Maison Sichel Margaux

WINEMAKER NOTES

Situated 25km from Bordeaux, the Margaux appellation covers five municipalities and is the only one in the Médoc where you find the entire, rich and vast range of wines, from the first to the fifth Grand Cru Classé. Margaux wines are particularly supple and refined. They are characterised by very elegant, fruity aromas, making them the benchmark for generous, sophisticated wines with soft ripe tannins.

TASTING NOTES

The product of one of the greatest Bordeaux vintages. Deep ruby red with deep violet tints indicating richness. Expressive, ripe bouquet displaying all the finesse and elegance typical of the Margaux terroir. Complexity on the nose, with overripe, jammy red fruit aromas, vanilla and spice. Swirling brings out more oaky, toasty notes denoting traditional ageing in oak barrels and which blend harmoniously with the fruity aromas. The palate is concentrated and generous but not capricious, highly expressive and underpinned by tannins of the highest quality.

VINEYARD

The vineyard area of Margaux is essentially based on the Garonne ‘s layers, made up of gravel and pebbles from the quaternary period. This soil, well protected from the oceanic winds by the forest benefits from the bracing winds from the Gironde estuary which tempers the climate. The soil’s poorness, the gravel’s permeability and the slightly sloping hillsides that provide a good drainage allow the vines to be deep rooted, providing the ideal conditions for top quality wines.

VINIFICATION

When fully mature, the grapes are for the most part, hand picked. In the cellar, the grapes are crushed and destemmed and then put into fermenters. The harvest is heated to around 22 °C to allow a quick start to the fermentation. Twice a day, pumping over with aeration takes place in order to extract as much colour and tannin as possible. When the alcoholic fermentation is over, the vats are maintained at a temperature around 30°C for 15 to 21 days. After the running off, the malolactic fermentation takes place in vats. A 6 to 8 months ageing in French oak barrels is done with racking every 4 weeks. The wines are fined and filtered on earth before bottling.