Chateau de Tiregand
Bruno has a special relationship with Chateau de Tiregand, whose 8 hectares of sloping land on the south-facing slopes above the river Dordogne produce red, white and rosé wines. The Chateau recently hosted a special wine-testing for a group of ten German, Swiss and Austrian journalists who had been brought to ‘Bruno-land’ by the French tourist agency. Among others, they tasted the 2007 Grand Millésime, which won gold medals at the 2009 Macon International and at last year’s Best Wines of France. The 2009 promises to be even better, despite the daring decision to reverse the usual proportions of a Pecharmant wine and make it 60 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, 35 percent Merlot and 5 percent Cabernet Franc.
The hearty red wines of Tiregand, strengthened by the iron-rich soil in which the vines grow, deservedly enjoy an international reputation. Their Grands Millesime, special vintages of special years, are wines to lay down for years and to treasure, although they cost only a fraction of the great Bordeaux wines against which they should be measured.
Thanks to the kindness of Francois-Xavier de St Exupery, the vineyard owner, I have been lucky enough to taste flights of the Tiregand vintages, and to try the new 2009 Grand Millesime while still in barrel. This wine is something of a revolution since they have switched the usual proportions of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon to produce a wine that feels more voluptuous at first sip, more powerful in the mouth and then refined and subtle in the aftertaste.
Chateau de Tiregand produces a small run of white wine every year, but their focus is on the hearty reds that have defined the ancient vineyard for generations. More information on the varieties available can be found on their website which also advertises the jazz concerts they organise in summer.
[Added June 2013] It was a pleasure to see F-X de St Exupery at the huge Vinexpo wine fair in Bordeaux in June, showing his gorgeous 2010 Pecharmants. This was the wine where he switched the proportions to a majority of cabernet sauvignon grapes, reflecting that year’s harvest conditions; now he has switched back again. We tasted a whole series of Pecharmants together, about a dozen, and Chateau de Tiregand has little to fear from the competition. Along with all the other wine growers in France, he is starting get nervous about the months of unusual rain this year and this mainly cool and dismal June. We will need a lot of sun in the rest of the summer.
The hearty red wines of Tiregand, strengthened by the iron-rich soil in which the vines grow, deservedly enjoy an international reputation. Their Grands Millesime, special vintages of special years, are wines to lay down for years and to treasure, although they cost only a fraction of the great Bordeaux wines against which they should be measured.
Thanks to the kindness of Francois-Xavier de St Exupery, the vineyard owner, I have been lucky enough to taste flights of the Tiregand vintages, and to try the new 2009 Grand Millesime while still in barrel. This wine is something of a revolution since they have switched the usual proportions of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon to produce a wine that feels more voluptuous at first sip, more powerful in the mouth and then refined and subtle in the aftertaste.
Chateau de Tiregand produces a small run of white wine every year, but their focus is on the hearty reds that have defined the ancient vineyard for generations. More information on the varieties available can be found on their website which also advertises the jazz concerts they organise in summer.
[Added June 2013] It was a pleasure to see F-X de St Exupery at the huge Vinexpo wine fair in Bordeaux in June, showing his gorgeous 2010 Pecharmants. This was the wine where he switched the proportions to a majority of cabernet sauvignon grapes, reflecting that year’s harvest conditions; now he has switched back again. We tasted a whole series of Pecharmants together, about a dozen, and Chateau de Tiregand has little to fear from the competition. Along with all the other wine growers in France, he is starting get nervous about the months of unusual rain this year and this mainly cool and dismal June. We will need a lot of sun in the rest of the summer.
Chateau de la Jaubertie
One of my favourite Bergerac wines, the Cuvee Mirabelle was conjured by my friend Charles Martin, who was then cellar-master at Jaubertie before going on to found his own La Colline vineyard, and contains equal portions of cabernet sauvignon and merlot with ten percent of cabernet franc.
The fifty hectare vineyard is on the edge of the Monbazillac region, and has been almost exactly split between red and white varieties: 24 hectares of white grapes comprised of a mix of sauvignon blanc, sémillon and muscadelle, and 26 hectares of red grapes split between merlot, malbec, cabernet franc and cabernet sauvignon.
Jaubertie is known for its organic wines, and has been a key local organic producer since 2005.
Of particular interest are the Cuvée Mirabelles, which are stored in oak barrels to promote the flavours of the local terrroir. The Mirabelles can be bought as red, white, or Monbazillac wines; additional information is available on their website.
I have always been a fan of Chateau de la Jaubertie, but they now have a new line of bio wines (produced under strict environmental rules) called Natura that retail in supermarkets (in the bio foods section) for around 5 euros a bottle. The dry whites are a real pleasure.
The fifty hectare vineyard is on the edge of the Monbazillac region, and has been almost exactly split between red and white varieties: 24 hectares of white grapes comprised of a mix of sauvignon blanc, sémillon and muscadelle, and 26 hectares of red grapes split between merlot, malbec, cabernet franc and cabernet sauvignon.
Jaubertie is known for its organic wines, and has been a key local organic producer since 2005.
Of particular interest are the Cuvée Mirabelles, which are stored in oak barrels to promote the flavours of the local terrroir. The Mirabelles can be bought as red, white, or Monbazillac wines; additional information is available on their website.
I have always been a fan of Chateau de la Jaubertie, but they now have a new line of bio wines (produced under strict environmental rules) called Natura that retail in supermarkets (in the bio foods section) for around 5 euros a bottle. The dry whites are a real pleasure.
Chateau de la Vieille Bergerie
After giving him gold medals at the Paris agricultural show three years in a row, the judges threw up their hands in the fourth year and simply awarded Pierre Desmartis the prix d’excellence for his wine from the Chateau de la Vieille Bergerie. He produces splendid whites, reds and the sweet Monbazillac white of remarkable and consistent quality and with his new special quality cuvée Quercus, the botanical term for the oak tree, he shows why the Paris judges knew what they were doing. His Quercus Bergerac Sec is a marvel, fresh and light and yet with depths that seem to get steadily richer.
Chateau Calabre and Chateau Puy-Servain
Daniel Hecquet makes terrific but subtly different wines at each of his two vineyards, and locals sometimes say he produces Bordeaux quality wines at Bergerac prices. That is unfair; his wines are better than many well-known Bordeaux and he has the medals and prizes to prove it.
I particularly like his Vieilles Vignes red from Puy-Servain and his dry white from Calabre, which has 50% sauvignon blanc, 40% sémillon and 10% Muscadelle. His Haut Montravel sweet white wine rivals the best Monbazillacs, which may be explained by the fact that he used to work at Chateau Yquem. Hugely respected by wine-growers across south-western France, Hecquet also rents out a gite built on the remnants of the old Chateau Ségur and organises gastronomic weekends.
[Added June 2013] When visiting the vineyard to buy a case of his splendid Vieilles Vignes, Daniel Hecquet gave me a bottle of his Pecharmant, Chateau Bertanoux, to try. I drank it with neighbours who were serving Boeuf Bourguignon and it was terrific. Strongly recommended.
I particularly like his Vieilles Vignes red from Puy-Servain and his dry white from Calabre, which has 50% sauvignon blanc, 40% sémillon and 10% Muscadelle. His Haut Montravel sweet white wine rivals the best Monbazillacs, which may be explained by the fact that he used to work at Chateau Yquem. Hugely respected by wine-growers across south-western France, Hecquet also rents out a gite built on the remnants of the old Chateau Ségur and organises gastronomic weekends.
[Added June 2013] When visiting the vineyard to buy a case of his splendid Vieilles Vignes, Daniel Hecquet gave me a bottle of his Pecharmant, Chateau Bertanoux, to try. I drank it with neighbours who were serving Boeuf Bourguignon and it was terrific. Strongly recommended.
Chateau Feely
Chateau Feely (formerly known as Chateau Haut Garrigue, but now named after its owners) is a real discovery. Caro and Sean Feely, from South Africa via Ireland, have turned this old vineyard in the Saussignac into something very special: a splendid advertisement for spectacularly good bio-organic wines that come with their own special narrative.
Caro has written fine book about their decision to give up the finance industry rat race to make wine, and very nearly go bust in the process. Grape Expectations is a warm and moving book about wine, family and all the many rewards of life in the Perigord.
Their excellent Sauvignon Blanc is called Sincerite. The Semillon, called Generosite, comes from vines planted in 1945. And their 2010 La Source is a red wine that bursts with blackcurrant flavour and then becomes steadily more complex. See www.terroirfeely.com.
Caro also rent gites and runs wine courses; see www.frenchwineadventures.com.
Caro has written fine book about their decision to give up the finance industry rat race to make wine, and very nearly go bust in the process. Grape Expectations is a warm and moving book about wine, family and all the many rewards of life in the Perigord.
Their excellent Sauvignon Blanc is called Sincerite. The Semillon, called Generosite, comes from vines planted in 1945. And their 2010 La Source is a red wine that bursts with blackcurrant flavour and then becomes steadily more complex. See www.terroirfeely.com.
Caro also rent gites and runs wine courses; see www.frenchwineadventures.com.
Chateau Tourmentine
Chateau Tourmentine may be the best-known Bergerac wine-maker in Germany; after years of assiduous visits and marketing by Jean-Marie Hure and his wines make very good ambassadors.
Hure's Bergerac Sec is all that a good white wine should be: clean on the nose, fresh and fruity on the mouth and with a pleasantly lingering taste; the balance of 40% Sauvignon, 55% Semillon and a 5% dash of Muscadelle combines very well indeed.
The red wine, Cuvee Futee, 80% Merlot and only 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, is a classic of its kind, gentle but steadily more impressive. It is a wine for all occasions.
Hure's Bergerac Sec is all that a good white wine should be: clean on the nose, fresh and fruity on the mouth and with a pleasantly lingering taste; the balance of 40% Sauvignon, 55% Semillon and a 5% dash of Muscadelle combines very well indeed.
The red wine, Cuvee Futee, 80% Merlot and only 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, is a classic of its kind, gentle but steadily more impressive. It is a wine for all occasions.
Domaine des Costes
Domaine des Costes, a Pecharmant made by Nicole and Jean-Marc Dournel, was one of the discoveries of the 2013 Vinexpo exhibition in Bordeaux.
Their 2009 at 9 euros a bottle is a bargain. The Grande Reserve of the same year is not cheap, at 28 euros a bottle, but it is a very fine wine indeed, much better than some famous Bordeaux wines that cost more than five times as much.
Contact at jeanmarc.dournel@gmail.com.
Their 2009 at 9 euros a bottle is a bargain. The Grande Reserve of the same year is not cheap, at 28 euros a bottle, but it is a very fine wine indeed, much better than some famous Bordeaux wines that cost more than five times as much.
Contact at jeanmarc.dournel@gmail.com.
Chateau les Tours des Verdots
I recently tasted a remarkably fine and distinctive wine, which is officially a Bergerac Sec, but if far deeper and more complex than almost any other I have tried. (And I have tried many.)
David Fourtout, the wine maker, has blended 36% of Sauvignon Blanc, 30% of Sauvignon Gris, 22% of Semillon and 12% of Muscadelle and produced a nectar. There’s a bouquet of spring flowers in the nose, a surprising touch of sweetness at first on the tongue (the Muscadelle) and then a rich and satisfying body of tastes that come in waves.
I found it at Chai Monique, the wine bar in the main street of Le Bugue and opposite the butcher’s shop; Monique insisted I try it, was delighted (but not surprised) by my enthusiastic reaction and fed us some excellent charcuterie and bruschetti.
David Fourtout, the wine maker, has blended 36% of Sauvignon Blanc, 30% of Sauvignon Gris, 22% of Semillon and 12% of Muscadelle and produced a nectar. There’s a bouquet of spring flowers in the nose, a surprising touch of sweetness at first on the tongue (the Muscadelle) and then a rich and satisfying body of tastes that come in waves.
I found it at Chai Monique, the wine bar in the main street of Le Bugue and opposite the butcher’s shop; Monique insisted I try it, was delighted (but not surprised) by my enthusiastic reaction and fed us some excellent charcuterie and bruschetti.
Julien de Savignac
No account of wine in the Bergerac is complete without reference to the famous cave des vins of Julien de Savignac, my favourite wine shop in the world.
It is on the outskirts of Le Bugue, on the road that leads to Le Buisson, and on the corner of the road that leads to Audrix and the Gouffre de Proumeyssac, a grand local cavern that features in the Bruno novel ‘The Devil’s Cave’. And if it seems familiar to readers of the second Bruno novel, ‘Dark Vineyard,’ this is the place that inspired the fictional wine shop of Hubert de Montignac.
This is where I salivate over the long run of Chateau Petrus, some of them more than 3,000 euros a bottle, and where you can also take along your own bottle or jug and buy very sound vin de table from huge vats for not much more than a euro a litre. It also offers the best selection of malt scotch whiskies that I have seen outside of Scotland, a stunning range of vintage Armagnacs and a huge selection of France’s finest wines.
Built up over many years by Patrick Montfort, who laboured heroically to put Bergerac wines on the map (and makes very good ones from his own vineyards) and now run by his son, Julien. They also sell the excellent Bergeracs made by Julien’s sister, Amelie, under the Chateau Briand label. They give free tastings, which amount to an education in the depth and range of the Bergerac appellation.
It is on the outskirts of Le Bugue, on the road that leads to Le Buisson, and on the corner of the road that leads to Audrix and the Gouffre de Proumeyssac, a grand local cavern that features in the Bruno novel ‘The Devil’s Cave’. And if it seems familiar to readers of the second Bruno novel, ‘Dark Vineyard,’ this is the place that inspired the fictional wine shop of Hubert de Montignac.
This is where I salivate over the long run of Chateau Petrus, some of them more than 3,000 euros a bottle, and where you can also take along your own bottle or jug and buy very sound vin de table from huge vats for not much more than a euro a litre. It also offers the best selection of malt scotch whiskies that I have seen outside of Scotland, a stunning range of vintage Armagnacs and a huge selection of France’s finest wines.
Built up over many years by Patrick Montfort, who laboured heroically to put Bergerac wines on the map (and makes very good ones from his own vineyards) and now run by his son, Julien. They also sell the excellent Bergeracs made by Julien’s sister, Amelie, under the Chateau Briand label. They give free tastings, which amount to an education in the depth and range of the Bergerac appellation.
