Archives des chardonnay - Blog World Grands Crus

Acquisition of the Clos des Lambrays by the LVMH group

guru — Wed, 04 Jun 2014 05:00:44 +0000

The French group LVMH, owners of Moët, Henessy and Louis Vuitton, directed by Bernard Arnault, has recently announced the acquisition of the Clos des Lambrays, a 21 acre Burgundy domain situated in the Côte-de-Nuits, at Morey-Saint-Denis.

After Bordeaux and Champagne, the Burgundy region has fallen under the lustful eyes of large industrial firm leaders. In the last few years buying a prestigious vineyard has become a fashionable phenomenon; one might add a profitable fashion phenomenon! It can be compared to investing in a great masters painting. The world has entered into a brawl for the few thousands of bottles of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay Grand crus from Burgundy.

Furthermore with its average production of 35000 bottles annually, the Clos des Lambrays assembles the most prestigious labels of the Côtes d’Or, such as le Clos Saint Denis, Le Clos de la Roche, Le Clos de Tart and the Bonnes Mares as far as the Pinot Noir is concerned. Regarding the Chardonnay we find the Puligny Montrachet and its premier crus Clos du Cailleret and the Folatières, these being the most reputed labels in the world.

The domain is believed to have been put up for sale in 2010 by the German Freund family, owners since 1996, after the passage of several pretenders, the domain is finally sold to LVMH, a solid warrant for continuity and excellence! And hearsay it might have been sold for a paltry 100 million Euros. Well yes everything has a price! With the acquisition of the Clos des Lambrays, Bernard Arnault can be proud, having added to his successes this great challenge!

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The Phylloxera

guru — Sat, 12 Apr 2014 07:00:35 +0000

In 1872, in the vineyards of the regions of Languedoc, Gard, Provence, Bordeaux an even in the Burgundy area, the vine shoots and leaves dry out progressively provoking the death of the vine.
Jean Emile Planchon, a botanist, wrote in 1873, that if a remedy was not found, the contagious ailment that strikes the vines, would overcome within 10 years all the grape vines of the south of France.
By 1880, three quarters of the French vines have disappeared, but the cause was identified: it is an aphid that originated in North America known as Phylloxera Vastatrix.
It took several years for the scientists of that time to find a way of eradicating the epidemic. The decision to graft the vines on American rootstocks, resistant to the aphids, will force the destruction of 1 740 000 hectares of vines.
Between 1885 and 1895, France renewed its vineyards. The Burgundy region used this moment to replant its white variety into Chardonnay. Altogether, the French vineyards produced 57 million hectoliters. The wine producers changed their work methods, however the Phylloxera was never entirely eradicated.
Even to day, the shoots are grafted to the resistant rootstocks, and none of the wine producers will return to the original plants, frightened to see his vines destroyed.
The whole of the wine-producing world benefits of this protection, thanks to a resistance that was discovered by trial and error, 120 years ago, and it is still working up to now.
To-day important research work is being carried out on the subject, because several cases of Phylloxera resurgences have appeared in Californian vineyards.
The perspective of the loss of résistance by the base plants is extremely worrying, for up to this day this is the only method of fighting this formidable aphid.

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The color of wine

guru — Fri, 28 Feb 2014 09:00:13 +0000

The color of wine is not only a matter of variety, it is also a result of maceration. Wine is one of the few beverages with a multitude of colors and shades that change over time.
The pulp gives a white grape juice, so that if the grape is separated from the pressed mash, we will obtain white wine. But if we macerated red grape skins with the juice for about four weeks, you’ll get a red color that will be lighter or darker depending on the variety and therefore resulting in red wine.
For the rosé, it is simply a matter of separating the mash from the juice once the liquid has reached the desired color.
To make white wine, we take grape varieties for the creation of white juices, such as Chardonnay, Sauvignon, Semillon, Riesling, Gewürztraminer, Clairette etc. and for the reds; black varieties such as Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Syrah, Grenache etc.
There are exceptions to the rule, pinot noir has a beautiful red color but lacking intensity, its other varieties being “Gris” or “Meunier”; or the Grenache that can be black or white and the gamay who is black yet used for a white juice. After that, it is only a question of maceration techniques.
The changing color of the wine during the aging in the bottle comes from a redox reaction as well as the assembly of various pigments, tannins gradually take over the wine color, giving them a brownish tint, gently announcing the wines’ decline.
To avoid damage due to the light, great wines with a long storage potential are always bottled in dark glass flasks, preserving their colors with all the magical shades typical of great wines.

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The Chardonnay

guru — Tue, 25 Feb 2014 09:00:37 +0000

Chardonnay is a native white grape from the Burgundy area. Widespread today around the world, it is mainly found in the Champagne country, known as ” Blanc de Blanc “, this designation meaning that the champagne is made exclusively with Chardonnay grapes. This is also the case in the Burgundy, Loire, Jura, Alsace and Languedoc wine areas. Its development is increasing. In 2006 it already accounted for 40 000 hectares of the French vineyards.
It acclimatizes very well in cool areas on moderately fertile and predominantly limestone soils. These conditions bring balance, smoothness and freshness.
It produces great dry white wines, soft and mellow with a large range of flavors, such as: dried fruits, citrus, hazelnuts, grilled almonds, brioche, butter, acacia flowers, fern …
Chardonnay reveals itself as having an extremely high quality potential. It is found in very great vintages such as, Montrachet, Chassagne Montrachet, and grand vintage Champagnes:

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