Month: August 2024

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Bordeaux Chateaux are doing it for themselves 

If you’re following the fortunes of Bordeaux, it can’t have escaped your notice that this year’s primeur campaign was ‘complicated’.  

A quick primeur primer. Each spring the new vintage, still in barrels, is tasted by the great and good of the wine world. They descend on Bordeaux in their thousands for a chaotic and exhausting week.  The critics and trade taste, the chateaux will set the prices and merchants will buy, or not. This ‘Place de  Bordeaux’ system has financed chateau production for years placing Bordeaux wines on shelves and tables across the globe.

There’s plenty of reports on the 2023, here’s a few I recommend : Colin Hay at The Drinks Business , Georgie Hindle at Decanter or Simon Field at The World of Fine Wine.

The conclusion is that 2023 is a good, if heterogenous, vintage, with wine makers facing climatic challenges and responding to them in different ways.  Not the vintage of the century then – we’ve had a few of those already. 

If it’s good, why didn’t it sell?  
Too expensive? Prices came down, considerably. For once, commentators can’t blame the Bordelais for unrealistic pricing. But as producers watched the early, lower priced releases of their peers that didn’t sell they could be forgiven for questioning the downward price trend. There just wasn’t a lot of price elasticity this year. 

Global demand for wine is decreasing, the market is not thirsty for large amounts of Bordeaux (or wine in general) however delicious and reasonably priced it may be. There’s too much wine in the distributor pipeline and, with high interest rates, merchants are unwilling, or unable, to finance further stocks even if wines are likely to increase in value upon bottling. 

Does La Place still work? 

This annual event brings La Place into sharp focus, but there’s more to it than primeur. 70% of Bordeaux sells through ‘La Place’ network of 300 merchants, selling wine from 5000 properties, to over 170 countries. That’s over 300 million bottles, for a value of almost 3 billion euros. It’s a huge and efficient machine.

16 bottles of Bordeaux are sold every second somewhere in the world.

International pull Some international producers believe so strongly in the power of ‘La Place’ they are releasing their wines to the world through Bordeaux. Beyond Bordeaux, has introduced two more dates to wine trade diaries, March and September, when over 60 wines from the USA, Australia, Spain, Italy, etc. release their wines. 

Is La Place still working?

The forgotten majority La Place isn’t working for everyone. Properties with limited brand identity, easily substituted and in direct competition with each other are suffering. Many are sitting with previous vintages building up in their vats, wines  that would traditionally be sold through negociants. 

If ‘La Place’ isn’t working for this silent majority, what are they to do?

Visitors to Bordeaux are surprised and seduced by the value here, if consumers like the wine, see it a great value, why don’t Bordeaux wineries sell to them directly? 

Bordeaux is big, with a lot of wine to sell and a big world to sell it to. 
Family and smaller businesses don’t have multi-lingual staff able to sell wine directly to international distributors let alone direct to consumers. Don’t get me started on the admin and paper work. Merchants have successfully done this for them for years and wine makers have let them, concentrating on the challenges of production rather than marketing.

Traditionally, Bordeaux vineyards working through La Place would even struggle to tell visiting American where in the US they can find their wines. They just didn’t know. 

Things are changing, merchants are less jealously protective of their markets, having the producer on board to promote their wine is key,  consumers and distributors want to meet the producer, get to know them, learn their vineyard stories. 

Wine tourism  Booming Bordeaux wine tourism is now an opportunity for wineries to create closer links with their final consumer. 

It’s not only consumers who enjoy buying wine directly from a producer, wine makers like to know who is drinking their wine too. They are always thrilled when I send a photo of their wine I’ve enjoyed in some far flung location. Try it with your favourite wine, even better post on social, nothing like sharing the love. 

Direct to consumer sales – competition or complement?  Direct sales are not necessarily in competition with negociants, margins are protected, prices aren’t always cheaper at the property. The D2C market is limited, selling and delivering directly over a website is possible within Europe, already a huge market but it remains more complicated to export. Shipping across the Atlantic, and post Brexit, the Channel is complicated, but there are solutions. 

Margins are generous but volumes are small and Bordeaux properties are large (average 20 ha but hugely diverse). What might work for a boutique winery of 5ha won’t work if you have 50ha. You need volume sales to survive, which La Place has delivered.

It takes work to make it work  Direct sales need multilingual staff with organizational and interpersonal skills and time to prepare and pack orders. Even with an excellent e-commerce website there’s only so much you can automate and, given how difficult it is to find staff right now – did I mention paper work?  

Bordeaux wine Clubs

Bordeaux producers look at the American Wine Club model with envy, where consumers buy directly from the winery with higher margins and closer relationships. It’s tempting. Clients signing up, guarantying a purchasing volume every year in exchange for special offers, extra bonuses, invitations to events, etc. and that all important feeling of belonging to a community. 

Membership needs to be constantly maintained and renewed. Speaking to American producers, with a few excellent exceptions, wine club membership can be short lived. 

The interest from wineries is there. Great Wine Capitals, an association of leading wine tourism actors across 12 ‘wine cities’, recently organised a seminar in Bordeaux to examine the challenges of creating a wine club, it was a sell-out. 

Some to look for Bordeaux producer wine clubs and direct sales is a growing trend. Chatting to Chateau Giscours and Château George 7 recently both mentioned they’re looking at creating clubs thanks to a faithful following of visitors to their properties. Below are some worth looking at, I’m sure there’s more and I’d love to hear about them. 

Le Club des Fous de Cérons was born in 2012 when French wine journalist Jacques Dupont called Caroline and Xavier Perromat crazy (fous) when they took over the family estate. Club members are mainly visitors who have bought more than €200 of wine with a first purchase, becoming friends, and following the adventure of the transformation of the property. Membership has grown organically, monthly mailings keep members up to date with news of renovations and projects – of which there are many! They receive exclusive special offers that can be redeemed via their e-commerce site or by telephone, which they love as it keeps them in touch. 

Wines for les Fous de Cérons

Invitation only  Classified growth in Saint Estèphe Chateau Cos d’Estournel has a very chic wine club, as you would expect for a chateau owned by the Luxury hospitality Reybier Group, with Reserve hotels and residences across Europe. Visitors to the chateau are invited to join the club thanks to a chic card with a unique membership code. Benefits include invites to private dinners, events and tastings across the Reybier properties. 

An invitation to join the club

Owned by the American Adams family since 2004, Château Fonplegade also excels in hospitality. The Chateau welcomes members to the property for private tastings and events, not only are guests welcomed with a glass of white wine from their Napa vineyard and tastings are accompanied by a cornucopia of cheeses and cold cuts, they also leave with warm homemade chocolate chip cookies! Since 2007, an allocation membership is offered to visitors to the property and to referred friends. Members span the globe, with American members having the added advantage of their wines being temperature controlled, overnight delivered from stock held in the USA. It’s a unique solution to the shipping conundrum for Americans, that represent 70% of their members. 

Club advantages at Château Fonplegade

Château Bauduc in the Entre deux Mers has a similar system. They ship their wines to the UK so British visitors to the Château, or to their e-commerce site, can order their full range of wines directly and they will be delivered to their door with only local delivery fees and no customs issues – which post Brexit seems more complicated than shipping to the US! There’s a fascinating page on the web site that gives a detailed breakdown of exactly where your money goes when you buy wine and how little  of it normally ends up in the pocket of the producer. Members receive regular email updates, special offers, first call on rental of their farmhouse in the vines and can even join the chateau fantasy football league!  

Bauduc packed up

Multi properties 

Bordeaux properties often produce just a few wines. A larger range makes a wine club more attractive. Owners with several properties they can group together have an advantage.

Grouped under Vignobles K, the Kwok family has seven wineries  across four right bank appellations. This includes Saint Emilion Classified growth Château Bellefont-Belcier, two other Saint Emilion Grand Crus, a Pomerol, a Castillon and a Lalande de Pomerol, Enclos de Viaud, that also produces a white and a rose. Their Bordeaux Wine Club members sign up to either 6 or 12 bottles from different vintages through two to four shipments per year. Benefits include discounts on selected wine purchases with exclusive allocations of wine on release and access to library wines. They have preferential bookings at the estate hotel, guests houses and events and complimentary tours and tastings. 

Vignobles K wine boutique

In 1989, Jean Guyon started with 2ha, now he has 185 ha and 9 vineyards across the Medoc grouped under Domaines Rollan de By. His wine club aims to make these wines accessible to both connoisseurs and beginners. An invitation to the club is issued with a purchase of 24 bottles via the site and an access code opens the door to masterclasses, events and deals on the website.

Direct online sales 

More and more Bordeaux chateaux have e-commerce sites where you can buy directly without a membership, although if you are outside of Europe you might want to check about shipping details. Below are a few favourites. 

The Entre deux Mers is a good place to start thanks to the wide range of wines you’ll find there. Château Lestrille and Château Thieuley are favourites, both offering red, white, rosé, clairet and crémant wines.

Château Paloumey in Haut Medoc also sell wines from their neighbouring properties, Chateau la Besanne in Margaux and Chateau la Garricq in Moulis. Their guide allows a selection by wine by style, appellation, vintage and even food matches. Also in Moulis, Château Branas Grand Poujeaux sells directly via their site 

In Sauternes Château Guiraud has an online boutique for its dry and sweet wines and delivers to over 50 countries. 

Arrived safely!

On the right bank Chateau George 7 in Fronsac sells on-line and delivers across Europe, to the USA and works with a distributor in the UK so visitors get the best possible deal. Chateau Guibeau sells their range of organic wines from Puisseguin Saint Emilion and Castillon Côtes de Bordeaux on their site, including their delicious 100% Malbec.

Packing cases for shipping at Château Guibeau

Vignobles Cap de Mourlin sell wines from across Montagne Saint Emilion and their classified Saint Emilion growths. Chateau de Ferrand, another Saint Emilion Classified growth is available on line too, although you’ll have to go to the chateau boutique for one of the personalised Bic pens.

International reach

 Gonzague and Claire Lurton have five estates between them in Bordeaux and in California and you can source all their wines on their site including the Orange wine and Ceres, Claire’s no added sulphur wine. Wines are available for delivery in both the US and Europe .

Further south in Pessac-Léognan, the on-line store at Château Malartic La Graviere has an international offer with red and white wines from their two Bordeaux vineyards alongside the wines from their Argentinian vineyard Bodega Diamandes and wines accessories. I recommend their recipe book. 

La Place might not be fulfilling everyone’s expectations but properties across the region are finding a way to create that all important connection with and sell to their fans.  Join the Club.

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Olive oil – the perfect summer seasoning.

I’m going off piste to share another delicious liquid, Olive oil. Read anything about healthy eating and the Mediterranean diet will come up, but the Med is a big place, what they eat on a Greek island won’t be the same as in Northern Africa, the South of France or Sicily. But they all have common threads, lots of fresh, local veg, Olive oil and usually wine. We know all about wine, wineand2veg is the go to for veg info but what is it about Olive Oil?

 Olive oil consumption is said to have anti-ageing benefits, protecting against everything from heart disease, diabetes, obesity, cancer to brain health. But not any old olive oil, the magical elixir is Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO). Olive oil contains healthy monounsaturated fatty acids, of which oleic acid, accounts for up to 80%. Research shows that this fatty acid has positive effects both cardiovascular and neurodegenerative and in controlling normal blood LDL-cholesterol and triglycerides concentrations compared to saturated fatty acids diets.

Polyphenols – again

 It’s not only the fatty acids, the health benefits of Olive oil are also due to polyphenols. I bang on about polyphenols a lot in The Drinking Woman’s Diet. Polyphenols are bio-active anti-oxidants found everywhere in the plant kingdom, created as protection against pests and diseases. Kale, beans, tea, coffee, spinach, and broccoli, tomatoes, apples, oranges, pears, olive oil, wine and many more are particularly good sources. We all need more plants on plates. 

It is estimated that olive oil and olives provide around 11% of the total polyphenol intake in a typical Mediterranean Diet. Oleocanthal seems to be the most interesting phenolic, its whose health claims are recognised by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). It appears to reduce the abundance of pathogenic bacteria and stimulating beneficial bacteria in the microbiome

Fruit oil or seed oil. Extracted from the flesh of a fruit, rather than a seed, Olive oil is higher in polyphenols. Seeds need less protection from bugs, fungus, etc. so they produce less polyphenols to fight them off. 

Bitterness and the cough test 

Polyphenols also make good olive oil taste great.  I’ve talked about bitterness and polyphenols on the wineand2veg website. Really good olive oil is often so bitter it can catch in the back of the throat making you cough. This characteristic is known as the cough test, the back of the throat is so sensitive to oleocanthal that top extra-virgin olive oils are rated on a scale of one, two or three coughs!

Wine and Olive compare and contrast

 Both wine and olive oil originate in Mediterranean climates, from plants with an ancient history. Their concentrations of biologically active polyphenols vary depending upon the variety and the ripeness of the fruit, where and how it is grown, how it is extracted and stored. 

Transformation Olive oil is less transformed than wine, it is simply the squeezed olive juice, separated away from water content to leave the oil. Wine is made by fermenting grape juice, the advantage is that alcohol produced during fermentation helps extract polyphenols from grape skins and seeds. Table olives have less polyphenols as the processing to make them edible (less bitter) destroys most of them, however the valuable oleanolic acid remains. Unlike wine that can improve with age, olive oil really needs to be used as fresh as possible and stored in a cool place away from light to avoid oxidation. 

Taste test Tasting methods and notes for wine and olive oil have lots in common, involving swirling, sniffing, slurping and swallowing. Wine doesn’t normally make you cough though! 

Synergy The synergy between Olive oil and food isn’t new,  foods interacting to create a sum greater than their parts is a characteristic of the Mediterranean diet and it seems to centre around Olive Oil. Fat soluble vitamins and polyphenols from food are easier to absorb and digest served with oil that helps preserve and absorb bio active polyphenols. The polyphenols in olive oil also protect food from oxidation during preparation and cooking.  For meat eaters, marinating meat in olive oil and herbs before cooking may reduce the impact of carcinogenic compounds formed when meat fats burn and caramelise. Drenching your steak in Olive oil before you pop it on the BBQ can help prevent some of the negative effects associated  with over cooking meat.

Burn point controversy Despite popular myths around smoke points, olive oil is good for cooking. The smoke point is higher than most domestic kitchens reach – if black acrid smoke comes off the pan – it’s too hot! 

Wine and olive oil

The magic of food and wine pairing goes a lot deeper than just the pleasure of making both the wine and the food taste better. We know oil reduces the perception of astringency in wine.  Research at Bordeaux university shows the interaction between oil and catechin, an important and astringent grape tannin, prevents the proteins in saliva binding with tannins. The most effective oil? Olive oil.

As well as wine and food matching making both taste better, it may also be better for us. Eating fat slows gastric emptying and slows alcohol absorption more than carbohydrates. When consuming wine with Olive oil laden dishes blood alcohol levels remain steadier. The synergy is even more interesting, research based on the interaction of the antioxidants in red wine and Extra Virgin Olive oil shows that consuming them together increased the absorption of the anti-oxidants from both. Both Olive oil and ethanol make polyphenols more bioavailable to the body. Never has the saying if it grows together, it goes together seemed more appropriate. 

Olive Groves in Bordeaux? 
There’s a few experimental olive plantings in Bordeaux, but it’s early days and I need to go taste them before recommending them to you, but some Bordeaux properties also own or work with olive groves further south. 

Some to try.

Château Lestrille in Entre deux Mers sells a delicious artisan olive oil from The Domaine Oulivie Montpellier, family run and sustainably farmed, just like Chateau Lestrille. My favourite is made from 100% Lucques olives, she also sells the delicious Lucques Olives themselves in her boutique in the village of saint germain du Puch.

Chateau Fleur de Fleur de Lisse in Saint Emilion, sells a delicious, single varietal, olive oil they grow in the South, it has its own AOP ‘Les Garrigues’ they also have an Elixir which is made from olives that have had the stones removed before pressing.

The Cazes family that own Château Lynch Bages in Pauillac also own a property in the south of France, Ostal Cazes, in the Languedoc where they produce Olive Oil as well as a range of wine.

Neighbouring Château Pichon Baron belongs to the Axa group, they also own Quinta do Noval in Portugal, that produces a delicious Olive Oil alongside their port vines. 

As well as Chateau Giscours in Margaux, the Albada family also own Caiarossa  in Tuscany with 6 ha of Olive trees spread across the estate alongside the vines and forests all cultivated to biodynamic principles. They produce just 700 half bottles of Extra Virgin organic olive oil each year. Some of it makes its way to Chateau Giscours where you can buy it along with the Margaux wines. 

These Olive oils might not be from Bordeaux but they are a perfect and deliciously healthy summer seasoning to serve alongside them.

If you enjoyed this post, please  sign up here  to receive future blog posts or share with a friend. Learn more about Bordeaux with Bordeaux Bootcamp, and explore Wine and Wellness, with  The Drinking Woman’s Diet . You can read more of my stories from Bordeaux at Decanter  or say hi  here.

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Multi vintage, a new approach to the Bordeaux blend?

Blending is a Bordeaux signature. Bringing together grapes from plots across a vineyard, different terroirs and grape varieties to build a wine that is greater than the sum of its parts. (There’s a chapter about it Bordeaux Bootcamp if you’d like to learn more). 

The Bordeaux blend is so iconic the term is used by wine makers across the globe, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.  But what if winemakers took a  wider approach to a Bordeaux blend, including blending vintages? 

There is legal leeway here, even a wine carrying a vintage on the label can add up to 15% from a previous vintage. We know how fickle mother nature can be, more and more so, wine makers can keep some wine back from a successful vintage in case next year doesn’t prove to be so good or so generous. Blending can rebalance and improve complementary vintages as well as complementary varieties.

Blending more than 15% is allowed, but in this case no vintage can be mentioned on the label. This is common practice in many wine regions. Champagne brands are the classic example, blending across vintages to create a consistent house style from year to year. Laurent Perrier does this for their prestige Grand Siècle Cuvée, the latest release blends 2012, 2008 and 2007. 

The solera method, a mainstay of Sherry, takes this a step further, adding fractions of newer vintages to older ones. So why not Bordeaux? Some non vintage Bordeaux brands do blend vintages, although it’s not common practice, the wines below are making a feature of it.

Harmonie The rule of 3

To celebrate 50 years anniversary of Château de Villegeorge, in the Haut Medoc, Marie-Laure Lurton and her son Gabriel Roux-Lurton have blended three vintages to create Harmonie, in a limited-edition cuvée of 9 000 bottles. They see it as an opportunity to express the personality of the wine and the style of the property without the influence of the vintage.

Marie-Laure and Gabriel Lurton – a new family blend

A blend of three vintages seems an apt tribute to three generations of the Lurton family who are behind the property. The late Lucien Lurton was the first to see the potential of the property, a former Cru Bourgeois Exceptionnel, when he bought it in 1973. Marie Laure took over in 1992, the same year she took over Château la Tour Bessan in Margaux. Now, her son Gabriel has joined the team and the new label is designed by her daughter Joséphine. Harmonie also reflects their philosophy of working with, rather than against, nature. The 12.32 ha estate is Terra Vitis certified for 20 years – a early adopter in Bordeaux. 

Launched in a WIT a perfect test market

They‘ve chosen ‘colour transition bottles’, bottles with a colour defect, that would normally be shredded and recycled at a high carbon cost and have eliminated metal capsules, all contributing to reducing the environmental impact of the cuvée. The blend is a majority of Cabernet Sauvignon with one third Merlot and a little Petit Verdot. They launched and test drove the concept in reusable ‘WIT’ (Wine In Tube) and by the glass at their popular ‘after work’ events at the chateau.

The label of the new release – bottling now

Family friendly 

Pleasing everyone in the family was the motivation for Estelle Roumage to create her new multi vintage cuvée at Château Lestrille in Entre deux Mers. 

With ‘Dimanche en famille’, Estelle has spread her net a little wider, across five vintages creating  a blend of the 2014, 2016, 2018, 2019, and 2020 vintages, all excellent Bordeaux vintages, for a first bottling of 8.000 bottles. Bottled as a Vin de France, 100% Merlot, part aged in barrel. All the wines come from her sustainable vineyard in the Entre deux Mers, certified Organic since 2023 and Beefriendly since 2020. Estelle will produce 8000 bottle of this first curée. 

Bringing together the smooth characteristics of older wines and the bright fruit of younger vintages, creates a wine to please all palates, from young to older family members, a wine that everyone can enjoy together with Sunday Lunch. The label illustrates the point, it’s based on a black and white photo dating from the 1940s of the family enjoying a picnic together on the coast on the Basin d’Arcachon.

Une Dimanche en Famille, a wine for sharing Photo credit ©EstelleGuichard

Could multi-vintage be a new way of reaching a larger Bordeaux market?  The next step in complexity and harmony of the Bordeaux blend? Or is it about Bordeaux wine makers having some fun with their vintages? All three are not mutually exclusive.

A version of this post is available on the Drinks Business website

If you enjoyed this post, please  sign up here  to receive future blog posts or share with a friend. Learn more about Bordeaux with Bordeaux Bootcamp, and explore Wine and Wellness, with  The Drinking Woman’s Diet . You can read more of my stories from Bordeaux at Decanter  or say hi  here.