The Bartons Buy Another Château
September 29th 2011, by Gavin
This article appeared in the blog of Livex – the Fine Wine Exchange – and in the subscriber section called Inside Information on JancisRobinson.com.
Anthony Barton and his daughter, Lilian
It has been a few years since the Barton family of Château Langoa-Barton bought a château. Not since the 1820s, in fact, when Hugh Barton, having first acquired Langoa in 1821, purchased part of the Léoville estate in 1826 that would later become Château Léoville-Barton. Both Langoa and Léoville were included in the famous 1855 classification and, along with Château Mouton-Rothschild, are the only Châteaux since 1855 to remain under the same family ownership. Anthony Barton and his daughter Lilian run the two Saint-Julien estates today.
So when Lilian told me last Friday, on the final day of their harvest, that they had just purchased a property called Château Mauvesin in Moulis, I was quite surprised.
Unique Labels for Special Events
September 28th 2011, by Gavin
Our personalised labels have been going down well, so we’ve tightened up on the process and can price them attractively at £1.50 a bottle surcharge. A minimum order applies and advance planning is recommended to avoid high shipping bills.
We can't think of many Bordeaux Châteaux that print bespoke labels for weddings...
The cost is £1.50 per bottle surcharge, with a minimum one-off fee of £180 – which covers the first ten cases of 12 (120 x £1.50). The ten cases can be made up of different wines – white, red and rosé. For more on the wines, which cost between £7.95 and £9.75 per bottle in the UK for the regular labels, see here.
Essentially, we use the classic Bauduc label, with our special raised print, and can add 3 lines of personal text below the drawing on our label.
Hail Forces Early Start for Lafite as St-Estèphe Takes a Battering
September 5th 2011, by Gavin
This article appeared on the Liv-ex Fine Wine Market blog and in ‘Inside Information’ on JancisRobinson.com.
Gavin Quinney reports from Bordeaux on an unscheduled start to the harvest for one of the world’s most famous estates, and the severe misfortune that fell on an illustrious neighbour.
Lafite's parcel in St-Estèphe, 3 Sept
‘It’s an early vintage, and not an easy one,’ said Charles Chevallier, the Director of Château Lafite-Rothschild, as he checked the Cabernet Sauvignon from their parcel in St-Estèphe in his new harvest reception area. He certainly never thought that he’d be bringing in this late-ripening variety exactly one week before the Médoc Marathon, when over 8,000 runners in fancy dress pass through the vineyards on the second Saturday of September. (In 2010, they started picking their Cabernet on 4th October.)
Unlike this coming Saturday, this is no laughing matter – even if the locals can’t resist a bit of black humour. “They can start the pruning at Cos d’Estournel, because there aren’t any leaves left on the vines,” was the gag made separately by two tractor drivers – one at Lafite, the other at Château Montrose to the north. Neighbours, as well as nature, can be cruel.
2011 Season: 3 Weeks Early
May 26th 2011, by Gavin
An early start to the growing season, then lovely weather for the all important-flowering in the vines – three weeks ahead of usual – seems a little too much of a good thing.
Now what we need is a little divine intervention for some much-needed rain and, with any luck, no natural disasters. We have, after all, had one or two catastrophes strike in May (hail, 2009) and June (hail, 2003).
Budburst kicked off early this year, towards the end of March.