Assemblage, the secret behind the Bordeaux wine

Last year we went on a special wine outing arranged by the Bordeaux Tourist Office in cooperation with Les Médocaines, four female wine growers in the Médoc wine area. At the La Tour de Bessan Castle we learned a little about assemblage, the art of mixing different grapes to create a wine. Here they say that assemblage is what gives the Bordeaux wines their soul.

The La Tour de Bessan Castle does not resemble a castle. It's a futuristic creation in the shape of a cube, totally modern. When we arrive we are greeted by Marie-Laure Lurton, the owner, who shows us three different wine glasses in front of each seat. The first glass contains a wine made of merlot grapes, the second a wine made of cabernet sauvignon grapes and the third a mix of the two grapes.


Our first task is to taste the merlot wine and give our impressions. I'm a bit surprised to say that my first impression is... alcohol! It smells strongly of alcohol. I'm right, the merlot grape is strong and has a natural alcohol content of 12-14 percent. Usually the merlot grape gives a wine that is soft, fruity and with little acidity.

Then we try the second glass with only cabernet sauvignon. Here I feel the harshness first, the tannins that make my tongue curl. Then I feel a bit of spiciness and a sensation of volume that was lacking in the first glass. The cabernet sauvignon grape is said to be the king of grapes when it has the right ripeness, it gives a rich aroma, structure from the tannins and taste sensations that last in your mouth. It is a wine that can be kept for a long time.

Finally we try the last glass and are asked to guess the percentage of merlot and cabernet sauvignon. Once again I feel the alcohol strongly, but also that astringency.... I like the mix! But how much of what? I guess that there is more of merlot, but the answer is 85 percent of cabernet sauvignon..... Still got a long way to go before I make it as a wine expert!
 

During this trial we didn't try any wine made with cabernet franc, the third most common grape in Bordeaux. It is common on the right side of the Garonne river and gives and elegant touch, something that is enhanced when the wines are kept. There is also a fourth kind of grape, petit verdot. It represents only five percent of the total volume, because it is difficult to grow, but adds elegance to the final wine.

Grapes are always different, even if they come from the same vineyard and are of the same variety. The vines have different ages, grow in different soils with different exposal to the sun and the climate varies from one year to the other. Most wine makers separate the grapes from different areas and store them separately. This way, when the storage period is over, the wine maker has a palette of tastes to choose from, to mix to create the final wine. This is also to create stability in the final wine, so you can recognise the character of a castle even if a sunny year has made the grapes sweeter or lots of rain has made them watery.

Marie-Laure, the owner, tells us that assemblage is a group activity. I can't work alone, she says, I'm not objective enough! At her castle she works with the wine director, the production responsible and a wine assembly consultant. She compares it to the dynamics of a group, sometimes you have a competent and nice person - but he doesn't fit into the group.

Away for a week

If the ash cloud permits, we are heading for Sweden for a week. Grandparents, friends, fun. See you soon!
UPDATE: I did manage to travel! First day in Sweden... snowstorm! Surprising at the end of April, even for a Swede...!!! I want to share some photos with you, but I have some trouble transferring the photos from my camera..... Here in Castets all the trees, even the oak trees, are full of green leaves and we felt like summer was here when we landed in Bordeaux with 28 degrees in the evening.

Pool is open!!!

We are privilegied to have our own pool. Can't tell you how much I appreciate that - not to mention the children that grow fens during summer... I just finished the after-winter-start-pool-again-treatment and the water looked so tempting that I gave it a try. It was kind of refreshing. I didn't stay for long!

Clara followed me for a short dip but her brother made a more sensible decision and stayed by the border rescuing small insects that had fallen in the water.

The oak trees in the background have tiny little leaves now and summer seems to be in reach... this is the best time of the year...

Monkey tree business

Common in the Landes pine forest are different installations high with adventure paths high up in the trees.  Clara had already tried the children version at Adrenaline Parc outside Moliets, but this time Bjorn was finally old is enough to join her. They both got a thorough explanation of how to use the safety harness and how to unclip one at a time, making sure that at least one clip out of two is attached at all times. Then they headed off together, Clara helping out her brother at times. He was very proud to finish the four different paths for children. The instructor said that next year Clara could try the adult version, much higher up and much more difficult, if she was accompanied by an adult. Maybe I should go there and practice before? Who wants to join me?

Love this place. Peaceful... even if you sometimes hear a shrill cry when someone is gliding through the air high up!

Clara shows her brother how to do it

Bjorn prepares his turn. Concentration.

Here we go....

... I made it! I was just a little bit scared, mummy.

One of the most difficult ones for Bjorn. The trunks move freely and he is almost too short to hold on the the top wire...

The safety claps. Always at least one safely attached.

The higher platforms belong to the adult paths. Some of the platforms are really high up. The trees reach to about 30 metres...

Adrenaline Parc in Moliets

Beach Bliss in Moliets

We can go to the beach all year round, but we really don't go very often during winter. In spring, retrieving the beach and the sand is always a bit emotional. Does it show?

The retiring tide has created a temporary little lake on the beach. The children were rolling down the slope.

No, it`s not summer yet. The showers are still wrapped up!

Sunny Saturday in Dax

Dax is the closest city to my village, so I go there pretty often. I'll get back to you about Dax, because I want to tell you about its thermal water and about the Férias de Dax, the yearly festival. But this time we just went there to have lunch and and a stroll in the old pedestrian centre. New shoes for Bjorn, trousers and perfume for my husband, pink nail polish for me. Sunglasses on, walking slowly...

Simple salad with Spanish ham, cheese and chorizo

The Splendid Hotel, newly renovated, and its palm trees

Typical pedestrian street in the old part of Dax

The plane trees are still all bare, while all the other trees are freshly green

Bonaguil, impressive medieval military architecture

The Bonaguil Fortress from the 13th century is a perfect example of medieval defense systems. Most of the defense techniques were put in place during the 15th century by Bérenger de Roquefeuil. The constructions lasted for forty years. The funny thing is that it afterwards it was never attacked... a new era was starting and the Bonaguil Fortress became obsolete.

I went there with the children on our way to Penne d'Agenais last year in May. When I told them we were going to see a castle, they started moaning. No, not another castle! I just kept on driving on a beautiful road along a valley, turning and turning, waiting for the castle to appear.

Suddenly it did appear, as you see on the photo. Massive, impressive, beautiful.

The children went silent. Is that the castle we are going to? Wow!!!
No more complaining...

We didn't do the guided tour, as I thought 1,5H was too long for my little one, but I would reallly like to come back and do that to get a thorough understanding of how the defensive system was supposed to work. Seemed very interesting!

The official web site for the Bonaguil Castle
Interesting article about the history and defense system

Sssch... Messanges is my little secret

Some things are best kept secret. Those special spots... with special memories attached. You promise not to tell anyone?

Messanges is a tiny village and sea resort on the Silver Coast in Landes. There you find a small restaurant up on top of the sand dunes, with the most astounding view over the beach and the ocean.  A view like that is extremely rare here, because most parts of the coast are protected, so there are no buildings close to the water. This place is actually the only one I know of with this kind of view between Mimizan and Vieux Boucau.

I go there to walk on the beach, take a coffee and enjoy the view in the morning or to have lunch. Sometimes we take the kids and have dinner there, all soaked in salt and sand. The sunsets are incredible... and last for an eternity as the sun slowly falls down toward the sea horizon.

 

The restaurant is called Bar snack de la Plage and they serve a short menu of fresh really nice salads, a piece of meat or cod. Their sangria is top and the waiters are very friendly. Come just before noon, when they start serving food, if you want to have a seat, because when the weather is nice, it fills up quickly. Another good place in Messanges is La Hitillère, a bar restaurant with fresh food and great music.

The Telegraph elected Messanges one of the ten most beautiful beaches in the world... pfff...my secret is not so secret any more I guess!

Big blue sky....

A romantic getaway in Saint Emilion

Saint-Emilion might look like the standard example of a tourist trap. It is very touristic - but still. This little medieval city has an incredible amount of charm. UNESCO has put both the city and the surrounding vineyards on the world cultural heritage list. Steep stone laid streets, real old stone houses with thick walls and wine shops in every corner. At several places you have an astounding view over the tiled roofs and the vineyards.

I went there with my husband on a romantic getaway.... perfect! We stayed at the Logis de la Cadène, one of these real old places with stone walls and furniture with a history. From our room we saw out over the restaurant below and its terrace covered in vines. We had lunch there, with the sun light filtering through the leaves...

In the evening the city became quiet as the tourist buses disappeared. We enjoyed watching the beautiful houses, even more beautiful in the late sun. The stones glowed. Dinner was had at Le Tertre, a small restaurant that had lined up three little tables along the wall outside. We lingered over dinner and a bottle of wine for hours, enjoying the coolness of the evening after a very hot day.

During the day we had also made a short visit to Pomerol, one of my favourite wine districts and one of the smallest in France. We went to the Beauregard castle where a guide took care of the two of us, taking us for a stroll in the vines, down in the cellar for a tasting of the year's wine, still not tapped, and finally let us taste some of their bottled wine. Excellent...

Photo Wikipedia

We also checked out the Maison du vin de Saint-Emilion, where all the different producers are represented at the same prices as you get directly from the owners. They also give advice about what to buy, how to to store them, what kind of wine that fits with what kind of food, etc.

At another occasion we had a look at the underground of Saint Emilion. Underneath the city, a Swiss cheese, with 200 kilometres of winding tunnels!  They were created as workers extracted limestone to build houses from the ninth to the 19th century. Mustn't have an earthquake here, the whole city would simply collapse....

Saint Emilion tourist office