Chateau Carbonnieux Pessac-Leognan Blanc 2016

THE Classic White Bordeaux in all its 2015 glory! A great bottle of wine, period. It is a blend of 80% Sauvignon Blanc and 20% Semillon that was aged for 10 months in a combination of barriques and larger casks, 25% of which were new. Château Carbonnieux was thrilled with the wine from this vintage recalling the ‘Magic of 5’ stating, “Bordeaux remembers the mythical 1945, 55, 75, 85, 95 and 2005. A perfect weather along the vegetative cycle allows 2015 to follow the 10 year legend for marvelous vintages produced in the years ending in 5.”

Château Carbonnieux was founded by the Benedictine Monks of Saint-Croix Abbey in the 13th century, making it one of the oldest estates in Bordeaux. The property went through centuries of different ownership and was most recently purchased by Marc Perrin (a descendant of the Perrin winegrowing family of Nuits-Saint-George) in 1956. Château Carbonnieux became a Grand Cru Classé in the Graves Classification of 1959 for both their red and white wines, a rare feat that is shared by only five other estates in Graves.

The Perrins expanded the estate to 50 hectares planted to red grapes (60% to Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% to Merlot, 7% to Cabernet Franc and 3% to Petite Verdot and Carmenere) and 42 hectares to white grapes (65% to Sauvignon Blanc and 35% Semillon.) All the vines are farmed sustainably and organically as possible. The estate has always been more famous for their white wine starting in the 1700s when the monks redoubled their efforts and investments to focus on getting it to the top of the white wine rankings of Bordeaux. In 1786, when Thomas Jefferson visited a few famous Bordeaux estates, he chose Château Carbonnieux so he could taste its famous white wine.