Part
One: Premières Côtes de Bordeaux
Bordeaux Wines - New Pleasures to be Discovered
By Eric Gaudet
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Premières
Côtes de Bordeaux wth the Garonne River in the background |
Médoc,
Saint Estèphe, Pauillac, Moulis, Margaux, Graves, Pessac-Léognan,
Sauternes, Entre-Deux-Mers, Côtes de Bordeaux, Saint Emilion,
Pomerol, Fronsac, Castillon, Francs, Bourg, Blaye, … these
names are like a music to the ears of any wine lover. Who hasn't
dreamt of them? This is not new. Bordeaux wines have indeed been
famous for about 2,000 years. During the Gallo Roman times, they
were already appreciated in Rome where they used to be served
at the Ceasars' tables or during the rich Romans banquets. We
know this for sure as it has been reported by such Latin writers
as Ausonius, Columelle or Pliny.
They were famous then (the claret) at the Court of England during
the Middle ages, when Guyenne, the Bordeaux province, belonged
to England. There was even a law in the Middle Ages, enforced
until the 18th century, which stated that the only wines to be
brought and sold in Bordeaux were the ones made on estates belonging
to Bordeaux inhabitants. All this helped to develop the Bordeaux
vineyards. Since then, these names have been renowned all over
the world and their glory has never faded away.
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Gabaire,
a traditional
Garonne River fishing boat |
The
times have changed now, and so have Bordeaux wines and Bordeaux
winegrowers. They have improved a lot. They can now offer good
wines even in the bad or difficult years and thanks to the economics,
they try to find a balance between the market, the terroir and
their production costs. The wines still need to age, but they
are quite drinkable at a younger age than they used to. The grapes
now are picked riper than they used to be in the past which gives
lower acidity in the wines and not so strong, but rather sweeter
tannins. At the same time, the winegrowers have much better use
and control of the malo-lactic fermentation, which helps to improve
the quality of the wines. The wine is now made in a less aggressive
way, where the nature is respected. When you see the birds coming
back in the vines, it is a good sign. It means less chemicals,
more life, better grapes and better quality. Most of the time,
the trend is to come back to hand made operations for leaf tearing
or grape picking.
But the Grands Crus can still appear as being too famous, too
intimidating, or sometimes too expensive. This shouldn't prevent
you from buying and drinking Bordeaux wines, as new pleasures
are now offered to you.
Besides the Grands Crus, there are many other Bordeaux wines and
the efforts which have been done for 30 years are paying off.
Many wines which are not famous at all, which you have never heard
of, are really worth tasting and drinking. Take for example the
wines from the Côtes appellations : Côtes de Blaye,
Côtes de Bourg, Premières Côtes de Bordeaux,
Côtes de Franc and Côtes de Castillon.
All the Côtes have in common is to be located on the North
bank of the river (Garonne or Dordogne), facing South. This makes
them one of the nicest areas to visit in the region, as you have
from the top of the hills there are some splendid views over the
rivers, like the panorama on Bordeaux and the Garonne which you
can enjoy in Bouliac, from the terrace behind the superb Roman
church. While visiting the region, don't hesitate to leave the
main road which usually follows the river to take one of the side
ones which goes up into the vines to some small villages from
where you will admire the vine landscape. You won't get lost,
and the worst thing that can happen to you, is ending up in a
winery to ask for your way… and tasting some more wine.
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Clock
Tower at entrance to Cadillac |
At
a time when the varietal tries to monopolize the attention, a
trip in a wine growing country is indeed a trip through friendship,
through the real values of life, in places where the love of the
earth, of the well done work, a craftsmanship and almost an art,
lead the world. A vine-life time is about 100 years. Which is
to say that when...
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