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Château Fontenil, Fronsac, Bordeaux
Dany and Michel Rolland, with degrees in oenology from the University of Bordeaux, are heirs to a family wine tradition. After consulting for various estates in the Fronsac region, they established Château Fontenil in Saillans over 3 ½ decades ago.
The carefully renovation work on the installations lasted for more than 12 years; the vinification cellars, the barrel cellar and the storage cellar were all equipped with high-performance material. Perfectly organized, tradition remains alongside new technologies: small stainless steel and wooden vats, double sorting table, barrel stock of which 60% are renewed each year and where malolactic fermentation is carried out.
Equally meticulous requirements in the vineyard are carried out with traditional cultural methods plowing or grassing, work under the row – yield control from pruning the vines until crop thinning – with sustainable treatments & manual harvesting plot by plot using small crates.
The vines, on a southern slope overlooking the river Isle, contribute to the estate’s stellar reputation in the Fronsac appellation.
Our collaboration with Rolland Collection & Chateau Fontenil showcases their entire wine portfolio, featuring standout vintages such as 2005, 2010, and 2015 of Le Defi de Fontenil—a de-facto flagship wine, well reputed for its initial controversial mystique. Also included is Le Blanc de Fontenil, a unique white blend, presented in an non-traditional Burgundy bottle, and Chateau Fontenil, a classic representation red wine, possibly the best in the appellation.
Vignobles Péré-Vergé, Pomerol, Bordeaux
Before buying her first wine estate in 1985 and ultimately becoming one of Bordeaux’s most respected proprietors, Catherine Péré Vergé worked for over 40 years in the family lead crystal glassware business, Cristal d’Arques. She purchased Chateau Montviel in 1985, a 5ha estate
in Pomerol, and hired Michel Rolland as her consultant in 1988 (she was one of the founding members of his Clos de Los Siete project in Argentina). She was perhaps best known for the 3.25ha Chateau La Violette, which she bought in 2006, and whose wines garnered effusive praise from critics. Known for her passionate attention to detail, she oversaw everything in her vineyards herself, from pruning and harvesting to blending and selling the wines.
’One word to sum up Catherine: energy,’ Alain Moueix, president of the Grand Cru Classés de Saint Emilion and owner of Chateau Mazeyres in Pomerol told Decanter.com, ‘She worked tirelessly for her estates.’ Died at age 74, Péré Vergé is survived by four children and nine grandchildren. Her son Henri Parent has since, taken over the management of the Vignbobles Péré Vergé estates.
Vignobles Péré-Vergé, Pomerol, Bordeaux
Chateau La Graviere, Lalande-de-Pomerol, France AOC, 2016 75cl – $75 ex GST Château Montviel, Pomerol, 2013 75cl – $115 ex GST
Château Fontenil, Fronsac, Bordeaux
Château Fontenil , 2015 75cl – $90 ex GST
Le Defi de Fontenil , 2005, 2010, 2015 – $195 ex GST
Le Blanc de Fontenil , 2020 – $115 ex GST