P33_copertina_R_OK C August 20-28,2004 Florence -Italy Field Trip Guide Book - P33 Post-Congress Associate Leaders:M.Broquedis,G.Darne Leader: R.Bourrouilh GEOLOGY OFTHEVINEYARDS AND COGNAC: WINES OFBORDEAUX 32 Volume n°4-fromP14toP36 GEOLOGICAL CONGRESS nd INTERNATIONAL P33 26-05-2004, 10:27:07 The scientific content of this guide is under the total responsibility of the Authors

Published by: APAT – Italian Agency for the Environmental Protection and Technical Services - Via Vitaliano Brancati, 48 - 00144 Roma - Italy

Series Editors: Luca Guerrieri, Irene Rischia and Leonello Serva (APAT, Roma)

Field Trip Committee: Leonello Serva (APAT, Roma), Alessandro Michetti (Università dell’Insubria, Como), Giulio Pavia (Università di Torino), Raffaele Pignone (Servizio Geologico Regione Emilia-Romagna, Bologna) and Riccardo Polino (CNR, Torino)

Acknowledgments: The 32nd IGC Organizing Committee is grateful to Roberto Pompili and Elisa Brustia (APAT, Roma) for their collaboration in editing.

Graphic project: Full snc - Firenze

Layout and press: Lito Terrazzi srl - Firenze

P33_copertina_R_OK D 26-05-2004, 10:26:14 Volume n° 4 - from P14 to P36

32nd INTERNATIONAL GEOLOGICAL CONGRESS

WINES OF AND COGNAC: GEOLOGY OF THE VINEYARDS

AUTHORS: R. Bourrouilh1, M. Broquedis2, G. Darne2 ENGLISH TRANSLATION REVISED BY: D.S. Gorsline3

1 Laboratoire CIBAMAR, Université Bordeaux I, Cedex - 2 Laboratoire des Sciences de la Vigne, Université Bordeaux I, Talence Cedex - France 3 Department of Geological Sciences, USC, Los Angeles - USA

Florence - Italy August 20-28, 2004

Post-Congress P33

P33_R_OK A 26-05-2004, 10:36:13 Front Cover: «Les Grand Crus Classés du Médoc en 1855», by Carl Laubin, or the classification of the Médoc Châteaux for the Universal Exposition, Paris, 1855, initiated by Emperor Napoléon III; poster reproduced with the special authorization, but only for this field guide, of the C.I.V.B., Bordeaux, France.

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Leader: R. Bourrouilh Associate Leaders: M. Broquedis, G. Darne

The fi eld trip Internet: for geological maps: The purpose of this fi eld trip is to examine the e-mail: [email protected] geological conditions which govern the growth and For vineyards and Bordeaux wines: development of the vineyard, in close relationship http//www.vins-bordeaux.fr, with the geographic and climatic controls, which e-mail: [email protected] all together determine the characteristics of the http://www.vins-entre-deux-mers.com, terroir and soils, which then determine the vintage. e-mail: [email protected] However, the fi nal touch in the production of the For vineyards and cognac: wines is, undoubtedly the invaluable art of the vine- http://www.bnic.fr or, http://www.cognac.fr grower himself. Bordeaux and its vineyards The fi eld trip will examine four main areas: and wines - the Médoc, Graves, and Lalande de Pomerol, Saint-Emilion, Sauternes and Barsac General introduction area The town of Bordeaux, the biggest town in the - the Entre-Deux-Mers area, east and south-east of department (region), is located in the heart Bordeaux of the large viticultural region of the Aquitaine basin. - the Cognac area, which will be examinated both The Bordeaux vineyards constitute a mosaïc of for its wines and its Cognac. viticultural terroirs, extending over 112,000 hectares, - a fourth, very specifi c area, related to the Bordeaux and whose production represents almost half of all wines and Cognac, will be also examinated: the the wines produced in France: that means a bulk Marennes-Oléron Island Ostréiculture. volume of 6.4 million hectolitres (of which only 14% This fi eld trip guide book is thus organized in 4 are white vines) and more than 850 millions bottles sections, each corresponding to one of the above- delivered yearly on the market. mentioned areas. Each section will include an The bordelaise production comes from 57 different introduction and a regional geological setting. Then, appelations among which 171 registered vintages fi nally, the specifi c, 6-day fi eld trip itinerary is have been distinguished. Vineyards are grown by detailed in the last part of this paper. 12,000 proprietors, half of them making their own wines, the others utilising the current 57 viticultural Field references: cooperatives to process their grapes. Topographic and road maps: General road map of The vine-growers belong to the association of their France Michelin, n° 989 at 1x106 own appellation, and all together these form the Regional road maps: Michelin n° 233 Poitou «Fédération des Grands Vins de Bordeaux» which Charentes, n°234, Aquitaine, 1x 200 000 administers the vinicultural interests and directs the Guides verts: Michelin Pyrénées Aquitaine, Côte orientation of the Bordeaux vineyard politics. Basque, ISBN 2-06-036705-0; Poitou, Vendée, 400 trade entreprises exist in the Gironde region; Charentes, ISBN 2-06-037105-8. these sell 75% of the production to more than 160 Geological map of France, at 1x106 ; Regional maps different countries. Also there are brokers who work at 1 x 504 : n° XIII-30, Oléron; n° XIII-31, Marennes; as go-betweens between the vine-growers and the n° XIII-33, Soulac; n° XIII-34, Lesparre; n° XV-34, sellers. Montendre; n° XV-35, ; n° XV-36, Bordeaux; Established in 1948, the C.I.V.B. (Conseil P14 to P36 n° 4 - from Volume n° XV-37, ; n° XVI-32, Cognac; n° XVI-36, Interprofessionnel du Vin de Bordeaux) has the duty ; n° XVI-37, ; n° XVI-38, Langon. to be the permanent link between vine-growers and Geological guides: Vigneaux, M. (1975), Aquitaine wine shippers, upholding the quality of the Bordeaux occidentale, Guides géologiques régionaux, Masson wines, taking care of the commercialization of the Ed., Paris, 223 p., ISBN 2-22541118-2. Gabilly, J., wines, constantly striving to improve their quality Cariou E. et al. (1997). Poitou, Vendée, Charentes, and regional character, as well as taking care of their Guides géologiques régionaux, Masson Ed.,Paris 223 worldwide promotion. p., ISBN :2-225-82973-X, There are also 18 winemakers’ associations, which

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Volume n° 4 - from P14 to P36 P33 - P33 Leader: R.Bourrouilh de Bordeaux. All togetherthey make uptheGrandConseildu Vin traditions oftopqualitythewines,andvineyards. these peoplearedoingtheirbesttoupholdthe honorary members.Inany given A.O.C., orregion, include vine-growers, shippersandbrokers, but also The importanceoftheEnglishtradingfl wine «Claret»,duetoitsclearcolour. imported Bordeauxwines. The Englishcalledthe the Englishexported food,textiles and metals,and time, importantcommercialtradehaddeveloped as Plantagenet, thefuturekingofEngland.Uptothis In 1152, Aliénor, Duchessof Aquitaine, marriedHenri commercial vineyards. XIIth Century: known aboutthevineyards. However, beforetheXIIthCentury, very littleis of hisliteraryworks. Ausonius was prouderofhisbordelaisvineyard than philosopher wholived fourteencenturieslater, comes fromitswines».Like Montesquieu,the that «theGloryofBordeauxanditsuniversal fame 310-363 AD, borninBurdigala=Bordeaux)claimed Roman poet Ausone (DecimusMagnus Ausonius, during theIVthCentury, in Aquitaine, theGallo- rapidly increasedagain,infact sointensively that of theGallicvineyard beuprooted.Butthevineyards countermeasures, whichthey did,orderingthathalf asked theImperialRoman Authorities totake so importantthatin60 AD, Romanvine-growers people. ExportationofGallicwinestoItalywas by theRomanaristocracy aswellbythecommon exported allthroughouttheEmpire,andappreciated became partoftheRomanEmpire,wineswere conquest (53-50BC)oftheGauls. After thearea The vineyards weregrown largely beforetheRoman The Romans Cabernets. the bordelaisclimate;itisancestoroftoday’s the « Biturica ». This grapewas welladaptedto of «Biturige» introducedandgrew anew cepage, The originofthevineyard isGallic;theGallictribe fi The GallickingdomsuptotheIstCenturyBC: the History as «hogsheads»ortonneau=tonne,ton(either4 wine was shippedin900-literoakbarrels,alsoknown and theBordeauxharbourtogrow. Duringthistime, fl of theGirondeEstuary, favoured thewinetradeby easy accessibilitytotheBordeauxharbourbymeans rst vineyardsinBordeaux uvial andmaritime routes,allowing thevineyards Englandandthebirthofgreat eet, and their reached itsapogeebetween1865and1887,with prosperity oftheBordeauxvineyards. This prosperity the vine-growers, contributing signifi encouraged development amongthetradersand The IndustrialRevolution andthefree-tradebehaviour registered «grands crus». Mouton-Rothshild, whichjoinedtheotherfour fact, onlyhadonemodifi classifi 1855 Universal Exposition.Uptothepresent,this purpose was topresenttheBordeaux Wines atthe « Chambre deCommerceBordeaux by EmperorNapoleonIII,andelaboratedthe ». Its classifi As amatteroffact, itwas in1855thatafi bordelais vineyards prosperedagain. to sulphur, oïdiumwas rapidlyconqueredandthe attacked thebordelaisvineyards: oïdium. Thanks cryptogamic illnesscamefromtheUnitedStatesand Near themiddleofXIXthCentury, a terrible XIXth Century (4.5 l)orimperials(6liters). magnums (1.5l),double(3jeroboams bordelaise-shaped bottles,orinhalfbottle(0.375l), fi this timethatbottlestapedandsealedwithredwax sought byLondonHighSociety. Itisalso during these extra fi represented 10%oftheBordeauxwineexports, but the FrenchRevolution. England,forherpart,only continued tohave anextraordinary prosperity, upto shipped. Bymeansofthiscolonialtrading,Bordeaux Antillas, towhichtheBordeauxwineproductionwas particularly thankstoSt.DomingueandtheLesser prosperity, duetothe West Indies’ market, and intensively developed andexperienced agrowing With theXVIIIthCentury, thebordelaisvineyards XVIIIth Century wines tobedistilled. traditionnal « Clarets », some Bordelais vine-growers produced,inadditiontothe they thendistilledintheirown warehouses. Thus, They boughtsignifi brandies, openednew anddifferent tradeprocedures. cities, andtheBritons. The Dutch,wholoved began, withnew customers:theDutch,Hanseatic During theXVIIthCentury, anew commercialera XVIIth Century gauging ships’ capacity. ton, becametheinternationalmeasureofvolume for 0.75 litersinabordelaiseshape).Later, thetonneau/ times 225litersbordelaisebarrelsor1,200bottlesof rst appeared.Bottlingwas doneeitherin0.75-liter cation hascontinuedtobeinforceandhas, cation oftheBordeauxwineswas requested ne winesbecamefashionable andwere : Slumpsandprosperity : Then cametheDutch : the West Indies cant quantitiesofwine,which cation, in1973,forchâteau dry andsweetwhite cantly to the 26-05-2004, 10:36:33 rst WINES OF BORDEAUX AND COGNAC: GEOLOGY OF THE VINEYARDS P33

increasing production and exportation to Germany, wines, to be drunk young, come from sandy terroirs. Belgium, the Netherlands, Scandinavia and... England. Cepages Then, at the end of the XIXth Century the Phylloxera In contrast to other winemaking regions, vine- disaster occured, destroying almost all the Bordeaux growers do not produce wines grown from only one vineyards. Reconstruction of the vineyard would cepage. Each viticultural exploitation is characterized require tens of years, and was made possible by by two or three main cepages, adapted to the nature of the grafting of French cepages on American stocks the soil of each patch of cultivated land. During the resistant to Phylloxera. A short time later, another preparation of a wine, the relative proportions of each mushroom or mildew appeared as a new, powerful cepage are a determining factor of the individualized vineyard disease, and it was only thanks to the quality of the wine. Thus, there exists a large natural discovery of the «bouillie bordelaise» («bordelaise diversity of taste among the Bordeaux wines,

porridge»), made with SO4Cu, that it was possible to reinforced by the fact that the terroirs and the cepages defeat this pathogenic mushroom. are diverse. Bordeaux wines are thus stable, blended XXth Century: time for making rules wines, very amenable to aging. Smuggling and lower prices provoked a new slump. For the red wines, the most important cepages To prevent this, the Girondins elaborated a national are Merlot, the most widely represented, and the set of laws (1911) on wine origin, which determined Cabernet Sauvignon, which is the most traditional the area of vintages (excluding from the offi cial grape of the bordelais vineyards. To a lesser degree, « bordelais » vineyards all other departments except Cabernet Franc, Malbec (or Côt), Carmenère and Gironde). Petit Verdot are also utilized. This delimitation paved the way for the birth, in 1936, For the white wines, fi rst off Sémillon, Sauvignon of the I.N.A.O. (Institut National des Appellations and Muscadelle are the more frequent cepages. Three d’Origine) and the A.O.C. (Appellations d’Origine other white cepages are also utilized as auxilliaries: Contrôlée) administered by the « control ordinances » Colombard, Merlot blanc and Ugni blanc. («décrets de contrôle») which very specifi cally defi ne The Cabernet Sauvignon is certainly the most production: geographic area, cepages, effi ciency, world famous. The wines which are produced from percentage of alcohol, growing and vinifi cation this grape, are very coloured, tannic and long in the methods. New classifi cations were established for mouth, with berry aromas when they are young, the Graves wines, and, then, from 1955, for the Saint aromas which then evolve over time toward a Emilion wines, which had not been registered prior to complex bouquet of cedarwood and havana. This is this time. Today, A.O.C. wines represent about 98% a late ripening cepage, propitious to warm terroirs of of the bordelaise production. graves (same origin as the word «gravels»; graves After the terrible hard frost of 1956, the vineyards are deposits of alluvial terraces constituted by small have little by little recovered all their dynamism, pebbles, gravels, sands and clays), and resistant to helped in particular by the increasing demand of the grey rot. Very aromatic when young, this cepage world trade. brings to its wine, body, structure and complexity, yielding tannic wines, which require suffi cient aging The terroirs to be most drinkable. The terroirs are quite diverse, and their individual The Merlot, the other important and the most characters are closely related to the different wines’ cultivated cepage of the Bordelais, is dominant in main organo-leptic qualities. When the terroir is the Saint Emilion and Pomerol regions. It gives to partly constituted by Asteries limestones (calcaire à its wines a plump fullness («rondeur») and a taste Astéries), wines are generally structured (charpentés), of fruit which can evolve over time into fl avours of P14 to P36 n° 4 - from Volume true to stock (racés), fi ne, and full-bodied (corsés), wood and touches of toast. It is an early cepage which aging well. For pebbly-gravely («graves») and sandy- matures well, but which is sensitive to «coulure» (a pebbly («gravelo-sableux») terroirs, the wines are decay of the young fl owers and grains of the grape) complex, with much fi nesse; these also age well. and to grey rot. It gives supple wines, quite tender, Wines which should be stored («vins de garde»), which can evolve faster than the Cabernet Sauvignon which are powerful and structured, generally come wines. Merlot is generally considered less noble than from argillaceous-limestone/argillaceous-sandy the latter but, nevertheless it gives one of the most («argilo-calcaire/argilo-sableux») terroirs. Lighter famous wines in the world: the Pétrus in Pomerol,

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Volume n° 4 - from P14 to P36 P33 - P33 Leader: R.Bourrouilh give towhitesweetwinesatouchofmusky aroma. sometimes beaddedtoSémillonandSauvignon is presentlylesscommonlygrown. However, itcan aromas. Muscatelleisquitesensitive todisease,soit derived winesaresimple,abitacid,withfl which translatesintoashortgrowing period. The blossoming islateyetwhoseripeningprecocious, The golden colour, withjustatouchoforange. to be«waxy», andmellowing withageintoadeep picking uparichlanolinearoma,saidbysomepeople derived winebecomesbetterafteraginginoakbarrels, acidity. Oftenwithacitrus fl a rich,high-alcoholwine,but quitepoorinaromaand Bordelais. When perfectlymature, theSémillongives it willgive itsbestinatemperateclimatesuchasthe aroma andthewildacidityofSauvignon,sothat in strength. Thus, itisusuallyblendedwiththedeep but itreveals atendency tobeshortinaromaand The when itsproductivity iscontrolled. cepages. However, itcanalsobringvery goodresults quality winesthanthoseproducedwiththeformer and hasahighrateofproduction.Itproduceslower The gives afi do so,itismuchappreciatedinthewines,because frequently notabletoreachitsmaturity. When itcan The often withraspberryaromas. alcohol andpolyphenols.Itgives aromaticwines making goodwinesforbottleaging,quiterichin when young.Itisatraditionalbordelaiscepage, also producestannicwineswhichareoftenstiffer The which isatleast95%Merlot. takes welltothe«noblerot»of or ofgreatsweetwinesSauternes.Sémillon elaboration ofgreatdrywhitewinesfromtheGraves, in Gironde.However, itisrarelyusedaloneinthe The classical cepages. Sauvignon haswon entryintotheprestigiousclubof Thanks toitsholycombinationwiththeSémillon, to recognize. quenching, withfl brings warm waters intotheBayofBiscayandalong has atemperateoceanicclimate. The GulfStream the NorthPoleandEquator, theBordeauxarea Situated onthe45thparallel,exactly midway between Climate Malbec Petit Verdot Cabernet Franc Sauvignon Sémillon Muscatelle ne aciditytotheblend. isutilizedinsmallquantitiestheblend isthemostcultivated whitecepage gives drywhitewines,wiry, thirst- isabordelaisevariety whose isalate-ripeningcepage,which int, citrusorboxtreearomas,easy , similartoCabernetSauvignon, avour whenyoung,the Botrytis cinerea, owery

an exceptional vineyard. and rarelyfrostywinters.Exactlywhatisrequiredfor springs, pleasantsunny summers,beautifulautumns Thus, thebordelaisclimateoffers sweetandrainy blowing down fromthePyreneanMountainbelt. Ocean, andalsofromthecoldsouthernwinds from therainy andcoldwesternwindsofthe Atlantic screen oftheLandespineforestsheltersvineyards temperatures ofthewholearea. The greenforest the Atlantic Oceanwaters andequilibratingthe the Armorican Coast,NWofBordeaux,warming as synonymous to area. In1938,anedictdefi name but anindicationoflocalizationinaspecifi a mansion.Callingwine«château»isnotreally very old(XVIIthtoXXthCentury),whichlookslike the building isanunfortifi large estatewhere thewinesaregrown. Generally a traditionaltermtonamevintage,aswellthe certainly meetsalltastes.InGironde,«château»is soils. The very diverse andvaried spectrumofwines of tasteandaromathankstoitspebblysandy another, thevineyard gives alighterwineitsdelicacy derived soilgives hardnesstothewine,whilein large diversity ofterroirs.Inoneplacethelimestone- bouquet ofthewine. Another featurederives fromthe fruitfullness, andsapofthevineyards, andthe grapes tooptimalmaturity, favouring theblooming, from thewinds. This climateslowly bringsthe of theclimate,temperedbyOceanandprotected Bordeaux winesaremainlytheresultofmildness The truetostockandpeculiarcharacterofthe of Bordeaux. wines, andthe«crémants » (A.O.C.sparklingwines) dry andsweetwhitewinesaswellclarets,sparkling variety ofthebordelaisvineyards, groupingred,rosé, There are57different A.O.C.s whichcover thelarge d’Origine Contrôlée or Appellations The A.O.C., or avintage (plate 1,fi The Médocvineyards The bordeauxvineyardsandwines situated between250to350metreselevation. area. GenerallyinFrance,thebestvineyards are wines in suchasolow altitudeandasowelldefi metres ofaltitude,andwhichoffer so many good only highqualityvineyards situatedatlessthan50 Bordeaux vineyards andwinesisthatthesearethe gures 1and2) (« cru » domain ) . Another particularityofthe ned «château»inGironde ed castel,sometimesnot , an enclosure (« 26-05-2004, 10:36:36 clos ned » c ), WINES OF BORDEAUX AND COGNAC: GEOLOGY OF THE VINEYARDS P33

Introduction lowlands constituting the estuary bank, and which are Médoc vs Graves or Médoc and Graves ? For dissected by sinuous small rivers or «jalles». As well centuries, the two large vineyards areas of Médoc as the soils, the topography and the jalles constitute a and Graves have been well known world-wide but natural drainage system i.e. an ideal support for the separately, and for different reasons. Thus, why grand vineyards. compare them together now ? The reason is that More inland, on the western part of the Médoc, they are historically and geographically close. Both particularly around the town of Listrac, the second vineyards develop along the same narrow strip, about area is made up of hills, developed more on the 180 km long, which forms the Gironde estuary’s left Aquitaine basement, i.e. on tertiary limestones. bank and the Garonne southern bank, from the Grave In between these two classical graves vine areas, Point to the south of the Langon city. calcareous and argilaceous crop out, which are also The Médoc is the kingdom of the great red Bordeaux good places for vintages. wines. Its vineyards give wines of great lineage, full- bodied, but not too much, distinguished by their sap, Cepages their bouquet and their ruby colour, as well as their Four cepages are currently used in Médoc: very good aptitude for aging. The Cabernet-Sauvignon is the most used and is The Graves are either known for their whites and red the typical Médoc cepage. It gives to the wine a very wines, these later being of the same geologic blood as nice colour; it makes it full-bodied, with a pleasant the Médoc ones, i.e. growing on the alluvial terraces bouquet, and allows the wine to bottle age well. of the Paleo-Garonne. Like the Médoc, the red Graves The Merlot, is the second most used cepage. Its best are generous, having a deep red colour, changing effect is to give the mellowness to the wine, but it is to red-orange when aging. Thus the answer of the less interesting as a wine for aging. question is now: Médoc and Graves. The Cabernet Franc gives a clearer but brighter colour and a rich bouquet to the wine. Regional geological The Petit Verdot, grown in small quantities, late to setting and climate ripen, brings to the wine body and colour. The Médoc country forms a triangular peninsula on the left bank of the Gironde estuary and extends from Appellations Graves Point up to the NW of Bordeaux, bounded Two A.O.C. : Médoc and Haut-Médoc. there by a small river, the «jalle de Blanquefort». To the north of the area, the Médoc (formerly «Bas- The vineyard covers about 120 km along the Gironde Médoc»), produces wines of Médoc A.O.C., light, estuary up to the Graves Point. supple and pleasant. There are two areas of A.O.C.: Médoc and Haut- In the central and southern part, the Haut-Médoc Médoc. A.O.C. consists of six town appellations: Saint- Just right on the 45th parallel, the climate of Médoc Estèphe, Saint Julien, Listrac, Moulis, Margaux is quite warm and wet; it is sunny with quite mild and , these later two include the famous winters. Its location between two large water masses, Château-Margaux, Château-Lafi te, Château-Latour the Atlantic Ocean to the west and the Gironde estuary and Château Mouton-Rothschild, registered as fi rst to the east thermo-regulates it; thus the area has a great vintages (Premiers Grands Crus). If we would microclimate which favours the vine’s growth. have to qualify them, we would say that Margaux wines are generous with a bland bouquet, those of Terroirs Pauillac more mellow and vegetal, the Saint-Estèphe Médoc is quite low, with a maximum altitude of 43 m less full-bodied but more aromatic than the Pauillac, Volume n° 4 - from P14 to P36 n° 4 - from Volume at Listrac. We can distinguish two areas, one formed the Moulis ample and voluptuous, the Listrac full- along the river by modern alluvial pebbly deposits bodied and also vegetal. (graves), with some outcrops of older formation, the other one formed by the basement. The Médoc town appellations From Margaux to Saint-Estèphe, constituting the Saint-Estèphe A.O.C. (11.09.1936 decree). most famous vineyards of the «Grands Crus», the Saint-Estèphe appellation is only granted to the vineyards spread out over smooth hills covered by vintages grown in the town territory. Its identity is pebbly alluvial deposits, by ferruginous sandstones, strongly related to its peculiar terroir, which is mainly and/or limestones. The hills smoothly pass into characterized by pebbly and argilaceous-sandy

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Volume n° 4 - from P14 to P36 P33 - P33 Leader: R.Bourrouilh preceding ones. The vineyard isabout350 mlarge the Moulisvineyards are notsowellknown asthe Set amongoldmills,whichgave thenametoarea, Moulis enMédoc with age. They canage10to15years ormore. body. The Listracwinesrarelytake anorangecolour wines have arichvegetal (thicker) tasteandastrong mainly derived fromcalcareo-argilaceous soils,the sandy whenapproachingtheLandesforest. Thus, east, andferrugineoustothewest(alios)more Estèphe limestones)tothecenter, north-eastandthe The terroirisgravelly tothenorth,calcareous(St- which cansometimesbedisasterousforthevineyard. appellations, withfrostywintersandcoldsprings, more continentalclimatecomparedtotheothertown This districtliesmoretotheinterior, andthushasa Listrac Médoc grows well. resting onalios.Drainageisperfectandthevineyard the soilsarederived frompebblyargilaceous graves the west,graves becomemoreandsiliceous hills aroundSaintJulienandBeychevelle. Towards The terroirlandscapeisformedofsmooth,pebbly years andmore. Pauillac ones. They canbekept alongtime,10to15 the elegant Margaux winesandthevigorof wines representtheorgano-leptic transitionbeween extrordinary homogeneityofquality. The SaintJulien A small A.O.C. but withagreatfame, itoffers an Saint Julien years, atleast15to20ifnotmore. good rootingofthevine.Pauillac winecanbekept for calcareous basement,whichallows gooddrainageand climatic residualcrusts(alios)restingonamarly composed ofcomplex soilsderived fromferruginous Besides theclassicalgrave terroir, theotherterroiris towns. Cabernet-Sauvignonisthemostusedcepage. neighbouring Saint-Estèphe,CissacandSauveur in thetown territory, but alsotosomepartsofthe Pauillac A.O.C. isnotonlylimitedtothewinesgrown Pauillac fossils ofEchinodermsandmarinemolluscs. de Saint-Estèphe»,whichareMioceneandcontain the argilaceous-limestone basementofthe«calcaires The various successive alluvionaldrapesarecovering allows foragooddrainageofthevineyards. intercalated andcovered byeoliansands. This terroir alluvial (graves) soils. To thewest,they arelocally

A.O.C.

A.O.C.

A.O.C. (14.11.1936 decree).

A.O.C. (14.11.1936decree). (08.06.1957 decree). (14.05.1938 decree). time, atleast12to15yearsandmore. and theMalbec.Margaux winescanbekept along differentiated bouquets.CepagesarethoseofMédoc, Margaux wineshave acertainbodyhomogeneity, but and contributes toreinforcingthesoils. basement isargilo-calcareous (marly)orcalcareous, producing goodsubterraneanthermo-regulation. The porous, sothedrainageisnaturalandvery effi argilaceous elements. Soilsarepebbly, thusvery and fl part oftheMargaux area.Pebblesofquartz,cherts A large plateauofwhite graves formsthecentral maximum thicknessthere,i.e.11mthick. soils comefromvery poorgraves, whichreachtheir The Margaux fame ismainlyduetoitsterroir. Derived Margaux, , Cantenac andLabarde. have therighttobeMargaux A.O.C. : , offi vineyard hasbeenfamous since1720-1730,but the A.O.C. isthewine,town andachâteau. The The merenameofMargaux isworld famous. This A.O.C. Margaux least 8to12years. well known, yetisdelightful. Wines canbekept at with sea-foodandfi that many oftheredwinesfromMouliscanbedrunk wines; thatismorethedutyofspecialists.Notealso be diffi Due tothecomplexity oftheseterroirs,itwould cepage, winesofthisareaarefi calcareous soilsallow theMerlottodevelop. With this center ofthestrip,basementiscloser, andargilo- more mixed withmarlyelementsandalios.Inthe Meanwhile tothesouth-west,graves aremoreand are moreabundant and pebbly ontheeasternpart. grown onGünzriver deposits. These alluvions the mosttypicalvineyard, aswellthebestknown, The Grand-Poujeaux,onitslarge, roundedhill,is basement. components, given bythepaleosolsandlimestone derived soilsareoftenmixed withclayey-calcareous and 12kmlong,installedonoldgraves (Günz);the Graves Garonne rivers, becauseitssoulisthealluvialriver interglacial evolution ofthePaleo-Garonne and vineyards. The terroiriscloselyrelated totheglacial- years agothisconstitutedthecradleofBordeaux the leftbankofGaronneriver. Morethan2,000 walls ofBordeauxonforabout60km,allalong The cial birthdecreecameonlyin1954.Five towns Graves ints areabundant, withalow proportionof cult todefi (plate 1,fi region andvineyards extend fromthe (10.08.1954decree). ne typicalfeaturesoftheMoulis sh, which,althoughitisnotvery gures 2and3) ner andmoredelicate. 26-05-2004, 10:36:39 cient, WINES OF BORDEAUX AND COGNAC: GEOLOGY OF THE VINEYARDS P33

deposits: pebbles, sand, argilaceous material, what we overlie a complex basement of sand, argilaceous call here «graves». During the XVIIIth century, the material, alios and limestones. Among the pebbles are «New French Claret», or the modern Bordeaux was white vein quartz, white, yellow, pink, red quartzites, born here, around Haut Brion. lydits and jaspers, cherts and fl ints, which have a high albedo and which refl ect the sun light and heat, giving Wines which have the name of back light and warmth to the lower part of the leaves their soil and to the grape bunches, limiting the role of the I.R, A.O.C. Graves is the only example in France, and helping the ripening of the grapes. where the wines have the name of the soil which The almost exclusive nature of the soils, pebbles and/ characterizes them. or sands, only allows the vineyards and the forests to Could we thus conclude that wines are similar grow, producing the typical landscape of the Graves if they have a single geological or topographical area, with large areas of vineyards, just interrupted by location ? Certainly not, because if the geological the deep green hues of the Landes forest. Vineyards and topographical location are certainly the basis of a are grown mainly on the undulating pebbly hills vineyard’s production, microclimates, sun brightness, of the old graves, well exposed to the sunlight and winds and rains, as well as the art of the vine-growers particularly well drained along the steeply inclined are all factors that determine a wine’s fame. slopes and by the dense, small-scale hydrographical If we carefully consider, as geologists, the alluvial system. history of the Graves, we will observe that they are This is why the Pessac-Léognan Graves wines are so constituted by several superimposed and erosional typical of their region. alluvial drapes, refl ecting at less one million years of glacial-interglacial history. Thus, if the Graves A well defi ned micro-climate are alluvial terraces, there is not only one terrace Situated in the northern part of the Graves, south and along the left bank of the Garonne river, but a lot of southwest of Bordeaux, the Pessac-Léognan Graves superimposed and erosional terraces, from different terroir is called also «Graves du Nord» or «Graves periods of time, and with various sedimentary de Bordeaux», to differentiate it from the central supplies. All this region has in common its alluvial () and the southern (Langon) parts of the and pebbly nature. Graves. Pessac-Léognan vineyards take advantage Thus, there is a large diversity in the Graves vineyards of the protection of the Landes Forest, which and, for example, Graves wine from upstream screens them from the always moist, and sometimes (Langon) is not comparable with Graves wine from stormy, Atlantic westerly winds. This climate is very downstream (Pessac), because the local geological representative of the Gironde area, so adapted to the history and other factors are different. The defi nition vine, because it is temperate due to its position under of the A.O.C. and its borders are founded on this the 45th parallel, and hygrometrically equilibrated, notion. under the infl uence of the Ocean, and most of all, largely ameliorated by the Gulf Stream. Curiously, Pessac-Leognan A.O C. the small river «le Saucats», which fl ows through the This is why I.N.A.O. delimited in 1987, on the old village of La Brède, and near the Medieval castle of vineyard area of Graves de Bordeaux, the terroir of the XVIIth Century philosopher Montesquieu, is a a new A.O.C., «Pessac-Léognan», which extends climatic border. across 10 towns : , Canéjan, , I.N.A.O. recognized this river as a climatic border Léognan, , Pessac, Saint-Médard d’, and a limit of the spore maturation of a microscopic Talence and Villenave d’Ornon. mushroom, Botrytis cinerea, which is necessary to the making of the sweet and mellow wines of Sauternes. P14 to P36 n° 4 - from Volume -Terroir : an exceptional combination of South of «le Saucats», the microclimate is wetter, favourable elements and the noble rot - or «pourriture noble» - caused by With a thickness varying from a few centimeters to Botrytis cinerea allows the maturing of the wines of more than 3 m, the Graves closely refl ect the Late Sauternais and Graves Supérieures. Tertiary and Quaternary paleo-glacial history of the To the north, the Botrytis cinerea occurs only by large rivers which drained the area, long before the accident, but gives only the grey rot or «pourriture modern Garonne. The Graves of Pessac-Léognan grise», and the vine-growers, to avoid disasters, are immediately wrestling against the mushroom, which

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Volume n° 4 - from P14 to P36 P33 - P33 Leader: R.Bourrouilh to drinkthemafterlettingbreathe,andat12 cool (around10°C).But,after4or5years,itisbetter dry whitewines. When young,they have tobedrunk Surely they are unique anddifferent fromtheother red wines,i.e.morethan20years. that they canage withblissforalongtime,like the is very high. What isvery rarefordrywhitewinesis dry. Very longinthemouth,theiraromaticpersistance voluptuous, round;they seemsweet, althoughvery reach theirmaturity, thesewhitewines arecomplex, laurel orblack-currantleaves. As soonasthey powerful but subtle,andthetasterecallscrumpled but notonly, perfumed.Inthemouth,theiraroma is trees andgenista. We cansaythatthosewinesareall, sometimes bright,withfl to agoldencolour, andacquiringvery fi equilibrated, they canage,changinglittleby White winearefruity, thicker andexciting. Well aromas ofcrystallizedfruits. Sémillon bringing freshnessandfruit,attimesaffi Sauvignon which hererecallsthemuscataroma. fresh. Their fragrance ismarked bythe those whitewinesarefi the wineandgives off thebestaromas. When young, to keep theminsuspension,whichgives morebody to earlier months,aconstantcudgelingofthewinelees 6 to10monthsaginginoakbarrels,with,duringthe of pale,straw yellow colour, thishueisduetotheir The Pessac-Léognandrywhitewinesaregenerally Graves whitewines mainly soldas«primeurs»bytheBordeauxtrade. wines. They arestoredinthedifferent Châteaux,and can bekept foryears,whichisthesignofhighclass Wines herearemainlystoredinoakbarrels,and Sémillon class, comefrom while thewhitewines,ofagreatelegance andhigh Cabernet-Sauvignon The redwinesarepredominantlyderived fromthe the 63ChâteauxandDomains,whichconstituteit. Pessac-Léognan A.O.C.; itistheprimarymover of Exceptional Wines becomes theprimaryennemyofgrape. great Graves vintages,whicharealllocatedinthe Château Haut-Brionispresentlytheforemostof white drywines). about 9millionsofbottles(80%redand20% The annualproductionreachesabout70,000hl,or , whichbringsthestrengthofitsunique . isusedpredominantlyinthisarea, Sauvignon cepage,togetherwith oral notes,whichrecalllime- ne, delicate,aromaticand , oftenmixed with Sauvignon, ne aromas, ne lae to liated Merlot ,

and easily-recognizablenatureofthesewines,which explanation lies in theseniority, notoriety, quality Bordeaux market arethemostimportantbuyers. The the bottlingbeingdoneatchâteau. Traders onthe special way. All thewhitesandredsaresoldinbottle, Pessac-Léognan winesarecommercializedina Massif, i.e.fromthe Allier department(region). which comemainlyfromoaksoftheCentralFrench 25 to100%ofthevintageisagedinnew oakbarrels, fermented inoakbarrels.Dependingonthevintages, White winesaswellredonesare,forthemostpart, Vintages “élevage” whichisatermappliedtotheGreat Wine growing is thetranslationofFrenchword Wine growing andcommercialisation the bottle. they have settlednaturaldepositsonthebottom of around 18°C,andhave tobecarefullydecantedif They have tobedrunkattherighttemperature,i.e. suppleness andaddstotheirelegance. and sometimes Sauvignon They canagemany years,thankstothe of stature. an exceptionnal personality;they arehigh classwines well equilibrated,allfi Pessac-Léognan redwinesaretogethercomplex and velvet richness. and longinthemouthwithagreat,supple, with alotofbodyandspicy taste;itfi equilibrium, withbeautifulstrongandsuppletannins, and mixwiththewine’s perfumestogive agood When drinkingthem,theolfactory sensationsdevelop truffl mixes perfumesofwildgametheforest,but alsoof When aged,they develop anexcellent bouquet,which in themouth. those oftheoak,togive aroundedandmellow wine aging. Then, withtime,thefruit’s tanninsblendwith when young,they becomesuppleandsweetenwith Just abitsecret,quiteseriousandsometimessevere mature andwellconcentrated. and arevery savoury, having nicetannins,generally When inthemouth,they have body, arevoluptuous of vanilla andgrilledalmonds. of fragrancescrushedberries,ripefruit,but also When young,theiraromasarevery fi purple colour. These redwinesareofadeepandintense,bright Graves red wines 14° Cthey willbepleasant. e oreven of driedplums. , themaincepageused,alliedwith Cabernet Franc, nesse andsuavity. They have ne. They consist nishes slowly nishes which brings Cabernet- 26-05-2004, 10:36:42 Merlot

WINES OF BORDEAUX AND COGNAC: GEOLOGY OF THE VINEYARDS P33

are the only ones, together with the greatest Médoc mainly on the Oligocene Stampian « calcaires à A.O.C. wines, to have this quality of origin and long- Astéries » marine limestones. Approaching the term high commercial performance. estuary, graves appear, with, very often, brownish- Other singularities: almost all these wines are sold reddish, fi ne argilaceous formations. Three main «en primeur», which is a unique tradition, typical of kinds of soils are distinguishable : Bordeaux. The sale «en primeur» is done the spring - on Quaternary, fi ne argilaceous deposits overlying following the harvest, between the vine-owners and Asteries limestones: vines develop deep roots, giving the traders, with the Bordeaux brokers serving as generous wines. Predominantly Merlot is grown, middlemen. The sale means that the wine is just in accompanied by Malbec. its early stages of development and its quality is not - on argilaceous-sandy graves : vine roots highly really known, but traders and buyers are betting on develop near the surface, with diffi culty going deeper, the vintage. due to the high amount of clays. Cabernet cepages are After the transaction, the wine remains under the prefered, accompanied by Merlot. responsability of the seller and is conserved, and - argilaceous-calcareous soils derived from various processed in the château, up to its bottling, 18 months kind of calcareous rocks, partly covered by clays: later. This sale procedure is reserved only for the high limestones, marls, molasses. Given the thickness of class wines. the soils, Merlot, Cabernet, Malbec are grown. Thus, Bourg vineyards are characterized by their soil Bourg and Blaye (plate 1, fi gure 1) diversity, but, in addition, by a relative homogeneity Côtes de Bourg, Côtes de Blaye, situated on the of cepages and climates. opposite side of Médoc, on the right bank of the Gironde estuary, the vineyards and wines of this Pomerol and Lalande area are sometimes forgotten. However, as soon as de Pomerol (plate 1, fi gure 4) the wine-lover crosses the estuary, these vineyards Among the Libournais vineyards, Pomerol extends become a priority for visits. over 760 ha of various terroirs: an argillaceous plateau, The city of Blaye developed on the right bank of the sandy soils to the west, but generally siliciclastic soils estuary as a holding area for waiting to cross by boat resting above a ferruginous and calcareous basement. the estuary and to secure passage towards Bordeaux’s Vineyard work is more diffi cult when argillaceous harbour. During the XVIIth Century, Vauban designed soils are present, but the deep, dark colour, the nice and built the huge and powerful fortifi ed citadel of taste, and the aptitude to age of the Pomerol is due to Blaye, which was still used during WW II. the iron oxides. In the shadow of the citadel, and amid 60,000 ha of land devoted to agriculture, the vineyards of Côtes Regional geological setting de Blaye represent 5,000 ha of vineyards, worked and climate by 450 Blaye vine-growers, producing approximately The uniqueness of the whole area, including St 300,000 hectolitres of red and white wines. Several Emilion, is the extreme diversity and thus complexity different grape cepages are used to grow a wide range of its terroirs and soils. So, the various vineyards, and of complex wines. Five A.O.C.s constitute the Red even parts of a same vineyard itself, have different and the White Premières Côtes de Blaye, making the and unique derived soils, textures, structures, porosity most of this bountiful land, then the Côtes de Blaye, and permeability. These physical properties are and fi nally the Red and White Blaye. mainly related to the variety in topographical settings, Côtes de Bourg’s vineyards cover about 3,600 ha rock basements, derived soils and microclimates. on an approximate 15 km-long and 10 km-wide area, More precisely, specialists separate 5 main kinds of Volume n° 4 - from P14 to P36 n° 4 - from Volume grown by 650 vine-growers. Remains of prehistoric soils: man were discoverd in 1881 in the Pair-non-Pair cave, - 1. The high terrace, forming an elevated surface near Marcamps, with wall (parietal) paintings aged similar to a plateau, of ancient graves. It is on this 30,000 years old. Marcamps and Prignac have large that the most famous vintages of Pomerol are grown, limestone quarries, which have furnished a large part including Château Cheval Blanc de Saint-Emilion, of the building stones for the whole area. Bourg is a which should have been a Pomerol, had it not been in fortifi ed city, and its ramparts offer a vast view of the the territory of Saint-Emilion township. countryside. Often called the « Girondine Swiss », the - 2. These graves surround Pétrus and another part of Bourg region has a composite terroir, which develops

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Volume n° 4 - from P14 to P36 P33 - P33 Leader: R.Bourrouilh the plateau. strong bouquetandwarm taste. The bestcomefrom Round andsupple,but alsofull-bodied,they have a best wines,giving theirbestbetween5to15years. long lived astheMédoc,Graves orSaint-Emilion Sauvignon). They canbekept years,but arenotas are abittannic(whichcomesfromtheCabernet (introduced hereonlyinthe60s). The Franc, withasmallquantityofCabernetSauvignon Merlot, withtheremainingquarterfromCabernet These winestypicallyareablendofthreequarters of SaintEmilion. the fi Pomerol wineisofadelicate,sensitive taste,having All together, they produceabout4millionbottles. remaining beingmanagedby160singleowners. Four châteauxrepresent16%ofthe A.O.C., the of calciumgives thevinestability. («calcaire à Astéries»), inwhichthehighpercentage - 5.Superfi produces supplewines. - 4. The areaclosesttoLibourneissiliceousand molasse. Lower Sannoisian(Oligocene)Fronsadaiscalcareous a mixtureofsandandfi - 3. To thewestofarea1,ancomposed California. also owns theDominusEstateinNapa Valley, in average ageofvinesis42-45years.Petrus’s owner made with95%Merlotand5%CabernetFranc. The US$ 800fora1996vintagebottle,2004prices).Itis châteaux, andoneofthemostexpensive wines(about Château Petrusisoneofthemostworld-famous microns) claysandvery fi privilegied « island », of11.5hectaresdeepfi Pomerol, whichthusappearlike abutton-hole, ora Pomerol generous andwithbouquet,having thevinetasteof which provides, generally, thebestwines:colourful, gravelly terroirs,onsmoothslopes.Néacisthetown Néac townships, andgrows ongravelly andsandy- This A.O.C. includestheLalandedePomeroland Lalande dePomerol Saint-Emilion competeswithGraves to bethe Saint-Emilion drunk atbetween5to15years. with whichitcannotcompete and steady, but withouttherichnessof year. growers areproducingabout5 millionbottleseach neness oftheMédocwinesandvigorthose Lalande dePomerol andtherichnessof cial soils,derived fromStampianlimestone

(plate 1,fi ne andargilaceous soils. ne graves, restingonthe winesaregenerous,fresh Saint-Emilion gure 4) . Wines have tobe . 230vine- Pomerols Pomerol, ne (2

probably uniqueinEuropeandtheworld. the underground, monolithic,medieval churchis is abeautifulcity. Excavated intothelimestones, and theremainsofHenriIII’s castle,SaintEmilion its slopingandpaved medieval streets,itsoldhouses times, particularlyduringtheXIIIthCentury. With Emilion. Later, thecitygrew andwas walled several possible tovisitthe VIIth CenturyhermitageofSaint the VIIth Century, resistingthe Arabic fl galleries ofthesequarriestotake refugestartingfrom and Christiansusedthecaves andtheunderground underground quarries,probablysinceRomantimes, cliff. The limestoneswereintensively exploited in a picturesquecitybuilt on acornerofcalcareous the fi drank muchSaint-Emilionwine,and Ausonius was oldest winesin Aquitaine. Obviously, JuliusCaesar by periglacialeolianfi as far asthevillageofPomerolandislocallyoverlain 3. West ofSt-Emilion,thecalcareousplateauextends Dordogne river. on thelarge fl 2. 2,000haofvineyards develop onthealluvialsands Premiers GrandsCrus. 2,400 ha;they include 11ofthe13registered for muchoftheappelation’s reputationherecover of St.Emilion. The vineyards whichareresponsible 1. onthesteeplimestoneslopeslocatedneartown can distinguishfourmainterroirsandsoils: More specifi 1999. UNESCO world heritagesites,sinceDecember4th, This area,includingSaintEmilion south, isalsotodaythenorthernlimitof A.O.C., and theRomanlanguages(or«oclanguage»)to French language(or«oïlanguage»)tothenorth, La Bardanneriver, whichistheborderbetween in oldertimes,«Saint-Emilionsands». The small, and ablockoftheLibournecity, whichwas called, d’Armens, Vignonnet andSaint-Sulpice-de-Faleyrens Saint-Hippolite, Saint-Etienne-de-Lisse,Saint-Pey- Christophe desBardes,Saint-Laurent-des-Combes, in thefollowing towns: Saint-Emilion,Saint- Dordogne river’s rightbank,startingfromLibourne, hills («calcaireà Astéries») andgrave terracesofthe vineyards arelocatedonthecalcareousplateauand 1,000 vineyards, 5,400haand8townships. The Today, theSaint-Emilion A.O.C. consistsofabout and climate Regional geologicalsetting rst onetocelebrateit.SaintEmiliontown is cally, onthe5,400ha ofvineyards, we uvial plainborderingthebanksof ne sandsandaleurolites,which

is now oneofthe ood. Thus, itis 26-05-2004, 10:36:46 WINES OF BORDEAUX AND COGNAC: GEOLOGY OF THE VINEYARDS P33

have extraordinary fi ltering powers, conducive to recognized as vintages as good as that of Saint producing fi ne wines. The vineyards cover nearly Emilion. Obviously, some are right, and their wines 1,200 ha here as well. are sometimes of a superior quality than some wines 4. The fourth area is located in the far west and it which have the right to be called «Saint Emilion», but is the smallest part of the A.O.C., made up of 60 ha which are in fact not so good. of gravel, or «Graves de St-Emilion». This is where Formerly, the neighbors were registered as follows: Château Cheval Blanc and Château Figeac are 1. Saint-Georges Saint-Emilion located. 2. Sables Saint-Emilion 3. Montagne Saint-Emilion Saint-Emilion wines 4. Saint-Emilion Saint-Emilion exclusively produces red wines made 5. Parsac Saint-Emilion from Merlot (60%), Cabernet Franc and sometimes 6. Lussac Saint-Emilion Cabernet Sauvignon. However, Great vintages From 1989, three changes have been made: like Château Ausone and Château Cheval-Blanc, - the area of Sables Saint-Emilion (St-Emilion sands, are made half and half from Merlot and Cabernet see here above), immediately east of Libourne, was Franc, meanwhile some other château, like Château integrated into Saint-Emilion in 1989; Figeac, use completely different proportions of grape -the area of Parsac has been integrated into Montagne, varieties, on account of their fi ne, gravelly soil. The although it still has the right to the A.O.C. Parsac blend is made with 70% Cabernet, (half C. Franc and Saint-Emilion but does not use it; half C. Sauvignon), and only 30% Merlot. This latter - Saint-Georges wines have the opportunity to choose wine looks like a close relative of the Médoc ones. between A.O.C. Saint-Georges Saint-Emilion or Generous, full-bodied, warm, Saint Emilion wines Montagne Saint-Emilion. Some châteaux have chosen have, generally, a taste of truffl es, and are often more Saint-Georges Saint-Emilion. powerful than the Médocs. The Saint Emilion district includes two quite different Montagne Saint-Emilion types of wines: 220 vine-growers in Montagne, and 32 in Saint- - the plateau and calcareous hills wines: generous, Georges, together own 1,700 ha, yielding 78,000 hl full-bodied, structured, with a good aptitude of wine. to age. Soils are derived from the Stampian The calcareous plateau terroir gives a colourful wine, limestones («calcaire à Astéries»). full-bodied, robust. Along the paleo-valleys, silico- - Dordogne graves wines are different from the argilaceous graves give a lighter and suppler wine, Pome rols due to their fi neness, suppleness and which brings to mind the Pomerol and the graves of bouquet. Saint-Emilion wines. - Upon EEC request, as of 1985, only two A.O.C. still exist: Lussac Saint-Emilion - Saint-Emilion: with an average of 100,000 hl/ This town produces just a bit of white wine under the year, name of Bordeaux or Bordeaux supérieur, but most - Saint-Emilion Grand Cru (Great Vintage), with is red wine, produced by 215 vine-growers who own an average of 130,000 hl, is a selection of the best 1,250 ha, and 130 vine-growers producing 60,000 hl. ones and the qualifi cation is only given after two successive taste examinations. Puisseguin Saint-Emilion The former wine corresponds to an estimation 130 vine-growers have 680 ha on a pebbly terroir; 80 of the aptitude to aging during the fi rst year; the among them producing 30,000 hl. Wines are generally second one is the confi rmation, given in the two more simple than Saint-Georges Saint-Emilion, and P14 to P36 n° 4 - from Volume following years. By law, bottling has to be done in have to be drunk from between 5 to 10 years. the château. However, these 2 A.O.C.s cannot refl ect the entire vintage and the diversity and richness of the Sauternes and Barsac Saint-Emilion wine district. (plate 1, fi gure 4) Very fi ne and sumptous, mellow and sweet white Around Saint-Emilion wines come from the south-eastern part of the Saint-Emilion overshadows a cluster of neighboring Bordeaux vineyards, on both banks of the Garonne vineyards, whose vine-growers try hard to be river.

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Volume n° 4 - from P14 to P36 P33 - P33 Leader: R.Bourrouilh which gives to also toitsunctuosity;but itistheSauvignon(27%) The Sémillon,makes up70%ofthewine,contributing taste fromlimestone,whileclaygives ititsunctuosity. fi Terroir isamixtureofsilica,clayandlimestone. The . towns : Sauternes,Barsac,,Fargues and Sauternes whitewine(35,000hl)isproducedin5 15 SecondsCrus. : 1PremierCruSupérieur,1855 11PremiersCrusand and Barsac,ofwhich27vintageswereregistered in The mostfamous mellow winesarethoseofSauternes - - - choose the A.O.C. - Mers areaandwithspecifi On therightbank,but totheSouthofEntre-Deux- - - - On theleftbank,inSauternesandBarsacarea: In dryyears,the wines, seeherebelow withEntre-Deux-Merswines). processus willbealsousedforLoupiacandCadillac quite anamountofcomplex, intensearomas(thesame pulp richerinsugar, concentratinginthesmallgrapes provokes thedessicationofgrapes,giving agrape or «NobleRot». This fungusgrows onthegrapesand on thegrapesofamushrumcalled by hotandbrightevenings favour thedevelopment wines. Mistyfall tocoolwintermorningsfollowed not always permitvintagesofhighquality, mellow Sauternes, climatic--mainlyrainfall --conditionsdo limit theirproductiontobetween15and20hl/ha. At is theaverage production,but goodvine-growers the Muscadellegives ititssubtlebouquet.25hl/ha Harvesting of of thename. to guaranteethequalityandperpetuateprestige hesitate toabandontheclassoftheirwines,inorder harvesting is unfavourable, vine-growers don’t cuts theconcentrationofsugaringrape. When the noblerotnotdevelop; inthiscasethegrey rot Sauternes but they don’t have thesotypical«roasted»tasteof excellent, justassimilartypesaroundtheworld, grape isonlyfreckled. The winesthatareissued not develop adequately:noblerotisscarce,andthe neness of Côtes deBordeauxSaintMacaire Sainte CroixduMont Loupiac Cadillac Cérons Barsac Sauternes : 70ha,40hl/ha. : 600ha,25hl/ha. : 300ha,40hl/ha. : 70ha,40hl/ha.. Wines ofthisarea.canalso . Neitheriftherainistooabundant, does Sauternes : 1,400ha,producingabout25hl/ha. Sauternes Sauternes Premières CôtesdeBordeaux Botrytis cinerea comesfromsilica,itspowerfull : 400ha,40hl/ha. isonlydonebyhand.Grapes c A.O.C: itsbodyandaroma, : 50ha,hl/ha. mushroom does Botrytis cinerea . The Entre-Deux-Mers area and extension of thevineyards would betheMiddle federated people,but thelargest periodofsettlement Rome and Aquitaine welcomedthe«Visigoths» asa some areasofsettlement.Bythefoedus418 AD, probably harvested thevineyards, andleftevidence of played anextensive roleinhistory. Romansmost Entre-Deux-Mers. Duetoitslocation,theareahas from theseashore,whichmarkseasternlimitof into therivers andtheirvalleys about200kmormore tidal wave enteringariver), the Atlantic tides progress 4). Enteringbothrivers asa«mascaret»(nameofthe la Grande,Montségur andLaRéole(plate1,fi west toeast,and30kmnorthsouth,upSte.Foy Mers areaextends eastofBordeaux,about60km castles, andchapelsarewidespread. The Entre-Deux- beautiful charmingcountryside,wherevillages, actually formsa«pays»,i.e.«country».Itisvery This plateau,thussituatedbetweentwo large rivers, south, formingaplateaubetweentheboth(fi the Dordognetonorth,andGaronne geographic locationbetweenthetwo large rivers, its name,«Between-Two-Seas», comesfromits The Entre-Deux-Mersareaformsaplateauand and climate Regional geologicalsetting (plate 1,fi fl less thickandliquorish,but morefruityand Sauternes onlybyitsstealthytonesandshades: soils restingabove sandstones.Barsacdiffers from comes fromitspeculiarterroir:argilaceous reddish to be has auniquesituation:itswinescaneitherchoose origin. grapefruit andlemon,dependingonthepropertyof such fl delicately perfumed.Itstastelingersawhile,inrange a highfi Issued Sauterneswineisthusmellow, powerful. Ithas harvesting. Four toeightsortingsareoftennecessary. and selectively sorted,over onetotwo monthsof and thusnotcollected)oncethey becomeovertipe, are collectedindividually (bunches arenotpermitted the limiteddistrictof year ofharvest. Among the5towns whichconstitute to 70yearsormore,dependingonthevintagesand normal pathway istoage,anditcanbeconserved 10 3 yearson.Itisthenfruityandyouthful.However, its avorful. avours ashoney, linden-tree,acacia,apricot, Barsac Sauternes neness andelegance; itissumptuouslybut gure 4) or canbeappreciatedfromanageof Sauternes Sauternes A.O.C. This advantage This A.O.C. , Barsac (600ha) 26-05-2004, 10:36:49 g 1). g. gure WINES OF BORDEAUX AND COGNAC: GEOLOGY OF THE VINEYARDS P33 Volume n° 4 - from P14 to P36 n° 4 - from Volume

Plate 1: Regional geological settings of : Figure 1: the Cognac Vineyards, Figure 2: Médoc, Blaye, Bourg and part of Pessac-Léognan Vineyards Figure 3: the Cognac and Oléron Vineyards, Figure 4: Entre-Deux-Mers, Graves, Sauternes, Barsac, Loupiac, Pomerol, Lalande de Pomerol and Saint-Emilion Vineyards.

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Volume n° 4 - from P14 to P36 P33 - P33 Leader: R.Bourrouilh R. Bourrrouilh. Photos: cellars. Cognac) inthe barrels (Bordeaux, Figure 7:oak Cos d’Estournel; Palace’s doorat Zanzibar Sultan Figure 6:the Mers Vineyards; and Entre-Deux- Majeure Abbey Figure 5: Vineyards; Saint Emilion Figure 4: Ausone; Figure 3:Château Cos d’Estournel; Figure 2: Vineyards; Margaux Figure 1: Plate 2: 26-05-2004, 10:38:47 WINES OF BORDEAUX AND COGNAC: GEOLOGY OF THE VINEYARDS P33

Ages. The large forest, «Silva Major» or «La Sauve South of this road, predominantly dry, white wines are Majeure», was cut by the Benedictine Monks, while produced. The southern part is characterized mostly vineyards were highly developed at the beginning by dry white wines in the «Petites Côtes» area and a of the XIth Century, together with agriculture and few red wines. cattle raising. Romanesque abbeys were founded and Along the southernmost part of the plateau, three constructed in deforested areas. La Sauve Majeure special areas appear along the right bank of the abbey was founded in 1079. Romanesque and Garonne: Templar chapels accompanied smaller settlements. - On the southern slope of the plateau, plunging Many feudal castles, such as , and walled toward the Garonne for about 20 km along the river, cities like Castillon and Cadillac, controlled the from Langon to the NW of Bordeaux, there are red and rivers, north and south, as well the roads. Small white wines of the «Premières Côtes de Bordeaux». villages and towns were created as «bastides» (walled - First class, sweet, white wines, like Cadillac, towns), having sometimes peculiar laws or privileges. Loupiac, are grown right in front of the Sauternes Fortifi ed windmills, chapels and abbeys are also sweet wines, situated on the oposite side of the frequent in the heart of the vineyards. It was in Garonne. Castillon-la-Bataille that the Hundred Years’ War was - As perhaps a souvenir of the English occupation ended in 1453, by the decisive victory of the French of Aquitaine, rosés are also produced, principally in Army over the English troops led by Talbot, who lost the Quinsac area, and they are called clairet, a name his life there. which comes from the English name, «claret», given Geology and derived soils are governed by three main to the Bordeaux wines in England. geological entities : 1. The calcareous basement: Entre-Deux-Mers is The production of Entre-Deux-Mers is stable; it was a calcareous plateau, successively constituted by 95,000 hectolitres (hl) in 2000, of 100,835 hl in 2001, mostly continental or lagunal Oligocene to Miocene from about 240 producers, giving 13,300,000 bottles, facies : lacustrine limestones, sandstones, molasses. of which 60% are exported. The main «appelations» 2. Fine peri-glacial eolian deposits : the plateau is or A.O.C.s of wines are: the Entre-Deux-Mers, covered by fi ne peri-glacial loess and aleurolites Bordeaux and Bordeaux supérieur (a large district), (remember that 16,000 years ago the sea level was the Sainte-Foy, the Graves de Vayres, the Bordeaux at -110 m in the Atlantic Ocean, and that icebergs Haut-Bénauge, Entre-Deux-Mers-Haut Bénauge were calving and drifting offshore of Bordeaux, while districts, and, along the right bank of the Garonne people were painting on the walls of the Lascaux river, from west to south-east : Premières Côtes de cove). Bordeaux, Cadillac, Loupiac, Sainte Croix du Mont 3. Dordogne and Garonne alluvions, made up by and Côtes de Bordeaux Saint-Macaire. pebbles, gravels, sands and siltstones, playing also an The Entre-Deux-Mers are dry white wines, Graves de important role as «gravel claystones». Vayres are red, dry white wines, and sweet (moelleux) white wines, Premières Côtes de Bordeaux are reds, The vineyards sweet and liquorous, white wines, Sainte Foy are red Covering about 30,000 hectares (ha), Entre-Deux- and white wines, Côtes de Bordeaux-Saint Macaire Mers is a total wine region, where red, rosé and mostly are red and white wines. white vines are grown and produced. However, only Although wines from the châteaux, but also from the dry white wine, grown on only 1,500 ha has the the small growers, are excellent, personal taste will right to be named «Entre-Deux-Mers». The «Côtes» lead each of us to prefer one Château or producer vineyards, whose name comes from the hillsides to another. Château Bonnet, Château de Grain,

along the banks of the Garonne and Dordogne, are Château de Mouchac, Château Vrai Caillou, Château P14 to P36 n° 4 - from Volume spread across the entire region, producing reds, rosés de Castelneau, are generally mentioned among the and white wines. numerous «châteaux». The Entre-Deux-Mers area is The Entre-Deux-Mers plateau is world renowned as a the most Bordeaux and Bordeaux supérieur productive principally dry, white wine-producing area. However, area. They consist of reds, rosés, as well as dry and the area can also be divided into two parts: north sweet white wines. The Premières Côtes de Bordeaux of the road from Bordeaux to Libourne, the area is and Cadillac district deserve special mention. There, called the «Bonnes Côtes» and is predominantly the Premières Côtes de Bordeaux are reds or white characterized by red wines. Bonnes Côtes red wines wines. The red ones come from Merlot, Cabernet are hard, with a bit of sourness and a deep red colour. Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Merlot

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Volume n° 4 - from P14 to P36 P33 - P33 Leader: R.Bourrouilh harvested latein the year, uptomid-November. also dessicatedby the samemicroclimate.Like inSauternes,thegrapes, river, thesesweetordessertwhite winesbenefi Barsac, rightontheoppositebankofGaronne rich cepages.SituatedinfrontofSauternesand some Sauvignonblanc,i.e.fromsugarandaroma- Cadillac, aremadeprincipallyofSEMILLONwith Naturally sweetwhitewines,suchasLoupiacand aromas. distinctive touchofsugary, slightlymusky andfl MUSCATELLE bringstothewineaspecial of apricotsand/orwhitepeaches. rich, fresh,fruityaroma,generallyevoking fl SEMILLON bringsapartofthewinebody, witha fl wine adeeparoma,rangingfromgrassytoneto alcohol anddrynessoracidity. Italso gives theyoung SAUVIGNON BLANCgives tothewinesugar, i.e. Sauvignon blanc,SémillonandMuscatelle. are exclusively madewithacepagemixtureof unfermented grapejuice.Bordeauxdrywhitewines the skinsareseparatedfrom«moût=must»,or their skins. As soonasthegrapesareharvested, the drywhitewinesaregrapesfermentedwithout skin, whichgives redwinestheircolourandtannins, Contrary toredwines,whicharefermentedwiththe Cepages blendsfor drywhitewines mixed fl gentleness tothearoma,giving, generallyafruity, CABERNET FRANCaddssomesweetnessand wine. enormously complex aromagainsgroundinthe Sauvignon character, but asthewineages,an When youngthewinehasanaromaticCabernet backbone, i.e.thebodyofwineoritsstructure. CABERNET SAUVIGNON gives thetannic and aberrytaste. of wineroundandsupple,withanaromaripeness, colour, andtherichnessofalcohol,makingtaste MERLOT cepagegives tothejuicefermentation Bordeaux. the threebrothersofdeep,velvet redswinesof Merlot, CabernetSauvignonandFrancare Cepage blendsfor red wines Muscatelle cepages. come fromatrilogyofSémillon,Sauvignonand cepages, whilethesweetandliquorouswhitewines avour oflemonandexotic fruits. avour offreshspringpuddingberries. Botrytis cinerea , aregenerally avours oral t of t age. For lateharvesting, a warm goldencolour, whichwillaccentuatewith Loupiac andCadillacarebasedonSémillonhave Sémillon gives itsmoothness.Sweetwinessuchas is presentandaddsabitoflanolinsweetness,while white winesbecomefi lemon, orfl Aromas offreshfruit,sometimesacidiclike fresh deeper, turningtostraw-yellow withage. young. The colourwilldarken withtimeandbecomes white wineshave avery pale,yellowish colourwhen to maturewell.Entre-Deux-MersandBordeauxdry will bringatouchoftanninandpermitthewine sometimes withspicy overtones. Merlot,whenused, bright, deepclaret-redcolourandafl in colourandbouquet. A typicalonewillhave a The redCôtesareproducedacrosstheareaandvary Colour ofthewines 15-30cm : palegrey horizon, very gritty, with - 0-15cm : grey,- grittysoil,containingalotof A very common fi argilaceous soils.Rarelyaresoilsthicker than30cm. of strongerCretaceouslimestonesdistributed inthe produces alarge superfi the presenceofCretaceouslimestone:freezing Soils marly facies. hardened chalky limestonesturnvery oftenintoa but highlyfractured,softandfrost-riven, even the limestones andmarlyintervals. Regularly stratifi composed byalternationsofhardenedchalky on theCampanian,whichishereabout60mthick, develops thusonchalky basementandparticularly “Champagne”). MostoftheCognacvineyard chalk (stratotypefromtheSaintongeandCognac the “Saintonge”Province) overlain byCampanian develops, constitutedbySantonian(stratotype,from (stratotype). To thesouthofCognac,alarge plateau The cityofCognacisbuilt ontheConiacianchalk Regional geologicalsetting: (plate 1,fi Cognac anditsvineyard discernable. taste, oreven justabitofwoody oaktaste,willbe partly maturedinoakbarrels,andthesweetvanilla In many instancestoday, redandwhitewinesare honeyed colour, withdeepfl blocks. larger limestoneclasts,andcherty small limestoneangularclasts,ofvarious sizes, are mainlyundertheinfl gure 1) owers, give amouth-watering taste. Top eld sectionshows : rmer withage,asSauvignon cial alteration,leaving slabs Botrytis cinerea oral andfruityaromas. uence offrost,dueto avour ofberries, willgive a 26-05-2004, 10:37:44 ed, WINES OF BORDEAUX AND COGNAC: GEOLOGY OF THE VINEYARDS P33

- Deeper, the whitish limestones are relatively soft the largest vineyard of the appellation, although and porous, and alternate with marly layers. the density of vines remains lower than those of the Thus, generally, soils contain a high proportion of great vintages, i.e. 25 ha/km. The terroir develops on carbonate, up to 50 to 80% ; pH is around 8, so soils calcareous Upper Jurassic, Purbeckian and Portlandian are then exceptionally able to produce high quality derived soils, on reddish soils (groies); the Cognacs wines, under a climate with very bright and sunny are lighter but less tasty, and they age quickly. summers -- this district getting more than 2,000 sun hours a year. Vineyards are on the hillsides, receiving Les Bons Bois : this vintage is grown on 25,000 ha; the fi rst rays and heat of the sun, and protected from it surrounds the previous one. The soils are («groies») the spring frosts. The output is about 60-70 hectolitres heterogeneous, less calcareous, being mixed with sand for one ha. The Cognac are delicate and sweet, having and clays, thus giving a taste of «terroir» to very light a powerful body and bouquet; they improve very Cognacs, which are sometimes short in character. much when aging and are the fi nest and the most famous Cognacs. Les Bois Ordinaires and Bois Communs (or Bois à Terroirs) : this vineyard extends over only 3,000 Terroirs and A.O.C. : Around the city of Cognac, ha, along the Atlantic coast; it includes the Oléron 7 vintages have been recognized for the Cognac and Ré islands, as well as the SW part of the Deux- vineyards since May 1st, 1909. They are characterized Sèvres department (region) and also some of the NW by their terroirs, i.e. by the nature and quality of their part of the Dordogne department. Soils are thick and soils, the local climatology, and the vine care and sandy, giving common Cognacs having the taste of viniculture. From the noblest to the most common, their terroir or, for the islander Cognacs, a taste of there are : «iodine».

The Grande Champagne : 13,300 hectares (ha) The Cognac viticulture History make up this A.O.C., which extends south of the Romans introduced the vineyard near Novenus city of Cognac, amid the valleyed landscape around Pagus, close to the city of Saintes, at the end of the Segonzac, growing on the chalky limestones of IIIrd Century. The wine production remained local the Upper Cretaceous -- more specifi cally, on the and was linked to the salt trading, which represented Campanian. With more than 40 cultivated ha per the main production up to the XIIth Century. Salt was square km, viniculture is a monoculture, which takes extracted from the sea water along the Atlantic coasts advantage of the grey soils, or rendzine, derived from of Saintonge and Aunis, and exported from the new the alteration of the underlying chalky Campanian harbours, which were founded on the coast. Duchesse limestones. Aliénor of Aquitaine married Henri II Plantagenêt in 1152, and the new alliance allowed the development The Petite Champagne : this terroir of 16,800 ha of La Rochelle harbour and of a great trading market borders on the previous one to the south, from the with England and the Northern Europe cities. A large town of Pons up to Châteauneuf, including Jonzac vineyard then developed in Aunis and on the islands and Barbezieux. The grey calcareous soils are thicker; of Oléron and Ré; their white Chauché were soon the Cognacs are also excellent, very close to those of being found on the good English and Dutch tables. Grande Champagne, but with just a bit less fullness, Besides this large vineyard, other small ones were which appears mainly after aging. cultivated near Saint-Jean-d’Angely and Cognac, shipped to the coast respectively by means of La Les Borderies : north of Cognac is the third district Boutonne and Charente rivers. White wines from of the Cognac appelation, with 4,300 ha. Decalcifi ed Chemère and Colombard, i.e. from Saintonge, were P14 to P36 n° 4 - from Volume Cretaceous limestones are overlain by argilaceous then shipped on these two rivers down to Tonnay- soils, partly sandy and cherty. These heavy soils give Charente harbour, where sea and river trades merged. softer and dryer Cognacs, having an original violet At that point the Saintonge vineyards outdid the Aunis aroma. They are very sought after for blending with ones, and the «Folle blanche» («Mad Lady») cepage the Cognac. was preferred, giving more wine but lower in quality. But sailing ships and ocean shipping were very slow Les Fins Bois : this vineyard surrounds the three and the shipped wines quickly deteriorated and could above-mentioned ones, on 43,400 hectares. It is not be kept a long time. Thus, at the beginning of

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Volume n° 4 - from P14 to P36 P33 - P33 Leader: R.Bourrouilh 450,000 hectolitresbefore eaten onships).Productionincreasedandwas over and printinghouses,but alsobiscuitfactories (tobe glass-making, wood boxconstruction,cork-making, favored thedevelopment ofrelated industries,suchas Cognac inbottlesplaceofbarrels. This new manner were founded,andmadeamajorchangetoputthe During theXIXthCentury, alotoftradinghouses again aftertheFrenchEmpirefell. (1812), slowed thetrade,whichhowever increasedup the FrenchRevolution, andtheEnglish-American War Ocean Islands.However, wars andembargoes during the USAandCanada-- West IndiesandtheIndian Trading andexportation extended toNorth America -- the market morethan90,000hectolitresofCognac. during theFrenchRevolution, in1792,they puton developed thewineandCognactradingmarket. Even Scottish andDanishtraders,whosettledinJarnac were created,oftenmanagedbyDutch,English,Irish, kept inoakbarrelstobeleftage. Trading posts So, aftertheXVIIIthCentury, Cognacswere then and thusmore....sellable. beautiful richgoldencolour, becomingmoreattractive aged, acquiringafi realized thattheCognacsbecamemuchbetterwhen in oakbarrelsandsuprisingly, the vine-growers of wine,andthusCognacs.Cognacswerestocked «Mad Lady»resisted,giving ahighsurproduction all theantiquecepagesweredestroyed, but onlythe very coldwinterof1709(theLittleIce-Age)almost the Cognacarea. Vineyards developed and,afterthe more Cognacs,whichweredistilledonthespotin then, toHolland. The Dutchthenboughtmoreand it throughtherivers totheharboursoncoastand and thepaperwas soldtotheDutch,whichshipped Paper millsfromthe Angoulême areaalsodeveloped, diminished inimportance. the Aunis andStJeand’Angélyvineyards, whichthen work, tostockandship.Cognacvineyards outdid degree ofalcoholforalesserquantityliquidto even employed adoubledistillation,tohave ahigher high quantityofspirits. To reducetheshippingthey preferring quantitytoquality, andthusproduceda vine-growers thenadoptedthe«MadLady»cepage, had reconstituedakindoforiginalwine. The cognac distilled spirits,andthedrinker couldthinkthathe When arriving, water was addedtothenewly- spirit whichcouldbekept duringalongshipjourney. wines weredistilledinasinglealambic,giving a brûlé», i.e.the enforced thetechniqueof«burnt» wineor«vin the XVIthCentury, DutchandthenEnglishtraders Brandwine ne bouquet,amellow tasteanda (ancestorof Phylloxera invaded the Cognac ): wines, soldas«Charentecountrysidewines». table winevineyard, toproduceandsellredwhite Charentes, converting apartoftheirvineyard intoa developped analternative productionofPineaudes Cognac productionissohighthatvine-growers have vineyards produceshigheroutputs.From1975onthe giving goodCognacs.Mechanicalharvesting ofthe bouquet, abitacid,andvery adaptedtobedistilled, so thederived winesarelighter, withamorediscrete the earlyspringfrosts. This cepageripenslate,and to thegrey rotandwithalatebloomingtime,avoiding In itsplace White Ugniwas used,beingmoreresistant to the became strongerduetothegraftingandmoresensitive However, the«MadLady»was forsaken becauseit the vineyards slowly increasedtoabout75,000ha. around Cognac,toproduceexclusively cognac. Then soils, together. The treatmentwas doneuntil1914 stocks resistanttothe Ravaz, Vidal, CoudercandMillardet,whocreated the work of Viala (1887)andthestudiesdoneby Vineyard reconstructionbecame possibleonlyafter fell tolessthan40,634hectaresin1893. years. From282,667hectaresin1877thevineyards the bug wrecked theCognacvineyards injustafew Cognac suburb) and atChéracinCharente-Maritime, and killedthevines.Found fi on shippedplants;itattacked theEuropeanvineroots vineyards. This bug accidentallycamefromtheUSA with Chasselas),(I.P.C. =60),333EM (Berlandieri 41B MillardetanddeGrasset(Berlandiericrossed The mainchlorose resistantstocks Merlot, Montils,Sémillon Cabernet franc,Sauvignon,Malbec(Côt), And alsofor thePineaux Charentes) (77334ha) Bordeaux) (12ha), White Ugni(=Saint-Émiliondes Mad Lady(= White EnrageatorMadLadyof with White MadLady)justcreated byINRA, White Colombard (903ha),Follignan (WhiteUgnicrossed Today, tobedistilled Tintura), Vicane (=Bicane=Grous-blanc). Mad Lady)=LittleBlack=Dégoûtant), Teinturier (= Grifforin orGriffarin), Négrette (=Négrié =orBlack (= orColombé=Queuetendre),CôtMalbec, Chemère, Chenin(=Boullau=Clabat),Colombard Black Chauché(=Chaussé-nègre), White Chauché, (= BalzatorBalzarBanesat=whitelimousin), the «saintongeais»or«poitevins» cepages:Balzac In oldertimes Cepages Botrytis cinerea : :

fungus, whichrapidlydecaysit. Phylloxera : rst in1872Crouin(a andtocalcareous are: 26-05-2004, 10:37:48 WINES OF BORDEAUX AND COGNAC: GEOLOGY OF THE VINEYARDS P33

crossed with Cabernet Sauvignon), (I.P.C. = 70), 161- oak wood, while the naturally vascularized wood 49 Couderc (Riparia crossed with Berlandieri), (I.P.C. of the barrel allows the oxygen to enter slowly and = 60), Fercal (Berlandieri crossed with Colombard) continuously into the barrel. The high alcoholic crossed with (333 EM), (I.P.C. = 120) concentration of the Cognac allows it to extract Vineyard-growing techniques tannins, which slowly colour it while aging, as Formerly only planted with white, non-grafted Mad well as organic complexes which give it particular, Lady, with a density of about 6,000 vine-stocks /ha characteristic aromas, evoking vanilla. Oxygen the vineyards were, after the Phylloxera invasion, is fundamental: undergoing a slow, controlled planted with White Ugni, grafted and planted in lined, oxygenation, the oak-derived compounds give to wired rows, with about 4,500 vine-stocks/ha. The the Cognacs their characteristic, old Cognac aroma, double guyot trimming was generally used, before called «rancio charentais». changing after 1970 with the advent of the harvesting- Thus, a good white Cognac gains with time in oak machines. Their use drove the vine-growers to adapt barrels a more and more gustatory and olfactory the vineyards, with higher wired rows, separated by complexity. However, due to the oak’s porosity and larger pathways. the high concentration of alcohol, 2 to 3% of the Cognac evaporates each year. This is called the «part Cognac Distillation des anges», or “angels’ share”. Alcoholic vapors As soon as they are harvested, grapes are pressed. After favour the development of a microscopic mushroom, 5 to 6 days of alcoholic fermentation in tanks, wines Torula cognacensis Richon, which gives a black are drawn off. Their alcoholic level is low (between colour to the tiles and to the humid and nitrous walls 7 to 10% by volume) with a high acidity (A.T. > 5 g of the aging wine cellars.

H2SO4 by litre). The fi nest lees are often conserved, because they are rich in organic complexes, which How to distinguish between will give a better taste to the Cognac when distilled. the different Cognac appellations: Distillation is done in a copper alambic in two Appellation giving the origin of the: successive heating stages. Grande Champagne or Grande Fine Champagne: -The fi rst heating is about 12 hours long. Wine is contains 100% Grande Champagne grapes. heated until boiling. The fi rst steams condensate, Petite Champagne or Petite Fine Champagne: containing around 55° of alcohol, and are thrown contains 100 % Petite Champagne grapes. away as soon as they appear. These «heads» represent Fine Champagne: for Cognac blended with Grande 0.5 % of the volume of the boiler. Afterwards, there and Petite Champagne and containing at least 50% fl ows a liquid with 25 to 32% vol. of alcohol, called Grande Champagne grapes. «brouillis» in Charente. Finally the distillation «tails» Cognac as a generic appelation: Cognac blended are separated. from various harvests and ages. -The second heating, or «good heating», is between Age of the cognac: Cognac age is only determined 12 to 14 hours long, the «brouillis» is put in the boiler by its stay in the oak barrels, because it does not age and again distilled. As with the fi rst heating, 1 to 2% in bottle. Thus, age is different and independant of the of the «heads», with 78° of alcohol, are thrown away, harvesting date. When various Cognacs of different and then the Cognac itself is taken out, between 78° ages are blended, only the age of the youngest one is and 60° of alcohol. The gained volume represents considered. Minimum ages are thus fi xed : 30% of the «brouillis» which has been introduced Cognac or V.S. (Very superior): minimum age: in the alambic and has an average of 70% alcoholic 3 years - Cognac V.S.O.P. (Very superior old volume. The liquid which fl ows off between 60° pale): more than 5 years - Cognac «Réserve», or Volume n° 4 - from P14 to P36 n° 4 - from Volume and 0° of alcohol is called the «seconde» and has «Napoléon»: minimum 20 years - Cognac « Extra », between 28 to 32% of alcoholic volume. The seconde or X.O. (Extra old): minimum 50 years. is taken out and kept to be mixed later with wines or «brouillis». The «Pineau des Charentes» (plate 1, fi gure 4) The Aging of Cognacs This is a liquorous wine or «mistelle», which is the Aging is done in 270- to 350-liters oak barrels. result, put into an oak barrel, of 3/4 of half-fermented Oak-barrel aging is essential, because the Cognac grape must with a minimum of 170 g sugar/l (or is thus enriched in organo-leptics extracted from the 10 % of potential alcoholic volume) and 1/4 of

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Volume n° 4 - from P14 to P36 P33 - P33 Leader: R.Bourrouilh special freshnesstothetasteofoysters. and raspberries…,thatitsfruityaromabringsa such asCantaloupe(fromCharentes) , strawberries and thatitsmellow tastefi roundness goesvery well withfoiegrasandroquefort, dessert. However, somegourmetshave notedthatits or ontherocks(5to6°C)asanapéritifwith Traditionally, Pineauisserved cool (12°C),chilled, upright bottlesforseveral years,incoolcellars. Pineau getsbetterwhenagingandhastobekept in more fruitythanthewhiteone. and itsfreshness. The redisgenerallysweeterand 2 yearson)alreadyrevealing allitsaromasoffruits commission (Jury).Pineaucanbedrunkyoung(from quality andageistestedbyaspecial,offi Pineau hastoageandremaininoakbarrels,the Pineau» forthoseagedmorethan10years. Anyway, Pineau» isforPineausaged5years,and«Très Vieux for Cognacs,dateisnotindicated. The name«Vieux (lowered between16%to22%alcoholicvolume). As sugar (120to150g/l)andalcoholoftheCognac year toobtaintheequilibriumbetweenremaining age onleesinoakbarrelsatleastaminimumofone maximum outputof50hectolitres/ha.Pineauhasto and cultivated withoutnitratedfertilizer, fora one. The stockshave tobegrown inshortpruning, Sauvignon, MerlotandMalbeccepagesforthepink the whitePineauandfromCabernetFranc, White Ugni,Colombard,MontilsandSémillonfor blended withthoseCognacs. They mainlycomefrom produced intheareaofCognacappelationand grape mustsusedtoelaboratethePineauareonly France andthen,throughouttheworld. The fresh locally, thefame ofPineau alsospreadthroughout the area;sooneverybody was makingPineau.Drunk discovery, andtherecipespreadlike wildfi born. Sometimelater, thevine-grower spoke ofhis delicate, mellow, fruitybeverage andthusPineauwas and nicelycolouredliquid.Hetastedit,discovering a Some yearslater, emptyingthebarrel,hesaw aclear noted thatthemustdidnotferment,andsoheleftit. into abarrelstillcontainingCognac. After awhile,he vine-grower, madeaslip,puttinggrapejuiceandmust by astroke ofluck,MisterPineau,anabsent-minded According tothelegend, itisintheyear1589that, traders representmorethan40%oftheretailmarket. cooperatives aremakingandtradingPineau.100 500 winemakers, vine-growers andaboutten pink Pineau. hectolitres, and consists of55%whiteand45% by volume. Annual production exceeds 100,000 matured Cognachaving aminimumof60%alcohol ts excellently withfruit, cial tasting cial re around re the Atlantic ostreiculture. the Atlantic resistant Thus, oyster-growers importedseveral tonsofmore oysters, but they toounderwenttwo epizooties. to the50s,Portugueseoysters weretheonlycultivated Ostrea is slow andwhichismoreexpensive. Inaddition, plate oysters ofthegenera of thegenera newly-acclimated hollow oysters fromPortugaland Gironde estuaryandoftheSeudreestuary. Then, the and settledontherocky banksofthemouth the robust Portuguesehollow oysters hadprospered the mouthofGirondeestuary. Some years later, affected bydecay. Thus, Patoiseau threw theminto in theshipmentwereabadstate,andmany were the Girondeestuary).However, thePortugueseoysters weigh anchorinLe Verdon (thewesternapproachof to . Butastormstoppedhimandhehadto ( in Portugal,withashipmentofPortugueseoysters Oléron Island,camebackfromthe Tage estuary, In 1868,Hector-Barthélémy PATOISEAU, bornon offi by theendofXVIIIthCentury, when, itwas provoked theinevitable vanishing oftheoysters over-exploitation ofthenatural,offshore oyster banks the wealthofprovince, declined.Naturally, the oysters earnedfame, whilethesalttrading,whichwas this seafoodwas rediscovered andthattheMarennes However, itisonlyduringtheXVIIthCenturythat used asapartofthemortarinRomanconstructions. hens (fortheiregg shells),aswellalsobeing nutritional carbonatesupplementtothegeeseand shells beingthenused,groundup,andgiven asa everywhere intheRomanEmpiretobeeaten, the Charenteriver, andthen,afterawhile,exported taken outofthesea,transportedbyboatandputalong sea». As aresultofsaltproduction,theoysters were in abundance on the Atlantic coastinthe «Santon Aven, thecityofpainters,inBrittany), whichgrew to theirpresenceintheBelonriver estuary, nearPont Ostrea techniques forexploiting thenaturaloyster banksof The RomansofJuliusCaesarbroughtwiththemsome (plate 1,fi Marennes-Oléron ostreiculture when tidesbecomeimportantandwater temperature At thebeginning ofsummer, oyster spratiscollected Oyster growing andcare Gryphea cially forbiddentocollecttheoysters. disappearedinthe20s,duetoanepizooty. Up (plateoyster, calledinFrench« Belon », due Pacifi gures 1and3) , orhollow oyster), whichhehadtodeliver Gryphea c Gryphea c competed withtheindigenous fromJapantoreconstitute Ostrea , whosegrowth rate 26-05-2004, 10:37:51 WINES OF BORDEAUX AND COGNAC: GEOLOGY OF THE VINEYARDS P33

optimal. Then, various substrates are used, as for near the prestigious Château Margaux, built in example Roman tiles, slates, old shells, iron pieces, 1802, (plate 2, fi gure 1), Château Maucaillou, and wood pilings, or even plastic tubes. These substrates near Fort-Médoc, a fortifi cation designed and built are cleaned, sometimes limed, and then submerged in by Vauban in 1689 on the opposite side from the the open sea, in the straits (or «pertuis») separating Blaye Citadel, to protect the entrance of Bordeaux’s the various Atlantic islands, and off the Seudre harbour together with the island Fort Paté. estuary to collect the oyster sprat, which fi xes LUNCH on them. After collection, the new-born oysters Château BEYCHEVELLE. are grown in intertidal sea parks, along the coast. Formerly, this white mansion, renovated in 1757, Enclosed in wire-netting for 4 to 7 years, oysters was the property of the Duke of Epernon, who was grow up fast, becoming thick and fl eshy. They are Great Admiral of the French Fleet during the XVIIth kept cleaned from other fi xed shells like small young Century. Ships lowered their sails (baisse voile) to oysters, Gastropods (Crepidula) etc..., and fi nally size salute the Admiral, but also to stop and pay a toll to classifi ed and refi ned. reach the harbour of Bordeaux, upstream. Refi ning oysters called «fi nes de claires» and Château LÉOVILLE-LASCAZES (Margaux), near «spéciales de claires» is a speciality of the ostreicole Château TALBOT (named for the XVth Century Marennes-Oléron district. Claires are small square commander of the English Army, defeated in 1453), is basins of salt water, linked to the open sea, with a fl at one of the St Julien-Beychevelle terroir châteaux. muddy bottom, walled by muddy dikes. Very often, PAUILLAC, harbour which receives transatlantic claires are old salt basins. In the claire basins a green- liners, large sailing ships -- like the «Belem» or the blue diatoma, Blue Navicula, develops, which gives «Sedov» -- as well as wine festivals. Pauillac is the the oysters a nice green colour and, together with township where the well-known Lafi te-Rothschild, the basin, a peculiar and fi ne taste of hazelnuts. The Latour, and Mouton-Rothschild châteaux are located. «fi nes de claires » remain in those basins only a few weeks, with a density of 40 to 50 oysters/m2 while the Stop 1.1: «spéciales» will stay there 5 months, with a density of Château MOUTON-ROTHSCHILD, neighbour 4 to 5 oysters/m2. Refi ning is highly-watched, even by of Château LAFITE-ROTHSCHILD, lies in a satellite, in order to have the Marennes-Oléron oyster beautiful park, and offers interesting «chais» in A.O.C.. Oyster sea parks and refi ning basins are above-ground wine cellars, full of oak barrels (plate terroirs parks, similar to wine terroirs. The claires are 2, fi gure 7) and of old and venerable bottles, and a called with burgundy wines names (!) and controlled complete Museum on vineyards and wines, but also by location, with certain oyster populations being a prestigious art collection and XVIth to XVIIth grown in specifi c sea-places, and climatic conditions Century jewelry. which determine oyster vintages and dates. Stop 1.2: Itinerary (see back cover) Château COS D’ESTOURNEL, (plate 2, fi gure 2). Note: depending on the possibilities of visits, the This beautiful, oriental, XIXth Century castle, whose stops listed here below may be changed to other exotic style brings to mind the wine trade with East châteaux, if necessary. Africa and India, exibits its «pagodons» on the top of a small hill. The main entrance is protected by a wood DAY 1 door, which formerly adorned the Zanzibar Sultan’s BORDEAUX TO PAUILLAC AND THE Palace (plate 2, fi gure 6). MÉDOC VINEYARDS St. ESTEPHE. The village and its church are situated (see back cover) on the top of a hill, surrounded by a sea of the famous P14 to P36 n° 4 - from Volume vineyards. From the harbour, a view of the Gironde Arrival and welcoming at Bordeaux, briefi ng and estuary allows us to observe the old shorelines of the introduction to the fi eld trip. opposite bank of Blaye. Departure for Pauillac, along the Médoc wine road, , with its XIIth Century castle, which which runs along the left bank of the Gironde estuary, protected the village but also the XIth Century and all through the Médoc vineyards. Romanesque abbey --now a simple church, modifi ed Along the way, we will pass near Château Siran, during the XVth Century --, was enlarged during the formerly a property of the Toulouse-Lautrec family, XVIIIth Century, in relationship with the vineyard

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Volume n° 4 - from P14 to P36 P33 - P33 Leader: R.Bourrouilh DINNER nostalgia. the XIXthCentury. Itsworld-renown winedefeats name recallstheRomanticismofStendhaland Château CHASSE-SPLEEN sanctuaries; thisisthemainvillageof A.O.C. church built on formerIVthand Vth Century MOULIS-EN-MÉDOC church withtraditionalEnglishinfl St LAURENT-EN-MÉDOC expansion. are fi and generous,having acomplex, spicy aroma. Whites of ChâteauHaut-Brion,theredwinesarestructured 45% Sémillon,10%Muscatelle. A very closecousin Merlot; andforthewhitewines:45%Sauvignon, are forredwines:60%CabernetSauvignon,40% developed ononly32,5haofvineyards. Cepages middle ofurbanactivity. Itrestsonahillofgraves, Château PAPE CLEMENT Stop 2.1: PESSAC of theGaronneriver, uptothefar sideofLangon. Bordeaux andextends downstream alongtheleftbank character. The A.O.C. begins ontheoutskirtsof of thoseMédoc,but they alsohave theirown GRAVES Bordeaux vineyards. Departure fromthehotel,triptoGraves de (see back cover) BORDEAUXGRAVES TO THE VINEYARDS Château HAUT-BRION Stop 2.2: PESSAC-LEOGNAN A.O.C. wines, towhichthey arevery similar. red onescanbeconsideredtocousinsoftheMédoc are very famous. Graves arewhiteandredwines. The vineyards arealways grown onthegravelly hillsand Despite theirlocationwithintheconfi Megapolis. the CUBorUrbanCommunityofBordeaux,i.e. towns, surroundingBordeaux. All togetherthey form sister-villages of Talence, Gradignanandtheother in theBordeauxMegapolis, withitsneighbouring Bordeaux, but whichisnow almostincorporated is anoldvillage,whichwas formerlyquitefar from Pessac-Léognan A.O.C., whichwewillvisitnow. It ne andsavourous. is,withLéognan,themaintown ofthe winesmaybeconsiderednoblecousins DAY 2 : hasanoldRomanesque . Among theGraves wines, presentsaGothic isaMoulis,whose issituatedinthe uences. nes ofBordeaux, LUNCH de Bordeauxvineyards. impressive castleoverlooks oneofthelargest Graves from Bordeauxandextends over about60ha. This registered Graves GrandCru.Itislocated10km 1380, i.e.duringtheHundred Years’ War, isa Château CARBONNIEUX of thePessac-Léognan A.O.C. TALENCE known world-wide. 1935 bytheUSbanker Dillon.Itswinesarevery well years later. After someotherowners, itwas boughtin Foreign Offi 28, 1801,Charlesde Talleyrand, Ministerofthe years asBordeauxparliamentmembers.OnFebruary families, membersofwhosefamilies served over the time undertheownership oftheFumelandPontac or Daubrion,Haut-Brion.Itremainedforalong It was afeudalpropertyofBrion,thend’Aubrion this istheonlyonetohave beenregistered in1855. LEOGNAN students whoattendcoursesattheUniversity. IV: Law. All together, therearemorethan55,000 I: Sciences;II:Medicine;III:Literatureand which hosttheUniversities ofBordeaux : Bordeaux there in1689. This historiccastlehasnever beensold, Century philosopherMontesquieu,whowas born constructed. Later, itwas thehomeofXVIIth way toSantiago,andChâteaudeLABREDEwas Ages, Templars protectedthepilgrimsalong Roland, killedinthePyrenees.InMiddle (Caesare Augusta), withthebodyofhisnephew, stopped there,comingbackin778fromZaragossa the LaSauve Majeure Abbey. EmperorCharlemagne Santiago deCompostellaandisapilgrims’ stopafter LA BRÈDE also beenopenedinLas Vegas, Nevada. the bodyandofskin’s cells. A Caudaliecenterhas utilizing anti-oxidantmoleculestofi A cosmeticline,« Caudalie », hasbeendeveloped, spa usersinamansionmadeintofour-star hotel. E, torelaxandgive fi from thegrapes,10,000timesmoreactive thanvitamin thermal centerisutilisingthepolyphenolsobtained with anatural,warm thermalwater spring. This new LAFITTE, the On thesamepropertyasChâteauSMITH-HAUT stones andstrongstructuresinwood. physiognomy, combiningwarm, Aquitaine building of thevineyards, offering aMiddle Ages castle-like is aregistered Graves GrandCru,andliesintheheart Château SMITH-HAUT LAFFITTE Stop 2.3: and ce, boughtthedomain,sellingitthree , togetherwithPessac,isthemaintown issituatedontheRomanroadto CAUDALIE GRADIGNAN rmness andyouthfulnesstothe domainisassociated , constructedaround aretwinvillages, ght theagingof , atMartillac, 26-05-2004, 10:37:55 WINES OF BORDEAUX AND COGNAC: GEOLOGY OF THE VINEYARDS P33

and it still belongs to the Monstesquieu family. Stop 3.2: LANGOIRAN COOPERATIVE CELLAR Stop 2.4: This stop allows us to visit a typical cooperative Château FIEUZAL is a registered Graves Grand Cru, cellar, where the grapes are collected and the wine Pessac-Léognan. The name comes from the Fieuzal is collectively produced, bottled and sold, with family, who were the owners up to 1851. Their red participation of the vine-growers themselves. wines are among the best Graves de Bordeaux, and their whites wines, also called « golden sands » are Stop 3.3: highly appreciated. ENTRE-DEUX-MERS ASSOCIATION AND LA SAUVE MAJEURE ABBEY (plate 2, fi gure 5) Stop 2.5: After a visit to the cellar, the presentation of Entre- Château MALARTIC LAGRAVIERE is an old Deux-Mers wines and vineyards, and a discussion château, related to the family of Count Hippolyte de of the role and duties of the association, a visit will Maurès de Malartic, who fought alongside Montcalm take us through the extraordinary Romanesque Abbey in the Abraham Plains at Québec in 1756, as recorded of La Sauve Majeure. Founded in 1079, the Abbey by his name, given to a city NW of Montréal. Its red was a center of cultural activity, which developed a and white wines rank among the best ones of the network between Spain and England. Romanesque Pessac-Leognan A.O.C. in large part, particularly the abside and absidioles, DINNER as well as the choir and the thick columns, crowned by sculpted capitals, a part is, however, transitional to DAY 3 Gothic or fully Gothic, in its vault and its bell tower. BORDEAUX TO ENTRE-DEUX-MERS AND Unfortunately, the barrel vault fell down in 1809. The THE SAUTERNES VINEYARDS remaining sculpted Romanesque capitals represent (see back cover) scenes of the Gospels and of Middle Ages life. An Departure in the morning; the fi eld trip continues to ascent to the Abbey bell tower (157 steps) offers a Sauternes vineyards vast panorama of the old « Silva Major » and on the Entre-Deux-Mers vineyards. ENTRE-DEUX-MERS LUNCH Upon leaving Bordeaux to the south east and Entre- The road goes SE along the right bank of the Deux-Mers, we will stay mainly on the Garonne Garonne. alluvial terraces. The Garonne river itself follows a : XIVth Century fortifi ed village NW-SE direction, due to the Paleozoic Armorican CADILLAC: founded in 1280, this is a walled fault of Bordeaux. This old fault was active many Middle Ages village, including the XVI to XVIIth times during the Paleozoic, but also recently. Post- Century castle of the Duke of Epermon, 1554-1642 Oligocene offsets explain the topography: the (see above, Beychevelle). Garonne river follows the fault direction on the LOUPIAC: this is the main village of the A.O.C., lower SW compartment, meanwhile the Entre-Deux- which produces sweet white wines quite similar wines Mers calcareous plateau is elevated on the higher from Sauternes. Loupiac was known during Roman compartment. The same structural direction affects times. Ausonius probably lived there, but probably the area up to the Oléron Island and off, focalising also in Saint-Emilion, in a villa in place of the modern partly earthquakes (VIIth Century record in Bordeaux, «Château Ausone». up to the present). SAUTERNES AND BARSAC LANGOIRAN is an old river harbour which is on Covering 2,200 ha, these vineyards make up a the right bank of the Garonne. An iron Eiffel bridge «country», situated on the lower part of the Ciron

crosses the river. river valley, near its junction with the Garonne river. P14 to P36 n° 4 - from Volume In autumn, a microclimate develops, due to the Stop 3.1: proximity of both rivers, giving misty mornings and MEDIEVAL LANGOIRAN CASTLE sunny and warm afternoons, favoring the development A geological field section will be examined, while a of Botrytis cinerea. Botrytis cinerea attacks the skin visit to the XIIIth Century castle will take us back to of the grapes, triggering a concentration of sugar, the Middle Ages and will offers us a panorama of the reducing acidity, and encouraging the formation Garonne valley and the Graves vineyards. of glycerine, leaving essential aromas. Mainly on sandy graves, sometimes more argilaceous, with

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Volume n° 4 - from P14 to P36 P33 - P33 Leader: R.Bourrouilh Clement V’snephew. Century Gothicstyle. BARSAC lucky, orboth! they canbedrunkvery old,iftheowner ispatient,or can agemore. They canreach100yearsinbottle,and is around25years,but SauternesandBarsacwines to three,fourormorepickings). Average wineaging carefully controlledselectionsover several weeks(up bunch, foreachgrapes, littlebylittle,withsuccessive, Botrytis cinerea. hand, bysuccessive pickingsofgrapesaffected by Preignac, BommesandFargues. Harvest isdoneby only consistsoffi some carbonateamountstowards thehills,terroir vinifi more pebbly(quartz,quartzite,radiolarites...). After planted invinesonasandyclayey soil,sometimes ha (onatotalof200forthewholeproperty), Château SUDUIRAUT Stop 3.6: sandy layers. at theOligocene-Mioceneborder, withsomefi Vineyards aregrown onanclayous-marlybasement, nectar, whichisaFirstGreatCru,registered in1855. château d’Yquemgives itsbestinthiswhitesweet for 3/4Sémillon,thevineyard oftheSauternes Yquem deMontaigne.Constitutedby1/4Sauvignon by arelative oftheXVIthCenturyphilosopherMichel by MVLH.Itisvery famous andwas originallyowned and was owned bythefamily ofLurSaluce,but now Château d’YQUEM or YQUEM Stop 3.5: when young. and fi generous, withahoney colour, very longinmouth, ha. Itswineishighlyrecommended,full-bodied, Château GUIRAUD Stop 3.4: Château deMALLE Grand Cruforthoseyears. the hopesin1991,1992and1993,sothereisno great wineoccurtogether. For example, raindashed only producedandsoldifalltheconditionsfora « Castelnau deSuduiraut ». The FirstGreatCruis constitute anexcellent, andquitecomparablecru, become thefi determine whichwillbethefi lots ofwineswillbecarefullytastedseveral timesto aged between18to24monthsinoakbarrels,different cation andwinegrowing, afterthewineshave nishes withjustatouchoflight,siliceoustaste hasaXIVthCenturycastle,built byPope hasapeculiar, late-XVIthtoearly-XVIIth rst GranCru,andthesecondlotswill Pickingisdoneslowly oneach ve townships: Sauternes,Barsac, isaFirstCru,covering 85 isaSecondCru. The estate isaFirstCrucovering 92 rst choiceandwill isaFirstGreatCru ne

today –but now aswinecellars. Subterranean quarries,aswellcaves, arestillused War. a gothicchurch,destroyed duringtheHundred Years’ Dominican highwall representsthenorthernwall of Just outsidethecity, thegracefulanddelicate infl Palais Cardinal, with someCrusader--or Templar- interesting, aswellobservingthestonewalls of Walking alongtheXIIthCenturyrampartsis II. Revolution, andbytheFrenchResistanceduring WW shelters inancienttimes,aswellduringtheFrench old network oftheunderground quarries,usedas The monolithicchurchcommunicateswiththe below, asthepalmtreesonsarcophagusshow. the HolyLandandCrusadesareburied there pilgrims, soldiersandknightscomingbackfrom or catacombs,aroundthesubterraneanchurch,and through thecenturiesinunderground quarries the VIIIth totheXIIthCentury. Burialwas given monolithic underground churchwas worked from Thanks toundeground quarriesandcaves, the to holdcelebrationsinhonourofthewines. These Aldermen gotwiceayeartotheKing’s Tower to promoteandmaintainthewinesvineyards. brotherhood, the«Jurade»,was reconstituted,inorder fortifi cobblestones, smallsquares,anditsoldhouses visitors itstortuous,smallstreets,withtheirlarge and walled duringMiddle Ages. The villageoffers still possibletovisit;thesettlementwas thenfortifi VIIIth Centuryandfi cellars. HermitEmilioncamefromRoyan inthe turned intosubterraneanquarries,andthenwine by troglodytedwellings,whichweregradually human settlementwas troglodytic,asdemonstrated looks down upontheDordognevalley. The fi cliff borderingtheSaint-Emilionplateau,which built inanamphitheater outlinedbythelimestone EMILION Called “Lucaniac”inRomantimes, Leave fromthehotel,headingtoward Saint-Emilion. (see back cover) BORDEAUXSAINT-EMILION TO DINNER across boththeSauternesandGraves A.O.C. s. the Girondedepartmentisthatvineyards extend beginning oftheXVIIthCentury. What isuniquein gardens andthecastleitselfweredesignedat appears throughasuperbwrought-ironportal. The uenced architecture. ed gates.In1948theSt-EmilionMedieval isrightinthemiddleofitsvineyards, rst lived inacave, whichitis DAY 4

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The bell tower of the monolithic church was built catacombs, near the monolithic church. The Laniote from the XIIth to the XVth Century, but it only rests vineyards cover 5 ha and, if we have time, the visit on two pillars of the underground monolithic church. will allows us to have a conference on the St-Emilion Thus the underground church is fragile and has been vineyards, harvesting and vine-growing. renovated. Stop 4.4: Stop 4.1: Château CHEVAL BLANC is also a 1958 registered SAINT-EMILION (plate 2, fi gures 3 and 4): just First Great Cru. It rests on the « Graves de St at the entrance of the town, this stop will show Emilion », just like Château Figeac. The site formerly us the geology of the vineyards. Just below the was the «Cheval Blanc Inn», which welcomed the «CHÂTEAU AUSONE», a fi rst Grand Cru, the road gentlemen riding mainly to Libourne, founded in runs on the Lower Sannoisian clayey-sandy molasse, 1269 by Roger of Leyburn, an English Seneschal. giving greenish-derived soils. Very often, the molasse Château Cheval Blanc is situated on the area of includes diagenetic nodules, or «calcareous dolls». Graves de St-Emilion, between the towns of St- The molasse is overlain by the «clays de Castillon», Emilion and Pomerol, on mixed and original gravelly causing an impermeable level along which springs and argilaceous, but also partly alios-derived, soils. appear. Upwards, the clays gradually pass to marls This soil probably gives to the Cheval Blanc wine its and then to the Stampian limestone (calcaire à peculiar bouquet and taste. Astéries) which forms the calcareous, partly LUNCH karstifi ed, Saint-Emilion plateau. From this stop we AFTERNOON: FREE TIME to visit the city and can clearly observe the limestone cliff supporting the underground monolithic church. Château Ausone. Stampian Asteries limestone shows DINNER cross-stratifi ed and parallel-laminated sequences which are locally carved, showing entrances to DAY 5 underground quarries. BORDEAUX TO MARENNES-OLERON AND COGNAC DISTRICT (see back cover) Stop 4.2: Château AUSONE (plate 2, fi gure 3) is a 1958 Leaving Bordeaux to go to Marennes Oleron and the registered First Great Cru. According to the legend, Cognac District. château Ausone is built on the Roman Villa of The highway will take us north of Bordeaux and then, Ausonius (see the “introduction” above). There are to the west, towards the Atlantic Ocean, to Marennes a lot of old remains around the castle and in the and Oléron Island, crossing the strait, or «Pertuis» de vineyards, like a Middle Ages chapel, constructed Maumusson, south of the island. on an old cemetery. The «chais» are carved into Oléron is the biggest French island on the Atlantic the limestone basement of the plateau, and large Coast, measuring 30 km long and 6 km wide. Its pillars support the limestone vault. All is silence and Roman name was “Uliaros”, which changed into serenity, similar to a monastery, an impression which Oléron over time. is confi rmed by the burial crypts where now the wines Since Roman times, Oléron was known for its are aging. The vineyards always partly include an old production of salt and oysters. Salt marshes were French vine, i.e. old native grapes rescued from the mostly developed in the central and eastern part of the Phylloxera attacks, carefully grown and protected. island, while the oysters were cultivated in the eastern part and in the strait of Maumusson and around Stop 4.3: Marennes. But now, many salt ponds have been Château FIGEAC is one of the 1958 registered First converted into «claires» for growing oysters.

Great Crus. It rests on the « Graves de St-Emilion ». It The island is also known for the «Rôles d’Oléron», P14 to P36 n° 4 - from Volume is an ancient estate of the Gallo-Roman period, which attributed to Aliénor, Duchess of Aquitaine, who continued to produce wines from the Middle Ages enacted them in 1199. These are special regulations up to today. Many historic ruins are present on the for navigation, ships, shipwrecks, sailors and traders. property. It extends over 40 ha of vines, constituting However, some wreckers bypassed these regulations the largest St-Emilion township vineyards. and, in order to provoke the wreck of a ship, they Château LANIOTE is a Great Cru and is an example put a lantern on the collar of a cow or a donkey and of a long-lived small property, belonging to an old left the animal walking by night on the coast. The family, going back at least 7 generations. This family ship’s captain, thinking that a harbour was near, also owns a part of the underground quarries and directed his ship right towards the moving light -

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Volume n° 4 - from P14 to P36 P33 - P33 Leader: R.Bourrouilh there. de Cognac.FrançoistheFirst,kingofFrancewas born Richard CoeurdeLion’s son,Philippe,married Amélie of Cognacs historical andtechnologicalaspects,aswellatasting de Cognacwhichwewillvisit. This visitwillinclude speciality, whichisthe«Shipwreckers» beer. the bea morning, peoplecollectedtheresultofwreckon - thusencounteringdisasterandshipwreck.Inthe Since 1795, Stop 6.1: of thefi Departure fromCognac-villetoBordeauxandtheend BORDEAUX FROM THE COGNAC DISTRICT TO DINNER the visit. - awinetastingofCognacandPineauwillaccompany viniculture andvineyards ofCognac. how tomake Pineau,andaMuseumdedicatedtothe the vineyards’ careandculture,distillationofCognacs, - theartofvine-growers, how oakbarrelsaremade, vineyards andaroundJarnac,showing us: EVENING Stop 5.2: «coup deJarnac». time, anddefeatedhim,usingaspecialsword hitor Chataigneraie, whowas oneofthebestduellist Court inStGermain,nearParis, againsttheLordofLa Guy ChabotdeStGelais,duelledinfrontoftheRoyal place intheXVIthCentury:7thbaronofJarnac, well known foracertainhistoricalevent, whichtook by theEnglishandFrench.ButJarnacisvery War, Jarnacwas capturedseveral timesalternatively above theriver Charentes.DuringtheHundred Years’ neolithic village.Now, itisaquietcitybuilt onthehills fi JARNAC We willleave at1p.m.togoJARNAC the Beerof«Naufrageurs»(Shipwreckers). Wines but alsoatypicalbeverage ofOléronIsland,i.e. LUNCH, willincludeoysters andwewilltrytheOléron ostreiculture, theoyster parksandtheclaires. MORNING Stop 5.1: The visit,includinghistoricalandtechnologicalpoints, will visitthisfamous Cognacfactory, foundedin1725. Cognac RÉMYMARTIN Stop 6.2: rst probablyapaleolithicand,then,certainly, a eld trip. ches. Shipwreckers arerecordedinanOléron , asmany humansettlementsaround,was willbedevoted toatriparoundtheCognac (plate 2,fi Cognac OTARD willbedevoted toacompletevisitofthe (see back cover) gure7) DAY 6 . 4kmSWofCognac,we . InthisMedieval castle, hasowned the Château Airport. We willleave at1p.mtotheMerignac-Bordeaux will bedonebyasmalltrain. Bordeaux. Anonymous, (1998),Bordeaux,Levignoblede vignoble. Anonymous, (1998),Bordeaux,Découverte du References an extract ofthegeologicalMapFranceat1x10 authorization toreproduce,but onlyforthisfi VASLET andDr. F. SIMIENfromtheBRGM,fortheir from «ChâteauLaSerizière»fortheirhelp,andDr. D. Deux-Mers», LaSauve Majeure,andMr. Lobre, and herstaff fromthe«Maisondes Vins del’Entre- on thefrontcover, andwethankMrs.C.PERRIER Crus classésduMédocen1855 », byCarlLaubin, but onlyforthisfi Vin deBordeaux)fortheirauthorizationtoreproduce, We thanktheC.I.V.B., (ConseilInterprofessionneldu Acknowledgements C.I.V.B. Ed.,Bordeaux Anonymous, (1998),Bordeaux,Lesroutesduvin. la Charente Bernard G.,(1980).Levignoblecharentais. Interprofessionnel duCognac, était unefois…LECOGNAC. Bardin M.,Soyez J.M.etDanvers A., (1980).Il SOPEXA Anonymous, (1990).« Pineau desCharentes » the block-diagramsusedinplate2. the backcover, andforproviding uswiththeframeof Caumeil M.,(1983).Lecognac. slides. d’Histoire. Sépulchre B.,(1983).Lelivre duCognac, Trois siècles 343 p. by C.Pomerol, BRGMet Total Ed.OrléansandParis Itinéraires oenologiquesetgéologiques. Pomerol C.(1984). Terroirs et Vins deFrance, – 79370,Mougon, charentais. Neveu J.L.,(1995). Vigne etCognacenPays et Vins Lafon J.,(1976).LastationviticoledeCognac. France. Jacquelin L.etPoulain,R.(1960). Vignes et Vins de Paris. France, desoriginesauXIXèsiècle, Dion R.,(1959).Histoiredela Vigne etdu Vin en Paris Delamain R.,(1935).HistoireduCognac. Charentes. vieillissement, sesmarchés,sonhistoire.LePineaudes Coussié J.V., (1993).LeCognac,Sadistillation,son Décembre 1983,48-57. , 142p. 768 p , 252,11p. Flammarion Ed.,Paris , C.I.V.B. Ed.,Bordeaux C.I.V.B. Ed.,Bordeaux Paris « Letempsqu’ilfait Collection « La Boulite », Geste Ed.- BP 15 Hubschmid &Bouret Ed., . , 16000 Angoulême , booklet. eld guide,theposterof«LesGrands 95p. , booklet

Ed., , 483p. , », Ed , booklet. , booklet Ed., Cognac booklet,12p. ., booklet,23p.,30 Bureau National Pour laScience

Paris Coordonated R.Dion Ed., , 253p. Stock eld guide, CDDP de 26-05-2004, 10:38:02 , 63p. Vigne , 6 Ed., , on , ,

Back Cover: fi eld trip itinerary

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Edited by APAT

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