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Château Coutet
Château Coutet is a ''Premier Cru Classé'' (French: First Growth) sweet wine from the Sauternes-Barsac appellation located in Barsac, in the southern part of France's Bordeaux vineyards. Château Coutet is one of the oldest Sauternes producing vineyards, and is described by David Peppercorn as a "twin" of Barsac's other ''Premier cru'' estate, Château Climens. Coutet also produces a second wine, Chartreuse de Coutet, a dry white wine named Vin Sec de Chateau Coutet and a cuvée in vintages of exceptional quality, Cuvée Madame. History The estate was acquired in 1643 by Charles le Guerin, Lord of Coutet, a counselor at the Bordeaux parliament. In 1695 he passed the estate on to his nephew, Jean le Pichard, whose descendants owned Coutet until 1788. It was at this time that the former US president Thomas Jefferson noted Coutet as the best Sauternes originating from Barsac.Markham Jr., Dewey. ''1855: Histoire d’un Classement des vins de Bordeaux. Bordeaux'', Féret Coutet ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
French Revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considered fundamental principles of liberal democracy, while phrases like ''liberté, égalité, fraternité'' reappeared in other revolts, such as the 1917 Russian Revolution, and inspired campaigns for the abolition of slavery and universal suffrage. The values and institutions it created dominate French politics to this day. Its causes are generally agreed to be a combination of social, political and economic factors, which the ''Ancien Régime'' proved unable to manage. In May 1789, widespread social distress led to the convocation of the Estates General, which was converted into a National Assembly in June. Continuing unrest culminated in the Storming of the Bastille on 14 July, which led to a series of radical measures by the Assembly, i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sauvignon Blanc
is a green-skinned grape variety that originates from the Bordeaux region of France. The grape most likely gets its name from the French words ''sauvage'' ("wild") and ''blanc'' ("white") due to its early origins as an indigenous grape in South West France. It is possibly a descendant of Savagnin. is planted in many of the world's wine regions, producing a crisp, dry, and refreshing white varietal wine. The grape is also a component of the famous dessert wines from Sauternes and Barsac. Sauvignon blanc is widely cultivated in France, Chile, Romania, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Bulgaria, the states of Oregon, Washington, and California in the US. Some New World Sauvignon blancs, particularly from California, may also be called "Fumé Blanc", a marketing term coined by Robert Mondavi in reference to Pouilly-Fumé. Depending on the climate, the flavor can range from aggressively grassy to sweetly tropical. In cooler climates, the grape has a tendency to pr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sémillon
Sémillon is a golden-skinned grape used to make dry and sweet white wines, mostly in France and Australia. Its thin skin and susceptibility to botrytis make it dominate the sweet wine region Sauternes AOC and Barsac AOC. History The Sémillon grape is native to the Bordeaux region. It was known as Sémillon de Saint-Émilion in 1736, while Sémillon also resembles the local pronunciation of the town's name ( emi'ʎuŋ. It first arrived in Australia in the early 19th century and by the 1820s the grape covered over 90% of South Africa's vineyards, where it was known as ''Wyndruif'', meaning "wine grape". It was once considered to be the most planted grape in the world, although this is no longer the case. In the 1950s, Chile's vineyards were made up of over 75% Sémillon. Today, it accounts for just 1% of South African Cape vines. Viticulture Sémillon, which is relatively easy to cultivate, consistently produces six to eight tons of grapes per acre from its vigorous vines.P ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Botrytis Cinerea
''Botrytis cinerea'' is a necrotrophic fungus that affects many plant species, although its most notable hosts may be wine grapes. In viticulture, it is commonly known as "botrytis bunch rot"; in horticulture, it is usually called "grey mould" or "gray mold". The fungus gives rise to two different kinds of infections on grapes. The first, grey rot, is the result of consistently wet or humid conditions, and typically results in the loss of the affected bunches. The second, noble rot, occurs when drier conditions follow wetter, and can result in distinctive sweet dessert wines, such as Sauternes (wine), Sauternes or the Aszú of Tokaji/Grasă de Cotnari. The species name ''Botrytis cinerea'' is derived from the Latin for "grapes like ashes"; although poetic, the "grapes" refers to the bunching of the fungal spores on their Conidium, conidiophores, and "ashes" just refers to the greyish colour of the spores ''en masse''. The fungus is usually referred to by its anamorph (asexual form ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Microclimate (wine)
In viticulture, there are several levels of regional climates that are used to describe the ''terroir'' or immutable characteristics of an area. These levels can be as broad as a macroclimate which includes entire wine regions or as small as a microclimate which includes the unique environment around an individual grapevine. In the middle is the mesoclimate which usually describes the characteristics of a particular vineyard site. Levels *Macroclimate, in viticulture, refers to the regional climate of a broad area such as an American Viticultural Area (AVA) or a French ''Appellation d'origine contrôlée'' (AOC). It can include an area on the scale of tens to hundreds of kilometers. On smaller scales are the related designations of mesoclimate and microclimate.J. Robinson (ed) ''"The Oxford Companion to Wine"'' Third Edition, pp. 416, 439, 442. Oxford University Press 2006 . *Mesoclimate refers to the climate of a particular vineyard site and is generally restricted to a space o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ciron
The Ciron (; oc, Siron) is a left tributary of the Garonne, in Gironde, Southwest France. It is long. Geography The Ciron rises in the eastern end of the Moors of Gascony, in Landes. It flows north-west, mainly through the moors of Gironde, crosses the Sauternes vineyard and joins the Garonne at Barsac, downstream from Langon. The moisture it brings, and morning mists it causes, are favorable to the development of ''Botrytis cinerea'' on grapes, a fungus that contributes to the high quality and renown of Sauternes wines. Départements and towns The Ciron flows through the following ''départements'' and towns: * Landes (40) : Lubbon * Lot-et-Garonne (47) * Gironde (33) : Noaillan, Villandraut, Barsac, Cérons, Bommes Tributaries * (L) le Giscos, from Giscos * (R) le Barthos, * (L) la Gouaneyre, from Captieux Captieux (; oc, Capsiuts) is a commune of Southwestern France, located in the Gironde department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine (before 2015: Aquitaine). It ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Garonne
The Garonne (, also , ; Occitan, Catalan, Basque, and es, Garona, ; la, Garumna or ) is a river of southwest France and northern Spain. It flows from the central Spanish Pyrenees to the Gironde estuary at the French port of Bordeaux – a length of , of which is in Spain (Val d'Aran); The Ratera-Saboredo cirque has been pointed by many researchers as the origin of the Garonne.Faura i Sans (M.); Sobre hidrología subterránea en los Pirineos Centrales de Aragón y Cataluña. Bol. de la Real Soc. de Hist. Nat, vom. XVI, pgs. 353-354. Madrid, 1916. The third thesis holds that the river rises on the slopes of Pic Aneto at above sea level and flows by way of a sinkhole known as the '' Forau de Aigualluts'' () through the limestone of the Tuca Blanca de Pomèro and a resurgence in the Val dera Artiga above the Aran Valley in the Spanish Pyrenees. This underground route was suggested by the geologist Ramond de Carbonnières in 1787, but there was no confirmation until 1931, whe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Philippine De Rothschild
Philippine Mathilde Camille, Baroness de Rothschild (22 November 1933 – 23 August 2014) was the owner of the French winery Château Mouton Rothschild. She acted under the stage name Philippine Pascal (imprinting on her paternal grandfather Henri de Rothschild who also used the last name Pascal to write plays). She was the only daughter of the vintner Baron Philippe de Rothschild, a member of the Rothschild banking dynasty. Biography Rothschild was born in Paris, France. At the time of her birth, her mother, Elisabeth Pelletier de Chambure, a French Catholic aristocrat, was not married to her father Philippe de Rothschild, but instead married to Jonkheer Marc de Becker-Rémy, a Belgian nobleman. After a legal skirmish and the Jonkheer's threats to kidnap his wife's child, the Becker-Rémys divorced in 1934. Shortly afterwards, Rothschild's mother and father eventually married that same year in Paris. By 1939, Philippe de Rothschild separated from Elisabeth, who reverted to using ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Château De Malle
Château de Malle is a sweet white wine ranked as Second Cru Classé (French, "Second Growth") in the original Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855. Belonging to the Sauternes appellation in Gironde, in the region of Graves, the winery is located in the commune of Sauternes. The gardens of the chateau are classified among the Notable Gardens of France by the Committee of Parks and Gardens of the French Ministry of Culture. History The estate has, over the centuries, known numerous trials and tribulations. Both good and bad fortune. The Château was not inhabited regularly for practically two generations. In the early fifties Pierre de Bournazel took over the property inherited from his uncle and godfather, Pierre de Lur-Saluces. He was a man possessed by a love of the land and of stone and he decided to re-instil life into the buildings and vineyards which undeniably were in a state of considerable neglect. He rebuilt the fermentation cellar, studied estate management, f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Château Filhot
Château Filhot, archaically named Maison Noble de Verdoulet, is a winery rated ''Deuxième cru classé'' (French, “Second Growth”) in the Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855, from the Sauternes appellation in Gironde. Considered by some unjustly omitted from the ''Premier cru'' classification, Filhot produces a drier wine than Château d'Yquem, with an unusually high alcohol content for a Sauternes. History The vineyard dating from the 1630s, the château was founded by Romain de Filhot in 1709. Following the French revolution, the estate was taken over by Romain-Bertrand de Lur-Saluces who added the estate of Pinaud du Rey and had the château redesigned to its English appearance in 1840. During the period when then American ambassador to France Thomas Jefferson ranked the wine directly behind Yquem, Filhot enjoyed a greater reputation than today, and the two wines were comparably priced. In 1935, Comtesse Durieu de Lacarelle (the sister of the Marquis de Lur-Sa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Château D'Yquem
Château d'Yquem () is a '' Premier Cru Supérieur'' ( Fr: "Superior First Growth") wine from the Sauternes, Gironde region in the southern part of the Bordeaux vineyards known as Graves. In the Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855, Château d'Yquem was the only Sauternes given this rating, indicating its perceived superiority and higher prices over all other wines of its type. Yquem's success stems largely from the site's susceptibility to attack by "noble rot" (a particular kind of infestation by ''Botrytis cinerea''). Wines from Château d'Yquem are characterised by their complexity, concentration and sweetness, which is balanced by relatively high acidity. With proper care, a bottle will keep for a century or more, and the fruity overtones will gradually fade and integrate with more complex secondary and tertiary flavours. Since 1959, Château d'Yquem has also produced a dry white wine called ''Ygrec'' (Fr: the letter "Y"), made predominantly from Sauvignon blan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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