Grand Enclos du Château de Cérons
Blanc Sec 2006, A.C. Graves Blanc Sec **HERITAGE WINE** Color: deep yellow - green.
Nose:
very expressive,
fresh, with obvious wood, spices, vanilla, minerals, very clean and
pure, lots of nuances of citrus fruit, some yeast, great elegance,
perfect balance between fresh fruit, minerals and wood, lots of breed
and depth, complexity, great nose, impressive, yet elegantly refreshing. Taste:
dry, fresh, round, elegant, good concentration, with loads of
minerals, (citrus)fruit, spicy wood, but also soft and mild, rich and
compact, beautiful freshness combined with strong and great
elegance, very pure and clean style, very present, but
not dominating wood, excellent balance. Finish:
quite long, intense, elegant, very fresh and clean, with minerals, a whiff of honey, hops and cloves. Clean and refreshing.
*
This is a rare, impressive white dry Graves. It is the freshness
and elegance that impresses most, there is depth, concentration,
refinement and lots of fruit and minerals along with quite a lot
of oak, but it is all so well balanced and refreshing it is impossible
not to fall in love with it. Just a great and perfect wine, a
modern classic. Very good vineyard, good vintage, great winemaker.
-
Ready to drink now, will
keep
a few more years, but I doubt if it will increase in complexity,
besides, it now is so deliciously balanced, you do not need to wait
much longer.
Dry
white Graves are not so popular as their red brothers. I must admit I
have tasted many uninteresting white specimens from this region.
Producers tend to concentrate on red in this part of Bordeaux, because
perhaps consumers / wine critics are concentrating on red wines.
This wine shows what a pity it is not more producers of dry white
Graves have chosen to follow the "quality route". This wine is quite
unique in its character. It is hard to find a very similar wine from
elsewhere in the world. The elegance and mineral style combined with
the very good intensity is very specifically Bordeaux. We seem to have
lost that knowledge. Oaked Chardonnay is the norm now. Rediscover
this identity and the potential for producing white wines in Graves.
Let me be frank and honest on this wine: it is
produced from a very good vineyard, but not a top terroir. Therefore it
lacks the complexity of the big names, its lacks the depth and
impressive nuances of the top Cru's of the Graves, but this wine is of
very high quality and both the vineyard manager aswell
as the winemaker got everything right in 2006. This producer has
managed to increase quality every consequent year. A great joy to taste
and drink. This is also the case with his equally excellent red Graves.This is what more Bordelais should do with their precious
terroir. Produced
from 55% Sémillon and 45% Sauvignon Blanc. The Sauvignon was
fermented and matured in stainless steel tanks to preserve freshness of
aromas after one night maceration on the skins to extract color
and varietal expression. The Sémillon was 100% barrel fermented
and aged for 10 to 12 months in 40% new french oak and 60% in 1
year old barriques, with bâtonnage twice a week until Christmas
and once a week to once every two weeks until Easter.
Interestingly: 50% of the Semillon were allowed to have a
malolactic fermentation adding extra complexity, smoothness and depth
to the wine.
- lotnr.: L 001 - tasted: 17-02-’09 - estimated retail price
ca. € 15,00 - production: - Grand Enclos du Château de Cérons, 33720 Cérons, Francis Unique, export manager, tel: +33 5 56 27 01 53 ; mob: +33 613 590 649 ; fax: +33 5 56 27 08 86 ; e-mail: funique.grandenclos@orange.fr