CHATEAU DU CHAMP DES TREILLES
(Bordeaux, France)
Sainte-Foy Bordeaux Blanc "Grand Vin" 2005
50% Sauvignon Blanc 50% Muscadelle All handpicked and de-stemmed before a gentle press. 2mos of cold, gentle fermentations with indigenous yeasts in steel tank. Moved to 225L barrels for 8mos. Fined and filtered gently with organic components. SO2 added before bottling.
(Bordeaux, France)
In 1998, Corine and Jean-Michel Comme began a venture in the aristocratic regions of Bordeaux, in the outlying Sainte-Foy, becoming one of the region's first organic properties. Jean-Michel had been working at Chateau Pontet-Canet and purchased 5ha of old vines (60yrs), buried across the river in fine clay-limestone soils. Having expertise in vineyard management, he and Corine began to replant, using nature as their new vineyard manager, another 5ha, with extremely dense planting of Merlot, Sauvignon and Petit Verdot. Later they grafted on Muscadelle and Semillon to round out the full range. Every detail and toil is carried out by hand as they continue this process today. In reflection to the past, they have erased anything that harms the life cycle of their vines (green harvesting, leaf removal, etc.). They feel the best voice of nature comes through fruit handed to them by her hand, not by man's, as much as history has declared. So too, then the soils have a life, a sensitivity, that must be heard and responded to. Tractors do not tread on the property, nor to they turn soils that become too damp. They believe by watching nature's action, she guides them about the vineyard to what needs tending. Some days it is the vines above, others the roots below, but the end product is fantastic fruit that they gently carry to the cellar. There, only natural yeasts begin fermentations and time is allowed for maturity and finesse. In an area of market driven wines and corporate entities dictating process and cultivation, it can be easy to miss the voice of Nature. Corine and Jean-Michel however, have not missed a word and help spread the unique accent of their vineyard to those who care to listen.
50% Sauvignon Blanc 50% Muscadelle All handpicked and de-stemmed before a gentle press. 2mos of cold, gentle fermentations with indigenous yeasts in steel tank. Moved to 225L barrels for 8mos. Fined and filtered gently with organic components. SO2 added before bottling.