Chateau Cru Godard Francs Cotes De Bordeaux Rouge 2019 (750ml)

 

Chateau Cru Godard

 

Francs Cotes De Bordeaux Rouge 2019

 

Made by Franck & Carine Richard on the south facing limestone slopes using 65% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Cabernet Franc and 5% Malbec.  50% of the wine is matured in used barrels.  The estate is organic.

 

This is a supple rounded style claret that is extremely good value.

 

Tasting Notes

 

Great value red wine from the Côtes de Bordeaux.  This Merlot-forward blend shows elegant florals, redcurrants and blackberries with a fine seam of limestone minerality running through.  Excellent by itself but even better when paired with slow-cooked beef.

 

Composition:  65% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc, 5% Malbec

 

Alcohol:  14.5%

 

Winemaker Notes

 

This wine comes from low yielding, organically tended vines on a south facing limestone hillside, and we love the fact that the independently minded owner Franck Richard does everything according to his own feel and doesn’t lean on an oenologist.  Aged half in cuvee and half in 3-5yo barrels it has ripe fruit (low sulphur), nicely cosseted by a refreshing saline quality emanating from limestone.

 

Côtes de Bordeaux

 

The Côtes de Bordeaux appellation was created in 2009 to merge four existing appellations used in France's Bordeaux region.  These four were: Premieres Côtes de Blaye, Côtes de Castillon, Côtes de Francs, and the red wines from the Cadillac district.  The latter previously fell under the Premières Côtes de Bordeaux title (now a white wine-only appellation).

 

The changes were a commercially motivated decision, intended to create unity between these significant, but less well-known appellations.  They were intended to simplify the Bordeaux Côtes appellation structure.

 

However, the new banner for the four appellations is not entirely original or easy to differentiate from the old one.  It has arguably added further complexity to Bordeaux's appellations.

 

This is emphasized by the fact that the four component appellations are geographically widespread.  Francs and Castillon are located at the eastern end of the Bordeaux region.  Blaye is in the west and Cadillac in the south.

 

Francs Côtes de Bordeaux

 

Francs Côtes de Bordeaux is the appellation title for Côtes de Bordeaux wines made specifically from three parishes at the very eastern edge of the Bordeaux wine region.  These wines formerly took the title Côtes de Francs.

 

Côtes de Bordeaux Francs red wines constitute the vast majority of the appellation's output.  They are made predominantly from Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.

 

The whites are fashioned from an equally traditional Bordelais blend of Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon and Muscadelle.  The less globally successful varieties Colombard and Ugni Blanc are also permitted in Côtes de Bordeaux Francs white wines.  However, with the international focus of this appellation, these will remain minority components.

 

Generally speaking, the topography and soils around Francs, with its slightly elevated limestone clay slopes, are well suited to growing Merlot.  This, combined with Cabernet Franc, produces supple, well-structured red wines.

 

Saint-Cibard, Tayac and Francs are the three villages which form the appellation zone.  They lie roughly 13 kilometers (8 miles) north of the Dordogne river and are actually much closer to Bergerac than Bordeaux city itself.

 

The Côtes de Bordeaux appellation was created in 2009 to bring together several cotes of Bordeaux under a single banner.  The aim behind this was to improve the marketability of the wines in question and simplify the overall Bordelais appellation structure.  Individually, these appellations lacked the marketing resources to combat the increasing popularity of Bordeaux style wines from other regions, particularly in the New World.

 

The process began officially in 1985, when the presidents of five cotes appellations founded the Association des Côtes de Bordeaux.  This later became Les Cinq Côtes de Bordeaux, as confusion had arisen between the first name and that of the entirely separate Premières Côtes de Bordeaux title.

 

By the end of 2003, the decision had been taken to create the Cotes de Bordeaux appellation, with the geographical denominations Blaye, Cadillac, Castillon and Francs.  After another few years of negotiations and red tape, the appellation was confirmed and ratified.

 

 

Chateau Gru Goddard

 

Bordeaux’s Côtes can be a treasure trove of brilliant value, honestly made Bordeaux, especially when they’re in the hands of talented vignerons such as Carine and Franck Richard. 

 

Although its clay-limestone soils are identical to those of neighbouring Castillon, Francs Côtes de Bordeaux’s vineyards are higher up (107-127m) which helps keep freshness in the wines, and the rainfall is one of the lowest in the region due to local airstreams, allowing cabernet to ripen properly.

 

Taking over the domaine in 1998, Franck and his wife immediately began farming organically, obtaining certification with the 2010 vintage.  Most of the vines inherited from the previous generation are still there and their average age is now 45yo which would put many Grand Cru Classé to shame.  Vinification and élevage are as gentle as possible, the aim being to make wines that are pure and express all the freshness of their terroir.