Wine's world

In the 1950s, 70% of Bordeaux's vineyards were planted with white grapes, mainly in the Entre-deux-Mers region. As red wine became increasingly popular, these white vines were gradually uprooted or grafted onto reds.

With consumers now demanding lighter, fresher wines, the great Bordeaux growths quickly (and opportunely) began producing their own dry white wines. Here's our list of the Médoc's great classified growths to date, and we're sure that this (non-exhaustive) list will soon be extended:

- in Haut-Médoc: La Tour Carnet Blanc
- in Margaux: Tertre Blanc, Blanc de Château d'Issan, Brane Cantenac Blanc, Pavillon Blanc du Château Margaux
- Saint-Julien: Arums de Lagrange, Caillou Blanc de Talbot
- in Pauillac: Blanc de Duhart-Milon, Blanc de Lynch-Bages, Les Griffons de Pichon-Baron Blanc, Pichon-Comtesse Blanc, Aile d'Argent de Mouton-Rothschild
- in Saint-Estèphe: Cos d'Estournel Blanc

In parallel with this acceleration, many appellations, like Pessac-Léognan, are asking to be given a white appellation in order to break away from the catch-all ‘Bordeaux blanc’ label. The ‘Médoc blanc’ appellation could be created from the 2026 vintage onwards.

By eliminating alcohol from wine, operators remove the main factor of microbiological stability, risking bacteriological contamination (bacteria, yeast, fungi...) and/or refermentation in the bottle (due to unfermented sugars).

In compensation for the dealcoholization of a wine, it is necessary to :

- either add substantial quantities of the preservative E242 (dimethyl dicarbonate),

- or apply “sterile” filtration (1.2 micron filter) followed by “strong” pasteurization (70°C for 90 minutes).

We are always delighted to learn that a producer has obtained organic certification for his vineyard, a guarantee of meticulous cultivation and practices, since the extra care and attention in the vineyard and cellar can only be beneficial to the final quality of the wine.

On the other hand, we are more circumspect when it comes to claims for biodynamic viticulture based on the agricultural principles (influence of lunar rhythms) laid down in the 1920s by the anthroposophist Rudolf Steiner.

Researchers at the University of Changins (Switzerland, canton of Vaud) have just published the results of 5 years of biodynamic cultivation (using 500 horn dung and 501 horn silica preparations) on a plot of Chasselas grapes, with reference to a control plot grown simply organically.

Their conclusions are clear: 'Analysis of soil physical properties, including bulk density, water holding capacity, structural stability and macropore volume, revealed no significant differences between biodynamic and control treatments over the study period'.

With a question mark hanging over their conclusions: 'The lack of consistent and significant benefits of biodynamic preparations in our study raises questions about the added value of these practices, especially given the higher production costs associated with biodynamic farming, which are 10-15 % higher than those of organic production'.

Further studies will soon be published to confirm or refute this finding. To be continued...