How to take wine ‘gravely’
Those of you who know the wine of the Graves region will know that, yes, it is grown on gravel. And what are the characteristics of gravel? It drains well and it stores heat. On September 23, 2010 Sarah McCleery opened our tasting year by entertaining, engaging and enthusing a full house at Brookes Restaurant with a performance of warmth and knowledge.
In the case of the Graves region, many of the vineyards are right in the suburbs of Bordeaux, which means that it’s not the most picturesque of tourist destinations.
In recent years the wines of the region – apart from stars such as Haut-Brion - have not really had a great reputation. But this is now changing as the wines Sarah selected showed. She focused mainly on Pessac-Léognan (not, as she acknowledged, the snappiest marketing title ever coined) but an area that is relatively warm in Bordeaux terms and one which has received vast investment in cellar and vineyard refurbishment over the last ten years.
Nonetheless the average restaurant mark-up is still less than 3x versus the more standard 3.5x, which makes them excellent relative value across a price range that went from just over £7 to more than £50 a bottle and included both reds and whites. First up was a series of five whites, starting with a pair of wines from Waitrose, the Château St Jean des Graves 2009 and the Château Tour Léognan 2008.
With each of the white wines Sarah cajoled us into the game of working out (or just guessing!) the percentage of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon. The St Jean des Graves was an unoaked 50/50 blend – light at 12% alcohol, refreshing and with crisp fruit – perfect for an aperitif or lighter dishes. The Tour Léognan, 2/3rds Sauvignon and 1/3rd Semillon was more rounded, showing its lees ageing with hazelnuts, honey and vanilla on the nose and bright acidity.
It is often said that Sauvignon Blanc does not take well to oak but these examples showed some great complementarity and there was never a sense of the oak overwhelming the fruit. The next two examples – both from Bibendum – were the Château Haut-Bergey Blanc 2006 at £16.67 and the Château de Fieuzal Blanc 2007 at £30.39. Both these two chateaux have benefited from major investment programmes. The former, fermented and aged in oak, comes from a top-rated chateau with a small acreage of white wine grapes and is heavily Sauvignon Blanc dominated at 82%. The oak influence was perhaps most noticeable on the nose with bright, rich barley sugar and quince notes sustained by vivid acidity in a citrus and lime dominated palate. The Château de Fieuzal had an amazing, almost sherry like nose: salted almonds and smoked mackerel, butterscotch and caramelised apple and a rich citrus palate infused with minerality. Lip-smackingly good!
Last of the five whites was the Esprit du Chevalier Blanc 2007, £25.95 from Roberson wines. This was a 75/25 Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon blend picked with great care in over five vineyard sortings and then each parcel vinified separately. The barrels are held in cold storage at 18˚. This wine, we agreed, was not yet at its peak but already it had a salty / savoury tang on a delicate and refined nose. Come back for another tasting in 2-3 years was Sarah’s advice.
Moving on then to the three reds, we started with Chateau Larrivet Haut-Brion 2004 at £24. This was Merlot dominated with a clean nose of tobacco and cedar wood before the blue / black fruit influence came through and a smooth, silky palate with lean tannins and liquorice and leafy undertones to the fruit.
Second up (each was poured on its own) was the Château Haut-Bailly Rouge 2003 (£51.95 from Roberson Wines). The Haut-Bailly owners in the 19th century refused to graft onto American rootstocks and 15% of the vines are still ungrafted. This wine is Cabernet Sauvignon dominated with 30% Merlot and touch of Cabernet Franc. Blackcurrant and black cherry notes on the nose with lightly toasted new oak influences; soft and rich in the mouth with ripe black fruit and good depth.
Last wine of the evening was the Château Haut-Bergey Rouge 2000, again from Roberson Wines at £49.95. Another Cabernet Merlot blend this was darker in colour with a classic Cabernet Sauvignon nose – savoury (almost earthy), tobacco and leather notes overlaying rich black fruit with floral notes. The key impression in the mouth – despite the ripe black fruit and softer tannins - was elegance and restraint with many years of development yet to come.
After applause and well-deserved thanks to Sarah for both her selection and her care in leading us through the wines, we polished off the remaining bottle-ends with plenty of cheese and bread, supplied by Brookes. A great end to a fascinating evening.