the new bordeaux

Yesterday, I went to a preview lunch of a new series of Wine Dinners organised by the Regent Hotel. These will be held once a month starting on Thursday November 12th, and will be hosted by different chateaux around the region.

Happily for me, the first one is going to be a 'Diner d'Exception avec Chateau Palmer', and Thomas Duroux (director of the chateau) was there to talk us through the fascinating collection of wines he had chosen.

The lunch was held in the Pressoir d'Argent ( www.pressoir-argent.com ), the hotel's gastronomic restaurant, which seems to be woefully under-utilised by the Bordelais. I was told a few times before going there that the lunches were too expensive to consider, but they actually start at 33 euros - a little less than the lunch offer at another top Bordeaux restaurant, the Chapon Fin ( www.chapon-fin.com ).

This dinner will be 150 euros, but that's including everything - a champagne and canape starter, then five courses and coffees. Oh, and these amazing wines.

We started with a wine that I had never tried before, and didn't even know existed until very recently. A Chateau Palmer Blanc 2007. This was the first vintage of this wine, made in tiny quantities and not for sale. Three barrels are produced, and they go only to shareholders in the company. This is nothing like other 'icon whites' from major Bordeaux chateaux, because it is bottled at a Vin de Table, and uses a distinctly unusual blend of grapes. The majority, 65% is Muscadelle, from a masal selection from Robert Plageoles in Gaillac, then 25% Sauvignon Gris. The rest is equally divided between Merlot Blanc and a little known grape variety called Lauzet, which grows mainly in Jurancon.

Duroux said he, 'wanted to do something different from all the other Medoc white wines,' and 'may commercialise it one day, as soon as I am happy the blend deserves the name Chateau Palmer on the label.'

We had this yesterday with the amuse-bouche, a tiny and delicious blend of potatoe, fish soup and rolled monk fish. The wine itself had a sweet almond flavour, layered with apricots, but with a good freshness and length - very interesting.

This was followed by another wine that you are unlikely to experience very often - an Historical 19th Century Wine. Apparently Duroux got the idea for this wine when he was in the US, talking to a wine collector, and saw a 19th century bottle labeled 'Lafite Hermitage'. This was a widely-used practise at the time, to boost Bordeaux wines with the stronger Rhone wines (although, as Thomas rightly pointed out, these wines also have a great balance and elegant, smooth tannins). We had this wine with Smoked eel and foie gras, a cremed of chestnuts, truffles, poached in milk. I loved this wine - a 2006, blended with 15% Syrah from the northern Rhone.

He didn't tell us which producer, but said he has lots of friends there, and goes to taste each year, selecting just a few key barrels. In totaal, 200 cases of this are made and sold each year. We tried to 2006, but it's not made every year, as 2005 was powerful enough in Bordeaux alone, and adding Hermitage would throw it out of balanc, and he's sure 2009 will be the same. I am looking forward to trying the 2007 one day! In terms of taste, it was wonderfully rich and smooth, very similar to Palmer in any good year, but with some added spice, and sweet, smoky sandalwood.

After this, we went on to Chateau Palmer as we know and love her! Firstly a 1999 Palmer with a red snapper (Rouget), with an Iberico chirizo, and a tartare of langoustines. Then an amazing combination of Chatuea Palmer 1995 and 1989, both of which were amazing, with roast Pauillac lamb and wood mushrooms, in this unbelievable caramelised spice sauce (that tasted of christmas, as my neighbour rightly pointed out). This complemented perfectly the gentle spices of the older vintages.

Finally, a Gouda Old Dutch Master accompanied an Alter Ego 2005. Thomas suggested young Alter Ego as a good mix with cheese - or the white wine, but unfortunately that's a little harder to get hold of...

A new 'interactive tasting bar' opened in the centre of town on Thursday night, very close to the Grand Theatre, that I think is going to fast become an essential destination in Bordeaux.

Called the Wine Gallery, it offers visitors the chance to sample many of the region's most famous wines, that would normally cost hundreds of pounds a bottle - so Margaux, Lafite, Latour, Haut Brion, Mouton, Ausone, Cheval Blanc, Leoville Les Cas... pretty much everything except Petrus and Le Pin (they assure me at least Petrus is on the way!).

They are kept fresh through six Enomatic tasting machines, using nitrogen gas to preserve against oxidation. I wrote about it for Decanter here:
http://www.decanter.com/news/290905.html

Thirty to forty bottles will be available at any time for tasting in either 2.5cl, 5cl or 7.5cl with prices starting at €2 for a small sample of chateaux such as Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte 2006, €5 for Chateau La Conseillante 2004, and going up to €38 for Chateau Ausone 2006.

All the first growths are available at under €30.

There will also be an interactive element - the now standard-issue blog http://maxbordeaux.blogspot.com/, twitter (@MaxBordeaux) and facebook acccounts to keep track of Max, a young Bordelais negociant/wine lover who is part of the team behind the venture.

Plus there is an music menu that accompanies the wine - you can let the dj (fred beneix of http://www.myspace.com/wine4melomanes ) know what wine you are drinking, and there will be music to accompany. On Thursday, these were:
1-Tow The Line by Nick Drake (2004) with Château Leoville Barton 2004
2-Kind Of Sunshine by Nicola Conte (2004) with Château Pontet Canet 2004
3-Beautiful Babies by Plantlife with Château Palmer 2004
4-Golden by Jill Scott (2004) with Château La Lagune 2004
5-La Ritournelle by Sebastien Tellier (2004) with Château Cos d'Estournel 2004
6-Shallows (A Shade Of Jade) by Laïka (2004) with Château Pichon-Longueville Comtesse 2004
7-Warm sound by Zero 7 (2004) with Château Leoville Las Cases 2004
8-Silver & fire by M. Craft (2006) with Château Cheval Blanc 2006
9-The Dreamer by Jose James (2006) with Château Mission Ht Brion 2006
10-Forefathers by Marcina Arnold (2006) with Château La Lagune 2006

My pre-paid card on Thursday had 25 euros credit (you can get them in 25, 50 or 75 euros) so I had a Conseillante 2004 (5 euros) and a Pontet Canet 2006 (3 euros) - both in the smallest 2.5cl sample size. I have saved the rest of the credits for the next time, when I plan to top up and go for Ausone!!

It's open 7 days a week and is open to everyone. The pay-as-you-go card method also means that it can be adapted - there are wines that start from 2 euros.

Max Bordeaux/The Wine Gallery, 14 cours de l'Intendance, 33000 Bordeaux. http://maxbordeaux.com/

Last week saw the second edition of the Prix Traditia du Patrimoine, a prize ceremony that rewards Bordeaux and Aquitaine figures who have contributed in key ways to the restoration, creation or promotion of the cultural life of the region. A kind-of Pride of Bordeaux awards, founded by Philippe de Saint Seine.

The ceremony was held at Domaine du Chevalier (where Olivier Bernard greeted us with, 'I am so happy to welcome you all here tonight, especially as for once it isn't me who's paying...!!'), and was very well attended. Among the winners was Denis Dubourdieu, who was accepting a Trophy of Honour along with Alain Rousset, president of the Conseil Regional d'Aquitaine, for the creation of the new Scientific Institute of Vines and Wine (ISVV) that opened last year in Villenave d'Ornon; Europe's biggest wine research centre. It covers over 10,000m2 and was designed by local architect Philippe Mazières, with a gorgeous glass wall by artist Pascal Convert and one of the biggest tasting rooms in the world. It took ten years to design, and cost 25 million euros.

Michel and Christine Guérard were also recipients of an award, 'Personalites du Patrimoine d'Aquitaine' for their creation of the renowned gastronomic hotel-restaurant Les Prés d'Eugénie, in Eugenie les Bains (I have longingly read about it several times, but never actually been personally).

Local architects firm, Agence de l'Arsenal, were fitting recipients of the third award of the evening. Owners and directors Christophe Massie and Pierre Lapallus specialise in restoring 18th and 19th century buildings, and have worked across a number of chateaux of the region including Château Kirwan, Château Siran, Château d’Issan, Château du Tertre, Château Haut-Bailly, Château Giscours, Château Smith Haut Laffite and Château Palmer. They are currently working on Château de la Brède in Pessac Leognan.

www. traditia.com

One of the best traditions at this time of year is the harvest lunch, held at every chateau in Bordeaux throughout the harvest period.

The lunch is of course a necessity to fuel the harvesters who have usually been up since early in the morning picking this year's all important crop, but they are also a great way of mixing every level of workers together, from the chateau director to the part-time harvesters, and of just enjoying a social break in what is the busiest time of the year.

This year I have been to two harvest lunches, one at Chateau Pichon Baron in Pauillac, and the other at Chateau La Gatte in AOC Bordeaux Superieur (in St Andre de Cubzac, so just a few metres shy of the Cotes de Bourg/Blaye borders).

The first one of these is one of the most prestigious properties in Bordeaux, with 73 hectares in the Pauillac appellation, and owned by a large insurance company with a string of chateaux across the region and further afield in the Duoro and Tokaj. The second is a small estate owned by a French woman and her American husband, Hélène and Michael Affatato. Hélène has worked previously for Latour, and Michael for Chapoutier, so they know a lot about winemaking, but their current estate is just 13 hectares, and makes red, white and rosé wine.

The harvest lunches at both estates, however, weren't so different from each other (although I have to admit the 2001 Pichon was really a big plus point at one of them!!). The lunches are always very relaxed, with pickers and other staff all seated together around long tables, and the food is always very simple, and hearty (I had picked a few grapes at La Gatte, so could pretend I had earned it, but at Pichon I'd just had a very taxing walk around their beautiful new cellars and climbed up the tower in the vineyard). At Pichon we were served a rough country-style pate, hams and other cold meats, roast pork and potatoes, and followed by chocolate eclairs. These were all cooked, as they are every year, by one of the cellar workers who just happens to also be a very talented cook. 'Once a year, he escapes into the kitchen', as they said, and cooks for two shifts of around 40 people a time, for a month. All workers also get a harvest picnic to take home with them, as they may be too late, or tired, to cook for the family at night time.

At La Gatte we also got an excellent array of cold meats, followed by veal and potatoes, and finished off with two gorgeous tarts, one chocolate and one fruit, made by Michael's mother in law, and a very talented nine year old boy (wasn't sure of his relation!).

Everyone at both places were also in very good spirits because of the weather and expected quality of the vintage - just a great way to spend a few hours.

This is the official press release from the CIVB on this year's vintage. Of course they are always going to put the best light on things, but speaking as someone who lives here and has been out into the vineyards a lot, things really are looking pretty good.

'Weather conditions this year have been particularly favourable for the vine’s growth cycle and the
grapes’ ripening process.

The months of July and August saw high temperatures and a generous amount of sunshine. This fine weather continued into September, with an alternation between cool nights and warm daytime
temperatures, which encouraged a concentration of aromas and an increase in anthocyanins
The grapes ripened ideally and harvests dates are now being staggered. Crops being gathered are perfectly healthy. It is too early to make an estimate about harvest.

We should keep in mind that hailstorms during the month of March caused significant damage to 19,000 hectares of vines (15% of the total Bordeaux winegrowing region). The extent of this damage varied considerably from one plot to another in vineyards, but the result is a decrease in production.

Dry white wines
Harvests of white Sauvignon grapes began on 27th August in the earliest-ripening areas. In September harvesting of this variety became widespread and continued afterwards with the Sémillon variety. Harvests for dry whites are now finished.

Red wines
Merlot grapes are currently being picked. Harvests of this variety began in mid-September for the earliest- ripening areas. The berries are intensely aromatic, full of flavour, showing excellent concentration in sugar; the pips are crunchy and the skins appear
to have marvellous colour potential (anthocyanan levels are high). Acidity levels are low; this is an indication of excellent ripeness.
Harvests will continue with Cabernet Franc in the first days of October, followed by Cabernet Sauvignon, depending on the earliness of certain terroirs and how ripeness has developed.

Sweet white wines
Gathered by successive stages of manual sorting on the vine, harvests of grapes for sweet white wines have barely begun. Weather conditions at present are ideal for these grapes that undergo the influence of an extremely specific micro-climate. Humidity, in the form of early-morning
mists, encourages the work of the botrytis cinerea fungus (noble rot), a vital factor for producing these wines. Very warm daytime temperatures dry out the grapes and concentrate all their flavours. The grapes express remarkable aromatic potential.

Weather Conditions (source Meteo France)
March : a generous amount of sunshine, temperatures slightly above average and rainfall levels less than half the average of the past 30 years. In the vineyards: budburst (when the buds open and small leaves appear) began at the end of the month. Sunshine 220.35 hours, rainfall 31mm, temperature 12.4C.

April: a mild month, particularly rainy, with a lack of sunshine. Sunshine 235 hours, rainfall 78.4mm, temperature 10.1C.

May: fine weather, with summery temperatures and an excellent amount of sunshine; there was, however, a slight lack of rainfall. Violent hailstorms occurred on 11th, 13th and 25th May. No winegrowing
area of the Bordeaux region was spared (Médoc, Graves, Entre-deux-Mers,Saint-Emilion, Blaye, Bourg, Premières Côtes). In the vineyards: at the end of May, flowering begins. Early and swift, it
becomes widespread at the beginning of the month of June. Sunshine 159.35 hours, rainfall 115.8mm, temperature 17.3C.

June: a dry, warm month, with a remarkable amount of sunshine and temperatures 2 degrees higher than the average of the past 30 years. In the vineyards: on 15th June flowering had finished in the earliest areas. This is the period of berry setting (fertilised flowers turn into tiny grape berries). Sunshine 293 hours, rainfall 75mm, temperature 20.3C.

July: a warm month (temperatures slightly above average) and a generous amount of sunshine.In the vineyards: beginning of the véraison period. The berries swell and grape skins begin to change
colour. Sunshine 262.31 hours, rainfall 46.6mm, temperature 21.5C.

August: extremely good weather, warm and sunny (+ 27 hours of sunshine). There was a slight lack of
rainfall compared with the average of the past 30 years. In the vineyards: ripening is encouraged by excellent weather conditions. Sunshine 270.34 hours (30 year average 242.55 hours). Rainfall 23mm (30 year average 59.5mm). Temperature 22.3 degrees C (30 year average 20.9)

September: a second month of August! Temperatures are slightly above the average of the past 30 years. There is a lack of rainfall, but an extraordinary amount of sunshine (+ 50 hours). In the vineyards: it’s time for the first harvests to begin. Sunshine 233.49 hours (30 year average 182.49 hours). rainfall 48.6mm (30 year average 90.3mm). temp average 19.2 degrees C (30 year average 18.1).