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Château des Eyrins, Margaux

Bordeaux, France 2016 (750mL)
$65.00
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Château des Eyrins, Margaux

Margaux, immortalized by its eponymous First Growth château, has historically crafted the most polished Left Bank wines, boasting concentration and weight only matched by its perfumed elegance. As such, shelling out triple digits (four for Château Margaux) to experience the upper crust of wine has become the standard here, but neighboring Château des Eyrins has something else in mind.
Husband-wife team Xavier and Julie Gonet-Medeville purchased Château des Eyrins in 2008 from Eric Grangerou, whose family were cellarmasters at Château Margaux for three generations. Comparisons to the famous First Growth don’t stop there: The sale came with 2.9 hectares spread out over three sites, the largest being a triangular parcel which is twice-bordered by Château Margaux (with Château Palmer just across the street). Now, combine this storied terroir and the epic 2016 vintage along with the enthusiasm of the young Gonet-Medevilles, and it answers the question, “How can I drink premium Bordeaux without paying a premium?” This is a marvelous wine that can go toe to toe with the blockbuster Classified Growths that surround it. Production is small—about one-tenth of Château Margaux—so grab what you can because offering the following vintage is never a guarantee! 
Xavier and Julie are a French wine power couple. Not much older than myself, they are the owners of a boutique Champagne house in Côte des Blancs’ Les Mesnil; the inimitable Château Gilette in Sauternes; and today’s Château des Eyrins in Margaux, among others. Both worked under the direction of her parents for eight years until venturing out on their own in 2005. Now with ownership in what seems like every shade and style of wine (sparkling, white, red, sweet), they’ve quickly created a name for themselves. Though both of their families have rich histories in the business, Xavier and Julie’s focus on small-production, conscientiously-crafted wines are among the best of any “newcomer.” 

Soils in Château des Eyrins’ vineyards are among the thinnest and most gravelly in all of Haut-Médoc, meaning their 40-year-old vines have deep-reaching roots—great for absorbing nutrients and groundwater. Grapes are harvested by hand and fermentation is carried out in stainless steel tanks with a three-week maceration. The blend is roughly 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, and 5% Petit Verdot and the wine ages in 50% new French oak for 18 months. 

All beauty (with a wee bit of beast), Château Eyrin’s Grand Vin thunders across your palate with the force of a small, nimble army. Its brawn and immense structure is an homage to the luxurious power that the appellation of Margaux can produce, and it’s on full display in the near-perfect 2016 vintage. The nose erupts with dark-fruited crèmes and liqueurs, freshly picked berries, violets, blackcurrant, cedar box, wet gravel, tar, baking spice, and pipe tobacco with deeper savory components making an encouraging appearance as 1-2 hours pass by in a decanter. Nonstop sunshine during 2016’s peak growing months means that this is amazingly accessible right now—firm structure juxtaposed with Margaux polish allows for voluptuous, broad textures to slowly envelop the palate. Despite the thrill it brings now, a promising future lies ahead of this wine: It will start opening up in 2020, hit a comfortable stride in 2025, and develop into a classic, mature Margaux by 2030 and beyond. Again, allow Eyrins to breathe for a while (30-60 minutes) before serving in large Bordeaux stems, and pace yourself when enjoying. This is pedigreed Bordeaux that can hang with the big boys—don’t drain your bottle too quickly! Cheers!
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Country
France
Region
Bordeaux
Sub-Region
FranceMargaux
Soil
Gravel & Limestone
Farming
Lutte Raisonnée
Blend
Cabernet Sauvignon 70%, Merlot 25%, Petit Verdot 5%
Alcohol
14.0
OAK
50% New French
TEMP.
60-65
Glassware
Large Bordeaux Stem
Drinking
2020-2036
Decanting
90+ Minutes
Pairing
Seared Veal Chops

France

Bourgogne

Beaujolais

Enjoying the greatest wines of Beaujolais starts, as it usually does, with the lay of the land. In Beaujolais, 10 localities have been given their own AOC (Appellation of Controlled Origin) designation. They are: Saint Amour; Juliénas; Chénas; Moulin-à Vent; Fleurie; Chiroubles; Morgon; Régnié; Côte de Brouilly; and Brouilly.

Southwestern France

Bordeaux

Bordeaux surrounds two rivers, the Dordogne and Garonne, which intersect north of the city of Bordeaux to form the Gironde Estuary, which empties into the Atlantic Ocean. The region is at the 45th parallel (California’s Napa Valley is at the38th), with a mild, Atlantic-influenced climate enabling the maturation of late-ripening varieties.

Central France

Loire Valley

The Loire is France’s longest river (634 miles), originating in the southerly Cévennes Mountains, flowing north towards Paris, then curving westward and emptying into the Atlantic Ocean near Nantes. The Loire and its tributaries cover a huge swath of central France, with most of the wine appellations on an east-west stretch at47 degrees north (the same latitude as Burgundy).

Northeastern France

Alsace

Alsace, in Northeastern France, is one of the most geologically diverse wine regions in the world, with vineyards running from the foothills of theVosges Mountains down to the Rhine River Valley below.

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