Escapade à Bordeaux | 3 jours
An aristocratic city, resembling a mini-Paris, crossed by the Garonne along remarkably redeveloped quays, which encourage strolling in all seasons, Bordeaux is not lacking in assets: its now famous water mirror facing the square of La Bourse, its particularly lively historic centre, its magnificent facades along the quays, facades often compared to those of Saint Petersburg which extend to the Cité du Vin with its futuristic architecture, which has become an emblematic monument of the city and which allows Bordeaux to display its status as the world capital of viticulture.
PROGRAM
FRIDAY 17 JUNE – BORDEAUX – PASSION DINNER: CHÂTEAU LYNCH-BAGES OR CHÂTEAU BEYCHEVELLE
When you arrive in Bordeaux, you can settle into your hotel, a few meters from the Cité du Vin, at the end of the afternoon. We invite you to meet at 6:30 p.m. at the Cité du Vin to start your weekend discovering the Grands Crus of Bordeaux. Departure by coach to the property where the dinner will take place.
Lynch Bages
This estate has belonged to the Cazes family for several generations, a family very active in the Bordeaux region and in the Médoc in particular. A fifth classified growth of the Médoc which for several decades has largely exceeded its classification and whose popularity among amateurs has never diminished. The wines, with a very high proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon, the emblematic grape variety of the Médoc, are precisely very Médoc, powerful, structured, racy, cut for long aging. This dinner will give you the opportunity to visit the brand new spectacular winery, designed by architect Chien Chung Pei.
Beychevelle
Dinner at Beychevelle, described as “Versailles du Médoc”, you couldn’t dream of better! Its architecture and its magical gardens, its brand new cellars, largely glazed which provides a great luminosity, its magnificent park overlooking the Gironde, will seduce you as much as the wines which present the flawless elegance specific to Saint-Juliens. Let yourself be lulled by the legend that in the seventeenth century the boats sailing on the Gironde had to lower their sails (Beyche Velle) passing in front of the castle as a sign of respect for the First Duke of Epernon, then owner of the premises. The griffin prow ship will become the emblem on the label. Enjoy! Night at the Radisson Blu **** hotel.
SATURDAY JUNE 18 – BORDEAUX – TASTING OF 200+ WINES + GRANDS CRUS EVENING AT HANGAR 14
After breakfast, you can go to the Cité du Vin for a day dedicated to tasting Grands Crus.
You will have the privilege of tasting as wine professionals do twice in Bordeaux. In the same place, the famous Hangar 14 which faces the Garonne on one side and the old buildings of Bordeaux merchants on the other, in the presence of the owners or managers of some 120 exceptional Bordeaux wines that are part of the very elitist Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux. You will be offered for tasting the 2019 vintage and an older vintage left to the free choice of the châteaux. The 2019 vintage is part of the exceptional 2018/2019/2020 trilogy. The beginning of the vegetative cycle is marked by frosts, which are particularly severe in Saint-Emilion. Flowering is on the other hand very homogeneous, at least on the early terroirs. Summer began with a very early heat wave, a drought very fortunately counterbalanced by the rain which arrived at the end of July allowing the start of veraison in a completely normal way. At the beginning of September, a key period in Bordeaux, all the lights are green! The temperature differences between the day (which can exceed 30°) and the very cool nights are very favorable to the ideal maturation of the phenolic compounds, guaranteeing a very good vintage. The wines are really very successful left bank but the right bank is not left out. Well structured wines, concentrated but containing soy, very aromatic, with freshness and perfect balance. You will be spoiled for choice between the different Médoc appellations (Médoc, Haut-Médoc, Listrac, Moulis, Margaux, Saint-Julien, Pauillac and Saint-Estèphe), Pessac-Léognan (red and white), the Saint-Emilion, the Pomerol without forgetting the Sauternes. Among the nuggets of the vintage, don’t miss La Lagune, Brane-Cantenac, Giscours, Beychevelle, Rauzan-Ségla, Langoa and Léoville-Barton, Lagrange, Duhart-Milon, Pichon-Baron, Lafon-Rochet, Phélan-Ségur, Chevalier, Malartic-Lagravière, Pape-Clément, Canon, La Gaffelière, Trottevieille, Valandraud, Gazin, to name but a few.
A prestigious tasting, with the wise advice of a professional who can guide you and the experience of the owners who can talk to you with passion about their wine. In the evening, around a cocktail reception, you will be offered an exceptional tasting of old vintages in large containers (magnum, double-magnum, etc.) conducive to the proper aging of wines. Certainly unforgettable moments. Night at the Radisson Blu **** hotel.
SUNDAY 19 JUNE – BORDEAUX – VINEYARD CIRCUIT: RIGHT BANK OR GRAVES/SAUTERNES
After breakfast, we invite you to meet at 9 am at the Cité du Vin for a day devoted to discovering a vineyard. Circuits in the vineyard:
1 – Right bank
By this we mean the wine-growing region located on the right bank of the Gironde and the Dordogne, to the north of Bordeaux, a region offering superbly hilly landscapes. Several appellations, the best known of which are Saint-Émilion, the first classified vineyard in the world! and Pomerol whose name makes the whole world dream. Here it is the kingdom of Merlot which agrees to share its land with Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon. The properties are on a human scale and very often still family owned. The wines produced are full of charm and certainly the most voluptuous in Bordeaux.
Beautiful eyes
The morning began with a visit to Château Beauregard, a very pretty property whose origins date back to the twelfth century, when the Knights Hospitallers cultivated the agricultural land of the Manor which belonged to them. The latter are also at the origin of the emblem of the property, the Cross of the Templars. The vine only made its appearance in the eighteenth century. Time then passes until 2014 when the Moulin families (owners of Galeries Lafayette) and Cathiard (Château Smith-Haut-Lafitte) acquire it. The cellars were completely renovated and the Cathiards, in charge of running the estate, soon made their mark, with all the energy and attention to detail that characterize them. Beauregard, now certified organic, is one of the Pomerols that matter. Its elegant, expressive and charming wines have everything to please.
La Tour-Figeac
Lunch will be organized at Château La Tour Figeac, property for thirty years of Otto Rettenmaier, of German origin but from Saint-Émilion at heart. With great enthusiasm and the wise advice of the famous Stéphane Derenoncourt, he magnifies the fifteen hectares of this cru ideally located between the Figeac and Cheval Blanc castles! The Merlot is certainly predominant but the Cabernet-Franc, particularly adapted to the beautiful gravelly-sandy soil, necessary to take pride of place. Château La Tour Figeac, which favors organic and biodynamic practices and whose cellar has recently been equipped with amphoras and 400-litre barrels, produces wines full of charm and great elegance.
Balestard La Tonnelle
After lunch at Château La Tour Figeac, the day continues with a visit to Château Balestard La Tonnelle, a ten-hectare property located at the gates of Saint-Emilion. This estate, part of whose name, the arbor, refers to a watchtower dating from the fifteenth century, still present in the heart of the vineyards, belongs to the Capdemourlin family, one of the oldest families in Saint-Emilion, since they have been there for four centuries! Merlot, the appellation’s flagship grape variety, expresses itself wonderfully on the clay-limestone plateau, complemented by Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon. Vinified in the brand new, state-of-the-art cellar, the wines are flattering, aromatic and keep well. You will be just as charmed by the wines as by the magnificent terraced gardens that surround the castle and it is surely with regret that you take the long driveway lined with yews to leave the castle and join the road that will take you back to Bordeaux.
2 – Sauternes/Graves
This day will allow you to discover the marvelous vineyard of Sauternes which has no less than 27 classified growths, including a single superior first growth (Yquem) then that of Pessac-Léognan, located at the gates of Bordeaux, which concentrates 16 classified growths, all neck and neck in the race for excellence. Remarkable wines of balance and elegance which have the particularity of aging wonderfully well.
Sigalas Rabaud
The morning will begin with a visit to Château Sigalas-Rabaud, which, although the smallest of the Premiers Crus Classés (fourteen hectares in one piece) is truly one of the jewels of Sauternes, both for its pretty Chartreuse du seventeenth century than for its wines. Powerfully syrupy without being too much, extremely aromatic and complex, always energetic and balanced, they never disappoint. Laure de Lambert succeeded her parents and grandparents and has successfully run this family property for six generations. An ideal visit to understand the magic and the very essence of Sauternes.
Olivier
Leaving the Sauternes to join the Graves, you stop for lunch in the enchanting setting of Château Olivier, a magnificent property of more than 200 hectares belonging to the Bethmann family since 1886. The unmistakably medieval style castle, surrounded by moats, is nestled in the heart of meadows and a real forest, the vineyard occupying for its part sixty hectares, of which more than fifty in red. 20 years ago, the Bethmann family carried out major works and entrusted the management of the estate to Laurent Lebrun, agricultural engineer and oenologist. The rigor of the latter, his seriousness and above all his extremely precise analysis of the terroir have made it possible to greatly improve the quality of the wines. Expressive, energetic and full of character, both in red and white, they are now among the essentials of the Pessac-Léognan appellation and their value for money is hard to beat! A real nugget that you will be happy to discover!
The louvière
After lunch at Château Olivier, the tour will continue with a visit to Château La Louvière, the flagship property of the estates of the late André Lurton, a key figure in the Bordeaux landscape who had largely participated in the creation of the Pessac-Léognan appellation. La Louvière is now in the hands of his son Jacques who, drawing on his international experience, breathes a beneficial wind of modernity into it, both in the vineyard and in the cellars. The superb chateau sits enthroned in the middle of a forty-six hectare vineyard, with a deep gravel soil so characteristic of the appellation. There is no doubt that a visit to this high-performance cru will give you a precise idea of what a fine Pessac-Léognan is. You will be back at the Cité du Vin at 6 p.m. where this weekend ends.
ITINERARY
FRIDAY 17 JUNE – BORDEAUX – PASSION DINNER: CHÂTEAU LYNCH-BAGES OR CHÂTEAU BEYCHEVELLE
SATURDAY JUNE 18 – BORDEAUX – TASTING OF 200+ WINES + GRANDS CRUS EVENING AT HANGAR 14
SUNDAY 19 JUNE – BORDEAUX – VINEYARD CIRCUIT: RIGHT BANK OR GRAVES/SAUTERNES
THE PRICE INCLUDES
The 2 nights in the hotel mention in a standard double room • Breakfasts • Lunch on day 3 and dinners on days 1 and 2 mentioned in the program • Activities, visits and tastings mentioned • Transfers from/to the castles quoted by coach.
Terms of Sales : https://lesvoyagesf.fr/cgv
Offer proposed and offered by Les Voyages F.