Le Chai Winemakers

The Laithwaite Sauvignon 2011

2012-01-27T11:09:00.006Z

It’s that time of year again when we begin bottling the 2011 whites and first up as always is the Laithwaite Sauvignon Blanc. This delicate, explosively aromatic and zesty dry white is the most fragile of all the wines we make and freshness is the key to the success. Ever since the day the grapes were harvested they have been kept in an inert environment where the wine avoids any contact with

The Northern Médoc

2012-01-20T11:27:00.009Z

It feels like I‘ve been travelling to another wine region. After today’s 350km drive, one may think I have been travelling to either the Midi or south to Spain, but in fact I never left Bordeaux! Yesterday I was in the eastern limit of Bordeaux at Sainte-Foy and today the extreme north-west, described beautifully by Hugh Jonson: “The Médoc is a great tongue of flat or barely undulating land

A very late but a very Happy New Year!

2012-01-18T10:54:00.000Z

Things kicked straight back into action here at Le Chai on January 2nd. I was soon amongst the barrels, tasting everything and beginning to make plans for wines to be bottled in the next three months. Jean-Marc and I had tasted some lovely Gold medal-winning wines from an often-overlooked part of Bordeaux and early this week however I went to check it out for myself. Once again it was a new area

Carcassonne and Carbardès

2011-12-14T09:44:00.002Z

Carcassonne is undoubtedly (and rightly so) famous first for its splendid fairytale walled city, but it also rich in diverse wine-growing areas and a consistent source for some of my highest quality Chai wines. The only AOC here is Carbardès; a largely unknown wine growing area and only upgraded to AOC status in 1999. The department is the Aude and like many Midi regions it is still undiscovered

Into the Midi

2011-12-08T12:11:00.003Z

The grand Midi trip started with Cat (our Midi buyer) in our very own Chai with a tasting of Bergerac wines. Later that evening we headed for Toulouse, ready to explore the wine region of Côtes du Frontonnais, now called AOC Fronton.The region has a long, fascinating history and wine growing has been very important here. The Romans planted the first vines and it was once owned by the Order of St.

Lunch in Pomerol

2011-12-05T15:50:00.011Z

Kiwi James left us last week to head for his next harvest back home in Marlborough, New Zealand. He has been working with us as a flying winemaker for our three-month harvest, so for a special treat we went to lunch in the Pomerol equivalent of our favourite Castillon ‘Voyageur’ restaurant called the ‘Les Platanes’. We were joined by our friend Guillaume Thienpont whose family châteaux include

Part four – BODEGAS MUGA

2011-11-25T13:50:00.005Z

We crossed the road from Bodegas Tondonia and were immediately met by winemaker Jorge Muga, who invited us into his family winery. It was quite a contrast to Tondonia, but what made it extremely interesting was that although they work with the same equipment (100% oak vats and barrels), they use new oak and the winemaking process is very modern, creating a modern style of Rioja. The Muga estate

La Rioja, Spain - Part Three

2011-11-23T14:14:00.013Z

Rioja is a fabulous region and Tony has been buying from here for almost 40 years. Our very own JMS has his winery Altos here so we’ve plenty of contacts and friends to guide us through the region, the wines and of course; the food.Spain is often thought of as flat and hot. It isn’t. The Rioja region is actually very picturesque and the rolling vineyards are at a height of up to 800m (2,600ft).

The Basque Country - Part Two

2011-11-22T16:02:00.005Z

A Spanish Basque Lunch! A very long winding drive from Saint-Jean-de-Pied-de-Port eventually led us to the tiny picturesque Basque fishing village of Getaria, just west of Saint-Sebastien. We were fortunate to be booked into the renowned Kaia restaurant by Barón de Barbón winemaker Javier. Not does it serve amazing fresh seafood, but the wine list is extensive and prices have not changed since

The Basque Country - Part One

2011-11-17T11:31:00.013Z

The last of the 2011 barrels were sulphured last Wednesday and so triggered Jean-Marc into action by keeping his promise of our end of harvest winemaker’s trip. Every year, JMS organises a trip for the team somewhere using his vast ex-schoolmate network. They all seem to be someone or another in the restaurant or alcohol trade! This year we were off into Basque country starting out with a trip to

No travelling for us winemakers last week …

2011-11-07T15:33:00.001Z

… but that doesn’t mean we haven’t been busy! It is another crucial point in the winemaking process when the wines are now dry, ferments have finished and the natural protective CO2 has disappeared leaving the wine very vulnerable to oxidation. So we have been in the cellar all week, moving wines off their sediment, adding protective sulphur, cleaning out barrels and vats and putting everything

Trains, Planes and Automobiles

2011-10-27T14:02:00.002+01:00

Last Friday and Saturday we had our annual Laithwaites show in our brilliant flagship store 'the Arch.' Another great success, with 1300 customers visiting to enjoy our wines, experience the taste tunnel and sample the wares of various food stands. I left London by train very early Monday morning to catch the red eye BA flight to Bordeaux. Arriving on time, I made a quick stop off at Le Chai to

Into the Gers

2011-10-24T09:38:00.009+01:00

Another early start and a very misty morning drive into the Entre-Deux-Mers to be at the bottling of the second half of little Bordeaux Château Geneau. The mist is now here every morning as the cold nights set in and the warm Dordogne releases the mist like a smoke machine! This Geneau is really lovely drinking claret; just what affordable Bordeaux used to be like. It’s a wine we have nurtured

The Week That Was ... Rather Busy!

2011-10-17T16:54:00.000+01:00

There have been busy weeks and there has been last week! Not only were the last of the reds being harvested in Bordeaux, but the first reds in the Midi were being pressed off. That meant a couple of dashes down and back to the Midi to start the week off, setting the pace that would continue for the next seven days. The desired malo-lactic fermentation (MLF) was kicking off in the Chai, too and

Un Vent de Folie!

2011-10-05T14:22:00.001+01:00

It's been the most superb weather here in Bordeaux for the last 10 days … a huge turn around from what was almost a disastrous vintage. 30-degree heat and cool, dry nights have enabled the reds to reach optimum ripeness and concentration. Those growers who played the risk game by waiting can now look forward to making some superb wines! With another week of sun and heat forecast we will be taking

Back to The Midi

2011-09-26T16:29:00.002+01:00

It was an absolute scorcher down in the Midi and a very different world to the fresh, misty mornings of Bordeaux! Maitena and I set off early into the warm sunshine heading the back way from Narbonne through the Corbières and into Fitou. This old road brings back many fond memories. It was here, in the small village of Albas way back in 1998, I arrived fresh faced for my first French harvest and

A sticky harvest in Loupiac

2011-09-21T11:10:00.003+01:00

Another beautiful morning here at Le Chai with the sun rising behind the harvest-time river mist. A perfect start to another grape-picking day here on the right bank of Bordeaux!The river mist stays low here in Castillon and St. Emilion, safely away from the vineyards. But today I am heading into Bordeaux sweet-wine country; across the Entre-Deux-Mers to the Garonne River. The viticulture and

Red packs in as we start harvesting the reds

2011-09-20T08:57:00.000+01:00

This morning really felt like the start of the Bordeaux harvest as I drove down early to Le Chai. It was still dark and misty; a chill was in the air and a bustle of harvest machines were making their way busily in and out of the vineyards. In town, groups of hand pickers were standing outside of the cafes drinking their coffee and eating croissants, getting ready for the days hard graft. Henry

The Last of the Whites!

2011-09-19T11:22:00.001+01:00

The La Voûte Chardonnay from Limoux was finally picked on Tuesday night and that ends the white harvest for the Chai! Now we can get busy in the Chai with barrel work and monitor the ferments. The La Voûte this year is of exceptional quality and so I have decided to do ‘The Pyramid’ ferment! I have built a stack of different size oak barrels starting the foundation with 300 litre hogs heads and

It's all go in Le Chai!

2011-09-12T10:37:00.002+01:00

The last 3 days have been a little manic to say the least. The Chai winemakers have been putting in very long hours to get the fruit off the vine in the South of France, up to the Chai and into barrels and vats for selected fermentations. The Grenache Gris, Chardonnay from Carcassonne, the Viognier, the all new Carignan Blanc and the Sauvignon Gris from Le Coin are now all in and we now have 22

Harvesting Chardonnay and Viognier

2011-09-07T16:36:00.001+01:00

After spending another few worrying nights in Carcassonne, visiting the vineyard who knows how many times, I finally decided to harvest the Chardonnay last night! Unfortunately there is quite a lot of hidden bunch rot on the lower vineyards and I have made the decision not to make any Chai wine from these vineyards this year. Fortunately however, the fruit from the high, well-drained and

And the winner is ... Vermentino!

2011-09-06T09:22:00.002+01:00

A nerve-wracking weekend as rain and hot, humid weather darted about France, becoming increasingly impossible to forecast. However we stuck to our guns through several sleepless nights and the vineyard fortunately survived most of the localised downpours. We hung in there until the Vermentino ripeness felt right for this year. We picked very quickly in the early hours on Monday morning and now

The Harvest Weather Game

2011-09-02T10:53:00.002+01:00

This is a game for up to 1,000,000 players for ages 0-125yrs old To play you need: • 1 winemaker (or more to make even more interesting!) • an almost-ripe vineyard • very erratic weather • pair of Blundstone boots • patience • a bit of luck Then the fun begins! We have been watching the forecast carefully and been up and down every row of each vineyard. But just when we decided to play the

An exciting find in Limoux

2011-09-01T09:35:00.002+01:00

Started to rain in Bordeaux when I left but four hours later I was through the gates of the Midi and into the beautiful sunshine. However, West-Midi sunshine also comes with the very strong Tramotane wind! I met up with Madame F, Maitena and viticulturist Regis to do a tour of the Vin de France-trophy-winning La Voute vineyards to see what the maturity is like. Limoux is a fascinating

Back in Bordeaux ...

2011-08-31T09:41:00.004+01:00

... and our Sauvignon Blanc, Sauvignon Gris and Semillon have all been harvested in the Entre Deux Mers. The first to come in was the Sauvignon Blanc and some really explosive asparagus and grassy flavours already obvious in the juice. James had cooled the juice down to 5 degrees and settled out the large sediment what they call ‘gros lies’ in French. This morning, we racked carefully the cold