Chevalier de Lascombes
WHY BUY IT ?
- The second wine of Margaux’s second Grand Cru Classé
- The Ch. Lascombes team strives to continually improve the quality of this second wine, while respecting the tradition of a history and a glorious past.
- Director of the property: Dominique Befve (previously Ch. Lafite-Rothschild and L’Evangile)
- Restructuring of the vineyard in order to respect the diversity of soils and to express the quintessence of the terroir
- Cuvier at the forefront of technology to work by gravity and in parcel vinification
Château Lascombes owes its name and history to its first owner, Chevalier Antoine de Lascombes, born in 1625. At the end of the 18th century, Jean-François de Lascombes, advisor of the Bordeaux parliament, tries thanks to his fortune to make from Lascombes a very great wine. It was the Bâtonnier Chaix d’Est Ange who built the current Château in 1867. The property was bought in 1952 by Alexis Lichine, who completely restructured the Château and renovated the wine-making facilities, thus giving a second life to this grand cru. In 2001, the Colony Capital group acquired Château Lascombes, the beginning of a new era for the estate. In 2011, it is the MACSF, current owners, who bought the Château Lascombes and entrusted the management to Dominique Befve. Le Chevalier de Lascombes is the second wine of the property.
The 120 hectares of the vineyard are located on the Margaux appellation, the blend of this wine is 50% Merlot, 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Petit Verdot. It is to this day one of the largest vineyards of the Crus Classés of 1855. Chevalier de Lascombes comes from the younger vines. A soil study is carried out plot by plot. This has led to a restructuring of the vineyard to obtain a perfect match between soils, basements and grape varieties. The approach is traditional, many efforts made to promote the ripening of the grapes by offering a more airy environment and a better exposure to the sun. The date of harvest is decided by the optimal maturity of the berries, and this is done by tasting parcel by plot of berries. The harvest is cooled by an injection of dry ice since 2001 to obtain a more intense color, more stable and a better aromatic complexity. The wine is aged on lees for 4 months.
At the tasting, this second wine offers less power but more fruit, more freshness than its elder. A wine ready to drink faster but who will appreciate a few years of care.
Their Team
- Owners: The MACSF
- Chief Executive Officer: Dominique BEFVE
- Head of Culture: Michel DA FONSECA
- Consulting oenologist: Michel ROLLAND