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Wine Description
The Story
White wine production at Château Margaux goes back to the end of the XVII century. The cellar master at that time recounts how he was one of the first to separate the white grapes from the red during the vinification. Sold in the XIX century under the name « Château Margaux vin de sauvignon », it has existed under the brand name « Pavillon Blanc du Château Margaux » since 1920 and its label has not changed since that date.
The eleven-hectare vineyard is composed only of Sauvignon Blanc. It is situated on a very old plot of the Estate that had long since been planted with red vines and then been dug up because of the high risk of spring frosts. Production techniques, as well as the selection have been completely reviewed since the years 2009/2010 in order to reach a higher level of excellence; only 1/3 of the harvest is bottled, the remaining 2/3 is sold loose. So the quantity of Pavillon Blanc has been greatly reduced and isn’t more than one thousand cases. Today it benefits from the new wine cellar’s ultra-modern installations designed by Norman Foster.
The finesse, complexity, richness and the length in the mouth of Pavillon Blanc are incomparable for a wine produced from 100% Sauvignon. The very latest vintages, 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014 in particular, have opened up new horizons in quality, ageing capacity and style which has become more mineral and much more complex. A significant part of the harvest is bottled in magnums which create optimum ageing conditions.
Vintage 1979
Bordeaux / The year 1979 partly repeated the 1978 vintage with a wet and cool spring, a hot summer, a cool and dry autumn. Dry whites did well this year while reds, particularly Cabernet Sauvignon, struggled to reach full physiological maturity. Once again, Mouton was a disappointment. The right bank did better with Merlot. The best wine of the vintage is the first Le Pin ever produced. Other excellent wines worth mentioning are La Mission Haut-Brion and Haut-Brion. Haut-Brion was a bargain at 200 euros. Sauternes wines also turned out to be quite good, the best of which was Yquem.