The
estate was first established by the Durfort de Duras family, which had great
influence in the region, coming over from SW France to settle in Margaux in the
14th century. The family had owned this property as well as the
nearby Chateau Lamothe, now Chateau Margaux.
In 1824
it was acquired by Monsieur de Vivens and renamed Durfort-Vivens, and it was
still with the Vivens family when it was ranked deuxiemes crus in the 1855
classification. The quality was among the top in the region before that, being the
top of the second crus in the Margaux appellation. Thomas Jefferson also ranked
it just behind Lafite, Latour and Margaux.
During
the 20th century there were more changes of ownership, first passing
to some local negociants and then to the Lurton family, the major shareholder
of Chateau Margaux. The wine was made at Margaux until Lucien Lurton took full
control in 1961, at that time the family also owning Brane-Cantenac and Climens.
In 1992,
when Lucien divided his estates between his children, Gonzague Lurton took over
the role of the manager of Durfort-Vivens. Gonzague went on to construct a new
chai and installing new wooden and cement vats with temperature control. Now
the vineyards comprise of 32 hectares, with typical gravel soils of Margaux.
The
planting density is 6666 vines/ha, dominated by Cabernet Sauvignon at 70%, with
20% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc. The yields are typically 45 hl/ha, with
manual harvesting, and fermentation in a mixture of wooden, cement and
stainless steel vats. The wine then goes into barriques of which 40% are new. The
grand vin is Chateau Durfort-Vivens, with the second wine calling Vivens.
I have
recently tasted the 2004 vintage of the grand vin and 2005 vintage of the
second wine. Below are my tasting notes:
Appearance
Clear, with deep ruby color, and legs.
Nose
Clean,
the nose shows medium intensity aromas of black fruit such as cassis and
blackberry, oak notes of cedar, sweet spice of cloves, maturity notes of savory,
mineral notes of earth, kernel notes of cocoa. The wine is developing.
Palate
Dry with
medium acidity, the wine has medium, ripe tannin but a bit powdery still,
having medium alcohol and medium (+) body, with medium (+) intensity flavors of
black fruit of blackberry and plum, oak notes of cedar, sweet spice of cloves
and maturity savory notes. It has a medium finish.
Conclusion
Good
quality Margaux of good value, the wine has a good nose showing a fair degree
of complexity. On the palate the structure is robust, with intense flavors of
similar complexity with the nose. Having a reasonable length on the finish, my
only issue is that the tannin is still a bit powdery for my liking. Ready to
drink now but can benefit from further ageing of another 2-3 years. 
Appearance
Clear, with deep ruby color, and legs.
Nose
Clean,
the nose shows medium intensity aromas of black fruit such as cassis,
blackberry and plum, sweet spice of cloves, maturity notes of forest floor,
animal notes of leather, oak notes of cedar. The wine is developing.
Palate
Dry with
medium acidity, medium (+) tannin of ripe but a bit gripping still, the wine
has medium alcohol and medium body, medium intensity flavors of black fruit of
blackberry and plum, oak notes of cedar, herbal notes of black tea. It has a
medium finish.
Conclusion
Good
quality Margaux with a reasonably intense nose showing a nice complexity, the
wine is of balanced, with a smooth tannin though still a bit gripping and
needing more time to mellow. The flavors are similarly concentrated and having
a fair finish. It is ready to drink now though can benefit from further ageing
of another 3-5 years. 
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