DOMAINE DE COURTEILLAC 2009
From vintage to vintage, this superior Bordeaux shows its superiority.
Dominique Menèret, owner of Domaine de Courteillac, is a happy man.
Each vintage satisfies him even more than the last.
With this 2009, and then with the 2010, which is also shaping up to be a great wine, he is convinced that Courteillac has a fabulous terroir.
In 1998, while managing and founding a major Bordeaux grands crus trading company, he bought this estate from his friend Stéphane Asséo, with whom he is also associated in California at Aventure Winery in Paso-Robles.
Since 2006, he has been in charge of Domaine de Courteillac full-time, and in 2007, he enlisted the services of Stéphane Derenoncourt, the Rive Droite advisor. From the 2007 vintage onwards, the profile of his wines changes: more fruit, more freshness, more finesse, more elegance. Wood ageing no longer marks the wines. It simply plays its role as “tannin tamer”. On tasting, it is discreet. Nothing protrudes. A
harmony that authorizes Dominique Mèneret to compare his wines to the finesse of a triple-thread cashmere or the deep, suave voice of Norah Jones. And when asked which dishes he recommends, he replies, “My wine can be drunk with anything, it’s a question of taste”.
35 minutes south-east of Saint-Émilion and 14 km south of Castillon la Bataille, in the commune of Ruch, the 28-hectare Courteillac vineyard sits on one of the highest plateaus in the Entre 2 Mers region. The clay-limestone soils on a limestone subsoil, very similar to those of the Saint-Émilion plateau, share an identical origin.
The 2009 vintage, cold hot, hot cold… vigilance was the order of the day
A year marked by alternating periods of cold, wet weather and hot, even dry spells. March was characterized by intermittent high and low temperatures, and April by rain. In May, spring sets in. In June, the sun shines, the sap rises and flowering begins. July/August saw continued fine weather, with only 16 mm of rain over the two months. Same conditions in September/October.
Alcoholic fermentation takes a long time, so vigilance is essential. To avoid over-extraction, maceration time did not exceed 3 weeks.
This winemaker’s vintage offers a remarkable balance of tannin, alcohol and acidity. As a result, the Bordeaux Supérieur Domaine de Courteillac 2009, which can be enjoyed now for its silky fruitiness, is also ideal for laying down.
The buyers in the Monoprix wine department and the selectors in the Monoprix Gourmet range are also convinced of Courteillac’s superior quality: they have been loyal to it since the 2007 vintage.
DOMAINE DE COURTEILLAC
BORDEAUX SUPÉRIEUR ROUGE 2009
GRAPE VARIETIES: 70% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc.
Average age of vines 25 years. Yields 43 hl/ha.
VINEYARD: Limestone plateau located a few kilometers southeast of Saint-Émilion, in the commune of Ruch in the Entre Deux Mers region.
VINEYARD WORK: Double Guyot pruning. Selective manual debudding. Mechanical leaf-thinning.
VINIFICATION: As soon as they arrive in the cellar, the grapes are de-stemmed to remove the largest impurities. This is followed by mechanical sorting to remove the last stalks and other undesirable matter. The grapes are
then gravity-fed into vats of different sizes, allowing for parcel-by-parcel vinification and good isolation of the different grape varieties. Fermentation takes place at a temperature of 28/30°. The
macerations do not exceed 3 weeks to avoid over-extraction, with several small daily pump-overs. During run-off, the marcs are pressed using a vertical hydraulic wooden press, a gentle
process that does not “traumatize” the material. Malolactic fermentation takes place partly in new barrels.
ELEVAGE: At the end of fermentation, multiple tastings enable us to isolate several separate batches. Aging then begins for 16 months, 50% in barrels (1/2 new, 1/2 one-wine) and 50% in vats.
Final blending takes place a few months before bottling.
TASTING: Beautiful, intense color. Fine nose of red berries.
Full, round attack, very fruity (blackcurrant, blackberry). Dense, complex, well-balanced, with a smooth, creamy finish. Serve at 17°C with grilled meats, game birds and poultry terrines.
PUBLIC PRICE (incl. VAT): 8.80 euros, ex-owner.
Also on sale at Monoprix Gourmet
SARL DOMAINES MENERET-AUDY
1, rue de la Verrerie – 33000 BORDEAUX
Tel : 05 57 83 18 18 – Fax : 05 57 55 11 84 – E-mail : [email protected]
Cette publication est également disponible en : Français (French)
