France Bordelais
Last October, SommelierS International welcomed Nelson Chow, President of the Hong Kong and China Sommeliers, who came with fifteen Chinese sommeliers and pre-eminent professionals. A tasting at the Grand Hotel of Bordeaux was organized in their honour, followed by two days in the vineyard of Bordeaux.
On the morning of Wednesday October 3rd, the sumptuous lounges of the Grand Hôtel de Bordeaux & Spa hosted the sixteen sommeliers for a private grand tasting.
In respect for the 72 presented great wines of Bordeaux, silence and professionalism were the rules in this emblematic place opposite the Grand Théatre. By late morning, the flasks of the famous Hine Cognac and the splendid Bas-Armagnac Dartigalongue closed the gustative expertise.
After this sharp exercise, a lunch orchestrated by Michelin-starred Chef Pascal Nibaudeau gathered the tasters and the owners of the wines submitted to the morning tasting. He delighted the palates with a Tartar of Sea Bass and Oysters with Curry cream, then a Cod
Fillet and Anna potatoes with Piquillo sauce, followed by a Three Chocolate Fondant and Crunchy Praline. In a convivial but nonetheless very professional atmosphere, lively conversations and discussions in English were rife throughout the meal during which were served the wines of the same chateaus.
Early in the afternoon, tasters’ committee jumped into the bus that led them to the first stop at Château Rauzan-Ségla, Grand Cru Classé of Margaux. Sandrine Bégaud, in charge of communication and public relations, welcomed them for a visit of the facilities.
She evoked the history of the cru, anecdotes, distinctive features, particularly a tank allowing the blend of one and only plot in order to keep the unity and image of Rauzan-Ségla's grand vin according to the vintage. Then in the field, she explained the works undertaken to improve the conditions of work and storage, and showed an arrival at the vat house of a harvest of ripe Petit Verdot. The sommeliers have then been invited to enter the peaceful cellars for a thematic tasting of various vintages. John Kolasa, the Managing Director, who had momentarily bracketed the harvest, joined them to answer all the questions about the different cuvees presented: Ségla 2011 and 2006, the second vin, and Château Rauzan-Ségla 2011, 2010, 2004, and 2001. Before leaving the estate, as a friendly tribute, Nelson Chow gave John the bunch of grapes, a symbol of belonging to the Hong Kong sommellerie as an associate member.
Then the journey continued towards Château de Lamarque, majestic building that had been a fortress during the Hundred Years' War and has survived the vagaries of time and history. It is in this splendid château—literally—that late in the afternoon the owners received the delegation. The imposing house im-
pressed the visitors, not to mention the vat house with its huge wooden tuns.
But the memory of successive family generations has absolutely not subdued the owners' precursory spirit. Pierre-Gilles Gromant d’Evry and his wife Marie-Hélène surprised the audience with their brand new optical sorting machine that refines the selection of the grains and optimises the quality of the harvest. Amazing contrast between modernity and old stones at the initiative of Madam who puts forward the terroir, the vine, the wine and a peculiar method that proved itself: the Cousinié® method. As for his husband, he prefers the sales part. Both are engaging, complementary and full of humour. Together with Jean-Marc Dulong, Chairman of Crus et Domaines de France (subsidiary of the group Grands Chais de France) and representative of the brand on the Asian market, they welcomed each of the guests with a special attention. A delicious candlelit dinner was served with class and subtlety on the theme of the number 5 of the family estate's vintages. A Crunchy Risotto with Ceps, a Bazas Beef Tournedos with Pan-fried potatoes, ceps and chanterelles, cheese and a Red Fruit Charlotte sublimated the Château de Lamarque wines … The 1995 caught everyone's attention, not to mention the youth of the 2005 and 1985 with gamy aromas typical of its development.
Thursday October 4th, after a good night of rest at the Grand Hotel de Bordeaux, the 16 sommeliers, palate whetted for this second day, were ready to head for the Right Bank.
Stop in the morning at Château La Dominique, Grand Cru Classé of Saint-Emilion, on the famous plateau of Figeac close to the appellation Pomerol. Yannick Evenou, Managing Director of the vineyards Clément Fayat, received the team of Asian professionals for a visit in the fields and the promotion of the quality of the 2012 vintage in the vineyard. They were allowed to taste the grapes and given some explanations about the maturity and evolution of the climatology.
Mais le focus le plus important concernait les nouvelles installations techniques et œnotouristiques du château, pharaoniques mais pragmatiques, destinées à accueillir comme il se doit les amateurs et professionnels du monde entier. Depuis le mois de juin 2012, les plans dessinés par l’architecte Jean Nouvel pour réaménager le château La Dominique ont pris forme: toit terrasse avec vue panoramique sur les châteaux Cheval Blanc, Figeac, l’Évangile et La Conseillante; une salle de dégustation panoramique; un concept architectural extérieur inspiré des miroirs inverses d’Anish Kappoor en complément des bâtiments actuels, avec un système gravitaire ultraperformant.
But the most important focus concerned the new technical and wine touristic facilities of the chateau, colossal but pragmatic, intended to welcome as appropriate the amateurs and professionals from all over the world. Since June 2012 the plans drawn by architect Jean Nouvel to reorganize Château La Dominique have become real: terrace roof with panorama on the chateaus Cheval Blanc, Figeac, l’Évangile and La Conseillante; a panoramic tasting room; an outside architectural concept inspired by Anish Kapoor's inverted mirrors beside the existing buildings, with a high-performance gravity system.
For many years, China has been attracted by the vineyards of Bordeaux. Connoisseurs' and epicureans' passion, investment in the domains, a real evolution has been noticed. Transactions...
As the vine is developing incredibly quickly with the new warm days, Paolo Basso went to meet the winegrowers of Bordeaux to discover the vintage 2014 still in the barrels, but also take stock of...
G'Vine is a trademark of Eurowinegate (EWG), founded a decade ago in Cognac by Jean-Sébastien Robicquet. Fruitful alliance between tradition, know-how and innovation, EWG has become a respected...