Lacoste Borie 2006

The 2006 vintage in Pauillac

Vintage benchmark: 89/100 (appellation benchmark, not a score for this wine)

Vintage character: Rain at véraison followed by a dry September gave classic, balanced wines with fine freshness, without the density of 2005.

Overall reading of the year’s season across Pauillac. An estate can depart from it sharply, in frost or hail years, where two neighbours did not make the same vintage. What this particular wine actually gave is on its technical sheet and in the scores above.

Tasting

The typicity of this wine shows in a deep garnet colour. On the nose, it unfolds a wide and fine palette of red fruit aromas lifted by notes of vanilla and spices. On the palate, it reveals obvious generosity through ripe, elegant tannins, as well as complexity and a flawless balance of flavour.

The vintage

The winter was harsher than in previous years, with heavy rainfall during February. Spring, on the other hand, was fairly warm and dry. Budburst was late, starting around the end of March or beginning of April. June and July saw very high temperatures, allowing an early veraison, which was slowed by a cool and rainy August. The end of August and beginning of September were marked by intense heat, helping the grapes to ripen. The rain returned around mid-September, speeding up the harvest. Hand harvest from 21 September to 4 October 2006.

Blend of the 2006 vintage

Figures from the 2006 sheet

• 42 hl/haYield

Winemaking

Double sorting before and after destemming. Classic vinification with long vatting (around 3 weeks). Temperature control.

Ageing

In French oak barrels for 14 to 18 months depending on the vintage. 30% new barrels.

Terroir

Grand-Puy-Lacoste enjoys an exceptional terroir. The soil is made up of gravels, that is to say alluvial stones that provide excellent drainage. The distinctive character of the Médoc soil is part of a history going back two million years, for the gravels are geological witnesses of the Quaternary era. These stones, brought down from the Pyrenees and carried by the Garonne, were deposited over time on the banks of the Gironde, its estuary. Today the layers, of varying depth, are made up of gravel mixed with sand and a little clay. This gravelly soil has the advantage of retaining heat and returning it to the vine at night, which eliminates excessive temperature swings and encourages the harmonious ripening of the bunches.