Château La Mothe du Barry Bordeaux Superieur 2022

Alcohol: 13,5%

Grape(s): Merlot

Localization: Bordeaux, France

Tasting Notes: A super-concentrated Bordeaux at an incredible value! Round and supple, Ch. La Mothe du Barry offers a mouthful of flavors; dark fruits, soft tannins, and great chocolate notes!

Notes: Viticulture precision is aimed at respecting the environment. Traditional technique, weed, buds, the mechanical thinning, green grape harvest. 5-day fermentation and maceration at 30° for 2 to 3 weeks. Aged in stainless steel tanks, filing every two months

Food pairing: Excellent with roasted meats or poultry in red sauce and Pasta or Risotto with seafood.

The Domain: The very talented and meticulous vigneron Joel Duffau produces very fully flavored and perfectly balanced Bordeaux wines each year from his organically farmed vineyards that have been owned by his family for over 300 years.  Located only six miles from St. Emilion, this Chateau is producing top-quality "right bank" wines each year but which are great values at only a fraction of typical St. Emilion prices.

The specific part of Bordeaux where the Chateau is located is called "Entre Deux Mers."  Although maybe that sounds sort of exotic, it literally just means "between two seas."  That in itself is sort of a misnomer as there are no "seas" near the Chateau but it is between the two major tributaries of the Gironde estuary which are the Dordogne and the Garonne.  Both of those rivers have sources in the two major mountainous areas of southern France, the Massif Central, and the Pyrenees.

Such mountainous areas have provided the mineral-rich soils of the Chateau's vineyards which provide deep flavors in their wines.  The Chateau La Mothe du Barry vineyards are close to the south bank of the Dordogne and are big undulating gravel banks washed down over millions of years from the Massif Central.  Unfortunately, there is also a lot of flat farmland in the interior of the Entre Deux Mers appellation, and wines from those areas are a lot less interesting.