Product Description
Varieties
68% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Merlot
The Vineyard
Grand cru classified in 1855, Château Dauzac has been revealing for several centuries the quintessence of an exceptional terroir.
Like the greatest Médoc vintages, the best terroirs “look at the Gironde”. Dauzac, a 49-hectare vineyard in one piece located 350 meters from the estuary, confirms the rule. Really typical, the Dauzac terroir is made up of a beautifully deep gravel rump, in a geological vein unique to this Cru. These layers of gravel of varying thickness, vestiges of old alluvial terraces, rest on a gravelly & clay subsoil. The whole secret is naturally to be able to understand and know how to best manage this terroir in its different plots and according to the characteristics of the vintage. This rigorous work of plot selection gives birth to a great diversity of wines with remarkable qualitative potential.
In the great Médoc tradition, the vineyard with a planting density of 10,000 vines per hectare is made up of 69% Cabernet-Sauvignon, 29% Merlot and 2% Petit-Verdot. The work accomplished for more than 30 years, with the implementation of new techniques, allows the vineyard to produce grapes of great quality and complexity. Soundings, cuts over three meters deep and electrical resistivity tests have enabled him to identify homogeneous plots, to adapt the choice of grape varieties and rootstocks while practicing a vineyard management adapted to each plot. Meteorological probes per unit of land and a meteorological station help to decide on the work with precision. A shift has been taking place for several years now towards the best of biodynamics. Château Dauzac practices very reasoned viticulture where the fertilizers are organic. Ecological control of the cluster worms made it possible to avoid the use of insecticides. Some plots are grassed to better regulate water supply. The pruning is carried out in double Guyot with disbudding and important “green” work is carried out manually to homogenize the maturity.
The Harvest
Harvests respecting the integrity of the fruit are naturally manual.
The Cellar
Each plot is vinified separately in temperature-controlled vats, in favor of a gentle and homogeneous extraction of the tannins in the marc cap. Since 2014, the installation of wooden vats with double transparent staves, produced by Seguin Moreau at the request of Château Dauzac, have made it possible to apprehend the vinifications with even more precision, by rethinking our method of pumping over to avoid the pumping of the wines and thus optimize maceration. Château Dauzac carries out an annual and rigorous selection of the woods used for the barrels by its coopers; the wines are aged for 12 to 18 months in extra-fine French oak barrels and passed through weak heating, with around 60% new barrels to preserve all of the fruit and produce “vintage wines”. Eric Boissenot, an oenologist whose reputation and knowledge are well known, advises and intervenes during the harvest and blending. Château Dauzac is the first Grand Cru Classé in 1855 to claim the production of 100% Vegan wines, since 2016.
Aging Potential
Best expressed between 10 and 15 years old, to age up to 15 and 20 years.
