A sense of history

Partners Mike and June Webber attended the Bordeaux Revelation weekend in July and sent us this report..

A sense of history The Romans brought vines to Bourg and Blaye in the first century AD, and wine has been made here ever since. The Partners’ weekend in July gave a deep insight into the delights of the region and its wines.

We stayed in a first class hotel within the 17th Century Blaye citadel, which was originally built to keep the British out, but now welcomes them and feeds them royally. There was history too in the three vineyards visited during the weekend: the Baudets have been at Château Monconseil-Gazin for five generations; whereas Vincent Lemaitre bought Château Rousselle just nine years ago, rescuing it from decades of relative neglect.

Quality Winemakers in Bourg and Blaye cannot compete with New World wines on price; nor do they have the prestigious names and big marketing budgets of the Médoc châteaux. The best and most thoughtful of them - including those chosen as winemakers for 3D Wines - have adopted a strategy in which quality and customer loyalty are the cornerstones. Valérie Bassereau at Château de la Grave explained that great wines need the best grapes. The care taken in harvesting, vinifying, ageing and blending is essential to preserve quality, but it can never add quality that isn't already present in the fruit. As Vincent Lemaitre at Château Rousselle explained "You must have the will to work at it, and at critical times of year that means seven days a week."

Caring for the vines Pruning, trainint, thinning and harvesting are all carried out under the watchful eyes of the owners. Harvesting in particular must be done at exactly the right time when the grapes have reached peak ripeness. After that they deteriorate rapidly so machines are used to get the harvest in quickly, sometimes working through the cool of the night. Machine harvesting is followed by hand sorting to ensure that only high quality grapes go forward for vinification.

Old and new At all three châteaux respect for tradition goes hand in hand with modern methods. Wines are fermented in stainless steel or concrete tanks so that temperature can be controlled; tasting is supported by scientific analysis; and ageing is carried out in oak barrels. Blending takes place as late as possible to permit flexibility in getting quality and consistent style. Traditionally right bank wines contain a high proportion of Merlot, but the blends produced for 3D Wines also contain generous amounts of Cabernet Sauvignon which provides structure, balance and ageing potential.