The March 2 Event at Le Select: A tasting of Vignobles de Larose wines along with a discussion on the new Classification of Crus Bourgeois.

1.The Date and Time: Monday March 2, 2020  Noon – 2:30 PM

The Event: A tasting of Vignobles de Larose wines along with a discussion on the new Classification of Crus Bourgeois.

The Venue: Le Select

The Target Audience: Wine Writers' Circle of Canada members

The Availability/Catalogue: Marchands des Ameriques is the agency (see below). Differing vintages are currently available; others will come in August and October of this year.

The Quote/Background: Franck Bijon, the General Manager and Chief Winemaker of Vignobles de la Rose made the presentation, commenting on the company's history. It's got three major Chateaux in the Haut-Medoc: Chateau LaRose Trintaudon (huge seller in the USA), Chateau LaRose Perganson, and Chateau Arnauld. Area is 263 hectares, production is 1.3 million bottles a year, exports are 30% of the company totals. The company began its first rehabilitation in 1963, followed by another in 2000 to get numerous environmental certifications (and again in 2020). Franck also discussed the details on applying for classification. Crus Bourgeois were classified in 2003 and then again in 2020. There are 247 chateaux with three levels. The first is a basic entry, followed by "superior" and then "exceptional". Re-validation is every five years (e.g., 2025, 2030, etc.). LaRose's barrel program includes 3600 barrels (of which 900 are new) for the Trintaudon, 400 barrels (of which 140 are new) for the Perganson (superior), and 35 all-new barrels for the Arnauld (exceptional). In 2019, they bought Chateau Tour de Pez in St. Estephe, which we did not taste today.

The Wines: Kenneth Gunn of the Marchands des Vins agency has the Haut-Medoc wines for sale...

 

**** BEST -- Four Stars (91+ in Quality/Price Rating terms):

-Chateau LaRose Trintaudon 2011 [juicy and racy] $29.50 licensee

-Chateau LaRose Perganson 2008 [my fave of the day] $34.50 licensee

-Chateau LaRose Perganson 2010 [2011 at the agency for $36 licensee] coming Oct 3

 

***1/2 BETTER -- Three and a Half Stars (88 – 90 in Quality/Price Rating terms):

-Chateau LaRose Trintaudon 2009 – coming Aug 22

-Chateau Arnauld 2012

-Chateau Arnauld 2014 $58.10 licensee

 

The Food: Bordeaux friendly food, such as a salade d'endive, foies de canard, filet de boeuf grille, risotto aux champignons, and souffle au fromage et aux noisettes.

The Downside: I had just come from the dentist.

The Upside: Trintaudon 2003, 2014, and 2015 are at the LCBO; Perganson 2006 is at the LCBO $32.10 retail.

The Contact Person: manon.morel@vignoblesdelarose.com and kenneth@marchandsdesameriques.com

The Event's Marketing Effectiveness and Execution (numerical grade): 91

 

Chimo! www.deantudor.com