Château Haut Gros Caillou extends over 7 ha of vineyards, and includes some exceptional gravel parcels. The care invested in both the vineyard and winery has been optimised to guarantee the finest grape expression. Retaining fruit character to reveal optimum flavour is in fact the overarching objective at Château Haut Gros Caillou.  Aged for 12 months in barriques, the wines produced at Château Haut Gros Caillou are fruity, elegant, delicately oaked and very supple – typical of this area of Saint-Emilion.

Grape

91% Merlot – 9% Cabernet Franc

Vineyard & Vinification Note

HVE3 and Terra Vitis certified (High environmental value certificates)

Viticultural and winemaking practises have been optimised to retain the best possible varietal character. Regular and meticulous canopy management and yield control procedures limit the number of bunches per vine and improve the grape selection process by promoting uniform ripening in the grapes. These exacting standards are maintained through to harvesting ; the grapes are only picked when maturity levels have been monitored for each vineyard parcel, to ensure only perfectly ripe grapes are harvested. Respecting fruit quality in order to reveal the integrity of the flavours is a philosophy actively pursued at Château Haut Gros Caillou.

Traditional fermentation in temperature-controlled stainless-steel tanks.

Ageing: 12 months – Bottled: June 2018

Vintage 2016: The first six months of the 2016 grape season turned out to be particularly rainy and warm, replenishing water reserves in the soils which would serve the vines well in forthcoming months. Which was just as well as sunshine set in for the long haul from mid-June, bringing very dry weather until the end of the harvest. The combined effect of available water supplies and favourable temperatures – not too excessive during the day and very cool at night – played an important role in developing the fruit and their aromas during ripening. Driven by our determination to makes wines of only the highest quality, for the first time we trialled densimetric sorting in a bid to retain only the ripest berries. Each parcel was effectively vinified « à la carte », in order to maximise the potential quality of the grapes, enhancing the richness and concentration of the Merlot and the fruit precision in the lightly spiced Cabernet Franc.

Harvest: Merlot: September 24th ; Cabernet Franc: October 5th

Tasting Note

Nice garnet colour. The bouquet shows black fruits aromas (black cherry and blackberry). On the palate, the wine is initially supple, seduces by its roundness and balance combining freshness and fruit. A very pleasant wine. Frédéric Bonnaffous, Dourthe Estates Director

Food Pairing

Grilled or roasted meat (beef, mutton, rabbit), poultry and cheeses.