On sale as of April 13 2008

GARAGISTE I am

BLACK SHEEP wouldn’t deign

BAD BOY I remain

The bottling of the cuvee BAD BOY 2005 is about to start: 6666 cardboard boxes of 6, or 39996 bottles. 95% merlot, 5% cabernet franc, with vines at least 40 years old in a great terroir of clayey limestone.

I was thinking of creating this cuvee when the Vin de Pays de France appellation would be launched. It would give me the opportunity to blend grenaches or carignans from Maury with our merlots from Pomerol, Saint Emilion or Bordeaux. Unfortunately, regulations for table wine move very slowly and doesn’t allow to list a vintage.

I was able to create this 2005 cuvee, as one would say during the Academy Awards, thanks to my parents without who this would have been impossible; my wife and my daughter who accept my crazy ideas, my bank who keep on backing me, hoping that it will work, my past and future customers who always trust me, wine merchants from Bordeaux and brokers (who for this time are not the reason for this cuvee!), and especially, I thank: Robert Parker who gave me the idea to call this cuvée Bad Boy in one of his comments on Valandraud:
“A terrific effort from bad boy and leading garagiste, Jean-Luc Thunevin, and his sidekick, Murielle Andraud, the inky/blue/purple-tinged 2005 Valandraud exhibits superb aromas of graphite, black currants, blackberries, violets, white chocolate, sweet licorice, and espresso roast. Boasting great intensity, full-bodied power, beautiful purity, and layers of complexity, this stunning wine should be unusually long-lived. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2025+. »

Eric Soulat who set the ton and spirit of the label.

Guillaume Quéron, with the help from Jean Philippe Fort, who produced the 2005 vintage of this wine.

With a consumer price of 15 Euros (25 to 30 Dollars in the US and Asia), this wine should please wine lovers as much (if not more) than expensive wine.

Pity for one which can’t hold its promises… In any case, it is my first “marketing” wine
Def: Marketing is the effort made by companies to adapt to competitive markets, to attract consumers by creating product which are perceived as superior to their competitors, (Mercator, 8th edition, 2006).

While waiting for mi-April, you can read comments in Cuisine et Vin de France, Nouvel Obs hebdo, Vinorumcodex, Wine Tasting Tags Asimov, Bertrand Le Guern, Oenoline.