Chateau du Tertre

Chateau du Tertre is located in the south-western reaches of Margaux, on a large gravel plateau. Tertre refers to a hillock or knoll, the highest hill in the commune, and is the origin of the name of the estate. It once belonged to the Seigneurie d’Arsac, one of the oldest of Medoc’s noble families.

Guillaume Guiral and his descendants had a stronghold at Arsac until the 16^th century, when the brother of the son-in-law of the owner at the time, Thomas Montaigne, assumed the title of Seigneur. The estate subsequently was passed to the Arrerac family before coming to the ownership of the Marquis de Segur, when the family had acquired many cru classe and cru bourgeois estates.

When the estate was ranked as a fifth growth in the 1855 classification, it was in the hands of Charles Henri, who later sold to Henri de Koenigswarter. It fell into bad times with phylloxera, global depression and the wars. Later it was purchased by the Gasqueton family, also owning Calon-Segur.

With heavy investment, the quality improved and in 1995 the estate was sold to Eric and Louise Albada Jelgersma of Chateau Giscours, and the wine quality further improved. The estate itself was also renovated, with a garden and a pool.

The vineyards cover 50 ha, a single block adjacent to the chateau. The soil is gravelly, with pebbly mound typical in the region. Planted with 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot, the vines average 35 years of age, but many vines actually dated from 1950s and 1960s.

Now there is better training and care of the vines, with green harvesting, to improve quality. The harvested fruit is fermented in traditional wooden vats under temperature control, with maceration up to three weeks. The wine spends up to 18 months in oak, with 50% replaced each year, plus racking every three months and fining with egg white before bottling. The wine is transferred throughout the process by gravity without mechanical pumping.

I have recently tasted the 2003 and 2004 vintage. Below are my tasting notes:

Good quality Margaux GCC with medium ruby color, a fairly intense and complex nose showing aromas of blackcurrant, blackberry and bilberry, toast, smoke and cedar, liquorice, chocolate, cream, wet leaves and earth. Medium in acidity, the tannin is ripe and integrated. Fairly full-bodided, the wine has a reasonably intense palate, with flavors of blackcurrant, blackberry and plum, liquorice, smoke and cedar. With a reasonable finish, it has a good balance and harmony. A good value for money and ready to drink now, but can benefit from further ageing of another 2-3 years.

Good quality Margaux GCC with deep ruby color and garnet rims, the nose if of reasonable concentration, showing good complexity of blackcurrant, blackberry and blueberry, black olive, liquorice, cedar, cocoa, game and tar. Good acidity accompanying a ripe and silky tannin, the wine is fairly full-bodied with reasonably intense flavors of blackberry and plum, coffee, black olive and liquorice. A reasonable finish, it is more vegetal comparing with the 2003 vintage tasted earlier. Ready to drink now though can benefit of another ageeing for another 4-6 years.

Chateau Le Prieure

Chateau Le Prieure has been under the Brisson family since 1832, with the family having played an important part in the local political and social affairs. Madeleine Brisson, through her marriage to Louis Guichard, brought the vineyards to her husband’s family in 1918.

Olivier Guichard decided to upgrade the property in 1998, which was later passed onto his daughter Aline and her husband after his death. The small cellar was renovated and modernized, with also a wooden terrace built to allow a good view of the St-Emilion valley.

With 6 ha, it is located on the St-Emilion plateau, bordering Troplong-Mondot and Pavie-Macquin.

I have recently tasted the 2002 vintage and below is my tasting note:

Acceptable quality St-Emilion with medium ruby color, a reasonably intense and developing nose showing blackberry and plum, green bell pepper, coffee, hints of savory and toast. Medium in acidity, the tannin is ripe and velvety. The wine is fairly full-bodied with reasonably intense flavors of blackberry and plum, blackcurrant leaf, liquorice and some white pepper. A reasonable finish, the wine is overall fairly simple with a bit of under ripeness which shows it is from a not so ideal vintage. It is ready to drink now and can benefit from further ageing of another 2-3 years.

Chateau Yon-Figeac

Yon is the name of the place where the vineyard is located, and Chateau Yon-Figeac was created in the 19^th century, carved out of the larger Figeac estate. Located on the hill at the heart of St-Emilion, it was bought in 2005 by Alain Chateau, a businessman.

Alain invested to renovate the vineyard to improve the quality of the wine, and the estate now covers 24 ha, with sandy clay soils, having some iron slag. There are 3 wines produced, apart from the grand vin Chateau Yon-Figeac, the second wine is Les Roches de Yon Figeac and another wine called Yon Saint-Martin.

The winemaking process is now being consulted by Denis Dubourdieu, with the initial focus on recultivating the vineyard and totally abandoning herbicide. Planted with 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc, there is now a small amount of Petit Verdot also.

I have recently tasted the 1998 vintage and my tasting note is as below:

Acceptable quality St-Emilion with medium ruby color, reasonably intense nose showing fair complexity of blackcurrant, blackberry and plum, savory, wet leaves and forest floor, liquorice, toast and farmyard. Fairly high in acidity, the tannin is robust and grippy, with a fairly full-bodied structure, showing reasonably intense flavors of blackberry and plum, cloves, wet leaves and forest floor. The wine has a fairly short finish and a bit unbalanced as I think the acidity is a bit too high, without the fruit and ripeness to support, and also a general impression of not having sufficient ripeness. Ready to drink now and not intend for further ageing.

Chateau Malartic-Lagraviere

Chateau Malartic-Lagraviere was originally called Domaine de Lagraviere. It was purchased by Pierre de Malartic in 1803, subsequently adding the prefix Malartic to the name in honor of Pierre’s uncle, Comte Anne-Joseph-Hippolyte Maures de Malartic. Maures was an admiral of the French fleet, and later took up a position as governor of today’s Mauritius. He fought against the British and was honored in France, with the town of Malartic named after him.

The estate was passed to Madame Verve Arnaud Ricard in 1850, a successful family of barrel manufacturer and also the proprietor of Domaine de Chevalier. It was Madame Ricard who amended the name of the chateau to honor Maures de Malartic. The estate later came to her granddaughter Angele Ricard in 1901, whose granddaughter Simone Ridoret married the estate manager Jacques Marly.

Jacques Marly earned his fortune through the mirror industry, and he had the label reverse-printed in the vintage of 1962 and 1964 so it could be viewed only through a mirror. Marly also was responsible for the design of the current label, featuring a three-mast sailing ship, which was built in 1846 and sailed by Laurent Ridoret, Simone’s great-grandfather.

The estate was sold to Laurent-Perrier in 1990, with the Champagne house passing on to Michele and Alfred-Alexandre Bonnie in 1996. Alfred is a business of Belgian origin, who spent multi-million investment to revitalize the estate, with new developments in the chateau, and expand the vineyard and chai. The new cellars are now fully equipped with gravity-fed temperature-controlled stainless steel and new oak vats.

The vineyard is expanded with a purchase of 11 ha from neighboring estate Chateau Neuf, and a 7 ha from Marquet, now covering 53 ha in total. Today it is managed by Alfred’s son Jean-Jacques and his wife Severine. They have also made a recent acquisition of Chateau Gazin Rocquencourt.

The soil is typical of the region, with gravel on top of a layer of limestone, peppered with ancient shells and fossils, and a few streaks of clay. The vines are averaging 25 years of age and planted at 10000 vines per ha. Once it was all Sauvignon Blanc but now the white varieties have 80% Sauvignon Blanc and 20% Semillon, with the red varieties having an equal proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot at 45% each, with 8% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot.

Trained in double Guyot system, with minimal use of treatments, the vines are manually harvested, with yield typically of 45 hl/ha. Double sorting is done on the vibrating table, with destemming, followed by transfer to the vat room by gravity. Fermentation is carried out in the newly-equipped chai, on a plot-by-plot basis, using temperature-controlled stainless steel and oak vats.

The white wine is fermented using wood of 30-40% new, without skin contact, remaining in the barrels for up to 12 months. For the red wine, once finished fermentation, it undergoes blending and is decanted into oak barrels, of 60-80% new for up to 22 months, before fining with egg white. The estate produces both red and white wine and both are included in the 1959 Graves Classification.

The grand vin is dominated by Sauvignon Blanc, with a smaller production of only 2000 cases. For the red there are typically 16000 cases, usually having more Cabernet Sauvignon. In general the white is regarded as superior in quality and reputation. There is second wine introduced for both red and white in 1990, of 6500 and 500 cases respectively, now named as La Reserve de Malartic from 2007. Selection is strict with only 60% going to the grand vin, and a rose called Le Rose de Malartic is made from saignee method, mainly with Merlot, of about 3600 cases.

 

I have recently tasted the 2007 red and white, below are my tasting notes for both respectively:

 

Very good quality Pessac-Leognan with deep ruby color, a fairly intense nose of good complexity showing aromas of blackcurrant and blackberry, earth, tobacco and savory, liquorice, cedar and smoke, plus some cream. Medium in acidity, the tannin is ripe and velvety, the wine is fairly full-bodied with reasonably intense flavors of blackcurrant and blackberry, earth, cocoa, liquorice and eucalyptus. Possessing a fairly long finish, the wine shows good development despite its relatively young age, with a firm structure and good balance. Ready to drink now though can benefit from further ageing of another 5-8 years.

 

Very good quality Pessac-Leognan white with light lemon color, a fairly intense nose of good complexity, showing aromas of pear and custard apple, lemon, peach and hints of apcicot, cream, melon, straw and vanilla. Fairly high in acidity, it has a high alcohol level and quite warming, with a fairly full-bodied and good intense palate, showing flavors of lime, peach, toasted almond, mango, butterscotch and honey. Having a fairly long finish, the wine is in good balance and impressive on the complexity in both nose and palate. Ready to drink now though can benefit from further ageing of another 4-6 years.

Zinfandel

Many Californian winemakers claim Zinfandel as their local grape, but this grape is in fact the same as Primitivo, from the south of Italy, as well as Crljenak Kastelanski from Croatia. However, more accurately it should be Tribidrag from Croatia, which has showed to be the oldest name of the variety.

Bob Trinchero of Sutter Home Winery is credited as the inventor of White Zinfandel, which is very popular in the US during 1980s and early 1990s, saving the vine from the trend of uprooting then, to make room for replanting of Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay. However, Paul Draper of Ridge Vineyards is the one making the world aware of the potential and quality of Zinfandel.

In US there are 14 states that grow the vine, with great diversity in which the wine can be pink or deepest black, sweet or dry. Earliest mention of the grape is in the 1820s, with its name probably came from the confusion with the Austrian vine Zierfandler, which also came to Vienna from Croatia. Central and South America also has some, as well as Australia and South Africa.

Zinfandel produces large crops on poor soils in dry conditions, but ripens unevenly, so one can find green, ripe and raisined grapes on the same cluster easily. There are insect and disease problems because of its tightly packed bunches, such as bunch rot if caught by autumn rains. It likes warmth and a long growing season, with ripeness important to bring the true fruit. It can go as high as 17% abv for that ripeness. In Italy the wine made from Primitivo can still hit 16%.

The grape performs best in Mediterranean climate with plenty of sun. But if too hot the wine becomes jammy and baked. Dry Creek Valley in California, because of its hot days and relatively cool nights, produces good ripeness but preserving the acidity. Central Valley is mainly for the sweetish blush Zinfandel, which is even hotter but without the cool nights.

With early picking the wine is of the strawberry, cranberry and raspberry range. Later picking gives black cherry, blackberry and plum, to even prune, dates and raisin flavors. Up to 23 Brix the strawberry flavors dominate, with cherry coming at 23-24 Brix, at 25 Brix it turns blackberry, ending with raisined grapes at 27 Brix. For White Zinfandel it is normally picked at 20 Brix, having a recognizable apple flesh and tobacco flavor, dappled with raisin.

Poor, well-drained but mineral-rich soils produce good results for Zinfandel, but the choice of soil is secondary to climate. Many vines in California are of 50 years or older, being bush-trained and head-pruned. The variety can produce up to 8 ton per acre even at a low density. The clusters need to be thinned, and second-crop clusters need to be removed also to control yield. More recent plantings are trained on wires, mechanically cultivated and harvested. But quality producers will achieve consistent ripeness through picking from successive tries.

University of California at Davis is launching a study on the diversity of Zinfandel and the relationship of site and circumstances on variables like cluster weight, berry size and cluster tightness. Petite Sirah is sometimes blended with Zinfandel, with Ridge Vineyards doing that to good effect. White Zinfandel is produced similar to a white wine, leaving a fair amount of sugar in it.

Whole cluster fermentation will give fruitier, strawberry flavors. Long maceration with skins will give more color and tannin, good for oak ageing, which now is mainly via small new barrels. American oak marries well with Zinfandel. Late harvest Zinfandels can make wines to over 17% alcohol, and sweet wine with botrytised grapes is also made, which can keep the dark color.

Zinfandel can be found all over California, with plantings still rising. Now it is California’s third most widely planted red grape, behind Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Zinfandel Advocates and Producers (ZAP) is a group formed in 1991 to promote the grape, now has more than 300 members. BATF forbids the Italian produced Primitivo to label as Zinfandel if sold in US.

Dry Creek Valley in Sonoma is associated above all with the grape, with Alexander Valley also doing well, despite being hotter. Russian River Valley will require warmer years to ripen the grape however. Flavors of the wine from Dry Creek are juicy blackberry and pepper, with good acidity. Santa Cruz has more complexity and depth but that may be the attributes from the skill of Paul Draper at Ridge Vineyards.

Paso Robles often has soft, round flavors without the acidity, with Napa Valley giving plummy and intense flavors. Contra Costa is dusty and dense, and Lodi gives fleshy, approachable wines, with many focusing on producing blush. There are distinct flavors when the vines are old, with denser, more compact intensity. Blush is nearly always a commodity wine, producing with high-yielding, wire-trained, mechanically harvested vines. Best producers are: Bedrock, Biale, Carlisle, Easton, Martinelli, A Rafanelli, Ravenswood, Ridge, Seghesio and Turley.

Other states in US also cultivate the grape, but they rarely achieve the ripeness of California. In Italy, the variety was a victim to EU vine pull scheme in 1990s, only stopping after the variety is better known as a varietal and being identified as the same as Zinfandel. It used to be popular with the producers in Piedmont and Tuscany to blend with the other varieties to provide the alcohol, flavors especially in poor years, including producers of Amarone.

With the discovery that Primitivo is the same as Zinfandel the popularity increases. Varietal DOC includes Primitivo di Manduria and Primitivo di Gioia, both in Puglia, with rustic and solid. Primitivo di Manduria DOC allows for sweet and fortified versions as well. There is also a boom since late 1990s for the IGT Salento. Best producers include Cannito, Morella, Paololeo and Petrera Fatalone.

South Africa is beginning to look at the variety, but planting still less than 1% of total vineyard, often blended with Carignan or Cinsault to bring down alcohol, with beefy and brawny style. Chile has a small quantity but rising, with Mexico, Brazil and Argentina having some.

Australia has a successful planting in Margaret River, with Adelaide Hills also good, but Yarra Vally is too cold for the grape. Best producer is Cape Mentelle. New Zealand is also too cold for the variety. In France, only Domaine de l’Arjolle is producing this variety as a varietal, known as Cuvee Z.

Ripe Zinfandel even when young can already have flavors like prune, dates and raisins, with pepper and blackberry also. Many Zinfandels are made to be drunk young, because of low tannin and burly fruit, and do not undergo big changes in flavor upon ageing, becoming tarry in time. If not too oaky it is good for barbecued meats, venison and roast chicken. Blush goes well with tomato-based dishes, like pizza and pasta, and hamburgers.

Clos de L'Oratoire

Clos de L’Oratoire is owned by Stephan von Neipperg since 1991, who also owned two other high-flying estates including Canon-La-Gaffeliere and La Mondotte. Totaling 10 ha, located on St-Emilion’s northeast hills.

Its history began in 1969 when a few plots were separated from Chateau Peyreau to be classified in their own right at the first revision of the St-Emilion Classification. But it was only until Stephan took over did the estate elevate to an entirely new height.

The soils are sand on a layer of clay, mainly clay limestone. Planted with 90% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon, average vine age is 35 years. Harvested by hand, the berries are sorted before and after destemming

The must is fermented in temperature-controlled wooden vats for 22-30 days, with punching down. Malolactic fermentation takes place in new oak barrel, around 80-100% new, on the lees, for 15-20 months, with no fining and filtering unless absolutely necessary.

I have recently tasted the 2007 vintage, below is my tasting note:

Good quality St-Emilion with deep ruby color, the wine has a fairly intense nose of reasonable complexity, showing aromas of blackberry, bilberry and blueberry, cedar, chocolate, savory. Medium in acidity, the tannin is ripe but a bit grippy, the wine has a medium body and a reasonably intense palate, of blackberry and bilberry, blackcurrant leaf, vanilla and cedar, coffee, savory. Having a reasonable finish, it is a bit young but still drinkable, but definitely will benefit from further ageing of another 5-8 years.

Chateau Villemaurine

In the 17^th century the Moors set up a fortified camp in a place that was called Ville Maure, and a chateau was built later, with the name of Chateau Villemaurine, an uncommon name, on the northeast of St-Emilion.

Justin Onclin, a negociant wanting to develop his own wine, bought the estate in 2007, a total of 7 ha with clay soils on the limestone plateau. All vineyard and cellar operations are tailor-made, with modern equipment installed. There is a big underground cellar which the estate has now renovated to host visitors using latest visual and sound technology.

The vineyard is planted with 95% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Franc. With bud pruning, removing side shoots and green harvesting, the grapes are manually harvested, with small stainless steel vats being used to ferment each plot separately.

A first year cellar which is relatively dry, is used to enhance the integration of wine, oak and oxygen. The second year cellar has a more regular temperature and high humidity of the former quarry, to age the wines for 12-16 months.

I have tasted the 2004 Chateau Villemaurine just now, my tasting notes:

Good quality St-Emilion with deep ruby color, a fairly concentrated and complex nose showing blackberry and black cherry, prune, vanilla and cedar, cloves, tea leaves and game, the wine has a medium acidity, balancing well with the ripe but a bit powdery tannin. Fairly full-bodied, the palate is however relatively less intense and simple, with blackberry and dark plum, cedar and cinnamon flavors. With only a fairly short finish, it is ready to drink now though has potential for further ageing of another 2-3 years.