Chateau La Peyre "Cru Artisan" NR
St Estephe, Bordeaux

$39.99 on 3+ bottles US Low
$43.99 US Low on bottle 1

Varietals: 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, 10% each Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc

The Rabiller family has a long tradition of growing grapes in Saint Estephe. However, in the past, the entire harvest was sold to the local cooperative. Dany and René Rabiller, the current proprietors, recognized the potential of their vineyards. They decided to build their own winery on the family estate and, since 1994, they have vinified and bottled their own wine.

Château La Peyre is made up of several separate vineyard plots covering a total of eight hectares in the Marbuzet sector of the Saint Estephe appellation. The average age of the vineyards is 30 years (as of 2011). Cabernet Sauvignon is the major grape variety grown at Château La Peyre, comprising 50%, followed by Merlot (40%), Petit Verdot (5%) and Cabernet Franc (5%).

The distinctive soil is composed of gravel with limestone and clay. The gravel facilitates drainage while the clay retains valuable moisture during the dry summer months and allows even ripening. Every care is taken in the vineyard to ensure healthy, fully mature grapes. Winter pruning is severe and limits the crop size. Green harvesting is employed to further balance the crop load during the growing season.

The careful attention given to the vineyards follows through to the winemaking process. Grapes are only harvested by hand. Before going into the fermentation tanks, the bunches are carefully sorted by hand to remove any underripe or damaged grapes. The Rabillers follow traditional winemaking techniques, preferring a long “cuvaison” or maceration period in the fermentation tank. This allows gentle extraction of color, tannins and flavor components and results in a naturally concentrated and well-balanced wine.

Following fermentation, the wines are aged between 12 and 15 months in oak barrels. Only 30% new French oak is used each year to avoid overwhelming the character of the wine. The wine is gently fined using egg whites before bottling but it is not filtered. They produce approximately 50,000 bottles per annum.

Ken's tasting note
Textbook Medoc nose and palate with dark fruits (Currant, dark cherries, black plum), a little pepper, dark chocolate, and minty/eucalyptus finish. Very fresh, Medium/Medium+ body, mostly integrated tannins. It is beginning to get tertiary notes. Ready to drink now but will age another 5-10 years. This would pair well with a Steak Frites. Affordable, ready-to-drink, every day and good quality Bordeaux. What's not to like? - Ken

Finding an affordable, ready-to-drink, every day and good quality Bordeaux is very difficult. That is why we are excited about this offer that we just tasted yesterday. We have Chateau La Peyre St Estephe "Cru Artisan" 2014 which fits all those criteria.

This is a great deal on a back vintage, ready to drink (or age further), characterful, and full of classic typicity Bordeaux. The blend of 40% Cab Sauv, 40 % Merlot, and 10% each Cab Franc and Petit Verdot really shines as the layers of each of these wines are perceptible to what they add to the blend. The classic currants and stone notes from the Cab Sauv, the roundness and plum from the Merlot, the color, dark fruit and spice from the Petit Verdot

Everyone knows of the top wines of the 1855 Bordeaux Classification that ranked the top 50 wines of the Medoc, and the top wines of the Right Bank (Petrus, Cheval Blanc, Ausone, Angelus, etc); so in all, about 100 Chateaux are well known and don't need an introduction; they also retail in the hundreds and thousands of dollars. But Bordeaux has over 8000 producers! So, the small Chateau need to have a way of distinguishing themselves, thus were born the Cru Artisan and Cru Bourgeois categories.

In the Médoc, the term “Crus Artisans” has officially existed for over 150 years: these small wineries often belonged to craftsmen, such as coopers, wheelwrights, and blacksmiths. This distinction found new life in 1989 with the founding of the Syndicat des Crus artisans du Médoc.

To be classified as Cru Artisan, a Chateau has to:

• be autonomous, small- and medium-sized estates
• the manager is actively involved in the operations of his/her vineyard
• produce AOC wines,
• sell the production that is bottled at the château, and
• the wine is selected by a panel of experts.
• the classification is revised every 5 years.

The quality and value of wines produced on small properties in one of the eight Médoc appellations: Médoc, Haut-Médoc, Listrac, Moulis, Margaux, Saint-Julien, Pauillac, and Saint-Estèphe. 36 properties, the names of which were published in the Journal Officiel in 2012.