Average age of vines: 43 years
Density of plantation: 9,000 vines per hectare
Average yields: 42 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Twenty-one to twenty-five day long fermentation and maceration in temperature-controlled stainless-steel tanks with frequent pumping-overs. Malolactics in tanks. Eighteen months aging in barrels with 50–70% new oak with six rackings. Fining with egg whites. No filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Montrose: 200,000 bottles
La Dame de Montrose: 150,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 3–25 years of the vintage post-1970; 15–25 years pre-1970
GENERAL APPRECIATION
Since 1989, Montrose has been the most reliable St.-Estèphe cru classé. Over recent vintages, it has regularly surpassed Cos d’Estournel, its closest rival, and Calon-Ségur, despite the improved quality of the latter wine. A revised classification might even rank it amongst the Médoc first growths. Shrewd buyers would also be well advised to seek its second wine (vintages from 1990 onward).
One of the Médoc’s best-situated vineyards and one of the commune’s most impeccably clean and well-kept cellars, Montrose was for years associated with huge, dense, powerful wines that needed several decades of cellaring to be soothing enough to drink. For example, Jean Paul Jauffret, the former head of Bordeaux’s CIVB, served me the 1908 Montrose in 1982, blind, to see if I could guess its age. The wine had plenty left in it and tasted like it was at least 30 years younger.
The owner, the affable Jean-Louis Charmolüe, has obviously lightened the style of Montrose in response to his perception that dense, excruciatingly tannic wines are no longer popular with consumers. The change in style is particularly noticeable with the vintages of the late 1970s and early 1980s, as more Merlot has been introduced into the blend at the expense of Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot. Montrose fans were not amused by the “nouveau” style. Since 1986 Montrose has returned to a more forceful, muscular style, reminiscent of pre-1975 vintages. Certainly the 2000, 1996, 1990, and 1989 vintages for Montrose produced true blockbuster wines not seen from this property since 1961. Anyone who has had the pleasure of drinking some of Montrose’s greatest vintages—1970, 1964, 1961, 1959, 1955 and 1953—can no doubt attest to the fact that Montrose produced a bevy of massive wines that deserve to be called the Latour of St.-Estèphe. The wines of Montrose have been especially strong in the periods 1953–1971 and 1989–present, when they were usually among the finest wines produced in the northern Médoc.
Visitors to St.-Estèphe will find the modest château of Montrose situated on high ground with a magnificent view of the Gironde River. The property, owned by the Charmolüe family since 1896, does make a worthy visit, given the splendid cuverie, with its old, huge, open oak vats and striking new barrel and fermentation cellar. Like many of its neighbors, Château Montrose has a new state-of-the-art tasting room and reception area.
IMPORTANT VINTAGES
ANCIENT VINTAGES
The 1970 (92 points), 1964 (92 points), and 1961 (95 points) are classic, full-throttle, massive wines. The 1959 (95 points; last tasted 10/94) is a surprising clone of the 1961, with sweeter fruit, a more rustic, tannic personality, and the same enormous weight, richness, and distinctively old style found in both the 1961 and 1959. The 1959 is just reaching full maturity.
Both the 1955 (91 points; last tasted 12/01) and 1953 (90 points; last tasted 12/01) are superb wines if drunk from well-stored bottles.
The 1921 Montrose (74–90 points; tasted four times in 1995 and 1996) is variable. In one tasting, the wine started off with a promising nose of cedar, smoked meats, and a peppery, Rhône-like character, but high acidity and ferocious tannin dominated the meager flavors. Other tastings have revealed a rich, sweet, opulently textured wine that was alive and still endowed.
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: Jean-Michel Cazes
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 73 24 00; Telefax: 05 56 59 26 42
E-mail: infochato@ormesdepez.com
Website: www.ormesdepez.com
No visits
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 86.5 acres
Grape varietals: 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc
Average age of vines: 30 years
Density of plantation: 9,000 vines per hectare
Average yields: 50 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Fifteen to seventeen day fermentation and maceration in temperature-controlled stainless-steel tanks. Fifteen months aging in oak barrels. Fining. Filtration only if necessary.
WINES PRODUCED
Les Ormes de Pez: 204,000 bottles
No second wine is produced.
Plateau of maturity: Within 5–12 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
In the best vintages, this reliable Cru Bourgeois is worth a fifth growth. Modest prices rank this wine among some of the finest values in the Médoc.
Les Ormes de Pez is a popular wine, due in large part to the wine’s generously flavored, plump, sometimes sweet and fat personality. Don’t discount the extensive promotional efforts of the owner, Jean-Michel Cazes, either. The wine rarely disappoints. The color of Les Ormes de Pez tends to be quite dark, and since 1975, the flavors are increasingly supple and designed for easy comprehension by the masses. However, the wine can age for 5–12 years. Older vintages from the 1940s and 1950s made in a more massive, dense style, can often represent outstanding values because the wine has been impeccably made for decades. Les Ormes de Pez is a wine that consumers, looking for high quality at modest prices, should always give serious consideration.
IMPORTANT VINTAGES
ANCIENT VINTAGES
The best of this estate include the splendid 1990 (89 points), 1982 (87 points), and the remarkable, still glorious 1970 (93 points), the latter wine drunk in September 2001.
During the mid-1980s, I had the opportunity to drink the 1961, 1959, 1955, 1953, and 1947, all plucked off the wine lists of several Bordeaux restaurants. All of them were still in fine condition—massive, robust, nearly coarse wines that represented the old style of Bordeaux winemaking. I have no doubt that well-stored examples of this château’s wines from the 1960s, 1950s, and 1940s could represent fine values today.
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: Jean-Claude Rouzaud; Champagne Louis Roederer
Address: lieu-dit Pez, 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 30 26; Telefax: 05 56 59 39 25
Visits: By appointment Monday to Friday, 9 A.M.–noon and 2 P.M.–5 P.M.
Contact: Philippe Moureau
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 59.3 acres
Grape varietals: 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, 44% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc, 3% Petit Verdot
Average age of vines: 33 years
Density of plantation: 6,500 vines per hectare
Average yields: 50 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Twenty to thirty-day long fermentation and maceration in wooden vats. Forty percent of total volume undergoes malolactics in new oak barrels. Fifteen to eighteen months aging in oak barrels with 40% new oak. Racking every three months. Fining with egg whites, no filtration.
WINES PRODUCED:
Château de Pez: 130,000 bottles
No second wine produced.
Plateau of maturity: Within 8–10 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
Considerable investments have been made by the Roederer firm. Though quality has improved since 1995, the wines still remain rather hard and tannic and do not show the opulence that characterizes some peers like Les Ormes de Pez or Haut-Marbuzet. Nevertheless, this is an estate most observes expect to soar in quality.
It is difficult to miss Château de Pez and the twin towers as one passes through the one-horse village of Pez. For decades this estate has made a muscular yet excellent, sometimes tough-textured wine that is capable of lasting for up to two decades. If the wine of de Pez is to be criticized at all, it is for rarely attaining an exceptional rating. Reliable and solid as it may be, de Pez seems incapable of hitting the heights of the appellation’s most notable Crus Bourgeois. I have often wondered whether an increased percentage of Merlot in the blend might not give the unduly restrained, frequently lean de Pez more flesh and character.
It will be interesting to follow de Pez given the fact that the property was acquired by the Champagne house of Louis Roederer several years ago. The former proprietor, Robert Dousson, has spent much of his life at de Pez, having been born there in 1929. A hands-on proprietor, always at the property, he believed strongly in unmanipulated wines. Additionally, the longevity of his wines and their popularity in England and northern Europe never went to his head.
IMPORTANT VINTAGES
2000 |
2000 is the first impressive effort under the Roederer administration. A blend of equal parts of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, with 7% Cabernet Franc, this wine exhibits the vintage’s deep ruby/purple color, high tannin levels, a muscular structure, and medium- to-full-bodied, dense cassis flavors with a hint of mineral/wet stones. Anticipated maturity: 2007–2020. Last tasted, 1/03. |
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: Xavier Gardinier
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 74 00; Telefax: 05 56 59 74 10
E-mail: phelan.segur@wanadoo.fr
Visits: By appointment Monday to Friday
Contact: Thierry Gardinier
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 158 acres
Grape varietals: 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc
Average age of vines: 35 years
Density of plantation: 8,300 vines per hectare
Average yields: 41 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Twenty-day fermentation and maceration in temperature-controlled stainless-steel tanks. Eighteen months aging with 50–60% new oak. Fining and filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Phélan Ségur: 160,000 bottles
Frank Phélan: 120,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 5–14 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
Given its fine location between Montrose and Calon-Ségur, one could expect better from Phélan Ségur. While quality soared from the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s, recent vintages have been indifferent.
This beautiful estate, recently cleaned and refurbished by the new owners, has always had the potential to produce one of the finest wines of St.-Estèphe because the vineyard borders both those of Montrose and Calon-Ségur. The progress made by the new owners was especially evident with excellent wines produced in the late 1980s, but the quality during the 1990s was inconsistent.
IMPORTANT VINTAGES
The only high-quality vintages on my radar screen are the 2000 (87 points), 1996 (86 points), 1990 (89 points), and 1988 (87 points).
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: SCEA du Château Bel Air
Address: 4, chemin de Fontaugé, 33180 St.-Estèphe
Mailing Address: 15, route de Castelnau, 33480 Avensan
Telephone: 05 56 58 21 03; Telefax: 05 56 58 17 20
E-mail: jfbraq@aol.com
Visits: By appointment only
Contact: Jean-François Braquessac
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 12.4 acres
Grape varietals: 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc
Average age of vines: 40 years
Density of plantation: 8,000 vines per hectare
Average yields: 50 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Cold pre-fermentation followed by fermentation and maceration in temperature-controlled stainless-steel tanks with cap immersed. Fourteen months aging in barrels with 30% new oak. No fining, no filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Bel Air: 24,000 bottles
Château Bel Air Coutelin: 12,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 4–12 years of the vintage
Note: Grapes are hand-picked and there is a first sorting right in the vineyards, which are located in front of Cos d’Estournel, Marbuzet, and Montrose. Green pruning is carried out on the younger vines if necessary.
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: SC du Château Le Boscq
Farmed by: Dourthe (CVBG)
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Mailing Address: Dourthe, 35, rue de Bordeaux, 33290 Parempuyre
Telephone: 05 56 35 53 00; Telefax: 05 56 35 53 29
E-mail: contact@cvbg.com
Visits: By appointment Monday to Friday; No visits at harvest time
Contact: Marie-Hélène Inquimbert
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 41 acres
Grape varietals: 51% Merlot, 42% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Petit Verdot
Average age of vines: 30 years
Density of plantation: 8,000 vines per hectare
Average yields: 45–47 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Fermentation in small temperature-controlled stainless-steel vats. Duration of maceration depends upon the quality of grapes. Part of yield undergoes malolactics in barrels and micro-oxygenation of lees. Eighteen months aging with 50% new oak. Fining if necessary (with egg whites). No filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Le Boscq: 70,000–73,000 bottles
Héritage de Le Boscq: 35,000–36,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 3–10 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
Wines of Le Boscq have greatly improved over recent vintages and are now worth their Cru Bourgeois status. Prices remain modest in view of the quality.
The vineyard of Le Boscq is located at the very northern end of the appellation of St.-Estèphe, with a good view of the Gironde River. It has extremely gravelly, clay soil, and the wine is vinified in stainless-steel vats and aged in small oak casks for 18 months. Given the high percentage of Merlot, it is not surprising that the wine is soft and fruity. In years where there is a tendency toward overripeness, Le Boscq can be disjointed and flabby. Nevertheless, in good vintages, this wine provides reasonably priced, fine drinking in its first decade of life.
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: GFA Capbern Gasqueton
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 30 08; Telefax: 05 56 59 71 51
Visits: By appointment only
Contact: Denise Capbern Gasqueton
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 91.4 acres
Grape varietals: 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Cabernet Franc, 20% Merlot
Average age of vines: 30 years
Density of plantation: 9,000 vines per hectare
Average yields: 35 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Twenty-one day fermentation and maceration. Eighteen months aging in barrels, with 30% new oak. Fining, no filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Capbern Gasqueton: 135,000 bottles
No second wine is produced.
Plateau of maturity: Within 5–10 years of the vintage
Reputed to be the finest and most modernly equipped cooperative in the Médoc, this conglomerate of 85 producers (controlling 300 acres of vineyards) turns out an enormous quantity of wine that is sold not only under the name of the cooperative, Marquis de St.-Estèphe, but also under the name of the estate. Some of the small but reputable estates that have their wines produced and bottled at the cooperative include Château Léo des Prades (37.3 acres; 115,000 bottles), Château Ladouys (23 acres; 72,000 bottles), and Château Mignot (6.5 acres; 20,000 bottles). All of these wines are vinified and bottled separately.
The standard cuvée is Marquis de St.-Estèphe, representing 270,000 bottles. It is aged 12 months in concrete tanks. The cooperative also produces a special cuvée, Prestige du Marquis (75,000 bottles), that undergoes a three-week fermentation and maceration followed by 12 months aging in barrels with 70% new oak. The rest of the production is sold in bulk to négociants.
The cellars are equipped with concrete and stainless-steel tanks, and there is an aging cellar for the élevage of the special cuvée and the three estate labeled wines.
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: GFA des Château Canteloup et La Commanderie
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Mailing Address: Kressmann, 35, rue de Bordeaux, 33280 Parempuyre
Telephone: 05 56 35 53 00; Telefax: 05 56 35 53 29
E-mail: contact@cvbg.com
Visits: By appointment only
Contact: Marie-Hélène Inquimbert
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 39.5 acres
Grape varietals: 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc
Average age of vines: 27 years
Density of plantation: 6,600 vines per hectare
Average yields: 57 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Duration of fermentation of maceration depends on the quality of the grapes and the vintage. Twelve months aging in barrels with 35% new oak. Fining with egg whites. Filtration at bottling.
WINES PRODUCED
Château La Commanderie: 78,000 bottles
No second wine is produced
Plateau of maturity: Within 4–8 years of the vintage
Pleasant, commercially styled, and fairly priced wines.
This wine is made in a modern, commercial style, emphasizing supple, easygoing fruit and smooth, light tannins, and it is already to drink when bottled. It could be more complex, but it is certainly clean and understandable to the masses.
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owners: Bernard and François Estager
Address: c/o G. Estager et Fils, Blanquet, 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone and Telefax: 05 56 59 32 10
Visits: Every day of the week; by appointment only on weekends
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 61.7 acres
Grape varietals: 50% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon 23% Cabernet Franc 2% Petit Verdot
Average age of vines: 30 years
Density of plantation: 55 vines per hectare
Average yields: 55 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Eighteen to twenty-one day fermentation and maceration. Twelve months aging in barrels with 25% new oak. Fining, filtration upon bottling.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Coutelin-Merville: 120,000 bottles
Château Merville: 60,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 8–15 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
Firm, tannic, earthy, often rustic wines are produced at this estate.
NOTE: This château is situated on the highest point in St.-Estèphe.
I wish I were more familiar with the wines of this moderately sized estate. Those vintages I have tasted—1996, 1995, 1986, 1982, 1975, and 1970—all represented intensely concentrated, powerful, highly tannic, yet interesting old-style, well-made wines. The proprietors Bernard and François Estager, from France’s Corrèze region (like many Bordeaux families, including the family of Jean-Pierre Moueix in Libourne the Bories of Ducru-Beaucaillou, and the Theils of Poujeaux), march to the beat of a different drummer in St.-Estèphe, as the blend of grapes suggests they are a great proponent of Cabernet Franc. Perhaps this explains why their wines have a compelling fragrance, but it does not explain their aging potential, power, and muscle. All things considered, this is a wine that the Estagers claim needs at least 15–20 years in the top vintages to reach maturity! They would appear to be right. This could well be a property to look at more seriously.
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: GFA du Château Domeyne
Address: 3, espace Guy Guyonnaud, 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 72 29; Telefax: 05 56 59 75 55
Visits: By appointment only
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 17.8 acres
Grape varietals: 65% Cabernet Franc, 35% Merlot
Average age of vines: 30–35 years
Density of plantation: 7,600 vines per hectare
Average yields: 55 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Twenty-one day fermentation and maceration. Twelve months aging in barrels with 40% new oak. Fining and filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Domeyne: 51,000 bottles
No second wine is produced.
Plateau of maturity: Within 4–10 years of the vintage
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: SCEA Vignobles Jean Anney
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Mailing Address: Château Tour des Termes, Saint-Corbian, 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 32 89; Telefax: 05 56 59 73 74
Visits: Monday to Friday, 8:30 A.M.–12:30 P.M. and 2:00–4:30 P.M.
Contact: Christophe Anney
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 27.2 acres
Grape varietals: 50% Merlot, 50% Cabernet Sauvignon
Average age of vines: 15–20 years
Density of plantation: 6,666 vines per hectare
Average yields: 57 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Three to four week long fermentation and maceration in temperature-controlled stainless-steel tanks with two daily pumping-overs. Twelve months aging in one- and two-year-old oak barrels. Fining, no filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Haut-Baradieu: 80,000 bottles
No second wine is produced.
Plateau of maturity: Within 4 to 12 years of the vintage
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: Jean-Claude Rouzaud; Champagne Louis Roederer
Address: rue de la Mairie, 33180 St.-Estèphe
Mailing Address: Château de Pez, lieu-dit Pez, 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 30 26; Telefax: 05 56 59 39 25
Visits: By appointment only
Contact: Philippe Moureau
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 49.4 acres
Grape varietals: 52% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Petit Verdot and Cot
Average age of vines: 15 years
Density of plantation: 8,500 vines per hectare
Average yields: 50 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Twenty to thirty day long fermentation (29–30°C) and maceration in temperature-controlled tanks. Malolactics in barrel for 3% of total volume. Twelve to fifteen months aging in oak barrels that are renewed by a third at each vintage. Fining with egg whites, no filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Haut-Beauséjour: 100,000 bottles
No second wine is produced.
Plateau of maturity: Within 4–12 years of the vintage
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owners: Bernard and Bernadette Brousseau
Address: Saint-Corbian, 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 39 84; Telefax: 05 56 59 39 09
E-mail: château.haut-coteau@wanadoo.fr
Visits: Monday to Friday, 8 A.M.–noon and 2–6 P.M.
Contact: Bernadette Brousseau
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 47 acres
Grape varietals: Equal parts of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Cabernet Franc
Average age of vines: 30 years
Density of plantation: 8,500 vines per hectare
Average yields: 55–60 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Five to eight-day alcoholic fermentation and 3–4 week maceration in temperature-controlled stainless-steel vats. Twelve to fifteen months aging in barrels with 33% new oak. Fining, no filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Haut Coteau: 40,000 bottles
Château Brousseau Haut-Vignobles: 30,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 4–12 years of the vintage
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: Georges Lécailler
Address: Leyssac, 33180 St.-Estèphe
Mailing Address: 28, rue d’Armenonville, 98200 Neuilly-sur-Seine
Telephone: 001 47 38 24 42; Telefax: 01 47 38 14 41
E-mail: château.lahaye@free.fr
Website: www.vigneron-independant.com//membres//lahaye
Visits: June 15 to September 15: Monday to Friday, 10 A.M.–6P.M. At other times, by appointment only.
Contact: Sylvie Jaffre
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 24.7 acres
Grape varietals: 59% Merlot, 36% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4.5% Merlot, 0.5% Cabernet Franc
Average age of vines: 35 years
Density of plantation: 8,600 vines per hectare
Average yields: 45 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Twenty to thirty day long fermentation (28–30°C) and maceration in temperature-controlled stainless-steel tanks with two daily pumping-overs. Eighteen months aging in barrels with 30% new oak. Fining and filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château La Haye: 45,000 bottles
Fief de La Haye: 45,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 4–12 years of the vintage
Classification: Cru Grand Bourgeois Exceptionnel
Owner: Jean Ardouin
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 32 21; Telefax: 05 56 59 73 41
Visits: Monday to Thursday, 8 A.M.–noon and 2–6 P.M. Friday, 8 A.M.–noon and 2–5 P.M.
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 52 acres
Grape varietals: 60% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Petit Verdot
Average age of vines: 30 years
Density of plantation: 6,000 vines per hectare
Average yields: 55 hectolitres per hectare
Elevage: Twenty-eight to thirty day fermentation and maceration in vats, 12 months aging with half the yield in vats and half in barrels (no new oak).
WINES PRODUCED
Château Houissant: 120,000 bottles
Château Tour Pomys: 72,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 3–8 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
Should be downgraded to a Cru Bourgeois. The half-dozen or so vintages of Houissant I have tasted have never made a favorable impression. The wine tends to be disjointed, austere, and very tannic.
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: SCI Château Laffitte-Carcasset, de Padirac family
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 34 52; Telefax: 05 56 59 35 75
Visits: By appointment only
Contact: Constance de Padirac (telephone 06 14 70 45 08)
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 71.6 acres
Grape varietals: 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 10% other Cépages
Average age of vines: 30–40 years
Density of plantation: 9,000 vines per hectare
Average yields: 50 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Fermentation in temperature-controlled stainless-steel vats. Twelve to fourteen months aging with 30% of total volume in vats and 70% in barrel, and 30% new oak. Fining and filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Laffitte-Carcasset: 150,000 bottles
Château La Vicomtesse: 50,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 5–8 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
This is not a wine that I know well, but those vintages I have tasted—1988, 1986, 1985, and 1982—seem to belong to the elegant, finesse school of winemaking. Somewhat light but still tasty and harmonious, with none of the tough-textured, often excessive tannin that many St.-Estèphes reveal, the wines from Laffitte-Carcasset seem to be at their best within 7–8 years of the vintage. The vineyard is well located on high ground in the very northern part of the St.-Estèphe appellation.
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: SCEA des Domaines Pedro
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Mailing Address: SCEA des Domaines Pedro, 33180 Vertheuil
Telephone: 05 56 73 32 10; Telafax: 05 56 41 98 89
E-mail: dompedro@aol.com
Visits: Monday to Friday, 9 A.M.–noon and 2–5 P.M. Groups must please secure an appointment.
Contact: Jacques Pedro or Frank Maroszak
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 29.6 acres
Grape varietals: 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 3% Petit Verdot
Average age of vines: 37 years
Density of plantation: 7,500 vines per hectare
Average yields: 50 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Prolonged fermentation and maceration in temperature-controlled stainless-steel tanks with frequent pumping-overs. Twenty months aging with 30–40% new oak. Fining with egg whites, no filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Lavillotte: 50,000–60,000 bottles
Château Aillan: 20,000–30,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 8–15 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
At the time proprietor Jacques Pedro purchased Lavillotte in 1962, it was in deplorable condition. Pedro comes from a family of French viticulturists who had lived in Algeria until it was granted independence from France. His philosophy combines a mixture of modern technology and healthy respect for tradition. This contrast is evident: His vineyards are harvested by machine, but the cuvaison is at least three weeks long. The results, based on vintages such as 1989, 1986, 1985, and 1982—the only vintages I have tasted—are surprisingly concentrated, full-bodied wines, with fragrance, complexity, and richness. Each of the aforementioned vintages will easily mature gracefully for more than a decade. This would appear to be one of the best yet least known sources for fine wine from St.-Estèphe.
Classification: Cru Bourgeois Exceptionnel
Owner: Domaines Reybier
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 73 15 50; Telefax: 05 56 59 72 59
No visits
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 17.3 acres
Grape varietals: 62% Merlot, 27% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Petit Verdot
Average age of vines: 35 years
Density of plantation: 7,900–9,500 vines per hectare
Average yields: 50 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Three-week fermentation and maceration in temperature-controlled stainless-steel vats. Twelve months aging in barrels with 50% new oak. Fining, no filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Marbuzet: 60,000 bottles
No second wine is produced.
Plateau of maturity: Within 2–12 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
A sound, reliable wine that is well made, very refined, and accessible. Most vintages need to be drunk within 8–12 years of the vintage.
If I had to pick one of the most beautiful and romantically situated properties in the Médoc, it would be this gloriously situated château with its superb terrace and wonderful gardens. In fact, the château (still owned by the Prats family even though the vineyards were sold), which faces the Gironde River, bears a remarkable resemblance to the White House in Washington, D.C.
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: SCEA Lagneaux-Blaton
Address: 3, rue de la Croix de Pez, 33180 St.-Estèphe
Mailing Address: BP 33, 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 35 69; Telefax: 05 56 59 32 11
E-mail: petitbocq@hotmail.com
Website: www.chateau-petit-bocq
Visits: By appointment only
Contact: Gaëtan Lagneaux
Surface area: 36.3 acres
Grape varietals: 55% Merlot, 43% Cabernet Sauvignon, 2% Cabernet Franc
Average age of vines: 35 years
Density of plantation: 8,500–10,000 vines per hectare
Average yields: 55 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Twenty-one day fermentation and maceration in temperature-controlled stainless-steel vats of 25–100 hectoliter capacity. The Merlot lots undergo malolactics in barrel. Twelve months aging in barrels with 50% new oak. Fining, no filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Petit Bocq: 85,000–90,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 3–12 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
Recent vintages of Petit Bocq are well worth a fifth growth. Prices remain modest since the estate is not yet well-known to consumers. Shrewd buyers should take note as this wine is really worthy of interest.
Unfortunately, this distinctive wine, with the highest percentage of Merlot on any property in St.-Estèphe, has never, to my knowledge, been seen in the export markets. The proprietor fashions one of St.-Estèphe’s most hedonistic wines. The 2000, 1996, 1990, 1989, 1985, and 1982 were bursting with black fruits, were explosively rich and full and possessed a juicy, thick texture, causing me to wonder why this property has not gained more recognition from Bordeaux wine enthusiasts. While the high percentage of Merlot suggests that Petit Bocq will not age well, the 1982, last tasted in 1994, was fresh and lively. This is clearly a property worth representation in the world’s export markets, although the quantities of wine available will no doubt be minuscule.
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: Arnaud family
Address: Leyssac, 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 32 26; Telefax: 05 56 59 35 24
Website: chateaupomys.com
Visits: By appointment only
Contact: Geneviève Rechaudiat
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 32.1 acres
Grape varietals: 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc
Average age of vines: 25 years
Density of plantation: 7,500 vines per hectare
Average yields: 50 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Prolonged fermentation and maceration in temperature-controlled stainless-steel vats. Twelve to eighteen months aging in barrels with 35% new oak. Fining, no filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Pomys: 70,000 bottles
Château Saint-Louis: 10,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 4–12 years of the vintage
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: Arnaud family
Address: Leyssac, 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 32 26; Telefax: 05 56 59 35 24
Website: chateaupomys.com
Visits: By appointment only
Contact: Laure Marcou
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 27.2 acres
Grape varietals: 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc, 5% Petit Verdot
Average age of vines: 25 years
Density of plantation: 7,500 vines per hectare
Average yields: 50 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Prolonged fermentation and maceration in temperature-controlled concrete tanks. Twelve to eighteen months aging in barrels with 30% new oak. Fining, no filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château St.-Estèphe: 50,000 bottles
Château Tour Coutelin: 12,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 4–12 years of the vintage
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: GFA des Domaines Guy Delon
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Mailing Address: SCEA Guy Delon & fils, 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 70 10; Telefax: 05 56 59 73 94
Visits: By appointment only
Contact: Guy Delon
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 17.5 acres
Grape varietals: 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc, 5% Petit Verdot
Average age of vines: 25 years
Density of plantation: 8,500 vines per hectare
Average yields: 50 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Three-week fermentation and maceration in temperature-controlled stainless-steel vats with frequent pumpings-over. Twenty months aging in oak barrels that are renewed by a third at each vintage, with seven rackings and one fining with egg whites. No filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Ségur de Cabanac: 40,000 bottles
No second wine is produced.
Plateau of maturity: Within 4–12 years of the vintage
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: Arlette Castéja-Texier
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Mailing Address: c/o Dourthe, 35, route de Bordeaux, BP 49, 33290 Parempuyre
Telephone: 05 56 35 53 00; Telefax: 05 56 35 53 29
E-mail: contact@cvbg.com
Visits: By appointment only
Contact: Marie-Hélène Inquimbert
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 42 acres
Grape varietals: 48% Cabernet Sauvignon, 48% Merlot, 4% Petit Verdot
Average age of vines: 26 years
Density of plantation: 9,000 vines per hectare
Average yields: 55 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Three-week fermentation in temperature-controlled stainless-steel tanks. Fifteen to eighteen months aging in barrels with 25% new oak. Fining and filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Tronquoy-Lalande: 90,000 bottles
Tronquoy de Sainte-Anne: 40,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 5–14 years of the vintage
GENERAL APPRECIATION
Burly, dense colored, very concentrated wines are produced. The problem is that too many of the wines are excessively tannic and rustic.
Tronquoy-Lalande is a historic property with a fine twin-towered château on the premises. The wine was highly regarded a century ago but has lost popularity. I have followed every wine since the late 1970s, and Tronquoy-Lalande wines lack consistency from vintage to vintage. At best, it is a very dark, huge, clumsy sort of wine, with an earthy, distinctive character. The wine is distributed exclusively by the Bordeaux firm of Dourthe. The finest recent vintage is the black-colored, dense, superripe 1989, and somewhat promising 2000.
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: GFA des Vignobles H. Duboscq et fils
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 30 54; Telefax: 05 56 59 70 87
E-mail: henriduboscq@hotmail.com
Visits: By appointment Monday to Saturday, 9 A.M.–noon and 2–6 P.M.
Contact: Alfred Teixeira
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 12.4 acres
Grape varietals: 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc
Average age of vines: 30 years
Density of plantation: 8,300 vines per hectare
Average yields: 54 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Three week fermentation and maceration in temperature-controlled concrete tanks with micro-oxygenation and one daily pumping-over. Eighteen months aging in oak barrels that are renewed by a quarter every year. Racking every three months. No fining, no filtration.
Château Tour de Marbuzet: 36,000 bottles
No second wine is produced.
Plateau of maturity: Within 4–12 years of the vintage
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: Philippe Bouchara
Address: lieu-dit l’Hereteyre, 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 31 60; Telefax: 05 56 59 71 12
E-mail: chtrpez@terre-net.fr
Visits: Monday to Friday, 9:30 A.M.–noon and 2–5:30 P.M.
Contact: Valérie Duprat
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 40.5 acres
Grape varietals: 52% Merlot, 44% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Petit Verdot
Average age of vines: 35 years
Density of plantation: 8,000 vines per hectare
Average yields: 52 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Cold maceration followed by three- to four-week fermentation (29–30°C) and maceration in temperature-controlled stainless-steel tanks with frequent pumpings-over. Fifteen months aging with 40% new oak and 60% one-year-old barrels. Fining. Filtration depending upon the vintage.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Tour de Pez: 80,000 bottles
Tour de Pez: 35,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 4–12 years of the vintage
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: SCEA Vignobles Jean Anney
Address: Saint-Corbian, 33180 St.-Estèphe
Telephone: 05 56 59 32 89; Telefax: 05 56 59 73 74
Visits: Monday to Friday, 8:30 A.M.–12:30 P.M. and 2–4:30 P.M.
Contact: Christophe Anney
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 39.5 acres
Grape varietals: 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 50% Merlot
Average age of vines: 30 years
Density of plantation: 6,666 vines per hectare
Average yields: 55 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Three- to four-week fermentation and maceration in temperature-controlled stainless-steel tanks with two daily pumping-overs. Malolactics in barrels for 45% of total volume. Twelve months aging in barrels with 45% new oak. Fining, no filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Tour des Termes: 100,000 bottles
Les Aubarèdes du Château Tour des Termes: 25,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 4–12 years of the vintage
NOTE: This estate also produces 4,000 bottles of a special cuvée called Château Tour des Termes Collection Prestige. This wine is produced from a special plot of old vines (40 years), essentially from Merlot (70%) located on a gravelly subsoil. Vinification is traditional, but malolactics occur in barrels and the wines spend 15 months in new oak.
Classification: Cru Bourgeois
Owner: Gérard Néraudau
Address: 5, rue Michel Audoy, 33180 St.-Estèphe
Mailing Address: Château Jonqueyres, 33750 Saint-Germain du Puch
Telephone: 05 57 34 51 66; Telefax: 05 56 30 11 45
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 13.25 acres
Grape varietals: 55% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Cabernet Franc
Average age of vines: 40 years
Density of plantation: 8,000 vines per hectare
Average yields: 50 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: Cold maceration; 30-day fermentation and maceration with frequent pumpings-over and micro-oxygenation of lees. Malolactics in barrel with stirring of lees twice a week. Twelve months aging with 70% new oak. Fining, no filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Cuvée Aliénor du Château Valrose: 24,000 bottles
Château Valrose: 9,000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 2–8 years of the vintage
Classification: None
Owner: Vignobles Rocher Cap de Rive SA
Address: 33180 St.-Estèphe
Mailing Address: BP 89, 33350 Saint-Magne-de-Castillon
Telephone: 05 57 40 08 88; Telefax: 05 57 40 19 93
Visits: By appointment only
VINEYARDS
Surface area: 14.8 acres
Grape varietals: 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot
Average age of vines: 20 years
Density of plantation: 7,500 vines per hectare
Average yields: 59 hectoliters per hectare
Elevage: 18 months aging in vats and barrels with 20% new oak. Fining and filtration.
WINES PRODUCED
Château Vieux Coutelin: 36,000 bottles
Chevalier Coutelin: 14 000 bottles
Plateau of maturity: Within 4–12 years of the vintage
There isn’t a more famous appellation of the Haut-Médoc and Bordeaux than Pauillac. While the commune of Margaux has a more lyrical and romantic name, as well as a famous first-growth château of the same title, it is Pauillac’s vineyards that lay claim to three of the Médoc’s four first growths. The fabled, fabulously expensive Pauillac trio of Lafite Rothschild, Mouton Rothschild, and Latour are the most revered residents, but they are formidably backed up by a bevy of wines, some brilliant, some overrated, and a few mysteriously overlooked or forgotten. Eighteen wines from Pauillac were included in the original 1855 classification, and today only two or three estates would have trouble holding on to their position should an independent study of quality be done.
The textbook Pauillac would tend to have a rich, full-bodied texture, a distinctive bouquet of black currants, licorice, and cedary scents, and excellent aging potential. Since virtually all of the permitted vineyard space (2,965 acres) is controlled by the 18 classified growths, there are fewer Cru Bourgeois wines in Pauillac than in a commune such as St.-Estèphe. However, a wide diversity in the Pauillac styles is apparent. Among the three famous first growths, for example, the wines could not be more different. Granted, their soils all share the gravelly composition that reflects the sun’s heat and affords excellent drainage. However, Lafite Rothschild’s vineyard—tucked in a northern part of Pauillac right on the St.-Estèphe border—has a limestone base, resulting in wines that are Pauillac’s most aromatically complex and subtly flavored. Lafite’s bouquet has, of course, the telltale Pauillac “cedarwood” aroma in addition to a compelling scent of lead pencil shavings. Lafite rarely matches Mouton Rothschild in sheer opulence and power or Latour in consistency. Until the early 1980s, Lafite was a poster child for inconsistency, with few truly monumental wines actually produced (the 1959 and 1953 tower over the others). Of the other, non-first-growth Pauillacs, the lighter, aromatic Lafite style, albeit on a lower level, is best exemplified by the silky, medium-bodied Haut-Batailley.
Mouton Rothschild sits on a gravel ridge above the Médoc’s largest town, Pauillac. In the 25-plus years that I have been visiting Bordeaux two or three times a year, I have seen the transformation of this sleepy, somewhat bland town into a noteworthy tourist attraction with the Médoc’s only prestigious restaurant, Cordeillan-Bages. In addition to the gravelly soil, Mouton has more sandstone in the soil base and uses an abnormally high percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon in making the wine. When everything works right, these factors can produce the most decadently rich, fleshy, and exotic wine of not only Pauillac, but of the entire Médoc. In many ways, the wine of Mouton was personified by the flamboyant, bold, former owner, the Baron Philippe de Rothschild, who died in 1988. His daughter, Philippine, no shy flower, admirably continues to manage this estate with considerable flair. Mouton, of course, is not the only Pauillac made in a big, rich, opulent style. Several kilometers south, on another slightly elevated ridge called the Bages plateau, Lynch-Bages makes a dense, corpulent wine that can be splendidly deep and concentrated, clearly earning its reputation as the “poor man’s Mouton.”
Latour is Pauillac’s other first growth, and this grand old estate has few if any peers when it comes to consistency from one vintage to the next. For most of the last century, Latour, along with Montrose in St.-Estèphe and Ausone in St.-Emilion, has been the slowest maturing and the longest-lived wine made in Bordeaux. The vineyard’s location in southern Pauillac—next to St.-Julien—would seemingly suggest a more supple style of wine, but except for a brief hiccup in the 1980s (1983–1989), when a softer, less formidable style of Latour surprisingly emerged, Latour’s wine has been as backward and as tannic as any. The soil at Latour is almost pure fine gravel that affords superb drainage, better than that enjoyed by Lafite Rothschild or Mouton Rothschild. That in itself may help explain why in rainy vintages such as 1999, 1994, 1993, 1992, 1974, 1972, 1969, 1968, and 1960, Latour easily outdistanced many other Médocs. Latour is simply Latour, and in Pauillac, there are no “look-alikes” in style or character.