Ben says
★★ Great Wine “Merlot and I don’t often get on, but this is one of those rare times where I love it. Deep ruby in colour, this smacks you in the face with damson and forest floor. Oak, smoke and warming spices mingle with plenty of fruit on the palate, finishing with youthful tannins and lots of flavour.”
KEY POINTS
84% Merlot and 16% Cabernet Franc with 13.0% abv from vines averaging 50 years old. The vineyard is in conversion to organic.
Grown in: Pomerol, Bordeaux, FRANCE.
Food Pairing
This goes with the gamey side of poultry (like guinea fowl) or roast duck. The tannins in the wine like fatty food, so roasted meats usually just work. For veggies, look at things like pasta bake with lots of cheese so the penne is crispy and the sauce is rich.
Disclosure & Price
Tasted at the Beckford Bottle Shop annual wine tasting.
£44.95 Beckford Bottle Shop, Bath.
Reviewed and tasted: 5 November 2022
About the Producer
This is a small 4 hectare Bordeaux property based in the Pomerol AOC, currently owned by the insurance company SCE Baronne Guichard, who purchased it from Latour’s Artemis Group. Its vines are on mainly clay or sandy soils with some gravel top soils, and its wines are vinified and matured in French oak. The estate was originally founded by Joseph Brisson in the 19th Century with that first parcel today named the Domaine des Grands Champs. Over the years, consultants like Stephane Derenoncourt and Alain Raynaud have worked at Chateau Vray, bringing their hallmark styles.
