France | Postcards From Here and There

Chateau Guiraud Visit

There has been a wine growing estate here for over three hundred years but it hasn’t always been called Guiraud. In the 1855 classification of the wines of Bordeaux it was called Chateau Blaye, however the name was changed shortly after.

Chateau Guiraud is unusual in Sauternes in so far as it has a black label and this is said to date from the death of Napoleon I in 1821. Today the black label has made Guiraud instantly recognisable on a wine merchants shelf.

The estate was purchased in 1981 by businessman Frank Narby and Xavier Planty was appointed to manage the property. It is here that a series of improvements began which included renovation of the vineyards and the planting of trees to increase biodiversity. The use of pesticides was stopped in 2004. In 2006 the property was sold to a partnership of Robert Peugeot, Olivier Bernard, Stephan Von Neipperg and Xavier Planty. Further modernisation followed including the cellars and the vineyard management moved increasingly to organic practices. This resulted in organic certification being achieved in 2010 with the first vintage the following year. A restaurant, La Chapelle de Guiraud, opened on the property earlier this year.

Planting at the property is 65% Semillon and 35% Sauvignon Blanc. Red grape vines were once grown and a dry red produced but these vines were removed following the current owners purchase of the property in 2006.

Harvesting at Guiraud can involve up to 200 pickers and as many as seven passes through the vineyards to harvest berries at the optimum level botrytis. Pressing is done using a balloon press and is very gentle, taking four hours. Pressed juice is held at 4 Celsius for 24 hours to settle before being put into French oak barrels for a two week ferment using wild yeasts. Barrels are sourced from five different coopers and a very light toasting is used. Batonnage to mix in the lees is used to extract more aroma during the three months following fermentation.

Ageing of the wine takes place in French oak, the proportion of new oak depending on the wine. It is usually 100% new for between 18 and 24 months depending on the vintage for the grand vin. Any dry white wine made is usually aged for between nine and twelve months in stainless steel.

Le G de Chateau Guiraud. Bordeaux. 2014. Pale lime green in appearance with wonderful aromas of lime, lemon and stone fruits. The palate is dry, fresh with lovely citrus and a touch of honey and apricot. A nice texture and very drinkable. Very nice indeed.

Petit Guiraud. Sauternes. 2014. The aroma here is delightful and enchanting, citrus, orange, apricot and some tropical fruit. The balance has lovely balance with fresh acidity as a counterfoil to the rich fruit. A nice finish. Very nice.

Chateau Guiraud. Sauternes. 2015. Yellow/gold in appearance. the nose is complex mix of tropical fruit, honey, nut and pineapple. Palate has lovely freshness and balance with tropical fruits, apricot, almond and a touch of honey. A long lingering finish. Excellent.

A Day in Sauternes

Sauternes is located about an hours drive south of the great wine city of Bordeaux and makes for a good day trip if you are visiting the region. The wine growing region is made up of five communes; Sauternes, Barsac, Bommes, Fargues and Preignac. Growers in Barsac have the choice of labelling their wines as either Sauternes or Barsac. It is a region that doesn’t get a lot of tourists. The village of Sauternes is one of those sleepy French villages where time seems to pass at a gentle pace. There are couple of restaurants but not much else for the passing tourist and this adds to its charm. It is nothing like the wine town of Saint Emilion, with thousands of visitors each day, though both are surrounded by vines. It is quiet and tranquil and well worth a stop on a visit to the area.

Although relatively close to the great vineyards of the Médoc the wines here couldn’t be more different. Sauternes is the home of sweet white wine. The grapes grown here are Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc and, to a lesser extent, Muscadelle.

Early autumn vines post harvest at Chateau Guiraud

The area is close to the Garonne and Céron rivers and this is key to the development of the noble rot fungus (Botrytis cinerea). The Céron is a cold water river and The Garonne is a warm water river. Where they meet fog/mist forms in the morning where it sits over the vineyards until the sun burns it away to leave warm afternoons. This creates the humidity that the noble rot requires. The fungus enters the vine at flowering but doesn’t develop until the mists of and fogs of late summer, early autumn. If the conditions are right then fungus grows and dehydrates the grape berries, concentrating the sugar inside them.

Its a risky business making Sauternes. In some years the fungus doesn’t develop properly, the grapes do not shrivel and concentrate sugar, in such a case only a dry white wine can be made. The harvest is late, growers need to wait to get maximum concentration in the grapes, leaving them at the risk to autumn rains. Only the most rotten grapes are selected and this means that pickers have to pass through the vineyards several times. As a rough rule of thumb a grapevine can produce enough grapes for a bottle of wine but in Sauternes it is closer to a glass. It is not surprising that it isn’t cheap wine.

Despite the fact that Sauternes is one of the worlds greatest wines they are not currently very fashionable in the UK. This is impart due to the fact that many people only associate them with the dessert course and this is not where they show themselves at their best. As an alternative try them with whole range of foods including savoury dishes and of course they can be a superb match with cheese. Try them young when they have lovely freshness or keep them and let them mature to show lovely honey, caramel, orange and nutty flavours.

Canon La Gaffelière Visit

Facts

Chateau Canon La Gaffelière is located at the foot of the slope south of the medieval town of Saint Émilion.

It has been owned by the Von Neipperg family since 1971.

At 19.5 hectares it is planted to 50% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Franc and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon.

Production of Canon La Gaffelière is around 7500 cases.

In 1988 they began to move towards organic practices and in 2014 they received full organic certification.

They have been propagating their own vines to maintain the genetic diversity of their vineyards rather than buying genetically identical clones.

Fermentation largely takes place in wooden vats purchased in 1997.

The property sources barrels of French oak from 8 different coopers. Toasting is medium and medium plus. Between 40% and 60% is used depending on the vintage

It was promoted to Premier Grand Cru Classé B in the 2012 reclassification of the wines of Saint Émilion.

The Von Neipperg family also own the 4.5 hectare La Mondotte which is situated east of Saint Émilion. The first vintage under their ownership was 1996. Certified organic since 2014, production here is much smaller at 650 to 1000 cases

Tasting

Chateau D’Aiguilhe. Castillon -Cotes de Bordeaux. 2014. 80% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc, 30% new French oak. Grapes are from a 25 year old vineyard purchased in 1998. There are plums, black fruits and spice here in a nicely balanced wine with a nice finish. An excellent example and very drinkable.

Clos del’Oratoire. Saint Émilion Grand Cru. 2013. 90% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc, 40% new French oak. Plums and red fruits with a slight floral note. Medium bodied, light spice and dry tannin. A delicate hint of coffee on the finish.

Chateau Canon La Gaffelière. Premier Grand Cru Classé Saint Emilion. 2011. 60% Merlot, 32% Cabernet Franc, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon, 80% new French oak. Black and red fruit, savoury spice and a touch of floral perfume. the finish is long and savoury. Very Good.

La Mondotte. Premier Grand Cru Classé Saint Emilion 2006. 80% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc. Great depth and complexity of aromas, black fruits chocolate and spices. Smooth and rounded with lovely black fruits, black olive and a touch of caramel. The finish is long and lingering. This is a fantastic wine and drinking well now.