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2012 was not for the faint of heart.
The season alternated between periods of stark contrasts, bringing anxiety, then hope, and requiring vigilance and hard work on the part of winemakers.
After a mild month of March, cold rain in April delayed budding. A warm and dry May, and then a cold and wet June complicated blooming. Heat and drought from July 14 to September 23 lengthened the ripening process and generated significant stress. August was the warmest on record since 2003!
With all of these contrasts, the vines truly illustrated their ability to adapt to any condition. Our job was to help as much as possible by understanding and proceeding calmly. We worked on the plants or with the soil, vine by vine, as needed, according to the situation. This allowed the grapes to ripen, but slowly and behind schedule. We also kept our composure at the end of September, when the rains set in. The wet weather was far from a burden; it was a welcome booster for the physiology of the vine. While rainfall arrived a bit late for the almost-ripened Merlot, it greatly contributed to bringing the Cabernet to full maturity.
The harvest took place between September 28 and October 17 under mild skies with little rain. Perhaps even more than other years, the diversity of the plots required painstaking monitoring. We took our time tasting and analyzing the grapes, as phenolic maturity was reached long after the sugars and acids had developed. Inside the plots, substantial differences in the nature of the soil and/or their vigor led us to pick the grapes in two or three rounds.
Sugar levels are slightly lower than in 2011, for a potential alcohol content of around 13%. Deep colors give way to forceful, grainy tannins, without vegetal notes thanks to the August heat. As in 2011, the Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc are excellent while the Merlot and the Petit Verdot were more affected by the drought. Our 2.9 ton/acre (51 hl/ha) yield is higher than 2011, and we will have a wide-ranging and interesting palette of wines (no less than 30 vats) to design the blends after all of the batches have been put in casks.
This was a demanding vintage; I am looking forward to our reward.
Philippe DELFAUT
