It is an expression used to describe the alcohol that evaporates from barrels during maturing. The story goes that a priest coined the expression after finding that his barrel of maturing wine had lost some of its contents even though it was perfectly sealed. He concluded that the angels had taken their share. In order to make up for the loss and prevent the wine from oxidizing, the barrels are topped up every couple of weeks.
On 26 February, we had the pleasure of welcoming students from Le Cordon Bleu Paris, a famous Culinary and Hospitality Management institure, for a visit of Château de Sales. We wish them every success and thank Clément Gauthier for this great initiative.
We wish you all the best for 2021 and hope to see you again soon so that we can share new moments together.
Published by La Revue du Vin de France, the guide offers a complete round-trip of French wine country in a tailored selection of 5,500 wines.
In one of the background features designed to guide readers in their discovery of the best wines of France, the Guide Vert selected Château de Sales as a favourite in the Bordeaux region.
To read the full-page article about Château de Sales in the guide, click here.
93/100
« Shortly after bottling, Château de Sales more than lives up to its potential, showing welcome, taut freshness, with a firm and lively texture on fine camphor and minty notes. It will drink well soon but also keep for many years. »
After heavy rain and relatively mild temperatures at the start of the year, budbreak occurred 15 days earlier than the average for the last 15 years. The Merlots reached mid-flowering particularly early, on 21 May. These exceptional weather conditions in the first half of the year meant that our teams had to keep a sharp eye on the vines in order to forestall any risk of disease.
The summer was hot and dry, but the Château de Sales terroir kept the vineyard free of water stress. The berries started changing colour early, on 11 July in the Merlot parcels. Fine weather in September enabled the grapes to reach optimum maturity.
The harvest took place in excellent conditions between 10 and 30 September. Run-offs from the first vats show a fine balance between fruit, acidity and tannins.
A promising new vintage in prospect!
After early flowering and a beautiful summer, the 2020 harvest began in radiant sunshine on Thursday, September 10th.
For three weeks or so, about 50 pickers pass through the rows of vines at Château de Sales, sorting and harvesting the fruit of a year’s work.
The team were delighted with the first bunches of Merlot. A great new vintage is on its way!
