Chateau Bellegrave Pomerol 2011
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Chateau Bellegrave Pomerol
Chateau Bellegrave Pomerol has a discreet nose with notes of delicate toast, ripe cherry, sweet spices and a touch of bitter almond. Fine, ripe and elegant tannins. Of medium persistence on the finish while retaining a nice freshness.
Producer
Château Bellegrave lies in the south of Pauillac, between Château Latour, Pichon-Longueville and Lynch-Bages. The estate was purchased in 1954 by Gabriel Meffre, who bought several estates in the nearby region. Today his grandsons, Ludovic and Julien run the estate which comprises eight hectares of vines averaging 25 years old. Cabernet Sauvignon is the predominant grape variety (62%), complemented by Merlot (31%) and Cabernet Franc (7%). They believe that Pauillac is the promised land for Cabernet Sauvingon and offers the ideal spot for its strength and elegance to express themselves.
You can have a great family history without going all the way back into the mists of time! At Château Bellegrave, three generations are enough to give meaning to a little world devoted to nature, the land and the vines, in the unique terroir that is Pomerol.
Jean Bouldy bought the estate in 1951. His son Jean-Marie is now continuing his work and shaping the destiny of Château Bellegrave, with his wife and children by his side.
Vinification
Harvests at Château Bellegrave have always been carried out by hand, a practice that has become even more important today in the context of organic growing. The harvest is of course done plot by plot, and the order in which the rows are tackled is based on the final ripening threshold. Technology is incorporated via very sophisticated sorting tables, allowing undesirable leaves, stems and seeds to be removed. The gently trodden grapes are then left to ‘naturally’ ferment and macerate in temperature-controlled vats for better temperature regulation.
Maturation takes place in vats made of Allier oak, specifically from the Forest of Tronçais, a very fine-grained wood that provides delicate spice notes to the wine (without dominating its aromas) and supports its maturation process until it is bottled around 20 months later. Simple!
The result? The tasting notes speak for themselves!
The grapes are 75% Merlot and 25% Cabernet Franc.