Château la Grolet Côtes de Bourg 2021

The Hubert family own and farm two estates: Château Peybonhomme-les-Tours in the Côtes de Blaye; and Château La Grolet to the south in the Côtes de Bourg. Both of these Right Bank Estates are farmed biodynamically. Quite unlike the monotonous flats of the Medoc, the Côtes de Bourg is a beautiful landscape of rolling hills that are sometimes referred to as the ‘little Switzerland of the Gironde’.

This is a Bordeaux appellation with an open and proud, bucolic personality. The gravel-rich terroir makes for a more firmly structured, virile red than this wine’s sibling (Peybonhomme), although there is just as much class and value.

The blend is 70% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc and 5% Malbec, cropped at 25 hl/ha (similar to the low yields of some of Bordeaux’s most expensive vins de garage!), from vines now approaching their half century. This wine was crafted without added yeasts in a mixture of concrete and wooden vessels (20%). It was bottled without fining or filtration, and with only a little sulphur (otherwise the wine sees no additions at all).

The 2019 Château La Grolet is another outstanding success for this wine. It’s a medium-bodied, savoury Bordeaux with mulberry, cherry and mint fruit, inky, powdery tannins and a long and driven close. Although it’s clear that 5-10 years will not weary it, it’s a very good drink now. It will match beautifully with any beef or lamb dish–steak frites, please! In short, this is a super-authentic Bordeaux country-style red that represents remarkable value.