Wine tasting~

On the second day in Bordeaux: it was wine tasting day for all of us. We were going to visit three famous chateau in Medoc area, accompanied by Majorie, I'm not sure what's her job though. She's very nice, speaks fluent english, and also very kind when I asked her how to determine a good wine. This probably isn't the correct way to determine it, but this is what I understand from what Marjorie said: all depend on your own personal taste. For Marjorie, she likes a fruity yet a bit oakey young red wine. But for the others, maybe they like it strong, and after you taste it, the feel and smell of the wine still linger in your mouth. For one guide in the Chateau Baron Rothschild, she explained that she likes a well-balanced taste between fruity and strong. So everyone's taste bud is different. Personally, I like it smooth and fruity, but for the strong and oakey wine, I can't stand it. And one thing I realized from meeting all the owner of the chateau that I visited: the owner's personality blended well in the taste of the wine. I'll explain it on each Chateau.

And how to taste the wine like a pro? We have this three steps: shake in circular, smell, and taste. When you are tasting, make sure you don't drink all of it, drink a small gulp, and you can drink it or spit it out in a small pot. If the owner of the wine introduce a different wine to taste, you can throw away all the remaining wine in your glass into the pot, and taste some more. What a waste really, after all those expensive wine. BTW, if you're going to the vineyard, you will notice in every 2 or 3 rows of vines, there will be roses. This way is to determine whether the vineyards is safe from pests or viruses. If the roses are deteriorating, the grapes are next, so the roses are an indicator.

First, after a long journey from Fronsac to Medoc, we finally arrived in Chateau Branaire-Ducru, where we met Patrick Maroteaux, the owner, and he told us three major points of his wine: fruity, well-balance and elegance. Patrick also noticed that Branaire-Ducru wines are characteristically complex and have a long ageing potential. His chateau is very beautiful, and it is more than a century already. And of course we had a wine tasting session. He opened four bottles of wine: Chateau Branaire Ducru 2012, Duluc de Branaire Ducru 2009, Chateau Branaire-Ducru 2007 and a 2010. Like I said, the the wine's taste are very similar with the owner's personality. Patrick is a very elegant and high-class man, and so is his wine. The wine tasted very smooth and elegant, and I like the oldest one. It was a vintage, and have this smooth fruity flavor, just like his quote on the 3 keys of his wine. We also had a tour in the vineyard and the barrel chamber. BTW every barrel chamber in every chateau has a different smell of wine too. Interesting, huh?

After saying good-bye to Patrick's hospitality and the beautiful chateau, we walked to his neighbor, the Chateau Beychevelle, which the chateau and garden are even beautiful. I wonder how they kept the grass so green and tidy, and the garden is just huge. The winery is a bit old, as the owner, Phillipe Blanc, said that he is going to renovate the whole winery. After the tour, here comes the wine tasting. He also opened four bottles: Chateau Beychevelle Grand Vin 2012, but I forgot the other three, my mistake. Was it 2008, 2007, and a 2010? Phillipe is a straight-forward man, with a very sarcasm humor, and I found out his wine also have this quality. The wine are very strong (well, for me...), and the oak flavor is way stronger than du'cru. I didn't like this type of wine really, but it was an eye opening experience to the world of wine, which is very complicated.

For lunch, we ate at Phillip's Chateau, where the lunch is ready to served. We sat and put the napkin on our lap, and the food just come right in front of us by the stewardess. I noticed that each person has a glass for water, and two glasses for different wine. So Phillipe opened the lunch by introducing the first wine: Chateau Beychevelle Gran Vin 2012 and Amiral de Beychevelle 2008, . In France, usually they served the least good wine first, then the quality continually increased, and finally the best wine is served last. Also we talked a lot while eating.

Phew, what a luxurious lunch. I have never felt so freaking full. We took a break to a square in Medoc, where the Marathon du Medoc would take place, to pick up the number. Dad has this thing on marathon shirts, he really bought a lot. The shirts usually a dry-fit shirts, and also cheap. He bought a shirt from Quebec Marathon, and the lady gave us one more for free. I also saw this big cute dog, it's so huge! Why all french dogs usually very big?

But the journey wasn't over yet. Marjorie took us to Chateau Pichon-Longueville. The first glance at its Chateau, I thought I arrived in Disney's Cinderella's castle. It's so beautiful, out of words, and... You should see the chateau yourself, really. The guide then brought us along in the vineyard, and in the winery. I saw 3 Chateaus that day, and I think Chateau Pichon-Longueville has the newest and modern technology to process their wine. We later tasted Chateau Pichon-Longueville 2008, Les Tourelles de Longueville 2008, Chateau Pibran 2008. I found the wines here tasted a bit strong, but unlike Chateau Beychevelle. One of us wanted to buy from here, so the guide also opened another two bottles of wine (how generous): Chateau Pichon-Longueville 2005 and 2004. For my personal taste, I prefer the 2004 one. So fruity, a bit sweet on the tounge, and so smooth. But the others liked the 2005 better. Ah well maybe I'm still an amateur, don't know how to determine a good wine. BTW Chateau Pichon Longueville also stored some of their best and oldest wine in the cellar. I saw like wines from the 90's and also this wine from 1941!

We ate dinner at chateau de La Dauphine, but it was ok. Mainly the same as the lunch that day. Most of us were going to run on the marathon the next day, so they decided to turn in earlier. Bonne-nuit!