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Château Margaux
From Engels to Karl Marx: "What is your greatest happiness?"
From Karl Marx to Engels: "A bottle of Château Margaux 1848!"
The origins of the château Margaux come from the twelfth century, « la Mothe de Margaux » stood right at the place of the current castle. At that time, there were no vineyards on the estate. Following the 100-year-war, during the sixteenth century, the family Lestonnec, especially Pierre de Lestonnec, reconstituted the field. At the end of the seventeenth century, the Château Margaux was constituted of 265 hectares, with one third of vines, just like today.
In the early eighteenth century, the bailiff at this time, Berlon, helped to improve the techniques of vinification. He decided to separate the red grapes from the white ones. He also chose not to make the vintage during the morning (because the grapes are covered with dew) and to highlight the best plots. Already at that time, the English minister, Sir Robert Walpole bought four barrels of Château Margaux by quarter. Just as Thomas Jefferson, Ambassador of the USA in France, who wrote "there cannot be a better bottle than bottle of château Margaux."
In the middle of the eighteenth century, Joseph de Fumel planted the best vines on the best plots. However, the end of the century was quite a difficult period, due mainly to the French revolution.
In the nineteenth century, the Marquis of Colonilla bought the castle in auction. He then built, instead of the Gothic mansion, unrepresentative, he said, of the field, the house, which can be admired today. Louis Combes took care of the work and fulfilled his life's work, which has been nicknamed "the Versailles of Médoc." It was a real viticultural city. Indeed, the Château Margaux was recognized as historic monument in 1946.
After the death of Colonilla, Aguado bought the field. His daughter-in-law sold it in 1879 to the Count Pillet-Will. The nineteenth century was marked, in particular, by the emergence of a fungus, coming from the USA, the oïdium. However, during the famous classification of 1855, which has classified the wines of the Médoc and a property of Graves (the Château Haut-Brion), the Château Margaux was ranked among the elite of the four "premier grand cru classé" (Mouton Rothschild joined them in 1973). It was the only one to be rated 20/20. However, the Count Pillet-Will faced a very difficult period: after the oïdium, another fungus, the famous mildew and then the phylloxera, (an insect coming from America), arrived in the Bordeaux’s vineyards. After these "diseases", it will need to wait until 1893 to find a great vintage as the 1870.
After the death of Pillet-Will, his son-in-law, the Duke of Trémoille, inherited the property. The broker, Pierre Moreau, a trusted man of the Duke, forced the "mise en bouteille au château" in 1924. It will be stopped in 1930 and taken back in 1949.
The family Girestet acquired the area around the year 1950. The recession of the 70th and some disastrous vintages (1972, 1973, and 1974) forced Pierre and Bernard Girestet to sell the Château Margaux to André Mentzelopoulos. He was a true pioneer and decided to invest in the castle, in order to offer the best possibilities for redressing the level of the château Margaux: selection of new vines, breeding new barrels, planning… This is the renaissance of Château Margaux with this man. Therefore, the year 1978 is welcomed as an exceptional one. At his death in 1980, his daughter, Corinne, took up the area. The years 1980 signed with the renewal of property.
The Château Margaux is privileged, on many points, but he has the unique chance to have the same name as its appellation. Some vintages have become legendary ones: 1900, 1953, 1961, 1982, 1990… These vintages have a large preserving capacity beyond the century… assembly of cabernet sauvignon (75%), merlot (20%), petit verdot and cabernet franc (5%), the Château Margaux is located on a clay, limestone soil (where is located the merlot) and on white Graves, made of gravel.
Like a great Bordeaux, Château Margaux must be served « chambré », ie around 18-19 ° C. Regarding decanting, ie transferred of the bottle into a pitcher over a burning candle (to see the filing), is not compulsory for young wines. A slight aeration is, however, advisable for them, in order to open. The settling for older vintages is not mandatory. However, if there is a sediment, in the bottle, regardless of age, the decanting is strongly recommended. The decanting should not be done too early before the tasting.
The castle has 300 hectares, on which 84 are solely dedicated to the vine: Château Margaux, Pavillon Rouge du Château Margaux, Pavillon Blanc du Château Margaux are great wines, produced by the Estate.
A rich wine with beautiful and complex bouquet… |
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