Desproges

Lanefle cites again a good word from Pierre Desproges (read on the site La Passion du Vin and to please Philippe G.)
“We don’t have any more great men, but small ones who indulge and jump from right to left with serenity and with incompetency bordering on a lack of respect.”

Desproges also said : “Women and Bordeaux, I believe are the only two reasons to be alive”

Thursday, I drank with my attorney and Murielle the whole series of wines opened and drank the day before.
The wines held up beautifully to oxidation, and we opened a bottle of Clos Badon 2008 (probably the best since 1998).
The prices in Bordeaux for this vintage, for wines sold on this open market, are increasing. A combination of quality and the domino effect from the high prices of 2009.

In order or random ...

Yesterday at 4 pm, Marion decided not to run over me with her car and told me “do not cry, the steel bath with claw foot“..., and I replied “becoming too soft or becoming dry and thin, drink or analyze, difficult choices, a bit of both? "
It’s disjointed, but that’s what it was... Understand what you will!

We were 4 for lunch:
Jacquesson brut 731, delicious, a fine wine drank just a bit cold.
La Petite Sibérie 2003 from Hervé Bizeul (Roussillon), one of the finest wine in the world: it was pure pleasure, a delicacy with a whole fresh black truffle with olive oil (from the same Hervé Bizeul).
Truffle omelette with VIT 2007 from Chapoutier (Roussillon) – refermentation problem ?
Pingus 2005, a beauty paired with a daube de joues de bœuf (beef stew), potatoes with garlic croutons. It should be mandatory to drink to experience the pleasure to drink this very fine wine from Ribera del Duero (Spain).
Following, we drank a sample of 2010 Valandraud, from the north facing hillside, Merlot, bursting with strength before its malolactic, a 2009 vintage a bit shadowed by this 2010, and 2005 particularly great, a good fine Bordeaux.
Then, Maury Thunevin-Calvet 2007, great with desert, figs from Fongaban, stolen (after approval) from our friendly neighbors, with Tahitian vanilla ice-cream.

It was a friendly meal that allowed us to enjoy eating and growing up, we are so afraid of growing old, yet another paradox ...
Nice words were said during the meal, such as compassion, and children’s jokes and learning a new word (it’s becoming a habit): sycophancy. All this because of figs.
Go to Wikipedia and you will know the origins of this word.

Are you scatovinophile or scatovinophobe ?

Scatophagous feed on feces of other species, not theirs, thank God
In the world of wine, in addition to pedovinophiles who prefer immature wine, adolescent or barely born who love the smell of youth, flowers, fresh fruits and fresh flesh in wine, there are probably cases in necrovinophiles interest in aromas so called animal (sick horse) rot, old mop of poop whose origin is known - Brettanomyces: digression in vinification from ancient origin, such as volatile (vinegar smell).
Some wine connoisseurs are scatovinophiles because in that time, some fine wines from Bordeaux, Chateauneuf du Pape, Burgundy, had pronounced caracteristics, recognized and appreciated because or thanks to this deviation. Today few nostalgic enthusiasts still appreciate these aromas when they are not too strong nor vulgar, and others are like hounds in search of "brett", obsessed by these putrid aromas - like Guy Bedos and Sophie Daumier would say!

With a bit of attention in mundane or professional tastings, you could rub shoulders both antagonist species.
I must confess, I am not too obsessed with the smells of brett which, often, gives flavors of ripe black truffle to some old wines and I would say that, as always, the dose makes the poison ...
Certainly in our vinification cellars today, everyone is informed and fighting to produce the purest and clearest wines. Some may regret those bretts which could give wine the same flavors as camembert or cheese made with unpasteurized milk rather than those made with pasteurized milk...

Some enologists, some property managers have even built their reputation on these bretts so unwanted today. Lets not forget that some Belgian beers such as Gueuze Lambic, have some of these characteristics, made on purpose with those damn Brettanomyces Bruxellensis. In any case, nothing comparable with those fans who still accept wine affected by these molecules of tetrachloroanisole (TCA), pentachloroanisole, trichloroanisole that give wines that dreaded taste of cork and that Muriel and I cannot stand, even in small dose!

I stop drinking coffee in the morning !

(This is the first volume of a forthcoming book of reflections published by the author)

It deserves a chapter in a book, or perhaps even a theses for a PhD.
Globalization of taste, wine in particular, a theme that some people enjoy for they think they are invested with a quasi-mystical mission to defend the "true values" of wine, some are French, some journalists, some blogs even cite, these days, the word terrible and demonic term: globalization of the wine palate (Parker, Rolland, even for the most knowledgeable, "garage")

Last Tuesday morning, while taking a stroll with my dog, I too had a moment of fear of this parkerisation- rollandisation – bettanisation of wine.
Max, my dog, a bit traumatized by these existential questions, suddenly stopped and raised his right back leg and peed on the tire of an old car, an ageless jalopy, one of those cars from the 70s: a Renault 4L!

Nothing in this world is made by luck, everything is written, is organized by a supreme being up there, who governs our lives.
So this dog, the tire, the urge to pee ... for real? to mark his territory? or send a message to me?
Enlightenment hit me (I didn’t get hurt, thank you.): forget it.

For anyone foreign to our beautiful language it means: do not pay attention and let people calm themselves down. This is what anxiety over globalization triggers in my mind at 6 o'clock one morning in Saint Emilion.
Quickly, I read on Viktionary.org other sayings:
bien faire et laisser braire (do good and let them bray), and back to Max: Let the world say what it will.

You see, morning coffee is too strong.
True that I just got back from Brazil and drank the famous Jacu coffee..

.

2011 is already around the corner

Vineobar (in French) published comments on their blog.
It is rare to have an intern (who I have not met) be so active, efficient and involved. He is opening a wine bar and with such energy, no need to have Red Bull for the opening scheduled in 2011.

I tasted Tour des Termes 2009 from the barrel, the wine is even better than during the futures campaign, goes to show the level of this still unknown wine. This year’s objective is for anyone looking to find a reasonable wine in this noble appellation (Saint Estèphe), to discover this wine. The 2010 samples tasted before malolactic were already very good, the wine is full, concentrated, ripe and especially balanced despite or thanks to a sharp pH this year which balance the alcohol level perfectly. I can’t wait to see how it evolves after malos, I am happy that a broker brought it to us, for even though my company is mainly focused on the Right Bank, we already had a few successes with Marojallia and the more discreet Clément Pichon.
While waiting for 2011, success for my property in Margaux where finally Bellevue de Tayac produced a nice bottle.
See you in March.

Events, for sure...

Grand Tasting in the Carrousel du Louvre : we received a few requests for invitations. We just have a few left, I recommend to order them soon in order to leave enough time for the post to deliver them…

Several events are taking place in Maury: Things are moving in the Roussillon
As for us, Saturday 18 and Sunday 19 December, will be open-door in the cellar of Thunevin-Calvet. Tasting, tour and sales just before Christmas, the last big push for our partners and their new sales manager, Ramuntxo Andonegui.
According to Jean-Roger, sales are looking good. One thing is certain is that this is not a business where the return on investment is rapid. We started this adventure in 2001 and will probably start to be a bit more financially relaxed in a couple of years.
What is also certain is that, as always, sales are the main component for any business, and that bankers only provide you an umbrella when the weather is nice.

How to make a small fortune in wine? By starting with a big one. Local Bordeaux saying which can be applied in every region.
Hospices de Beaune saw record prices… Is it due to the Lafite effect? 400.000 Euros for a 500 litre barrel, and in all close to 5 million Euros in sales, with Fabrice Lucchini as guest star.

Invited

Wednesday evening, I attended a diner in a fine restaurant : Le Saint James in Bouliac ran by a famous chef Michel Portos, invited by the head of a large French company.

The setting is always so beautiful: amazing views of the city, quality service, professional, which is not so common in France. 10 people around a round table in a nice private room
Champagne Luis Roederer brut, very good
Condrieu, les Terrasses de Palat 2009, Domaine François Villard : a way to reconcile me with Condrieu, superb and very good wine. Proof that in Bordeaux, you can drink other wines than Bordeaux…
Et Château de Pez 2005 Saint Estèphe.
So, it was a fine meal and for me I ended with a nice series of desert such as Blanc Mangé Coco (a sort of coconut custard), Lemon Tuiles with coriander sauce and pineapple sorbet and an excellent Baba au Rhum Saint James (can’t refuse )

Very pleasant conversation around this table, top managers, top government officials, a colleague. No famous names, too bad, but this meal was really meant to be for high level networking and I'm always surprised to be part of it, and today, invited to such group which I never thought or dreamt of mixing with.
Vive Bordeaux and its wines, responsible for all this great adventure for me and thank you Virginie, PR Director of this fine group, for inviting me. I am not yet jaded.

Robert Parker and the seven heady sins – the anti Parker guide

Many people attended the book signing event for the comic strip written by Benoit Simmat and Philippe Bercovici, and paradoxically (in my humble opinion) a lot of people who owe much of their commercial and media success to Robert Parker.

Go figure, Charles.... That there would be anti Parker is understandable, but pro Parker like us ? What were their motives ?
As for us, the fact of being included in a comics trip, is a sort of consecration, and I didn’t think that this comic strip was not so anti parker, despite its subheading “The anti Parker guide”!
In the meantime and for 12 Euros, we are able to get our copies signed and 2 caricatured sketches.

Thank you the authors and especially the boutique-bookstore L’Envers du Décor which hosts from time to time such quality events.
Before each trip, I buy in this bookstore 1 or 2 novels and this time it was Joyce Carol Oates “My Sister, My Love”, a complex story, with amazing atmosphere, the description of a particular American society, a good book.

Brazil - San Paulo

Following a flight Hong Kong-Paris with a 5 hour layover in Roissy and then another flight Paris-San Paulo, in other words more than a day of flying time, and 10 hours of time difference, I arrived at the Mercure Hotel in San Paulo then went with our distributor to visit a biodynamic wine fair held in a wonderful setting.
Unfortunate that INAO style glasses don’t show well in hot and humid climate, considering that some of properties belonging to this “club” produce great wines.

The next day, we had lunch at “Churrascaria Vento Haragano”, an incredible barbecue restaurant where carnivorous human beings can eat as much as they want all different kinds of meat: beef, lamb, chicken, pork and even wild boar. It is even possible to eat grilled fish, salmon or tambaqui!
In the evening, I participated in a grand tasting for sommeliers and top clients of our distributor where 18 vintages of Valandraud were presented, from 1992 to 2009, which is still aging in barrels and can prove that it is better than 2010! 8 journalists, the ABS association of Brazilian sommeliers and a dozen clients, plus a few winemakers from Spain (Rioja), Australia, Austria and the members of Casa do Porto, our distributor.

The organization was perfect as well as the comments from Andreas Larsson, best sommelier in the world in 2007

Blanc de Valandraud 2007 : Murielle must have heard the positive comments all the way to Saint Emilion, then in order, from the oldest to the youngest :

Valandraud 1992 simply amazingly harmonious and complex. The best Bordeaux in this difficult vintage. At his top (according to me !)

Valandraud 1993, not so ripe, a classic Bordeaux, unbelievable for a garagist. Still youthful, wait 5 to 10 years to be at its best?

Valandraud 1994 another difficult vintage, perfect wine, rich, full, fat, not as austere as I expected, is becoming very good, probably one of the 2 best wines of the vintage in Bordeaux. Near its peak.

Valandraud 1995 everyone in the microcosm world of wine knows the success of this 1995 vintage, able to be complete, sexy, complex, Right Bank style, with still plenty of years to go. In any case, already so good to drink for the past 10 years. It reached the 1st place for Bordeaux at the Judgment of Paris organized by the Grand Jury Europeen.

Valandraud 1996 almost medoc style, a classic Bordeaux and still nice to drink. One of the best 1996 from the Right Bank, but far from the best Left Bank.

Valandraud 1997 paradoxically more successful than 1996, still a difficult vintage, yet we didn’t have this hype for the vintages of the century. Good wine, very small production because of the strict selection and we were right to do so.

Valandraud 1998 is, without a doubt, still one of the best Bordeaux in this very successful vintage in the Right Bank (less in the Left Bank). 50% Cabernet Franc and 50% Merlot, which makes an interesting Valandraud, but God, this wine is so complex, rich, aromatic and so delicious.

Valandraud 1999 still with aromas of truffles, complete, fat, ready to drink now with a meal. This wine is past its ungrateful stages from this rainy vintage, probably one of the most concentrated wines in this vintage.

Valandraud 2000 perfect wine, exuberant nose, elegance, one of the least concentrated Valandraud, I found it very good, is improving with aging, a very good sign.

Valandraud 2001 much too young, lest taste it again in 10 years, even later.

Valandraud 2002 one of our most concentrated wines, forgotten vintage, superb now in the young wine category, black and silky and with great length.

Valandraud 2003 not a hint of being too old nor stress due to the drought in this fake great vintage where fabulous wines were made (Latour, Cos d’Estournel, Mondotte, etc…). To be revisited in at least 10 years.

Valandraud 2004 Every time I think this vintage begins to open, the wine must be decanted one day in advance and served at a higher temperature. Extreme concentration, to be drunk by anyone with anti-oxidants deficiency!

Valandraud 2005 Finally a pleasurable vintage, one of those great vintage, which can be considered "of the century". Very good, much too young at this stage, concentration, sweetness, complexity, ripe fruits, sweet grapes, a very promising future. Not to be included in a series of classic wine…

Valandraud 2006 The beginning of a change in style. Even more purity, more feminine in this blockbuster, charm and power in this very young wine.

Valandraud 2007 The surprise. So good, even today, with all this work on the wood, ripeness and the fruit are obvious in this vintage which actually provides so much pleasure, despite its reputation.

Valandraud 2008 very classic, made to age (30, even 40 years), it will be a reference wine, however for patient drinkers. A great vintage, A great vintage in the best sense of the word. Rich, concentrated, and yet with fine tannins.

Valandraud 2009 sample taken from a barrel, without a doubt the best Valandraud since we created it in 1991 and that we would have never dreamt of achieving such a beautiful story and such a great 2009, until 2010 confirms that one can never say never!

This wonderful tasting, highly professional was able to convince our Brazilian friends Valandraud’s qualities, even when compared to 1st growths from 1855. May she bring us luck in this long history of the 1st grand cru classé G. .... for garage, of course

Finally, for the first time we presented at a professional tasting, our Fine Bordeaux recently bottled and which, served by Andreas Larsson in appropriate pretty glasses, and after a Viking song before drinking transported the audience in a frenzy worthy of a star.
Thanks Ariel, Pericles, Andreas.

Grand Tasting in Paris

We have invitations for the Grand Tasting taking place in Carousel du Louvre in Paris on December 10 and 11 2010, from 10:30 am to 7:30 pm.
Watch-out… you risk liking our wines… and even buy some

News

Following Lafite, a new record was broken by an Imperial bottle of Cheval Blanc 1947, authentic for it was reconditioned at the chateau, and sold in Geneva for $304,375 (Imperial : 6 L, or 8 bottles)

French gastronomy was just inducted in the World Heritage. It was requested by France, and as it is customary in our country, many skeptics thought that it was ridiculous and impossible. And yet, here is the French culinary art-de-vivre, seasonal meals, wine, conviviality, highlighted as if to protect it from disappearing or degradation.
I imagine, even wish the same for Italian, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, etc… cuisines.

The 2010 harvest is over and devating will be finished around November 25. We are now hoping for a nice series of malolactics with no incidents, and by mid January-February, we will finally have a precise idea of the potentials of these 2010 batches.
In the meantime, I rarely tasted such bright fruit as we have this year, and this is probably due to exceptional pHs and acidity and still full ripening.

Izak Litwar, who visited us in October to taste both 2008 adn 2009 vintages just published his tasting notes.

Hong Kong International Wine and Spirits Fair

The Bettane & Desseauve Grand Tasting in Hong Kong was perhaps our best show.
Anyway, we should see the impact in 3 or 6 months, but between our clients who took this opportunity to come and see us and extend their range from our portfolio, and Ramuntxo who was in charge of presenting our Thunevin-Calvet with our selection from the Roussillon: Constance, Dentelles, Hugo and 3 Marie (we forgot again the Maury!). The wines from the Roussillon are adapted to the Chinese palate: soft tannins, velvety and sweetness provided by the Sun ... Too bad Bordeaux is not featured on the label because luckily for me, Bordeaux remain the "reference".
Lafite and Carruades de Lafite open many doors to all their colleagues and for us who are not so far apart, as soon as curiosity is sparked by understandable words such as small volume, exclusive, the story of garagists, Valandraud and especially Bad Boy work well. We had meals with clients, met colleagues negociants or winemakers unexpectedly, had a great Chinese meal at the Shangri-La with an excellent Pape Clement 2002 and an ambitious Fronsac, Aria 2002 served with a fine crab dish.

The auction organized by Acker Merral yielded again incredible prices for some icons bought by wealthy Chinese who love nothing less than having the best as, I think, was the case for the U.S. market not so long ago, in the years 80-85 when the dollar was so strong against the franc (500,000 dollars? euros? 3 Lafite 1869!)
Do we realize how lucky we are? We need to understand and respect our customers who learn so quickly the written and unwritten rules of our wine business.
For your information, it was the same for the Fête du Vin (Bordeaux celebrates wine style) which attracted 111,388 visitors in Hong Kong the previous week !

Shanghai

Before Hong Kong, I stopped in Shanghai to visit FTI, the company created 3 years ago by my partners to promote and sell wine.
I visited their new offices, the warehouse and meet with a few of FTI’s clients and prospects. A tasting organized for VIPs in the famous restaurant of Jean-Georges in Shanghai, on Bond.

Blanc de Valandraud N°1 2005 which was the highlight
Virginie de Valandraud 2006
Château Valandraud 2001- 2000-1999-1998-1995
And Maury 2007
Valandraud 1998 was well received by fine wine lovers as well as our host, Jacky. If any of the people attending would use one of our wines as their end of year gift, we would be out of stock!

Big wine consumers, the diaspora, which, it seems, includes more than 15,000 French expats, are all full of energy, go out a lot and often dine in restaurants and drink better and better.

Bad Boy will be poured by the glass in 3 or 4 luxurious and hip restaurants.
In the meantime Baby Bad Boy and Bad Girl !

Bordeaux-Mérignac airport

When you fly from Bordeaux Mérignac for a trip longer than 4 days, you have to park far from the airport in parking P4. Passenger-luggage then take a shuttle bus to the terminal.
However, after having more than adequate service with shuttles every 10 minutes, they’ve changed the schedule to 15 minutes and when I arrived on Saturday, November 13 it was 20 minutes, if I understood correctly the phone number (badly) posted giving the waiting time for this shuttle. I, along with another furious and angry passenger, waited 30 minutes with the bus parked in front of our eyes and locked, and the driver, who probably had little interest in customer service, must have been busy reading his newspaper in a warm place or drink his coffee or perhaps even having a drink, or a meal?

The driver didn’t even apologies. We felt we had been taken hostage by a private company.
Travelers, please, make sure that allow enough time for your trip or you’ll risk missing your plane or your connection to the train, if you are on a returning flight.
For your information, you have to pay for parking (I paid 60 Euros for 12 days), mandatory, and the shuttle service is free, but in this instance, I think that Bordeaux chamber of commerce, who is in charge of the airport, should set up a mailbox for any complaints.
I have a hard time to believe that this situation will last, with the risk of seeing travelers choose the TGV instead of the plane to go to Paris and its unavoidable airport.

Gentleman Classic Car in Bellevue de Tayac

Recently, we had the pleasure to receive the fine group from Gentleman Classic Car (in French) at Bellevue de Tayac. These fine cars enthusiasts organize small tours of vineyards to discover chateaux and crus.

The wines from the Roussillon in the papers

In the last issue of the newsletter published by the trade representative organization for the wines of the Roussillon (Conseil Interprofessionnel des Vins du Roussillon), Sud de France (dear to Mr Georges Frêche), the president, Fabrice Rieu, writes about optimism, of a new message.
He deserves to be thanked, as well as newspapers regularly featuring the Roussillon, for many good things take place in this beautiful region, as long as it is communicated.

I recently tasted with a journalist, just to have his opinion, a few of our wines:
Starting with our little cuvee :
Calvet Thunevin Constance 2003 a bit tired
Calvet Thunevin Constance 2004 surprisingly powerful, good
Calvet Thunevin Constance 2005 the level improves, complexe and refined
Thunevin Calvet Constance 2006 still closed

Following
Calvet Thunevin Dentelles 2005 very good, rich and balanced
Calvet Thunevin Hugo 2005 rich and concentrated, with great acidity, balanced and superb, a very fine wine.

And our very high end:
Calvet Thunevin 3 Marie 2004, 100% grenache, black as ink, fine tannins with incredible class for this wine not meant for every palate, able to rival with top wines from Spain, Australia or even Napa !

Cars, wine : same thing ?

I had another dream… actually a nightmare.

Everyone in Bordeaux, including of course, the classified growths, those of 1855 and the others, all take good care of their vines: leaf thinning, green harvest, manual harvest, vibrating machines to sort the grapes, the latest destemmer, seed selection, cold, heat, skills, and more....
If all the great terroir do the same, if all the historical crus do the same, how come Valandraud still has a place with the best?
Well it's simple, I am also fortunate to have vines in good terroir, there, no reason to stress. All the comments heard during my early days, made by jealous people proved to be false and those who believed in Valandraud were right!

It makes me think about old cars, unreliable, always breaking down, even those beautiful and expensive ones, such as English ones or those more showy, from Italy, our beautiful Dauphines often seen with their 4 wheels in the air, and fast rusting chrome .
All this was fine at the time, nostalgic today, but if progress has made cars more reliable, there is also globalization of taste. If I believe those nostalgic, yes...... but if I look at what’s available to me: the Mercedes S class is different from Porsche, itself different from BMW, and I do not even mention Citroen and Peugeot!
All those cars are reliable, but they are quite different if you look at them, their interior, when you touch them, smell them, drive them and how they age…

Doesn’t this remind you about wine ? And not those garage ones.

All wines taste the same according to doomsayers, and still, what a difference between Figeac and Cheval Blanc! What a difference between Valandraud, my top cuvee, and Virginie de Valandraud! And still, they come from the same terroir, same technique, same means.

Cars cannot exceed 130 kms/hr on the highways, but after driving 400 kms, you will be in a different state of freshness depending on the car.

Every watch gives you the time, even if anyone can succeed in life even without having a Rolex. I still dream about beautiful luxurious watched such as Zénith, Patek Philippe, Breguet, Audemars Piguet, Richard Mille, Chopard… I don’t know all of them…(and my Seiko still works well !)

Chateaux in Spain... or in Bordeaux

The attraction for Bordeaux fine wines cannot be denied, and this is especially true today for the price properties.
Well known chateaux or just beautiful and even just having the criteria for improvement by the beauty of the terroir and synergies of prestigious appellations: Saint Emilion, Pomerol, Margaux, Pauillac, etc. ...

This makes many rich enthusiasts dream and these wines are part of the full range of items needed to show success (not just Rolex ).

Owning an apartment in Saint Tropez, a Caribbean island, having a bank account in Switzerland (?), chateaux in Bordeaux attract investors from all over the world, and that's good. Especially since the money put in by the purchase must also be accompanied by investments in real estate, equipment and especially personnel.

This money is invested in our area and most investors bring with them their cash, their skills and also their networks, connections and ideas, and all of that is good for everyone.

Baby Bad Boy 2009

Finally our labels are printed, we are just waiting for the back label of this 1st Vin de France available before November 30, 2010.

45,000 bottles produced with the help of Claude Gros. A blend of Merlots from Bordeaux and Grenache from Maury.
I hope to see this wine served in hip bars, night clubs and karaoke throughout Asia : China, Hong Kong, Korea, Japan… for as opposed to France, in these countries, red wine takes market share from Champagnes, Cognacs and Whiskies.

Murielle and Philippe had a profitable morning strall :

Spare the rod and spoil the child

In the last issue of TAST, Bettane and Desseauve published an in-depth editorial on Alsace, its fine wines and other various and diverse articles.

Here is what I found on page 122. I am not sure if I understood everything correctly, so I will include the text below so any intelligent readers can explain the conclusion, if there is one:

“And as a last example, lets quote the mavericks, advocates of self-networking. Jean Luc Thunevin is the champion of website repercussions. http://thunevinblog.com/. His articles are read and commented on, and give him a promotional platform, rightly so, and exchange. His blog is available in French and English, Chinese and Japanese (much less up-to-date for Asian languages). There, some big issues arise! We read the topic about Michel Rolland’s speech at INSEEC on wine in 2050 (criticized for talking about Coca-Cola’s strategy) and Jean Luc Thunevin’s arguments "It is true that often in France, success is a defect, suspect "(...). You are not wrong Mister: there's no shame in selling. Hurrah to profit.”
1/ Who is Mister ? me, Rolland ?
2/ "there's no shame in selling. Hurrah to profit." : 2nd or 3rd degree ? it was written by Véronique Raisin for (against, with ?) Michel Bettane and Thierry Desseauve.

I also recently read, yet another Judgment of Paris organized at Lavinia in Paris which highlighted the superiority of French wines (phew!).
The fact that Pichon Longueville Baron arrived 1st doesn’t surprise me, for this wine is a sure value. the second place went to l’Arrosée 2005 which it deserved for the work done, especially considering the stars which followed.
Only the photo was a bit strange for it showed a bottle of 2004 l’Arrosée. So, was it 2005 or 2004?

October 28 2010 : tasting the first batches

The old Merlots picked in front of cellar of Prieuré Lescours are of the quality of Valandraud, the Malbec from Bel Air Ouy are incredible, the Merlots from Clos du Beau Père, picked around the cellar are powerful and the Petit Verdot from Bellevue de Tayac are as good as they gets, especially for such a varietal we use in minute quantity in our blend.

The Phs, before malo, are astonishing : between 3.30 and 3.60. They are providing freshness and brightness, unusual at this stage of the vinification.
Devating will begin next Tuesday, at the same time as we will be picking the Cabernets Sauvignons and Carmenères from Valandraud – Bel Air Ouÿ.