Lagrezette Blog

Hallow'ine in Lagrezette

                            

Picture seen in Wine & Spirits (october). To read the whole text (in english), Please download hallowine_cahors.jpg

                             Picture seen in Wine & Spirits (october). To read the whole text (in english), Please download hallowine_cahors.jpg

Pigeonnier 2005 gets “Coup de Cœur” in the Hachette Guide 2009

Despite winning a number of awards this year, achieving the “Coup de Cœur” in one of the best known guides, the Hachette Guide to French Wines, is without doubt one of the highlights of 2008 for us. Other prizes this year include the Gold Medal at the Paris Agricultural Exhibition for our Grézette white.

This time, it is the most prestigious of our vintages, “Le Pigeonnier”, which has been tipped by tasters for its 2005 vintage:

“A top-of-the-range production from a 16th century chateau, classified as a historical monument and renowned for its wonderful dovecote. Having been rated ‘Coup de Cœur’ in the 2004 edition, this year the wine once again receives the unanimous recognition of the grand jury for its 100% Malbec Cahors. Deep berry in colour - its nose is surprisingly fruity, despite its two year maturing process. On the palate, you can feel a rare presence, elegance and smoothness, it is a very supple and assertive wine. Another great success for Alain Dominique Perrin to accompany his 2005 Dame Honneur vintage from Château Lagrézette (€30 to €38), which gained two stars for its balance and silky structure.”

These bottles are in our cellars and will be available… in a year.

Unusual! An electronic tongue that identifies vintages

In enology as in all other things, there’s no stopping progress.

We were nevertheless somewhat surprised to learn that the team at the micro-technology institute in Barcelona has perfected an electronic tongue, consisting of six sensors, which is able to detect infallibly, or so we are told, the acidity, the sugar content or the amount of alcohol found in a sample. And then, by analyzing it, to display its age (vintage), the wine variety (type(s) of grape)… and even the wine itself… No more need for experts? Is this an end to those good old blindfolded tastings? At such a level of precision, one can only hesitate between surprise and annoyance. Surprise, for the prowess seems totally mastered. Annoyance, for wine is, first and foremost, a human creation, born of a constantly renewed encounter between the winegrower and nature, and may it remain so! It requires a scene: the soil, always subject to the hazards of the weather, which are uncontrollable. It requires grapes.

Man will do his utmost to have them become fine grapes. And while suitable, top of the line, impeccable equipment is no doubt required in the cellar, men are always needed to keep watch. 365 days a year. The knowledge that is required does not fit onto an electronic chip! Let us now temper our judgment. The laboratory, steered by Cécilia Jimenez-Jorquera, knows how to put forward the qualities of its discovery: portable, low-cost, quick, it can be used to detect frauds in a mixture put together during the year, or grape varieties that it should not contain. After all, samples of our products are sent to laboratories for testing all through the year. This electronic tongue will basically be nothing more than a higher-performing tool for those working in them.

But still, let’s make sure not to let technology stifle that element of creation, and therefore, of inspiration, that gives every field its specificity, its character. In such matters, let us never allow electrodes to prevail over human sensitivity and perception…