Chateau Couhins-Lurton

Chateau Couhins-Lurton has the same early history as Chateau Couhins, and the two were one and the same until 1968, when it was split up. Initially renowned for its red wine, the whites were first produced in 1898, and gradually increased under the reins of the Hanappier and Gasqueton family, which was bottled under Chateau Cantebau before 1950.

The white wine was classified as a grand cru classe in 1959, this estate is now owned by Andre Lurton, the leading owner in Pessac-Leognan with other properties including La Louviere, Rochemorin, Barbe-Blanche and others. In fact it was Andre who rescued the vineyards or it would have disappeared when Madame Gasqueton considered to uproot the vines.

Andre agreed to lease the vineyard but the Gasqueton family finally decided to sell to INRA, which continued to honor the rental agreement with Lurton through 1978. In 1972 INRA sold 1.5 ha of vines to Lurton, dividing the estate and creating Chateau Couhins-Lurton.

In 1992 Lurton bought the chateau as well as the cellars, and then renovated in 1998. Now the whites, which is made purely with Sauvignon Blanc, comprises 6 ha of gravel and sand-gravel soils on a limestone bedrock. The grapes are hand-picked and then ferment, aged for 10 months in oak barriques, 50% are new.

Recently half of the bottles are produced in screwcap and the rest in traditional cork. It has a good capacity to age and is a good value buy.

 

I have recently tasted the 2005 vintage and below is my tasting note:

 

Very good quality Pessac-Leognan white wine of medium lemon color, it has an intense nose of good complexity, showing developing aromas of lemon and grapefruit, fig, cream and butter, wax, grass and honey. Fairly high on acidity, this wine is quite full-bodied with a good concentration on the palate, showing grapefruit, gooseberry, straw, butter, smoke. Its robust varietal characters is supported by a good structure and freshness, and with its fairly long finish, it is a wine I recommend, particularly in view of its price. Ready to drink now and can be maintained for another 3-5 years.

Chateau Haut-Bages Liberal

Chateau Haut-Bages Liberal is located on the Bages plateau, which is named after the family that owned the land in the 16^th century, between the two towns of Pauillac and St-Julien-Beychevelle. The land is on a gravelly rise, offering a good look at the Gironde.

On this plateau there are numerous chateaux including Lynch-Bages, Croizet-Bages, Cordeillan-Bages, Haut-Bages-Averous and Haut-Bages Liberal. Chateau Haut-Bages Liberal lies at the top of the plateau.

The Liberal family, who were wine brokers, established the estate as their home in the 18^th century, subsequently giving their name to the property. The wine they produced was of good quality and was ranked as a fifth growth in the 1855 classification.

But afterwards the vineyard fell into neglect, compounded by the vine disease, the wars and economic recession. In the 1960 it was acquired by the Societe Civile Charreules, which was operated under the Cruse dynasty, and some vineyards close to Pontet-Canet had been sold later on.

The new owners replanted some vineyards and erected wine-making facilities with new equipment, and started chateau-bottling. The estate was sold in 1982, to Jacques Merlaut, adding to his portfolio of the Taillan Group, including Chasse-Spleen and Gruaud-Larose, Ferriere and La Gurgue.

Now under Claire Villars Lurton, whose husband Gonzague Lurton is the owner of Durfort-Vivens, who decided to focus on Ferriere, Haut-Bages Liberal and another new property in St-Estephe called Domeyne.

There are three vineyards under Chateau Haut-Bages Liberal, all under the Pauillac commune. The largest lies just across the road from Chateau Latour, with the another just behind Pichon-Baron. The third plot is further inland, adjacent to Grand-Puy-Lacoste, totally covering 30 ha.

The average vine age is now 35 years, with 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot. Manually harvest, fermentation is done in temperature-controlled stainless steel and concrete vats before going into 40% new oak barrels for 16 months. The grand vin has a production of about 9000 cases per annum, and a second wine La Chapelle de Bages of 6500 cases is produced as well.

I have recently tasted the 2004 vintage and below is my tasting note:

Good quality Pauillac, with a deep ruby color and reasonably intense nose, showing developing aromas of blackberry and blackcurrant, cedar, coffee, earth, cream, liquorice and tobacco. It has a good acidity, balancing well with the good tannin though it is still a bit gripping despite 9 years after vintage. The wine is quite full-bodied and the palate is of fair concentration with flavors of blackberry and blackcurrant, plum, leather, cedar. With a reasonable finish, this is a wine showing typical Bordeaux characters but may not have particular strengths which stood out. Ready to drink now but can benefit from further ageing of another 3-5 years.

Chateau Barde-Haut

Chateau Barde-Haut is acquired by Sylviane Garcin-Cathiard in 2000, who also owned Clos L’Eglise in Pomerol, Haut-Bergey and Branon in Pessac-Leognan. The vineyards total 17 ha, on the extreme east of St-Emilion.

Planted with 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc, averaging 35 years of age, the soil type is mainly clay on a layer of chalk. The cellars are equipped with wooden and concrete vats, as well as stainless steel tanks. With selection by hand, malolactic fermentation is carried out in 100% new oak for up to 18 months.

Average annual production is 40000 bottles, it has been promoted to Grand Cru Classe status in the 2012 classification.

I have recently tasted the 2006 vintage and below is my tasting note:

Acceptable quality St-Emilion of medium ruby color, it has reasonably intense nose showing fairly complex and developing aromas of blackberry and black cherry, liquorice, cedar, earth, coffee and wet leaves. Medium in acidity, the tannin is ripe and velvety, and the wine is fairly full-bodied with palate of fair intensity and complexity, showing black cherry and blackberry, cedar, liquorice. Balanced in structure, it has a reasonable length. Although nothing outstanding, it is a plush and enjoyable wine. It is ready to drink now though can benefit from further ageing of another 3-5 years.

Chateau La Cardonne

Sitting on Medoc’s highest plateau, Chateau La Cardonne was formerly owned by Lafite-Rothschild. It is a Cru Bourgeois for over three centuries, with the estate started growing vines in the 17^th century, and was recently acquired by the Charloux family in 1990.

The soils are mainly gravelly, with limestone, and planted with 50% Merlot, 45% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc, the vines are averaging 30 years. Latest investment includes the installation of the largest underground cellar in the region. The wine is blended and aged for 12-16 months in 50% new oak.

I have recently tasted the 2005 vintage and below is my tasting note:

This 2005 is of acceptable quality with reasonably intense nose of fair complexity, showing black cherry, blackberry and blackcurrant, forest floor, liquorice, cedar and cocoa. The tannin is a bit dusty in texture, though overall it shows typical Bordeaux characters with a reasonable palate of some complexity, with black cherry, blackberry, plum, cedar and cocoa. Reasonable in length, it is ready to drink now and not intend for further ageing, but can maintain for another 2-3 years.

Chateau Potensac

Originally owned by the Liquard family, Chateau Potensac is now under the Delon family after Paul Delon married the Liquard daughter. The property prospered because of this change in ownership, with the Delon family also owning other illustrious estates like Leoville-Las-Cases in St-Julien and Nenin in Pomerol.

Today it is under Jean-Hubert Delon, who had refurbished the chai with new stainless steel equipment. The vineyards are located in Ordonnac, under the Medoc appellation, comprising of three properties, including Potensac, Gallais-Bellevue and Lassalle.

The soil is alluvial gravel with some red clay, with the total vineyard area of 53 ha. Planted with 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc, at a density of 8000 vines per ha. Recent trend sees an increase in Merlot in the blend, with the 2005 vintage having 41% Merlot, versus 40% of Cabernet Sauvignon.

Yields are restricted to 35 hl/ha, the fruit is harvested by hand and is fermented in stainless steel and concrete vats, with 15-18 days of maceration. There is rigorous selection, with 40-45% going to the second wine La Chapelle de Potensac. The wine will be aged in 30% new oak barrels for up to 16 months, and the remaining in one-year barrel coming from Leoville-Las-Cases. It is then fined with egg white and bottled without filtration.

Typical production per year is 25000 cases. Although only a Cru Bourgeois, the estate often produces wines of classed growth quality. The wine is in general more classic, firmer and more structured, which needs time in cellar and best enjoyed with food.

I have recently tasted the 2000 vintage and below is my tasting note:

Acceptable quaAcceptable quality Medoc of medium ruby color, the wine has fair complexity but a bit lacking on the concentration, with the nose showing developing aromas of blackberry, blackcurrant and dark plum, tar, savory, nutmeg, cedar, black tea. It has a fairly high acidity but without sufficient fruit to balance it out, making it a bit austere. The tannin is also a bit drying with a similarly lacklustre intensity in flavors, with blackberry, blackcurrant and dark plum, cedar, cinnamon and liquorice Having a reasonable finish, the wine is ready to drink now and in my opinion already past its best.

Vieux Chateau Certan

Some thought that Vieux Chateau Certan originated in the 16^th century, but it was only in 1785 there was a chateau named Sertan starting to appear on the map. The owners of this chateau was the Demay family, who was active in the region as a negociant and landlord.

A number of plots were sold and out of those Petit-Certan (later known as Certan de May) and Vieux Chateau Certan were created. In 1858 the estate was sold to Charles de Bousquet, a banker, who built the chateau.

In 1924 it was acquired by Georges Thienpont, who also purchased Chateau Troplong-Mondot in St-Emilion. But during the depression and war the financial hardship forced Georges to sell one of the properties, and he decided to let go of Troplong-Mondot, keeping Vieux Chateau Certan.

With Geroges and his son Leon’s dedication on the property, the quality of Vieux Chateau Certan increased throughout the years. In 1985 the estate was passed to Leon’s son Alexandre.

The vineyard lays very close to the church in Pomerol, with many famous neighbors including Petrus, La Conseillante, Certan de May. The soils are clay spiced with large pebbles, over deeper ferruginous subsoils. There are 14 ha of vines planted in a single block, with 60% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon.

Pruned in the usual Bordelais fashion of double Guyot, with crop thinning to control yields and improve ventilation, the vineyard is manually harvested, and there is rigorous selection of grapes in the vineyard. In the chai there is a gentle crushing before the must is put in temperature-controlled oak vats, with separate vinification for each variety.

Maceration is carried out for up to three weeks to extract color and tannin, and the wine is then put in French oak barrels (50% new) to rest up to 22 months. The tasting from barrel then determines the final blend, before the fining and bottling without filtration. The grand vin is Vieux Chateau Certan with less than 5000 cases produced, with a second wine of Gravette de Certan.

I have recently tasted the 2002 grand vin and the 2009 second wine. Below are my tasting notes:

Good quality Pomerol of medium ruby color, the wine has a reasonably intense nose of fair complexity, showing aromas of blackberry, black cherry and cassis, plum, liquorice, cedar, mocha. It is much more youthful than would be expected. The palate is of medium acidity, with a ripe and velvety tannin. Medium in body, it also reasonably intense flavors and fair complexity, with black cherry and blackberry, liquorice, cedar, plum, chocolate. The most memorable for this wine is its long finish. Overall of good structure and finesse, it does however lack the concentration. Ready to drink now though can benefit from further ageing of another 3-5 years.

Very good quality Pomerol of deep ruby color, the wine has an intense nose showing a very ripe fruity characters of blackberry, blueberry, dark plum and cassis, cedar and vanilla, liquorice, chocolate, meaty. The wine is youthful, and has medium acidity, with a robust and ripe tannin though still a bit dusty and requiring more time to mellow. Fairly high on alcohol for a Pomerol, reflecting the characters of the vintage and the ripeness of the grapes, this fairly full-bodied wine has fairly concentrated flavors of blackberry, dark plum and blueberry, cedar, chocolate, earth. With a good finish though nothing compared with the grand vin, this wine has demonstrated good potential and would be good to see how time can further add another dimensions. It is ready to drink now but can benefit from further ageing of another 5-8 years.

Chateau Rollan de By

Purchased by Jean Guyon in 1989, Chateau Rollan de By has seen total renovation and is now expanded to 50 ha, mainly planting with Merlot (70%). The soils are mainly clay-chalky.

Manually harvested, the grapes are sorted and destemmed at the cellar, and macerate for 3 days at a low temperature in stainless steel vats. The must is then kept in the vats for 3 weeks and then put in oak for malolactic fermentation, followed by egg white fining. No filtration is done and the wine will be put in 100% new oak for 12 months before bottling.

A second wine is produced, allowing the selection of the best grapes for the grand vin and increases the concentration. There is a special cuvee called Haut-Condissas made from a separate parcel of old vines and matured in 100% new oak.

I have recently tasted the 2000 vintage and below is my tasting note:

Good quality Medoc of deep ruby color, with a reasonably intense nose of good complexity, showing developing aromas of black cherry, dark plum and blackcurrant, prune, cocoa, black tea, liquorice, smoke, pencil lead and savory. Medium in acidity, the palate is balanced with ripe and silky tannin. The medium-bodied wine has fair concentration on the flavors, showing reasonable complexity, with flavors of black cherry and cassis, liquorice, cedar, mocha. Having a fairly long finish, the wine is ready to drink now and is not suitable for further ageing.

Chateau Montrose

At the end of the 18^th century the land that is now Chateau Montrose was nothing more than a moorland owned by the Segur family. In 1778 it was acquired by Etienne Theodore Dumoulin, who passed to his children in 1806. When his son Etienne Theodore (of the same name) took control, he was focused on a plot of land south of Calon and adjacent to the Gironde, which has potential as a vineyard.

Etienne Theodore then cleared the heather and scrub and planted vines on the gravelly soil in 1815, with good results, and subsequently expanded and also built a chateau in 1820. Later the vineyard was sold to Firmin de Lestapis, but Etienne Theodore retained part of it and renamed the estate Montrose and sold the wines as Montrose-Segur.

The name Montrose probably originated from mont-rose, the pink heather that covered the gravel croupe before it was cleared for the vineyard. Through purchase and exchange of vineyards with neighbors the property continued to expand, to 50 hectares by the time of the 1855 classification, where it was ranked as a deuxieme cru, or second growth in the classification.

When Etienne Theodore died in 1861, his adopted sons inherited the estate but later sold to Mathieu Dollfus. Mathieu was very interested in the estate and invested significantly to expand it to 65 hectares, and took good care of the employees in the vineyard, creating a community around Chateau Montrose.

He also built a small railway to transport the wines to the river in order to ship to Bordeaux, as well as a limited company to manage the estate, avoiding the division of the estate when it is passed on to the next generation. He was a real pioneer in the day.

Unfortunately his heir Charles Dollfus-Galline was not interested in the estate and later sold it to two brothers Jean-Justin and Jean-Jules Hostein, who also owned Cos d’Estournel. Jean-Jules soon acquired the whole ownership and then sold to his son-in-law Louis Victor Charmolue in 1896.

With phylloxera devastating the vineyard at the end of 19^th century, Louis Victor replanted the vines on American rootstock, keeping the quality and reputation until 1925, when it was passed onto his son Albe upon his death. However, there were some bad times and Albe had to sell part of the vineyards to stay solvent, and a fire in the cellar in 1932 destroyed a sizeable amount of stock. The estate was further damaged by some bombing during WWII.

When Albe died in 1944, the estate was passed to his widow Yvonne and later to his son Jean-Louis in 1960. Supported by his wife Anne-Marie, Jean-Louis invested in the vineyard, with new equipment, new barrel cellar, and introducing a second wine in 1983. The wine enjoyed some good reviews, particularly in the 2003 vintage.

The estate was sold again in 2006 to the brothers Martin and Olivier Bouygues, who expanded the estate to 95 hectares, acquiring land from neighboring Phelan-Segur. The brothers installed a geothermal pump, to heat up or cool down the buildings as required, with also solar power panels to generate its own electricity, as well as carrying out water conservation.

The brothers also brought Jean-Bernard Delmas, previous winemaker at Haut-Brion, to manage the chai. Jean-Bernard retired in 2011 and passed the role to Herve Berland, recently retired from Mouton-Rothschild as their general manager. The brothers now owned more than 100 hectares in St-Estephe overall, the largest property owner in the commune.

The vineyards are on the slope in the south-eastern corner of St-Estephe, with gravel soils, and some clay, sand and alluvial influences. The vines are 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot, at a density of 9000 vines per hectare.

Manually harvest, with the pickers coming back every year from Andalusia, a tradition for more than 40 years. The picking is done on a plot-by-plot fashion, with basic triage in vineyard followed by sorting in the chai, before fermentation in stainless steel vats.

Pumping over is practiced several times a day, with pre-assemblage to blend new-born wines from the same variety of the same quality level prior to malolactic fermentation. Assemblage process follows after the tasting, with the blended wines going into 60% new oak, with the remaining one-year old, for 16-18 months. Racking is done every three months and the wine is fined with egg white before bottling

About 19000 cases are made for the grand vin, with a second wine La Dame de Montrose (in honor of Yvonne Charmolue) of about 9000 cases, which uses 15-20% new oak and a shorter elevage of 12 months.

I have recently tasted both the grand vin and second wine, at a fairly young vintage of 2002 and 2004. Below are my tasting notes:

Good quality St-Estephe of deep ruby color, this wine has reasonably intense nose of good complexity, showing developing aromas of blackberry, plum, meaty and farmyard, game, cedar and smoke, cloves, graphite. With good acidity, the tannin of the wine is fairly high but it has a smooth silky texture. The wine is fairly full-bodied and the palate has reasonable concentration of black cherry, plum, cedar, cinnamon, cream, and earth. With a fair finish, the wine is ready to drink now though it can benefit from further ageing of another 3-5 years.

Good quality St-Estephe, of medium ruby color, on the nose there are reasonably intense aromas of blackberry, dark plum, blueberry, cedar, tobacco, earth and leather, showing good complexity and developing characters. Medium in acidity, the tannin is however a bit too high and grippy, with fairly full-bodied and reasonable concentration of blackberry, dark plum, cedar, tobacco and cloves in flavors. A fair finish, the wine is overall too young and should be further cellared for another 2-3 years before opening.