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Wine Description
The Story
Château L'Arrosée was first listed in Le Féret among the Saint-Emilion premiers crusb in 1868 when it belonged to Pierre Magne, a minister of Napoleon 3rd. At the time the property had neither vinigication nor ageing facilities and the harvest was sold to the co-operative. It was purchased by the Rodhain family in 1911. François Rodhain took over the estate in 1956 and by 1970, François had installed winemaking equipment and all the wine was being estate-bottled.
L'Arrosée's 10 hectare vineyard is located on the western section of the St-Emilion `côtes` and is planted with Merlot (50%), Cabernet Sauvignon (30%), and Cabernet Franc (20%). The grapes are hand-harvested before being fermented in temperature-controlled concrete vats. The wine is then matured in 100% new oak casks for 12 months. It is bottled unfined and unfiltered.
Since August 2002 L'Arrosée has been run by the enthusiastic new proprietors, Roger and Jean-Philippe Caille.
Vintage 1949
In Bordeaux, the decade culminated in the hot year of 1949, when Bordeaux was hit by an unprecedented period of drought. Cold, rainy weather had hampered germination, resulting in an exceptionally uneven distribution of pollen. This, in turn, led to a record harvest. With the arrival of summer, Bordeaux was subjected to a heatwave like it had never seen before. Temperatures of up to 43°C have been recorded in Médoc. Early September brought massive thunderstorms followed by a period of ideal weather, which lasted until harvest at the end of the month. The already small harvest was made even smaller, but it produced an incredibly juicy wine that was extremely delicious even at a young age. The wines themselves have more backbone and are more elegant than the 1947 vintage. Indeed, these lack the concentration found in the 1945. Mouton-Rothschild, however, is a capable challenger even of the best 1945 and 1947, with its ample body and balance. The dry white wines produced were also exceptional, although no longer very drinkable. Conversely, the Sauternes grapes picked at the end of a record dry October produced unique and noble wines.
By Tb