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History
Chateau Pape Clement is one of the oldest Grands Crus in Bordeaux. The vineyards were first planted in the 13th century by Bertrand de Goth, the youngest son of a noble family from Bordeaux. He was elected Pope in 1305, during the reign of Philippe le Bel, and took the name of Clement V. Here the name is that of Pope Cl¨¦ment V. He was born in 1264. Bertrand de Goth became Bishop of Comminges, in the Pyrenees Mountains, at the age of 31; he later became Archbishop of the Bordeaux in 1299. With such a title comes a need for a suitable property, and his brother (who was Archbishop of Lyon) gifted him the La Mothe property in Pessac, between the road to M¨¦rignac (where the airport is today) and the nearby Magonty estate. Taken by a passion for the vine, he continually took part personally in equipping, organizing and managing the domain in accordance with the most modern and rational practices. On 5 June, 1305, the cardinals met in a conclave in Perouse and appointed him to succeed Pope Benedict ¢û, who had passed away prematurely after only eleven months of reign. Bertrand de Goth took the name of Cl¨¦ment ¢¥. Supported by Philip¢ô, it was he who decided in 1309 to move the papal court to Avignon, thus breaking with Rome and its battles of influence. It was for this reason that his successors established a nearby town, known today as Chateauneuf-du-Pape, as the papal summer residence. During this same period, the weight of his responsibilities led him to relinquish his property, giving it to the Archbishop of Bordeaux, Arnaud de Canteloup. The grateful Church perpetuated Pope Cl¨¦ment¡¯s work. Each archbishop in turn turned to modernity and technical progress, to the point of the wine estate becoming a model vineyard. In addition to especially early harvests, which remain one of its special characteristics, Chateau Pape Cl¨¦ment is without a doubt the first vineyard in France to align vine stock to facilitate labour. Throughout these long centuries, however, the wine does not appear to have been marketed, and it is likely that production remained modest, the wines reserved for use in the Archbishop's residence. The Bordeaux estate continued as a site of viticulture for many centuries, remaining in the ownership of the church until the Revolution. This would change after the Revolution, at the end of the 18th century; the archbishop of Bordeaux was dispossessed of his property. Like many of the properties of noblemen and clergy it was sold off as a bien national. During this time, several owners then succeeded each other in fighting against different plagues: oidium or vine rot, brownrot, then phyllowera. Early on in the 19th Century it passed through the hands of gentlemen by the names of Jarrige, De Fortmanoir and Clouzel, before the latter sold the majority of the estate to Jean-Baptiste Clerc, in 1858 , he was a Bordeaux wine merchant and an excellent estate manager. He contributed to establishing the renown of chateau pape clement wines, the quality of which was recognized by the Gironde Agricultural Society Gold Medal and the Ministry of Agriculture Grand Medal at the 1878 World Exhibition. By the time of his death shortly before 1880, the wine of Pape-Cl¨¦ment was selling at a price equivalent to a M¨¦doc second growth. From Clerc the estate passed to Cinto, who enlarged the chateau, before selling it onto an Englishman named Maxwell, who neglected the estate. The economic and political climates were obviously not favourable, and as World War Two approached the dilapidated vineyard, devastated by hail in 1937, was sold. The estate was purloined by a vigneron and poet by the name of Paul Montagne, and following the end of hostilities his plans to revitalise the estate were finally realised. To aid him in his work he engaged the services of Emile Peynaud as oenologist, one of many reasons why the wines of Pape-Cl¨¦ment have been so successful over the years. Today Paul's son L¨¦o has joint-ownership of the estate, having taken on this role with the death of his father at the age of 94, and his partner is Bernard Magrez who also owns La Tour Carnet. Chateau Pape Clement wines continue to delight the wine-lovers of today and tomorrow.
Nowadays¡¯owner: Bernard Magrez
Vineyard magnate Bernard Magrez, whose holdings encompass 21 properties in the Bordeaux region, including legendary Chateau Pape-Clement, and 11 other properties throughout the world, is the man behind this little superstar of a wine. As with all of his properties, everything is done by hand with the help of oenologist consultant Michel Rolland. They make a fabulously rich and concentrated wine from poor soil that is made for winegrowing.
Technique Information
Location:Pessac
Appellation: Appellation Pessac-Leognan Controlee
Neighboring Chateau:
Acreage: 32.5 ha under vine (30 ha of red grape vine; 2.5 ha of white grape vine).
Soil: Gravel table of clay dating back to the end of the Pliocene and the Ancient Quaternary.
Grape Varieties:
Red Varieties: 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Merlot.
White Varieties: 45% Sauvignon Blanc, 45% Semillon, 10% Muscadelle.
Wine Grape Varieties:
Red Wines: 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Merlot
Rose Wines: 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Merlot
White wines:
Chateau Pape Clement Blanc (First Label White£©£º45% Sauvignon Blanc, 45% Semillon, 5% Muscadelle, 5% Sauvignon gris.
Le Clement du Chateau Pape Clement Blanc £¨Second Label White£©£º45% Sauvignon Blanc, 45% Semillon, 5% Muscadelle, 5% Sauvignon gris.
Le Prelat du Chateau Pape Clement Blanc£¨Second Label White£©£º100% Sauvignon Blanc
Average age of vines: 30 years (20 years for Le Prelat du Chateau Pape Clement Blanc)
Cultivation Density: 7,700 vines per hectare
Viticulture: Guyot double pruning method,ecologically minded viticultural practices, leaf thinning and bunch thinning.
Winemaking:
Red Wines:
The grapes are initially sorted in the vineyard, hand-picked into small crates, manually destemmed, and then put into wooden vats by gravity flow. Cool pre-fermentation maceration. Manual punching down of the cap. The wine is run off directly into new barrels via gravity flow, without any pumping. It is then aged for 18 months in new French oak barrels.
White Wines:
Chateau Pape Clement Blanc£¨First Label White£©£ºThe grapes are initially sorted in the vineyard, hand-picked into small crates, and then sorted again in the vat room. They are neither destemmed nor crushed. Gentle pressing of whole grapes, with a gradual increase in pressure. The wine is run off by gravity flow in new French oak barrels for fermentation. Ageing on the fine less for 10-12 months.
Le Clement du Chateau Pape Clement Blanc£¨Second Label White£©£ºThe same way as first label white.
Le Prelat du Chateau Pape Clement Blanc£¨Second Label White£©£ºThe grapes are hand-picked and slowly pressed, and the juice is clarified by cold setting. The wine is then run off into 50% new barrels for cool fermentation. The wine is aged on the lees with battonnage (stirring with a stick) for 14-16 months.
Rose Wines:
Maceration for 6 hours. Alcoholic fermentation in stainless steel vats. Ageing on lees for 5 months in vats.
Yield: 25-40 hectoliters per hectare.
Brands:
Chateau Pape Clement£¨First Label£©£¨A.O.C. Pessac Leognan£©
Chateau Pape Clement Blanc£¨First Label White£©£¨A.O.C. Pessac Leognan£©
Le Clement du Chateau Pape Clement£¨Second Label£©£¨A.O.C. Pessac Leognan£©
Le Clement du Chateau Pape Clement Blanc£¨Second Label White£©£¨A.O.C. Pessac LeognanÇø£©
Le Prelat du Chateau Pape Clement£¨Second Label£©£¨A.O.C. Pessac Leognan£©
Le Prelat du Chateau Pape Clement Rose£¨Second Label Rose£©£¨A.O.C. Bordeaux£©
Le Prelat du Chateau Pape Clement Blanc£¨Second Label White£©£¨A.O.C. Pessac Leognan£©
Annually Production:
Chateau Pape Clement £¨First Label£©£ºabout 7,500 cases (90,000 bottles)
Chateau Pape Clement Blanc£¨First Label White£©£ºabout 375 cases (4,500 bottles)
Character:
Chateau Pape Clement£¨First Label£©£ºAs always there are those ready to criticise the Pape-Clement of today for the use of technology, for modernization, for extraction, for monotony as they have seen the style develop over the last one or two decades. Nevertheless it is clear on tasting recent vintages of Pape-Clement that these are superlative wines, with concentration, purity of fruit, texture and yet also elegance. They remain aromatic and exciting on assessment, whilst being rich and yet well defined on the palate. It reveals aromas of plum, berry and earth, with a grilled meat and roasted oak character on the nose and palate.
Chateau Pape Clement Blanc£¨First Label White£©£ºIn just a few years, the reputation of Château Pape Cl¨¦ment Blanc has caught up with, and even overtaken, that of Pape Cl¨¦ment Rouge! This success is the obvious fruit of a series of excellent vintages that have placed the pale and brilliant gold of Bernard Magrez among the three top Pessac L¨¦ognan dry white wines. Alongside it are found Haut-Brion and Château Chevalier. All three are different but have the same level of quality. It had the intense aromas of Sauvignon Blanc with richness on the palate from the Semillon.
Le Prelat du Chateau Pape Clement£¨Second Label£©£ºThis is the very good second wine of Chateau Pape Clement one of the most progressive of all Graves estates, a wine laden with bright, ripe fruit and good oak. A wine that unusually for Bordeaux can be enjoyed quite young.
Best Vintages: Chateau Pape Clement£¨First Label£©£º2000£¬2003£¬2005
Awards:
Chateau Pape ClementChateau Pape Clement £¨First Label£©£º
Vintage 2000: Gold Medal at 2003 Brussels competition
Vintage 2001: Gold Medal at 2004 London IWSC and at 2004 Bordeaux competition
Vintage 2002: Silver Medal at 2004 Paris competition
Vintage 2003: Silver Medal at 2005 Paris competition
1st place out of 205 wines in European Grand Jury 2006
Vintage 2004: Gold Medal at 2005 Paris competition
Le Clement du Chateau Pape ClementLe Clement du Chateau Pape Clement£¨Second Label£©£º
Vintage 2002: Recommended by Decanter for the 2005 Awards
Seal of Approval at the 2005 International Wine Challenge
Silver Medal at 2005 London International Wine & Spirit Competition
Website:www.pape-clement.com
Serving Suggestion
Cellar Humidity and Temperature: 75-85%£¬15 ¡æ
Serving Temperature: 17¡æ-19¡æ
Optimum Drinking and Ageing Potential: 10-30years
Food Match:
Red Wines:Beef stew, buffalo, duck, lamb, ostrich, pepper crusted tuna, pot roast, ribs, steak, veal.
White Wines: Figs, squash, summer, cheese, soup.
Next ¡°Servitude Volontaire¡± Du Chateau La Tour Carnet
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