The Wines this weekend

For the first evening of the weekend our focus is on the local region in terms of both wine and food. The menu features oysters from Arcachon, mushrooms from the Perigord, duck which is common throughout south-west France, also celeriac and walnuts from the gardens here at Rigaud. To match this, the wines are also local, from within a 20 mile radius. 

On the second evening of the weekend the wines have been selected from further afield (still Bordeaux of course!) with a view to pairing different styles of wine with small plates of food. 

On the final night we will enjoy some fine wines from various areas in the Bordeaux appellations.

Our House Wines

Rigaud house wines are available throughout the weekend. Just help yourselves to crémant, white or rosé from the bar fridge and reds from the dining room.

HOUSE FIZZ

Fort de Rauzan - 100% Semillon

The local fizz is crémant, méthode champenoise which means it’s bottle fermented in the same style as a champagne. Fort de Rauzan is made in the nearby wine cooperative at Rauzan and is hugely popular with our wedding guests in the summer.
www.cavederauzan.com

HOUSE WHITE

Bauduc Sauvignon Blanc 2023 - 100% Sauvignon blanc

Star buy in The Telegraph, The Times and The Sunday Times in 2020, house white at Gordon Ramsay and Rick Stein for the past 20 years and also here at Chateau Rigaud. An excellent example of how a Bordeaux white should be. Made by Gavin and Angela Quinney in Créon and available to purchase direct from the chateau to your door in the UK.
www.bauduc.com

HOUSE REDS

Chateau La Jarre 2020 - 80% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc

Our chateau neighbour – if you spy a turret over the brow of the vines from of your bedroom window, that’s La Jarre. It’s been in the same family for the past 50 years, but was originally built by the Duc du Lorge who was mayor of Bordeaux and finance minister to King Louis Phillipe. The wine has improved greatly in the past few years under the guidance of the new wine maker. It’s a typical example of a Bordeaux red from this region, machine harvested, fermented in concrete and stainless-steel tanks and finished in oak barrels.
www.chateau-lajarre.com

Pezat 2022 - 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc

Entry level wine from Jonathan Maltus, one of the original ‘garagiste’ wine makers in Bordeaux whose first wine, Le Dome, has scored 100 Parker points for several vintages. This wine is made with vines planted to the same density as St Emilon Grand Cru but from a terroir closer to the river. Robert Parker describes the wine as “exactly what the market needs”.
www.maltus.com 

Chateau La Verrière 2021 - 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Sauvignon

French family-run operation of twenty hectares, consistently winning medals. Fantastic value and reason enough to move to France.
www.chateaulaverriere.com

HOUSE ROSE

Jonathan Maltus, Pezat Rosé 2023 - 70% Grenache, 10% Syrah, 10 % Cinsault 10% Rolle

This wine is made up of the classic Provencal varieties.
www.maltus.com/

THURSDAY EVENING WINES

Local crémant tasting

Although crémant has been produced in Bordeaux for many years, the appellation and rules surrounding production were only finally created in 1990. Crémant de Bordeaux is made only from grape varieties that are used in Bordeaux still wine production. The most important white varieties are Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon, Muscadelle and Sauvignon Gris.

Pineau de Charentes

Pineau comes from the Charentes, between the Bordeaux and Loire regions. It’s an accidental concoction of wine and cognac. In the 16th century a winemaker forgot that one of his barrels contained distilled spirit and added wine to it. The resulting fortified wine has been popular as an aperitif ever since and is available in white, red and rosé.

Chateau Carbonneau Margot 2022, Sainte-Foy Côtes de Bordeaux - 100% Sauvignon blanc

Family-run winery with additional chambres d’hote and beef cattle, Wilf Franc de Ferriére travelled to New Zealand in his youth, to learn more about the new world approach to winemaking and while he was there he found his wife, Jacquie. They have since brought three of their four children into the business which produces a range of four reds, plus a white and a rosé, and a crémant.
www.chateau-carbonneau.com 

Clos Dominique 2019, Bordeaux Supérieur - 55% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Petit Verdot

A family-run vineyard a couple of villages away in Juillac which is one of the highest points in the Gironde department, although still a mere 100 metres high. This is a 60 hectare property and the Clemenceau family also own 9 hectares near St Emilion.
www.vignoblesclemenceau.fr

Chateau Verriere Bellevue 2020, Bordeaux Moelleux - Savignon Blanc, Semillon

Made by a French family in Landerrouat from 23 hectares in regional AOC and Sainte-Foy - Bordeaux.

FRIDAY EVENING WINES

Clairet tasting – Rauzan Cave Co-operative 2021 Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon.

Chateau Lafon 2022, 10% Sauvignon blanc & 90% Semillon

Chateau Lafon - Vin AOC Sauternes - Bienvenue au Chateau Lafon - Vignobles Fauthoux
Château Lafon , located in the heart of the Sauternes region (33), enjoys the rare privilege of forming an enclave in the middle of the vineyards of the famous Château d’Yquem of whichbit is the closest neighbour.bFour generations succeeded each other to make this wine what it is today from their 12bhectares of vineyards.

Chateau La Grâce Fonrazade 2021, Bordeaux blanc - 100% Sauvignon Gris

Produced by staunch anglophile, Mr Bon, whose vineyard is in St Emilion and is totally organic. The St Emilion appellation can only be used for red wines so any whites made there are called “Bordeaux blanc”.
www.lagracefonrazade.com

Aurelius 2019, St Emilion Grand Cru - 85% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc

Since 1955 the St Emilion classification system ranks wines from Grand Cru to 64 Grand Cru Classé and then 18 Premier Grand Cru Classé, of which four make up the super-league ‘A’ list - Pavie, Ausone, Cheval Blanc and Angelus.  The rankings are updated every ten years in a grand, ceremonial event involving its 140 judges parading in their red robes through the town.
www.udpse.com

Chateau Cherchy-Desqueyroux 2016, Graves Supérieur - 80% Semillon, 10% Sauvignon, 10% Muscadelle

This is not a Sauternes. Loupiac, Barsac or classic sweet wine appellation but the neighbouring Graves area, on the left bank of the Garonne, produces some delicious dessert wines too.

SATURDAY EVENING WINES

Chateau Pont de Brion 2022, Graves blanc - 65% Semillon, 35% Sauvignon

The Molinari family owns this 22 hectare vineyard at the eastern end of the Graves appellation.
www.chateaupontdebrion.com 

Chateau Le Sèpe 2022, Entre-Deux-Mers - 50% Sauvignon Blanc, 30% Muscadelle, 20% Sauvignon Gris

Entre-Deux-Mers means “between two seas” and was the term used by the Romans to describe the area between the Dordogne river, just to the north of Rigaud, and the Garonne river about 40 kms to the south. Both rivers are tidal quite a long way inland so the Romans considered them to be seas.
www.chateaulesepe.com

Chateau Meyney, St Estephe, 2021 - 58% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot and 11% Petit Verdot

These very old vines, planted in the 50s, give the wine a very deep black colour, spicy notes and a racy style.
www.meyney.fr

Chateau Pindefleurs 2018, St Emilion Grand Cru - 90% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc

Family-owned property run by siblings Pierre & Audrey. No gender stereotyping here - Audrey is the winemaker and Pierre deals with sales and admin.  It’s always great to see the younger generation taking the reins.
www.pindefleurs.fr

Crémant Louis Vallon demi-sec - Semillon, Cabernet Franc

It’s very common in France to serve fizz again with dessert, this time a sweet one.

Santé !  Enjoy !