I can remember a time when wines from the appellation sold for the same price as Bordeaux Supérieur. No more! While Lalande is never going to be as chic or expensive as Pomerol (with whom they were involved in an epic legal battle about the very use of their name), the wines are very seductive, often early-maturing, and almost always reasonably priced.
Last Saturday I went to a Portes Ouvertes. The appellation is small, so I was able to taste at 8 châteaux in just one afternoon.
Bourseau: This is just outside the village. They make traditional, early-maturing wine and I walked away with a bottle of the 2012.
Perron: This château is right next door to Bourseau. The Massonie family make good wine as well as a prestige cuvée, La Fleur Perron. They were very proud of their new "cuves d'élevage" to provide the sort of oak ageing that suits their wine. After a couple of years, they will scrape the layer in contact with the wine to continue to provide oak flavours.
I quite liked their 2010.
Roquebrune: This borders on Pomerol, and is quite near to the city of Libourne. I was a little destabilized when they offered me a glass of 1978 as soon as I stepped inside the cellar! Obviously, there were other more recent vintages to taste... Good, simple Merlot.
Domaine de Viaud: This estate is not to confused with Château de Viaud just across the road, which was bought by the Chinese. Domaine de Viaud is an old-fashioned style of wine. I tasted through several vintages and admired the rustic "terroir" side, but chose not to buy any for my cellar.
Bel Air Chevrol: All the previous estates were in Lalande whereas this and the ones to follow were in Néac. Officially, the Néac appellation still exists, but no one uses it, since the name includinfg "Pomerol" is far more successful commercially. Anyway, this is a wine I would pit against one from anywhere else in world in termos of value for money. I rarely buy anthing by the case, but I did walk away with a carton of this wine from the 2009 vintage for 9 something euros a bottle. Textbook Merlot, gracious, easy-to-drink wine. Gotta love it. One for people who only know the great growths of Bordeaux and/or profess to dislike any of the other wines.
Tournefeuille: This is a lovely little château overlooking the Barbanne stream that divides Pomerol and Lalande. Part of the vineyard is on a steep slope. Good, classic wine. They also own Ch. La Révérence in Saint-Emilion and Ch. L'Ecuyer in Pomerol.
Belles Graves: I have followed this estate for years. I did a small vertical tasting and was impressed with how well the wines showed young. But the real discovery was a prestige cuvée I was unfamiliar with, which they make twice a decade: the cuvée Calypso. This is because the owner is the grandson of Jacques-Yves Cousteau. Anyway, I fell in love with the 2008 vintage and it made my day
. I bought two bottles of the 2010 since I was assured that this was even better. The château also does bed and breakfast. Between the beautiful setting on a rise with a sweeping view and the fine wine, I definitely recommend visiting here.Haut Surget: This estate is close to the village. They produce sturdy, fairly early-maturing wines sold at a very reasonable price. They also own Château Grand Moulinet in Pomerol. I bought a bottle of their 2012.
After an afternoon of tasting, I actually wanted to drink some of the stuff. We had a 2000 Ch. Belles Graves and a 2000 Ch. Viaud for dinner. These are drinking well (no need to wait) and the Viaud was particularly good - better than most second tier Pomerols.
Best regards,
Alex R.
