Bordeaux & SW- Nellites

Question 1

Pomerol top producers

Answer 1

No classification system exists in Pomerol!

— Château Pétrus
- 100% Merlot

— Le Pin
- 100% Merlot, tiny

— Château Lafleur
- 50% Merlot, 50% Cabernet Franc
- Second wine: Les Pensées de Lafleur

Question 2

St-Émilion top producers

Answer 2

Premier Grand Cru Classé A:
- Château Figeac (gravel = Cab!)
- Château Pavie
———————
(Formerly Premier Grand Cru Classé A)
- Château Angélus
- Château Ausone
- Château Cheval-Blanc

Question 3

Bordeaux climate

Answer 3

• Maritime (west) moving towards continental (east)
• Notoriously unpredictable
• Rainy! Lots of mold issues (downy and powdery mildew)
• More rainfall than any other wine region in France

Question 4

Geographic features of Bordeaux

Answer 4

• Atlantic Ocean brings Gulf Stream, keeping things mild
• Gironde Estuary
• Dordogne River (door dohn ya)
• Garonne River
• Les Landes forest (protects Médoc from Atlantic)

Question 5

Red grapes of Bordeaux

Answer 5

• Merlot (most planted red)
• Cabernet Sauvignon
• Cabernet Franc (AKA Bouchet on Right bank)
• Petit Verdot
• Malbec (AKA Pressac on Right bank)
• Carmènere (basically extinct but permitted)

Question 6

‘Bordeaux mixture’

Answer 6

• Lime, copper sulfate and water used throughout the region to combat fungal problems

Question 7

What year was the Bordeaux classification established? Why?

Answer 7

• 1855
• Commissioned by Napoleon III to rank wines for the Universal Exposition in Paris
• Divided properties BY PRICE into ‘growths’ (First through Fifth)

Question 8

True or False: The 1855 classification of Bordeaux only includes red wines.

Answer 8

True

Question 9

Bordeaux First Growths

Answer 9

• Château Lafite Rothschild (Pauillac)
• Château Latour (Pauillac)
• Château Mounton-Rothschild (Pauillac, not until 1973)
• Château Margaux (Margaux)
• Château Haut-Brion (Graves)

Question 10

White Bordeaux varietals

Answer 10

• Sémillon (most planted white)
• Sauvignon Blanc
• Muscadelle
  ———————
• Ugni Blanc
• Merlot Blanc
• Colombard
• Sauvignon Gris

Question 11

Appellation hierarchy of Médoc

Answer 11

• Regional Appellation:
  — Bordeaux AOC
• Subregional Appellations:
  — Médoc AOP
  — Haut-Médoc AOP
• Commune Appellations:
  — St-Estèphe AOP
  — Pauillac AOP (poe yak)
  — St-Julien AOP
  — Margaux AOP

Question 12

Graves

Answer 12

• South of Bordeaux
• Similar soil to Médoc (sand, gravel and light clay known here as: boulbenes)
• First classified in 1953
  — Cru classé for red (7), white (2) or both (6)
• Graves AOP
  — Dry red and white
• Graves Supérieur
  — Sweet white ONLY

Question 13

Pessac-Léognan AOP

Answer 13

• Northern Graves
• Created in 1987
• Prestigious appellation for red and DRY whites (ALL cru classé properties located here)
• Château Haut-Brion

Question 14

Sweet white wine AOP’s of Graves

Answer 14

• Sauternes AOP
• Barsac AOP
• Cérons AOP
• Graves Supérieur AOP (produced anywhere in Graves)

Question 15

Sauternes AOP

Answer 15

• Classified alongside Médoc in 1855
• At the confluence of Ciron and Garonne Rivers
• Château d’Yquem
• 45 g/l of RS

Question 16

Eleanor of Aquitaine’s influence on Bordeaux

Answer 16

• First married to the King of France then to the King of England
• Brought Bordeaux (the region and wine) to England around 1150
• Bordeaux region remained under English rule for 300 years

Question 17

Entre-Deux-Mers AOP

Answer 17

• Between Dordogne and Garonne Rivers
• DRY WHITE ONLY

Question 18

Why does Bordeaux rely on blends?

Answer 18

• As an insurance policy against the fickle climate: each grape buds, flowers and ripens on a different schedule
• Soil variety favors a variety of grapes
• Varietals complement each other and all add something to the final blend

Question 19

Saint-Émilion classification system

Answer 19

• First classified in 1955
• Updated every 10 years
• Most recent update was 2022
  ——————
• Premiers Grands Crus Classés A (2)
• Premiers Grands Crus Classés B (13)
• Grand Crus Classés (64)

Question 20

Bordeaux top vintages

Answer 20

• 1928, 1959, 1961, 1982, 1996
• 2009, 2010, 2016, 2018, 2020

Question 21

Largest importers of Bordeaux

Answer 21

• China (by a lot)
• Germany
• USA

Question 22

La Place de Bordeaux

Answer 22

• Three tier system system of production, brokerage and sales
  ——————
• Production tier: Chateaux
• Broker tier: Courtiers (middle man between aristocrats and merchants/ sellers and buyers
• Sales tier: Negociants

Question 23

En Primeur

Answer 23

• ‘Wine Futures’
• The sale/purchase of a vintage BEFORE it has been bottled

Question 24

encépagement vs assemblage

Answer 24

• Encépagement: The grape varieties grown in the vineyard
• Assemblage: The act of blending different wines from different varieties, parcels or vintages

Question 25

Answer 25

Chateau Margaux - Pauillac, Left bank - Also produces single varietal Sauvignon Blanc - Second wine: Pavillon Rouge du Chateau Margaux

Question 26

Answer 26

Chateau Lafite Rosthchild - Pauillac, Left bank - *The King’s Wine* of Louis XV, even before the 1855 classification - Fetched the highest price in 1855 - Second wine: Carruades de Lafite

Question 27

Answer 27

Château Haut-Brion - Pessac-Léognan, Graves - Oldest First growth - Merlot focused - Unique bottle shape modeled after old decanters - Second wine: Le Clarence de Haut-Brion - Also produces a dry white on par with Burgundy: Château Haut-Brion Blanc

Question 28

Answer 28

Chateau Mouton Rothschild - Pauillac, Left bank - Elevated to 1st growth in 1973 - Original artwork designed for label every year - Partnered with Robert Mondavi to create Opus One in Oakville, CA

Question 29

Answer 29

Chateau Latour (The Tower) - Pauillac, Left bank - Second wine: Forts de Latour - Third wine: Pauillac de Latour

Question 30

Answer 30

Petrus - Pomerol AOP, Right Bank - 100% Merlot (single varietal is rare for Bordeaux) - Located on a hill of iron-rich BLUE CLAY - NO second wine

Question 31

Saint-Émilion satellites

Answer 31

- Lussac Saint-Émilion - Pusseguin Saint-Émilion - Montagne Saint-Émilion - Saint Georges Saint-Émilion

Question 32

Cahors AOP?

Answer 32

*Grape Varieties: Cot (Malbec)- dominant, additionally Merlot and Tannat *Wine Style: Dry red wines only

Question 33

Madiran AOP

Answer 33

*Grape Varieties: Tannat- dominant, additionally Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon

Question 34

Jurançon AOP?

Answer 34

*Grape Varieties: Gros Manseng and Petit Manseng *Wine Style; white wines, Blanc Sec=Dry White, or Blanc=Off Dry White (bottom left lime green)

Question 35

Bergarac AOP?

Answer 35

*Dry white wine: Grape Varieties: Sémillon, Sauvignon Blanc, Sauvignon Gris, Muscadelle *Dry red and rose Grape Varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Cot (Malbec), Merlot *East of Bordeaux along the Dordogne and next to montbazzelic

Question 36

Monbazillac AOP?

Answer 36

*Botrytis affected wines Grape Varieties: Muscadelle, Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon *Along the Dordogne just SW of Bergarac