Château Sociando-Mallet
The château sociando-mallet among the vineyards of Bordeaux . It is located in Saint-Seurin-de-Cadourne in the Haut-Médoc appellation on the northern Médoc peninsula. Good has approximately 66 hectares of vines cultivated, of which 54% with the grape variety Cabernet Sauvignon , 45% Merlot , 1% with Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc are planted. The estate is beautifully situated on the Gironde north of Saint-Estèphe . In addition to the first wine , a second wine called La Demoiselle de Sociando-Mallet is also produced.
The estate has been privately owned by Jean Gautreau since 1969. As one of less than ten-Medoc Chateau enjoyed Sociando under the Cru Bourgeois -Gütern until recently to be classified as Cru Bourgeois Exceptionel (CBE). In the meantime, a good has to reapply to maintain its status within the Alliance des Crus Bourgeois du Médoc , association of CB goods. However, Gautreau dispensed with this procedure; In his opinion, his estate ranks at the top of all crus bourgeois even without an official classification. It is undisputed among wine connoisseurs that Sociando, compared to the Grand Cru goods, is at least equal to a Troisieme , but more like a Deuxieme Grand Cru .
The wines from medium to good years are regularly rated by Robert Parker with 90 or more Parker points as excellent wines , so the vintages 2005 (91 PP), 2003 (94 PP), 2000 (93 PP), 1990 (93 PP) , 1982 (92 PP), 1997, 1996, 1995, 1989, 1986 and 1985 (90 PP each). But even in less good years, the wines from Sociando-Mallet are consistently good and often better than many Grand Crus.
Jean Gautreau vinifies his wines in the classic conservative Bordeaux style, so that the red wines often have to mature in the cellar for a very long time, recommended over 10 to 15 years, and due to their tight design and emphasis on Cabernet Sauvignon, they are not for everyone.
A strict selection of the grapes from vines that are more than ten years old and a long maceration produce a wine full of flavor with a deep dark color. Sociando wine has a special bouquet ; in it you can find, among other things, the scent of raspberries. These wines appear a bit austere when they are young, but with age they reach the remarkable class of Haut-Medoc. This also results in the long shelf life. The wine matures in oak barrels, the barriques, until it is bottled on the estate .