Chateau Tertre-Samonac Cotes de Bourg 2018

Chateau Tertre De Samonac

AOC Cotes De Bourg, Bordeaux France.

Nestled just above Bourg-sur-Gironde, the town of Samonac is home to the tiny vineyard of Chateau Tertre De Samonac The old vines render the wine concentrated in fruit and flavour, because of the limited quantity of grapes they produce. The soils are a mix of clay and limestone called, calcareous clay. Clay is known to keep cool but calcareous clay is cooler as it has excellent drainage in cooler weather. The clay produces a fruity, round, bold wine and the limestone imparts good acidity and structure.

The region of Cotes de Bourg is littered with variable terroir. At its best, there are vineyards with clay and limestone soils. Much of the terroir is situated on sand, clay, gravel, and limestone soils. Cotes de Bourg is a cooler, marine climate terroir with close proximity to the where the Garonne and the Dordogne rivers intersects. Cotes de Bourg is one of the oldest wine-producing regions in France. In fact, Cotes de Bourg has a history dating back to the days of the Ancient Romans. This was due to its strategic, geographical location in the Bourg, which is a port.

Red Bordeaux wine and white Bordeaux wine are produced in the Cotes de Bourg appellation. However, more than 98% of all the wine that comes from the Cotes de Bourg is red wine. For the red wine, Merlot is the key grape that takes up close to 65% of all the vines in the appellation, this is followed by Cabernet Franc, making those two grape varieties the two most important grapes in the region.

You will find that all 5 of the major Bordeaux grape varietals are planted in the Cotes de Bourg. So of course you will also find Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, and Petit Verdot planted in the Cotes de Bourg as well.

In 2005 Vincent Mercier bought Château Tertre de Samonac. A young and ambitious man, Vincent Mercier (now 48) is originally from Corrèze but adopted Bordeaux as his home during his viticulture studies. In the beginning, Vincent vinified his wine through a cooperative. As time, experience, and success would have it in 2013, he decided to spread his wings and fly on his own, building his own winery.

He has been producing organic wines since the early 2000’s so when Vincent finally bought his own property he was already involved in organic wine production. Therefore, with the valuable experience from his first job, he immediately began the process to gain organic certification for his property. Vincent does not come from a family of property owners or viticulturists. Through his own hard work and unwavering determination, he is a self-made Château owner and passionate winemaker.

APPELLATION: Côtes de Bourg AVERAGE AGE OF THE VINES: 25-30 years SURFACE: 17 ha SOIL: Calcareous Clay

CERTIFICATION: Bio-Dynamic & Organic

APPELLATION: Côtes de Bourg

AVERAGE AGE OF THE VINES: 25-30 years
SURFACE: 17 ha
SOIL: Calcareous Clay
BLEND: 100 % Merlot
AGEING: 4 months in Stainless steel tanks
AGEING POTENTIAL: 3-5 years

THE WINE

This wine has a deep purple robe. The bouquet shows notes of red fruit. A robust, yet balanced wine on the palate with good acidity, and great tannins which will soften as the wine breathes. A wine with a personality worthy of its terroir, full of fruit and character.