2013 Vintage – Our first impressions
Château Blaignan, like many properties in the Médoc, was not spared by the abundant rains in the spring. A difficult start to the season, but a successful outcome with the return of heat in the month of August allowing us to wait for the Cabernet Sauvignon to reach maturity.
On tasting, it is this grape variety that gives the fine character to Château Blaignan and supports a fresh aromatic palate, fruity, with aromas of blueberry and blackcurrant.
Château Blaignan is a fine estate of 97 hectares (240 acres) in the northern part of the Médoc. There have been vineyards here since the 14th century. There was nothing left of the ancient fortress (seat of the Lords of Blaignan in the Middle-Ages, which gave its name both to the land and to the noble family who owned the manor), except for a few ruins next to the church in the old village of Blaignan.
Pierre Merman, a protestant from a Dutch family that settled in Bordeaux in the 17th century, acquired the estate just after the Revolution. His family and, more particularly, his daughter, Jeanne Marie Reine Peychaud, assisted by her husband Charles, turned “Taffard-Blaignan” into a model estate. They extended the property considerably, repaired the buildings and built a country mansion of the type known locally as a “chartreuse”.
The wine reached the envied rank of Cru Bourgeois in 1932, under the name “Château Taffard de Blaignan”. In 2004, CA Grands Crus, a subsidiary of the Groupe Crédit Agricole, acquired Château Blaignan. An improvement plan was put together for the entire estate. It is supervised today by Anne Le Naour, the Technical Director, Jean-Jacques Lapeyre, the Estate Director and the consultant oenologist, Hubert de Bouärd.
The limestone-clay soil lies on a calcareous limestone base, whose sedimentation dates back to the quaternary period. The high potential of the site is reflected in 2 limestone mounds that offer different sunshine exposure and drainage possibilities. The vines are an average of 25 years old, and are divided between 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 41% Merlot and 9% Cabernet Franc. Average yields are 45 hectolitres per hectare. Château Blaignan is accredited “Agriculture Raisonnée” and have adopted eco-friendly vine-growing methods.
During the harvest, the new machines, equipped with a grape selection gear, allow to select only the best grapes. The demand for quality is also illustrated by the lowering of the average yields and of the plots yields.
The new winery was ready for the 2010 harvest and allows tank temperatures, for fermentation and maceration, to be precisely controlled. It is also equipped for cold-soaking prior to fermentation. Post-fermentary maceration lasts for between 21 and 30 days according to the nature of the harvest. The wine’s progress is checked by regular tastings, with temperatures held between 28°C and 30°C. The wine will then age for 15 to 17 months, depending on the vintage.
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Primeurs Vintage 2022 Part 2
”7m 11d ago
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2020 – the paradox vintage
2020 began with mild temperatures even breaking temperature record highs at the beginning of February. These conditions led to a premature budbreak. Budding developed unevenly, very much depending on the locations although the coo and humid weather in April had not a very significant impact on slowing down the growth of the vines. Finally all the vines came into bloom at the end of May without any significant coulure or millerandage. At the start of June, frequent rain intensified the pressure of mildew. From mid-June, the weather changed. The whole Bordelais saw a period of very dry weather for two months. However, the earlier accumulation of water reserves prevented water stress. Around July 18 a heat wave began to build up but the cool nighty prevented water stress on the wines again. The veraison started at the end of July and went on till the beginning of August. The heatwave in August accentuated water stress, but shorter rainy episodes avoided a complete block. The dry and sunny weather in September encouraged the grapes maturity and harvest started on September 10 with a rather mild weather. Towards the middle of September, rain prevented the fruits from wilting but as its frequency was quite concerning, the haves was pushed forward. "Le diabolique" is the title given to this vintage by Véronique Sanders. It is a very special French word, which is not correctly translated with “diabolic” in English. In France, the expression means to overcome the devil. And the vintners succeeded. 2020 is clearly a vintner’s vintage which asked a permanent reinvention of the wineries, struggling hard with this difficult vintage. However, the vintage surprises with excellent wines, exemplary freshness and elegance and very dense structure. In former times it was said that the vine has to suffer to make exquisite wines, in this vintage the people have suffered to make a great wine. The first part of notes for this tasting with over 800 wines you will find today. More notes will follow over the coming days.
”2y 6m ago
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This year, the difficult situation brings us surprises almost every day. On Monday March 27, a pallet with roughly 70 wines arrived in Essen. On Tuesday the red wines were tasted, on Wednesday the white wines. So we have the impression of another series of wines. Lalande de Pomerol was showing up again extremely well and is for me one of the great surprises in this exciting vintage. One of the wines was already tasted last week, however the sample of Château Sergant on Tuesday was showing much better and therefore the rating was changed.
”3y 7m ago
“2013 was a challenging vintage. The Primeurs tasting was arguably one of the most difficult ones I ever did, however there were wines showing some promising potential. A complete blind tasting of the vintage will display the bottled wines. The tasting will last from December 29, 2015 till January 6, 201”
7y 11m ago
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