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What We Say 2008 Medoc, Cru Bourgeois
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Mission Codename: Second to None
Operative: Agent White
Objective: Visit the Medoc and secure an exclusive allocation of a Cru Bourgeois for our operatives.
Mission Status: Accomplished!
Current Winery: Chateau Poitevin
Wine Subject: 2008 Medoc, Cru Bourgeois
Winemaker: Guillaume Poitevin
Backgrounder: The Médoc, on the tip of the Rive Gauche gets its name from the Latin medio aquae because it lies between the estuary of the the Gironde and the Atlantic Ocean. The region is best know as the home of some of Bordeaux best, and most expensive, wines. Many of the top wineries however, produce second and third label wines that while are not totally comparable to their top-shelf brethren, are extremely enjoyable. The wines of this region tend to be Cabernet Sauvignon dominated blended with any number of the other fine grapes in the region.
Today’s selection is 55% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Petit Verdot and is designated Cru Bourgeois.
Wine Spies Tasting Profile:
Look – Dark garnet with ruby red streaks and reflections that shine through its deeply hued but clear hear. Along the edges, the color only slightly pales. When swirled, evenly spaced medium thick legs race down the side of the glass to the wine below.
Smell – Bold and redolent with its green herbal, fennel and forest earth undertones frame the dark red and black fruit including black cherry, plum and ripe blackberry. Complex notes of cigar box, bittersweet chocolate and even some savory notes lead you in.
Feel – This dry wine is medium bodied with finely grained tannins and dusty minerality that balances its lively acidity providing well structured and mildly chewy mouthfeel.
Taste – Black cherry, plum and other dark fruit blend with the herbal, forest earth and savory notes found on the nose. A touch of bittersweet chocolate, tar and dark minerals are both felt and tasted. Slightly restrained on the palate, something that wouldn’t be evident from the bold nose gives this wine an elegant flavor profile..
Finish – Long and clean with the fresh sweetness of the fruit fading first leaving behind just hints of those flavors that linger with the other flavors while the mouth drying tannins and minerality that lasts and lasts.
Conclusion – The 2008 Chateau Poitevin Medoc, Cru Bourgeois is a lovely wine that surprises you with its rich and bold nose and its more restrained old-world palate. Clean and fresh with approachable complexity. A pleasant wine that can be easily enjoyed, especially considering its medium-bodied palate, with a variety of foods, dried or grilled meats. Enjoy this wine now, after decanting or cellar for the next three to five years.
Mission Report:
WINEMAKER INTEL BRIEFING DOSSIER
SUBJECT: Guillaume Poitevin
WINE EDUCATION: Advanced certification in viticulture
WINEMAKING PHILOSOPHY: Making the most of the grapes by adapting the method of vinification each vintage
WINEMAKER INTERVIEW
AGENT RED: Greetings, Guillaume Poitevin. We are thrilled to be showing your 2008 Chateau Poitevin Medoc, Cru Bourgeois today. Thanks so much for taking some time to answer questions for our Operatives today.
GUILLAUME: Thank you for featuring our wine today.
WHITE: Was there a specific experience in your life that inspired your love of wine?
GUILLAUME: The recovery of property from the working with the cooperative to going out on our own.
WHITE: What wine or winemaker has most influenced your winemaking style?
GUILLAUME: Consulting oenolgist Anoine Médeville, And I was raised on wine and in the vineyards!
WHITE: How would you recommend that people approach the wines of Chateau Poitebin, or wine in general?
GUILLAUME: In all cases, we need people to enjoy themselves with a wine that matches their tastes.
WHITE: What is occupying your time at the winery these days?
GUILLAUME: It’s April so we are doing work in the vineyards.
WHITE: What is your favorite wine to drink every day?
GUILLAUME: The white wine we produce with fish and our reds for the rest of the meats
WHITE: Thank you so much for your time. We learned a lot about you – and your wine. Keep up the great work, we are big fans!
Wine Spies Vineyard Check:
The approximate location of the Chateau Poitevin can be seen in this satellite photo.
What the Winery Says
Chateau Poitevin
Awards & Accolades:
Fours Stars – Decanter – Forward, ripe and harmonious nose with chocolate, meat, leather, plum, oak, cedar notes. Richly fruited and cedary palate with nice power, ripe tannins and balance. Finishes beautifully. Drink 2011-2015.
88 Points – Wine Spectator – Firm tannins frame straightforward flavors of plum, tar and herbs in this chewy red. Floral and mineral notes add interest. Offers lively acidity, with a clean, fresh finish. Drink now through 2016.
About The Wine:
Chateau Poitevin, is a young by Bordeaux standards having been founded in the 1950’s. Since 1991, under the direction of Guillaume Poitevin, it has rapidly made a name for itself. By 2003 it was among only five chateaux promoted into the ill- fated Cru Bourgeois re-classification. The Cru Bourgeois classification was reintroduced with 2008 vintage with a new selection process where wines were blind tasted by an independent panel. Again, Chateau Poitevin was among the selected chateau.
About The Winery:
In the fifties (1950) René POITEVIN acquired a
vineyard of a few acres.
His son, Georges took over some years later. Both father and sons cultivating the vignes with passion and vinifying the wine in the local cooperative.
It was Guillaume in 1991 who decided to vinify the wine in house and it took 6 years to achieve his dream. Today, the property is managed by Guillaume and Natacha, his wife.
The vineyard POITEVIN is now 41 hectares on vines denominated A.O.C. Medoc with the cround dominated by small gravel. The vineyard is tended with respect to the environnment and with the minimum use of chemicals.
Technical Analysis:
Blend: 55% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Petit Verdot
Alcohol: 13.%
