"Earth, Wind and Fire..."
Located to the west of Pauillac, our white vineyard saw a late flowering, due to its cooler, more clayey terroir. At the end of July, we noted a reasonable grape load on the vines, with homogeneous clusters that were evenly distributed over the vinestocks, especially the Muscadelle and Semillon. Maturity checks at the end of August revealed good sanitary conditions with a moderate increase in alcoholic strength. The rains in early September forced us to pick the leaves on the second side and to carry out a sanitary removal of the immature clusters. This finally allowed us to put back the picking by around ten days.
Harvesting began on 19 September 19th - 2 weeks later than usual - and ended on 26 September with the last of the Sauvignon boasting between 12.5 and 13% alcohol by volume, and a steady acidity, but only a modest yield (30 hl/ha). After settling, the bulk of the white harvest was divided into new and onewine barrels, whilst one third went into stainless steel vats. Gentle fermentations at low temperatures revealed fresh, striking aromas.
From November onwards, ageing was optimised by the twice-weekly « stirring » of the lees thanks to our new system of individual barrel rotation. The wines thus spend the winter stabilizing and being refined. After 6 months of maturing in wood, the wine was pumped over in vats for fining and put into barrels in the spring. The 2013 like all late-harvest vintages, is an excellent vintage for white wines. Blanc de Lynch-Bages couples both floral and fruity aromas, a generous mid palate and a long finish.
Harvest : Hand-picked and sorted at the vineyard
Ageing : Regular stirring of the lees on oak barrels (50% new wood)
Blending : 66% Sauvignon, 12% Sémillon, 22% Muscadelle