Adjacent Bordeaux Properties

I don’t see that this question has ever been covered in it’s own thread, and it’s something I see a lot in sales pitches. First the question: Does quality tend to “bleed” into surrounding (and, particularly, directly adjacent) properties?

Now the set up:

I got the following offer from B-21 private sales this morning:

They call the place “50 Ares of Grace;” a precise, pristine, unbelievably coveted, treasured plot of land that’s so small it covers less than an hectare – 1.25 acres to be precise. The parcel very literally abuts the vines whose fruit renders the most prestigious wines of Bordeaux. You’ve heard that before, “Our wine neighbors Chateau ‘so-and-so’,” only to discover, in fact, the true distance between the so-called neighbors.

Allow me to illustrate:

Yes, that’s Chateau Margaux on the right, Brane Cantenac abutting to the left. Squarely between, the sections isolated for better viewing (on the ground there is no separation) lies the “Ares of Grace” – the vineyard of L’Aura de Cambon, a tiny property from the owners of Cambon la Pelouse, “Serious stuff,” in the words of Suckling – “Brilliant,” in the eyes of Parker.

The components are 50% Cabernet, 50% Merlot, and the yields are tiny – guaranteed thanks to a vine density of 8,000 vines per hectare (equaling the density found at most of the 1st Growths). All vinification follows the rules of gravity, with malolactic fermentation taking place in 100% new, French barrique. New French oak is also employed for the aging process, and the results – less than 500 cases per year – are simply stunning.

You will taste this wine, recalling its pedigreed neighbors, and wonder – in amazement – how they are able to offer such opulence for so little coin.

OWC 6

2009 Château L’Aura de Cambon, Margaux
(89-91) The talented Claude Gros, who does such a great consulting job at many Bordeaux properties, has fashioned a brilliant 2009 sleeper of the vintage from this tiny estate. A dense purple color and copious aromas of blackberries, blueberries, and flowers are found in this medium to full-bodied, pure, long Margaux. It should drink well for 10+ years.
91 points – Robert Parker, Wine Advocate

2009 Château L’Aura de Cambon, Margaux
Opens with dark colors and aromas of fresh blackberry flavors, full bodied and round, the wine ends with ripe dark fruit and black pepper aromatics.
91 points – Jeff Leve, The Wine Cellar Insider

750ml: $35

• Compare to its illustrious neighbor @ $1200
  Minimum 4. Limit 24.
  OWC available for orders in increments of 6 btls. Please specify OWC when ordering.
  ETA: Q4 2016.

So how much truth is there to this idea of seemingly osmotic transfer of quality to adjacent properties in Bordeaux, or any region for that matter? I can see the geography of the situation, and I understand that soil and terroir are highly geographical properties. But I had never heard of this Chateau, and there is minimal to no information to be found online except for some of Jeff Leve’s tasting notes and information on his wonderful website. There are otherwise 0 bottles to be found on wine-searcher. I am sure it is due to the minuscule quantity produced, but my original question still lingers – Does quality tend to “bleed” into surrounding (and, particularly, directly adjacent) properties? Is this just a piece of trivia that is really only of interest for marketing, or is there validity to the idea?

Thanks for the nice words on my site. Bottom line, terroir can change in a single row of vines. With these 2 estates, the soils and the blend is quite different, etc… In this instance, it is a silly comparison from B21.

As you already read my site, you should compare what goes into both wines. It’s not as much fun, but it’s less costly than buying a bottle of each

Chateau Margaux - http://www.thewinecellarinsider.com/bordeaux-wine-producer-profiles/bordeaux/margaux/margaux/

L’Aura - Learn all about L’Aura de Cambon Margaux, Complete Guide

Soil composition and drainage, exposure, and vineyard care make this more marketing than anything else. Although professional reviewers often include precisely the same sort of comparison. How many times have I read that Pontet Canet is across the street from Mouton, as if this by itself means anything?

In fact, lookee here! Learn About Pontet Canet Pauillac, Complete Guide

I think it is always worth understanding where any domaine has its vineyards in comparison to other domaines. It is interesting to know that Pontet-Canet is next to Mouton, that Fonbadet is next to Lynch-Bges, that L’Aura is next to Margaux, and so on. The only mistake comes with assuming this implies similar quality. Neighbouring estates might offer similar quality, but they might be very different too. There might be terroir differences, but more often I think it is the people involved, and the ability to invest, that really matters. After all, there are a lot of cru bourgeois vineyards in St Estephe, Pauillac, St Julien and Margaux that abut classed growth vineyards, but they don’t make classed growth quality wine. Then one day they are purchased by their neighbour, and within a few years the wine is contributing to the Mouton or Lafite grand vin. People and money count for a lot.

Having said that, I would be very positive about this estate. Not because of its neighbours, but because I have tasted a few vintages of Cambon la Pelouse in the Haut-Médoc and it is a very reliable property, often turning out one of the best cru bourgeois wines in recent vintages, the equal and indeed superior to some lesser classed growths I can think of. Their Margaux vineyard L’Aura is superior to this domaine cuvée, at least when I have tasted them side by side; it is worth considering on this basis, and on the price, rather than anything to do with its neighbours.

Chateau Suduirant and Climens are neighbors of D’Yquem. BIG difference in prices among those names. Climens is triple what Suduirant costs, and D’yquem is triple what Climens costs.

This.

The 2010 was one of the best QPR buys of the vintage. I bought 1.5 cases. I have not tried the upper-end cuvee, less interested at $35. The base domaine was a steal at $20.

Who this domaine neighbors was entirely irrelevant to me.

This is some of the fun of horizontal panel tasting, especially within a commune.

Sometimes neighbors can be quite different (Beausejour Becot vs Beasejour Duffau) and other times they can end up being similar.

I’ve never actually heard of l’Aura, but Cambon la Pelouse makes a good wine.

And I never knew B21 did private sales! So I’ve learned two things tonight.

If you get any of the wine atlases from Hugh Johnson, or Clive Coates books, some of them have maps inside which show the relative positioning of all the estates. Even google Maps now shows this for some of Bordeaux. I get old ones on Amazon for a song. I’m chewing through one on the Rhone, and looking at the vineyard maps helps understand some areas better.

This is a great thread already. I’ve always wondered about the “next door to Chateau King Kong” that you see so often in wine retailer marketing.

One thing that occurs to me is that the aerial view of those parcels being adjacent is in 2D. What if, for example, the Margaux and Brane Cantenac parcels are sloped facing south, but the L’Aura de Cambon parcel in between faces north? Or if the ones to the side are on a slope and the one in the middle is low and flat? That would make a big difference in quality and style right there.

Since we’re talking about vineyard maps and geography, I have to give a shout out to one of my favorite Burgundy blogs, Wine Hog.

Steen Öhman is the site owner and writer. He reviews a lot of wine, but by far my favorite postings are the vineyard profiles. He starts by showing the map with the vineyard outlined, but also sub-highlighting which producers own what geographical sections of the vineyard. He typically then goes into an exhaustive historical analysis of how each producer acquired their land, often citing primary source data from the 1800s. It’s pretty interesting stuff if you’re into history and Burgundy.

A good example is: Terroir Insight: Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Musigny

You can view snippets for free, but full articles require a subscription (something like 19 EUR per year).

Weird huh? I ordered 3 cases of Bordeaux futures from them this year, and ever since I get private sale emails about twice weekly or so. They’re typically low volume, under-the-radar offerings with few to absent CT reviews or W-S price comparisons.

Perhaps I didn’t read this properly, but Margaux and Brane Cantenac are not adjacent, in fact not even close to one another. I don’t have actual vineyard maps, so there may be a vineyard that is contiguous, but I suspect not, as the chateaux themselves are in different villages within Margaux.

I think this was just a hypothetical, and yes, a 2d map would be blind to those critical aspects like exposure and soil composition

Slightly drifting, I will mention a burg example, La Grande Rue.
Situated in a very hot spot.

-And still, before 2005, they produced a not very sought after, and low priced, Grand Cru average cuvee. At least compared to the closest Royal neighbors.
Bourgogne wines homepage quote :" La Tâche and La Grande Rue share brown limestone soils, rather shallow at the top end with deeper rendzinas lower down."

The care of vines, and the process of wine making, makes the difference here. The soil composition alone, makes no top wine at all.

Kind regards, Soren.

I´ve never heard of this Château L’Aura de Cambon in Margaux.

However, not only in Burgundy the quality of the terroir can change within 100 m from GC to 1er Cru to Village, also in Bordeaux you can have gravel, sand, clay in small distance …
so the proximity to another property doesn´t say anything.

Brane-Cantenac lies in Cantenac, a good 2-3 km South of Margaux, while Chateau Margaux´s main vineyards all lie in the commune of Margaux with the exception of a tiny spot partially in Soussans (which is mostly used for Pavillon rouge).
While I cannot exclude that a parcel of Brane-Cantenac also lies somewhere in the commune of Margaux or Soussans it is of no importance …

One should rather try to taste a bottle to see if and how good it is - or in which style …

(BTW: I once saw an idiot sitting right besides a genious (in a concert) - so proximity … )

Same logic Ch. Lafite is between Heitz Martha’s and Wehlener Sonnenuhr.

Given the nonsense coming from B-21, and the fact that they are pushing this wine, I would not even bother to taste it, especially given the tasting notes. But I do wonder if it is elegant…

That’s not incorrect. It all depends on the scale.

I nominate “elegant” as WB Word of the Week. It will have a tough time beating out “oppertunity” though.

Perhaps even the sole thereof?

We flounder over any sense of plaice.

I wish you wouldn’t carp about this from your high-and-mighty perch. Before posting such things, maybe you should mullet over.

That cuts to the chase!

About L’Aura, it is a good wine, and a reasonable value from Margaux. But some of you will not like it. It is actually made from ripe fruit…