LINEAGE COLLECTION
WINEMAKER TOUR 2017
Champagne Chateau De Bligny Family ownership located in the Côte des Bar, surrounded by 30 hectares of vineyards. Today, the property is owned by the Rapeneau family in which third generation Jean-Remy heads up the team.
A Unique champagne property, it is the only Château to enjoy the « Champagne » appellation as a champagne harvester and maker. (100% of the production is produced, aged and bottled at the Château.)
A great historic, architectural and wine-making heritage. This is the only « Clos Champenois » belonging to a « Château ». It is co-planted with the 6 original Champagne historical varieties : Pinot noir, Chardonnay, Pinot Meunier, Petit Meslier, Arbane, and Pinot Blanc. A unique vineyard of 0.80 hectares facing the Château. Jean Rémy Rapeneau was born 1983 in Reims and grew up in the Champagne Region. He was always involved in the Family Winery in Champagne, working in the vineyards and at the facilities. Always keeping in mind his father’s vision : After reviewing all aspects of the Champagne making business, he decided to pursue the study of international business. He began his studies in France and completed them in London at the Westminster University.
Throughout generations the brand has been very well established all over the domestic market and Europe, but he wanted to bring its international vision to the Family. After Graduation, he left France to the US to take care of the Northern American markets.
Since 2008, the expansion has been significant due to the quality of the champagnes, which have been awarded among the top wines magazines, while also, bringing one of the best value Champagnes on the market.
Nowadays, Jean Remy is in Charge of the sales outside of Europe and is based in the US. The Rapeneau Family has become the largest Family owned Producer in Champagne, and wants to expand the sales on the international scale with the same success they have been focused on in the domestic market over the last four generations. GROWER CHAMPAGNE
DECODE THE LABEL RM VS. NM
All Champagne producers are required to list: RM or NM which is found clearly printed on the label <
RM NM CHAMPAGNE CHATEAU DE BLIGNY GRANDE RESERVE BRUT
Assemblage: 50% Pinot Noir, 50% Chardonnay Appellation: Côte des Bar, Champagne 100% Estate Produced and Bottled Vineyard Size: 30 Hectares
Tasting notes: A deep golden robe underlined by a line of fine sparkling bubbles. A substantial, flowery (violet) nose, notes of white fruit, very ripe pear, creamy, slightly woody, mushrooms. A fine, dense structure, white fruit (peach, nectarine), gingerbread. An ample mouth and a wonderful length.
Ratings : 90 points Wine And Spirits 90 points Wine Spectator Decanter 2012 Bronze Medal CHAMPAGNE CHATEAU DE BLIGNY GRANDE RESERVE BRUT
Assemblage: 100% Chardonnay Appellation: Côte des Bar, Champagne 100% Estate Produced and Bottled Vineyard Size: 30 Hectares
Tasting notes: A pale, beautifully fizzy golden robe. A dense, slightly mushroom-flavoured nose, crystallised lemon, banana cream, nougatine, almond. A wonderfully invigorating structure, very lively and yet dense at the same time. Notes of fruit drops. Ratings: Decanter 2012 Bronze Medal 90 points Wine & Spirits Masut Vineyard & Winery Masút has decided to depart from the mainstream and explore the undiscovered California terroir. In doing so they have developed a wine and culture of their own. The wine is different, yes, and that’s the point. It’s a California Pinot Noir, that can only be described as Masút, which means “dark, rich earth.” Masút represents a fresh look in the world of estate handmade Pinot Noir.
THE VINEYARDS 6 different Pinot Noir clones, and 19 unique blocks Mountainous fast draining soils, allow allow for intensely flavored fruit.
THE WINE 100% produced and bottled at the Estate Small lot open top fermentations Aged sur lie in French Oak Bottled unfiltered Jake & Ben Fetzer grew up in the vineyards of Mendocino County. Their grandparents, Barney and Kathleen Fetzer, moved here in the 1950’s, and Barney’s passion for wine led him to establish Fetzer Vineyards in 1968. In the early 1990’s, the Fetzer Vineyards brand was acquired by Brown Forman, and theirfather, Robert Fetzer, was eager to begin a new chapter. In 1994, he purchased a 1200 acre property and named it Masút, a Native American word meaning “dark, rich earth”. His intention was to remain a farmer, and he envisioned a place where he would be able to grow the finest Pinot Noir possible. In 1997, Jake and Ben began planting the first vineyards at Masút, and by the early 2000’s many wineries were beginning to see the potential of the site. In 2006, their father tragically passed in a rafting accident at the age of 50.
More determined than ever, they felt a need to continue to move forward in his honor. Jake and Ben spearheaded a petition for a new viticultural area called Eagle Peak Mendocino County, and decided to convert a barn on the property to make wine. In 2011, the first vintage was released, and dedicated it to their father. The goals remain steadfast, to produce a great bottle of Pinot Noir from this new growing region, continue the family legacy in the wine business, and to have fun along the way!
About This Vintage
The 2014 growing season in Eagle Peak, Mendocino County kicked off a early with budbreak in mid March. Drier than normal conditions throughout the year made for smaller yields, intense flavors and great tannin structure in the fruit leading up to an early harvest. Picking began September 4th, and commenced on the 10th. This year our Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir is made up of three clones, Dijon 115, 777, and a new planting of 23 (Mariafeld) on the upper slopes of the ranch. All fruit was hand sorted in the vineyard and winery and whole-berry destemmed into small open top fermenters. Fermentations lasted 14-18 days, and the wines were aged in French oak for 15 months sur lie. MASUT ESTATE PINOT NOIR 2014
Estate •Located in northern Mendocino County’s remote Eagle Peak appellation • The only winery within this new AVA •1200 acres, 33 acres under vine
Vineyard Blocks: 6, 7, 12, 13, 14 Pinot Noir clones: 115(50%), 23(33%), 777(17%) Yields: 2.9 tons/acre Aging: 15 months (sur lie) Production: 1800 cases 100% produced and bottled at the Estate Bottled unfiltered
Tasting notes: intense high-toned red fruits combined with hints of liquorice and spice on the nose. Racy acidity and youthful tannins give the palate structure and the wine ageability.
Ratings : Wine Spectator 90 pts Marques de Riscal Heritage and Tradition Marqués de Riscal is the oldest winery in Rioja. Founded in Elciego (Álava) in 1858 by Guillermo Hurtado de Amézaga, from the outset it has been a point of reference in the winemaking business at both national and international level.
Thanks to its 150 years’ history, Marqués de Riscal is the oldest bodega of the Rioja appellation. Throughout its history, Marqués de Riscal has always been a pioneering company and a reference in the winemaking sector (bottling wines, D.O Rueda, signature wines...). The company produces its wines in two different bodegas located in Elciego(Álava) and Rueda (Valladolid). Marqués de Riscal exports 60% of its production abroad, distributing its products in around 80 countries. Marqués de Riscal wines have received the highest international accolades as well as numerous awards and mentions in the specialized press. José Luís Muguiro Jr. is the 5th generation family owner of the Marqués de Riscal winery (founded in 1858). He joined Shaw-Ross in 2014 in the capacity of Brand Ambassador for Lineage Collection, a division of Shaw-Ross International Importers. He assists in the sales and marketing of the Lineage Collection Portfolio with a key focus on fine Spanish wines.
After completing his studies, José Luís Muguiro Jr. began his career in 2010 at Marqués de Riscal Winery corporate headquarters in Madrid, Spain. Working closely with the entire Marqués de Riscal business and production team, he now carries on the long tradition of producing authentic styles of Rioja Alavesa as well as the new generations white wines from the Rueda D.O.
MARQUES DE RISCAL GRAN RESERVA 2005
Assemblage: Gran Reserva Tempranillo 90%, Graciano 8%, Mazuelo 2%
Appellation: Rioja
Tasting notes : A very dark black-cherry colour with faint brick-red glints. It has an intense, complex nose with hints of black pepper, balsamic aromas and slight toastiness, reminding you of fine oak. On the palate, the ageing nuances are in perfect harmony with the fruit, with good tannin concentration, round and supple, with a long, silky smooth finish.
Ratings : Robert Parker 93 pts MARQUES DE RISCAL BARON DE CHIREL 2010
Grape varieties: Tempranillo 70%, others 30% Average age of vineyard: 80yrs Ageing: 20 months in Bordeaux style barrels, minimum 1 year in bottle
Color: A dark cherry color, lively with few signs of evolution. Aroma: High aromatic intensity in which the toasted and spicy aromas from the frenchoak predominate, together with ripe, dark-berried fruit. Palate: In the mouth, it is fresh and smooth with soft, polished tannins in which the wood is not too intrusive. Complex and elegant with a long, balanced finish.
Ratings: Wine Spectator 91 pts Chateau Les Trois Croix Historically, our parents dreamed of creating their own wine. Their dream became ours, the family Patrick Léon …
In June 1995 we fell under the spell of Fronsadais where scenic beauty goes hand in hand with the excellence of the soil, and under the spell of a place called "The Three Crosses“.
THREE CROSSES FOR THREE CHILDREN, A beautiful symbol to make this dream a reality. Patrick Léon has achieved greatness as the winemaker for Château Mouton Rothschild, Opus One, Almaviva Wines from Chile and also as the consulting winemaker for Sacha Lichine’s Château D’Esclans. Patrick Léon has unparalleled experience in making among the great wines of the world. A Bordeaux native with an extensive education in Oenology, Patrick studied this subject in his home town as well as business management. In 1972 Patrick joined Alexis Lichine & Company in Bordeaux beginning as a purchasing manager for its French wines. Additionally he held positions as a Technical Manager & Co General Manager of Château Lascombes Crus Classé in Margaux & Château Castéra in Lesparre-Médoc. Patrick also worked with Alexis Lichine on developing content for his books. These positions went through the mid eighties at which point Patrick would work with Baron Phillipe de Rothschild for nearly twenty years.
For Baron Phillipe de Rothschild, he would serve as a Managing Director, overseeing technical departments including the company’s vineyards and winemaking facilities for Chateau Mouton Rothschild, d’armailhac, Clerc Milon, le Petit Mouton, Aile d’Argent, Opus One in California, Almaviva in Chile, Domaine de Lambert & Baron d’Arques in the Languedoc, Mouton Cadet in Bordeaux as well as other wines in the BPHR portfolio including Escudo Rojo in Chile. Patrick’s wide breadth of experience and knowledge has established the foundation to becoming a consulting oenologist and working with Sacha Lichine in this capacity making all the Lichine wines as great as they are.
The exceptional terroir of Château Les Trois Croix The year 1712 carved into the keystone of the arched roof of the cellar displays the age of the wine estate. Château Les Trois Croix is fundamentally a privileged location on an exceptional terroir. Situated 86 metres atop the highest limestone plateau in the commune, it has a magnificent view out over the hills, valleys and “typical tertre mounds” of the Fronsac countryside, this very appealing Tuscany-like area of south-west France. The clay plateau is made up of Fronsac molasse over large limestone blocks that often protrude to the surface. These are ideal conditions in which to grow Merlot, the king of all varieties with an additional 0% of Cabernet Franc.
Château Les Trois Croix wines are the fruit of meticulous care and attention It all starts out in the vines and work begins in the winter with pruning. As he prunes, the winegrower shapes each vine to get the best out of it. “Here each wine is pruned using the double Guyot system”, which is the best balance shape. As the vine grows it needs all our attention. Every day we must observe, anticipate and wait so as to take the appropriate technical decisions at the right time, while fully respecting Nature and our terroir. Basically we try to live and breathe with the vines and feel the wine develop. In spring and summer, our days are spent de-leafing and eliminating surplus green fruit. This manual work is required to ensure faultless quality. We perform two de-leafing operations and one “green” harvest, which adjusts the number of bunches before the harvest and spreads the fruit out on each vine for optimal ripening conditions. Then the much-awaited harvest time…
We pick entirely by hand and place the fruit in small 10-kilo trays, which keep the grapes intact until they arrive at the fermenting cellar. The fruit is then thoroughly sorted twice, still by hand – once before de-stemming and again after – to make sure that only clean, perfect, ripe fruit goes into the tanks. Only the purest fruit goes into our wine!!
The harmony and balance of Château Les Trois Croix
Then a long “revealing” process starts in the cellar. All the potential is there in the juice and the solids; it is up to reveal the special characteristics of each vintage by adapting our techniques to the year – there is no magic recipe that can be applied to every harvest! We usually prefer gentle, slow fermentation of 4 to 5 weeks. Our wine is aged completely in wood for 12 to 15 months. We are present all through the ageing process to witness the birth of this new vintage and ensure it is a harmonious, well-balanced combination of rich tannins with subtle roundness, of fruit that melts in the mouth and subtle hints of wood. CHATEAU LES TROIS CROIX 2011
Grape varieties : 80% Merlot – 20% Cabernet Franc Appellation : Fronsac Surface area : 15.2 hectares Vine management : Mixed soil management (grassed and cultivated areas) manual leaf removal and end of June and August – removal of green fruit at the mid-point of the initial colour change Ageing : In French oak barrels, one third of which is renewed every year Production : 6,000 12 bottle cases Tasting Notes : Blackberry, fig and espresso notes all laced with hints of dark olive and bittersweet Grenache. Ratings : Wine Spectator : 91 Points