We learned a lot about wine on this tour, which was fun for us novices! Emperor Napolean III requested a wine classification during his reign, which led to the creation of the Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855. This classification ranked wines in importance from 1st to 5th crus (growths). The Medoc region grows mostly Cabernet Sauvignon grapes and blends with other grapes (Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot) to make their wines. Due to the mixture of the grapes, these wines are better when aged for longer periods of times, usually in upwards of 10 years.
Our first wine-tasting stop was at Chateau Lynch-Bages in the Pauillac appellation. We took a short tour of the winery and then had two tastings, the first of the higher quality 1st label wine. The second tasting was from the 2nd label, which is the wine which is good, but not as top-quality. Many chateaux put out two labels. We learned that you can usually tell the difference because on the wine labels, the better wine will always be listed under the Chateau's name. The 2nd-tier wine is usually called a different name.
Our final wine-tasting of the day was at Chateau Taillan in the Haut-Medoc appellation. This beautiful estate and vineyard is just 11km outside of Bordeaux and dates from the Middle Ages.
The next stop on our tour was in the village of St. Emilion. Our guide gave us some history about the town, as well as introduction to St. Emilion's famous macarons, a delicious cookie that comes from this area of Bordeaux. After some quick instructions about where to eat and our meet-up point later in the afternoon, our group went to grab lunch at a cafe in one of the main squares. After lunch, we picked up a couple of boxes of macarons...we couldn't leave without those! Then it was time to meet up with everyone for another wine-tasting at a wine-merchant in the village. We tasted five different wines from the St.Emilion region and enjoyed hearing about the different vineyards from our tasting leader and wine merchant.
Our final afternoon stop was at Chateau Laniote just outside the village of St.Emilion. A small, family-run estate, we were thoroughly entertained by the owner, a very charis. We first watched a video about the wine-making process and took a short tour of the fermentation and aging cellars. We ended our visit with a wine-tasting. It was great to see the differences between large and small estates. It gave us an appreciation for how much work it takes to run a vineyard, especially for a smaller estate where the family does all of the work.
We had a fantastic wine weekend in Bordeaux! We enjoyed lots of great French food and learned a lot about French wines! I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter!