2007 Ch. Magdelaine, St Emilion

Chateau Magdelaine

Château Magdelaine, was a notable 1er grand cru classé, in St-Emilion owned by the famous firm of Ets Jean-Pierre Moueix.

Magdelaine had 10.4 hectares of vineyards, of which six were on the famous St Emilion limestone ridge (very close to Ch. Ausone) and the remainder on clay- and limestone-based slopes. Merlot performs particularly well on these limestone-rich soils and at Magdelaine it is the dominant grape, making up 90 percent of the blend – a higher proportion than is found in any other Premier Grand Cru Classé from St Emilion. The final vintage of Magdelaine was 2011, before it was swallowed up by Ch. Bélair-Monange.

Merlot

The most widely planted grape in Bordeaux and a grape that has been on a relentless expansion drive throughout the world in the last decade. Merlot is adaptable to most soils and is relatively simple to cultivate. It is a vigorous naturally high yielding grape that requires savage pruning - over-cropped Merlot-based wines are dilute and bland. It is also vital to pick at optimum ripeness as Merlot can quickly lose its varietal characteristics if harvested overripe.

In St.Emilion and Pomerol it withstands the moist clay rich soils far better than Cabernet grapes, and at it best produces opulently rich, plummy clarets with succulent fruitcake-like nuances. Le Pin, Pétrus and Clinet are examples of hedonistically rich Merlot wines at their very best. It also plays a key supporting role in filling out the middle palate of the Cabernet-dominated wines of the Médoc and Graves.

Merlot is now grown in virtually all wine growing countries and is particularly successful in California, Chile and Northern Italy.