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With today 11 ha, the vineyard of Valandraud allows Mr. Thunevin to tighten his selections for the great wine and his second, Virginie de Valandraud (there is a 3rd, Clos Badon, and even a 4th wine!). Rich in colour, always delicious with an elegant tannic structure, Virginie de Valandraud makes those who think that second wines have no soul lie.
The great white wine of Ch. Valandraud, with a sparkling sap and balance. With only 4000 bottles produced, it is a nugget that will do wonders on the table in 5 years (to take advantage of its youthful brilliance) or in 15 years.
A blend of predominantly Sauvignon Gris and Sauvignon Blanc grapes, topped up with Semillon.
Rated 94/100 by M. Quarin "Delicate on entry and immediately melting, with a very nice touch and great flesh, the wine stretches out spicy, before bouncing back on the finish, very tasty, beautiful and irresistible. Bravo!"
With today 11 ha, the vineyard of Valandraud allows Mr. Thunevin to tighten his selections for the great wine and his second, Virginie de Valandraud (there is a 3rd, Clos Badon, and even a 4th wine!). Rich in colour, always delicious with an elegant tannic structure, Virginie de Valandraud makes those who think that second wines have no soul lie.
Self-taught, Jean-Luc Thunevin and his wife Murielle got their start in the Bordeaux vineyards when they bought a tiny 0.6 hectare plot in Saint-Émilion, near Pavie-Macquin. Produced in minute quantities, vinified with the means at hand but with meticulous care, Valandraud soon made a name for itself, to the point of giving rise to the 'garage wine' movement in the 1990s.
Now with a vineyard of almost 11 hectares on the cooler limestone terroirs of Saint-Etienne de Lisse (on the eastern edge of the appellation) and a bioclimatic cellar allowing gravity-fed vinification, Valandraud is now a Premier Grand Cru Classé in its own right.
The 2019 vintage is rated 98/100 (the best rating in Saint-Emilion, on a par with Ausone and Cheval Blanc) by the Revue du Vin de France "The perfect fleshiness and just brilliance of this 2019 finish to convince us that we are in the presence of one of the greatest terroirs of Saint-Emilion." (September 2022)