Listrac

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Listrac is the second smallest of the six municipal appellations of the Médoc after Moulis . In 2002, in Listrac-Médoc, 29,154 hectoliters of red wine were produced on 664 hectares of cultivation area , in most years the amount is higher - up to 38,000 hectoliters. The white wine grown on a total of 6 hectares does not fall under the AOC .

Soil and climate

The Listrac cultivation area forms a roughly six by 3.5 km long rectangle that runs from southwest to northeast. It connects directly to the southeastern area of ​​Moulis and, like this, consists of different geological formations of the Tertiary and Quaternary . Three groups of locations characterize the Listrac cultivation area:

  • In the west, the gravel -sand dome of Fonréaud , Berniquet-Sémeillan and Fourcas (from south to north) lie on a limestone plinth . They originated in the Pliocene from Pyrenees rock. With a maximum height of 46 m above sea level. NN they form the highest elevation of the Médoc. Cabernet is predominantly grown here.
  • The extensive Peyrelebade plain in the center of the area consists of loamy-calcareous sandy soil. It was created when the limestone anticline that was originally there eroded. Mainly Merlot grows here .
  • In the northeast, in the hamlet of Médrac, there is a hilltop made of pebbles, which the Garonne brought in during the Günz Ice Age . It is the continuation of the gravel and sand dome of Grand-Poujeaux, which belongs to the municipality of Moulis, and is the best terroir for Cabernet Sauvignon due to its rapid heating and excellent drainage .

As in the rest of the Médoc, the climate is influenced by the ocean. Of the Médoc cultivation areas, however, it is the one furthest from the Gironde . As a result, the river has less of a tempering effect and there is a considerable risk of frost. When the temperature dropped to −20 ° C in January 1985, around 100 hectares of vines froze to death in Listrac.

Wines and châteaux

The rate of vines depends on the vineyards that the château has. Due to the dominance of loamy-calcareous soils, the Merlot has the highest share in Listrac with almost 60%, followed by the Cabernet Sauvignon. Further still be Cabernet Franc (3%) and Petit Verdot (below 3%) cultivated. On the other hand, the Malbec is hardly grown . The permitted basic yield is 45 hectoliters / hectare.

Listrac's red wine is always prepared in the classic Bordeaux style. This includes long maceration and aging in wooden barrels. Typical are proportions of around a third of new barrique barrels . The Listrac is robust and full-bodied. Its tannin content is usually higher than that of the neighboring moulis . Therefore it needs a little longer bottle aging than that. Depending on the vintage , a Listrac can be built for between 7 and 20 years. The demarcation between Moulis and Listrac is not always clear, because some châteaux also have vines in their neighboring appellation. However, there is a tendency towards separate vinification and marketing. For example, Château Clarke produces the “Château Malmaison” from its parcels located in Moulis, and Château Mayne-Lalande does the same with its “Château Myon-L'Enclos”.

Listrac now owns around 30 independent wineries. The majority of them belong to the class of the crus bourgeois . The fact that there is no Grand Cru Classé among them is because the municipality was not included in the 1855 classification . Today, however, the wines of the leading goods are on a par with classified plants. Listrac owns a total of 20 Crus Bourgeois, nine of which are classified as "Supérieur":

Crus Bourgeois Supérieurs Crus Bourgeois
  • Château Cap León Veyrin
  • Château Clarke
  • Château Fonréaud
  • Château Fourcas Dupré
  • Château Fourcas hosting
  • Château Fourcas Loubaney
  • Château Lestage
  • Château Mayne Lalande
  • Château Saransot-Dupré
  • Château Baudan
  • Château Bibian
  • Château Donissan
  • Château Ducluzeau
  • Château l'Ermitage
  • Château Lalande
  • Château La Lauzette-Declercq
  • Château Liouner
  • Château Peyredon Lagravette
  • Château Reverdi
  • Château Sémeillan-Mazeau

Listrac also owns one of the most famous wine cooperatives in the Médoc. It processes the yield of 160 hectares of vineyards and is by far the largest operation in the town. It has around 50 producers. In addition to its "flagship" Grand Listrac , it produces the prestige cuvée La Caravelle . In addition, it vinifies the wines of several châteaux. In addition, several cuvées are made from the vines of members in the neighboring municipality of Moulis.

history

Vines already grew in Listrac in the Middle Ages, but at that time the importance of viticulture was minor compared to grain and livestock farming. This only changed with the reclamation of the Médoc in the 17th century. In contrast to the famous communities along the Gironde, viticulture in Listrac has always been dominated by small farmers. In the second half of the 18th century the gravel and sand dome of the Fourcas was planted with vines, in 1850 the author Charles Cocks mentioned 60 wineries in Listrac in his book "Bordeaux". Viticulture was given a further boost by the construction of the railway line through the Médoc. In 1869 the first train on the Bordeaux-Le Verdon line passed through Listrac. However, the phylloxera crisis dealt a severe blow to Listrac at the end of the 19th century, from which it recovered only slowly. At the turn of the century, the area under vines was still 1380 hectares, twice as much as it is today. In 1935 the wine cooperative was founded. It got a big boost when the SNCF railroad made the Grand Listrac the house wine for their dining cars in 1948. Towards the end of the 1960s, rail passenger consumption peaked at 1,500 hectoliters, a third of the cooperative's annual production. At the same time, the upswing in viticulture was crowned in 1957 with Listrac's recognition as a communal appellation. The Listrac's growing reputation attracted new capital, which enabled large investments in neglected vineyards and cellars. The best example of this are the Châteaux Clarke and Peyrelebade, which were completely renovated after the acquisition by Baron Edmond de Rothschild in the 1970s . In contrast, the purchase of Château Bibian by the football star Jean Tigana remained only one episode . The upswing continued into the 1990s. The modernization of the cellar facilities and winemaking techniques have undoubtedly taken some of the Listrac's earlier rusticity away. However, it has retained its powerful, long-lasting character and its favorable price-performance ratio to this day.

literature