Dourthe La Grande Cuvée a obtenu la médaille d'Or au Concours des Vins dAquitaine 2012 pour son Bordeaux Rouge 2010, son Bordeaux Blanc 2011 et son Bordeaux Rosé 2011 . Encore une belle réussite pour ces vins, qui avaient déjà été remarqués l'année dernière : 2 étoiles (Vin remarquable) dans le Guide Hachette des Vins 2012 pour le Bordeaux Rouge 2009, 2 médailles d'Or pour le Bordeaux Blanc 2010.
During the famous Open Day festivities held annually in Saint-Emilion, the Dourthe team look forward to welcoming visitors at Chateau Grand Barrail Lamarzelle Figeac, on 28th 29th April, 10am - 6pm, throughout the weekend. Marvel at our circular barrel hall and enrich your knowledge of the vines and wines from the estate. Our partner, Ferme du Plechot, will be on hand to present a range of delicious produce from the Landes region of France. The event is the perfect opportunity to take a stroll through the outstanding Saint Emilion vineyard landscape, the first example of its kind to be classified a world heritage site by Unesco.
En primeur week is a longstanding Bordeaux tradition every year, during the first week of April, the top Bordeaux Chateaux showcase samples of the latest yet-tobe-bottled vintage to buyers and journalists from across the planet. And Chateau Belgrave opened its doors to industry professionals to present the 2011 vintage of Bordeaux Grands Crus, including, of course, wines from the Dourthe vineyards!
Pruning began after leaf fall, almost two months ago, across all the Dourthe properties. This long and technical operation plays a determining role as it is the means to control both volume and quality of the future grape harvest. Until the end of March, our teams will put their expert knowledge and patience to the test on the dormant vines, and in so doing create a high quality 2012 vintage. Pruning is carried out using a highly specific and well thought out technique, timed to perfection according to the age of the vine parcel and grape variety.
In its Dec 2011/Jan 2012 edition, the Revue du Vin de France, French specialised wine magazine, reviews the 1855 Bordeaux Grand Cru Classé wines.
The article praises the quality of the wine, which received an overall score of 16.5/20 : "Dont miss the most recent vintages of this wine, undeniable successes and real revelations for the Medoc. Without doubt one of the greatest value wines in the Medoc."
2009: 17.5/20 "The purity of the fruit in this wine is quite remarkable, revealing red fruit notes that literally burst out of the glass. Delicious and soft on the palate, with perfectly integrated tannins."
2008: 16.5/20 "The wine exudes lovely fresh red fruit notes on the bouquet, also mirrored on the palate, with an added flavoursome edge. The overall effect is seductive and delicious, with lots of depth."
Picked in the second half of August, the dry whites - Dourthe N°1, Dourthe La Grande Cuvée and Château La Garde are very good. The Sauvignon Blanc and Sauvignon Gris are showing typical character and great balance, with moderate alcohol levels.
The red harvest began almost three weeks earlier than in 2010! The harvesters were in full swing from September 15th to October 7th, bringing to a close a particularly challenging year for the vine in terms of weather conditions. Record breaking early growth, very dry, mid-summer conditions in spring and an autumn-like summer, with tropical tendencies during the ripening of the berries, forced our teams to constantly adapt to these highly unusual conditions. We were on constant alert right up to harvesting to make sure the grapes were fully ripe. This vintage is not just down to the hard work of the grower, but to the pickers also.
Winemaking techniques are slowly but surely revealing the potential of each wine. Now, in early December, the red wines are completing malolactic fermentation. They will then be transferred to oak barriques for a minimum ageing of 12 months. On tasting, the wines reveal red fruit aromas and are soft and delicious on the palate, with moderate weight and well balanced. The 2011 vintage should be enjoyed relatively soon, while we patiently await the longer-lasting 2008, 2009 and 2010 vintages.
The red grape harvest began September 5th and 9th at Château La Garde and Grand Barrail Lamarzelle Figeac respectively, and September 13th in the Medoc at Château Belgrave and Château Le Boscq. The grapes are picked exclusively by hand in the Dourthe Vineyards, using small cagettes or trays on a parcel-by-parcel basis, so that the grapes are picked only if they are ripe and healthy. The berries are tasted every day to control levels of ripeness.
Our flagship brand Dourthe N°1 red achieved recognition by the Guide Hachette Wine Guide 2012 for the 2009 vintage.
A superb double win for this renowned negociant company, with a Coup de Coeur judges choice award, for this aptly named wine. Black ink in appearance, with a complex bouquet of black fruits, liquorice and roasted aromas and rich and smooth on the body, enhanced by plenty of delicious tannins. All the potential to develop into a great bottle of wine in a couple of years time.
Once again this year, Dourthe's impressive porfolio and vineyards have gained distinction in this autumn's best French wine guides.
DOURTHE LA GRANDE CUVEE Bordeaux Red 2009 : 2 stars (remarkable wine) in the Guide Hachette des Vins 2012
DOURTHE LA GRANDE CUVEE Sauvignon Blanc 2010 : Parker's note : 88/100 - (the only Bordeaux brand selected) 1 star (great wine) in the Guide Hachette des Vins 2012
CHATEAU BELGRAVE Grand Cru Classé Haut-Médoc : 2007, 2008 and 2009 receive 16, 17 and 17/20 in the Guide of the best French wines 2012 of the coveted Revue du Vin de France.
CHATEAU LA GARDE Pessac-Léognan Rouge 2008 : 1 star (great wine) in the Guide Hachette des Vins 2012
CHATEAU LE BOSCQ Cru Bourgeois Saint-Estèphe 2008 : 15/20, Guide Bettane et Desseauve 2012
CHATEAU GRAND BARRAIL LAMARZELLE FIGEAC Saint Emilion Grand Cru 2009 : 16/20, in the "best wines less 20 ", Revue du Vin de France 2012
CHATEAU PEY LA TOUR Bordeaux Rosé 2010 : 1 star (great wine) in the Guide Hachette des Vins 2012
At Château La Garde, in Pessac-Leognan, the white harvest began August 25th, almost two weeks earlier than usual. Our teams harvested the first vineyard plots of Sauvignon Blanc and Sauvignon Gris, whose remarkable efforts reaped extremely good quality results, similar to the stunning 2007 harvest. The juices, which are already intensely aromatic, will be transferred to barrel tomorrow for alcoholic fermentation.
Dourthe is announced as the guet of honour at the G8 summit, Deauville.
Recognised as a benchmark in quality for Bordeaux brands, Dourthe N°1 has been selected by the Lucien Barrière group to feature systematically at all G8 dining opportunities. The leaders of the G8 world powers, their aides and the press will be able to taste the Dourthe N°1 red and white wines throughout the summit.
Fruit of the dedication, exacting standards and talent of its creators, Dourthe N°1 has represented outstanding value for more than 20 years and its qualities make it a worthy partner of major world events.
