Chateau Carbonnieux

The chateau was originally built during the troubled times of the Hundred Years' War, as can be seen today from the defensive features. Carbonnnieux was often at the heart of turbulent local history.

In the latter part of the 19th century, phylloxera struck the Bordeaux vineyards, causing a long period of upheaval (Great Depression of 1929, two world wars).For all these reasons, Carbonnieux was not in top form at the end of the 1940s.

There were only 29 hectares of vines left in the early '50s, compared to 60 hectares two centuries earlier. Furthermore, the vineyards were not well-tended, with far too many old and missing vines. The chateau had been uninhabited since the First World War and was in very poor condition. The wine making equipment was in much the same shape. Furthermore, the market for fine wine was hardly buoyant during this period.

There was very few distribution networks in France and export sales were only just starting up again after the war.

This was the situation when the Perrin family purchased Chateau Carbonnieux in 1956.

Nevertheless, it was not easy for Marc Perrin at the beginning. Indeed, the first year, the vineyard was totally ravaged by the cold. Marc Perrin decided to replante the vineyards to the way they were laid out in the 18th century, when the estate was at its peak.The estate really took off in the 80’s.

Today, Anthony, the son of Marc, manages the estate.

Chateau Carbonnieux is a Classified Graves Growth.

Le Château La Tour Blanche

Chateau La Tour Blanche is situated in the heart of The Sauternes Appellation. About 40 km south of Bordeaux, this appellation covers nearly 2100 hectares and encompasses the five villages of Barsac, Bommes, Fargues, Preignac and Sauternes.

The merging of The River Garonne and its colder tributary The Ciron creates a microclimate which accounts for the autumnal climate of early morning mists followed by bright sunny days.

Consequently, botrytis cinerea, a microscopic fungus, finds itself in ideal conditions to develop on the grape berries causing an evaporation of the berries' water content. This phenomenon is known as Noble Rot ("Pourriture Noble").

The three traditional grape varieties of the Sauternes are: Sémillon, Sauvignon and Muscadelle.

At Chateau La Tour Blanche they are to be found in the right proportions: 78% Sémillon, 16% Sauvignon and 6% Muscadelle.

It is the combination of this vine population along with the soil structure and, above all, the secrets of winemaking that result in these three varieties producing a unique and harmonious blend.

At Chateau La Tour Blanche, in the entire appellation likewise, the harvest is done manually and over a series of selective pickings. This means that the grape-pickers must go through the rows of vines several times (five to six times on average) picking each time only the bunches of grapes, or even just the individual berries in some cases, that have been sufficiently affected by botrytis cinerea.

Château Suduiraut

Premier Grand Cru Classé de Sauternes

Just down the road from Yquem, is the large, beautiful estate of Suduiraut, 40 km from Bordeaux, on the left bank of the Garonne. Comte Blaise de Suduiraut built the château which is noble and full of light, moreover the gardens were designed by Le Nôtre. Suduiraut is one of the great wines of Sauternes which have been renewed for their aromatic complexity and their wealth of exotic flavours. The château’s privileged sandy soils are well-drained and layered with gravel. In September misty mornings followed by warm afternoons allow the development on the grapes of botrytis cinerea, the noble root, which delivers the rich taste of sweet wines.

Christian Seely is the managing director of Château Suduiraut. He runs the château with a performing team. Their experience of assemblages of Sémillon (90 %) and Sauvignon (10 %) offers a full-bodied wine of a beautiful gold colour with amber tinges. The wine lies in wooden barrels for 18-24 months. This Sauternes discloses harmony, power end complexity.

Château Coutet, Barsac

Chateau Coutet is one of the Premier Cru properties of Sauternes, as determined in the 1855 classification of Sauternes and Barsac. Coutet dates back to the 13th Century, hundreds of years before anyone even dreamt of planting vines on the then marshy, now prosperous, Médoc. Some parts of the chateau date from that period, although it has been extensively augmented, with a 14th Century chapel, two 16th Century towers and a remodelling in the 18th Century. Although those early buildings remain, little is known about the ownership of Coutet during that period. In 1643 the estate was purchased by local politician Charles de Guérin, from whom it passed to Jean de Pichard in 1695, and then onto Gabriel-Barthélémy-Romain de Filhot of Chateau Filhot in 1788. I hope he made the most of his time at Coutet, because by 1794 he found himself at the wrong end of the guillotine. Despite these events the Filhot family kept Coutet and passed into the Lur-Saluces family of Yquem by marriage. It saw several new owners during the following centuries, but in 1977 the current owners, the Baly family, took control. Marcel Baly has since passed the estate on to his sons, Dominique and Philippe. There are 38 ha planted up at Chateau Coutet, 75% Semillon and 23% Sauvignon Blanc, the remainder Muscadelle, with an ongoing program of replanting. Yields are typically 18 hl/ha, with the number of tries reaching double figures in some vintages! Only 50% finds its way into the grand vin, the remainder forming a second wine or being sold off. Young vines - less than seven years old - in particular are excluded. Fermentation is en barrique but is temperature controlled. The resulting wines include the grand vin Chateau Coutet, a super-selection Cuvée Madame >released in vintages of exceptional quality, the second wine Chartreuse de Coutet and a dry Graves Vin Sec de Chateau Coutet. Interestingly there was once also a dry red, but this has now been discontinued.