Château du Cèdre, in the heart of the Cahors appellation, must be regarded as the region’s leading light; the refined Malbec grape reaches new heights here. Deep, dark and elegant, Pascal and Jean-Marc Verhaeghe’s wines reveal the superb terroir of the estate.
Château du Cèdre white, 100% Viognier in Malbec country. Many people qualify this wine as being “very elegant”, with its subtle nose, flowery and mineral until the fruit increases. Very well integrated oak enriches the bouquet and gently envelopes the crispy acidity. This Viognier looks for tasty fish, spices, curry or even chilly.
Le Cèdre Héritage is a real pleasure to drink. The blending of crispy Sauvignon, smooth Semillon and flowery Muscadelle makes it a tasteful wine, that fits to many occasions and dishes – aperitif, fish, cheese…
#Cahors Malbec: Taste as an Expert - video by cahorsmalbec2010
Jacques and Noëlle Ratier, restaurant owners in Cahors, bring Malbec’s qualities to the table. They will show you how to prepare and appreciate best the typical Malbec wines from south-western France.
Young or rather old – the fine art of tasting wines from Cahors
Somebody may ask, which is the best moment to drink our wines. Being able to age for long years, one may be tempted to leave them in the cellar, being afraid to open them too early. Recent tasting of the wines we’ve bottled earlier this year offers a good occasion for us to present our point of view.
Since many years we multiply our efforts to enhance the “drinkability” of our wines as “young ones”. For us, organic farming, grape ripeness and gentle extraction during vinification are the main factors to achieve this. Of course there is a difference in taste and odour between a young wine and one that has been ripening for 10 years in a bottle. But to enjoy one or the other finally depends on our palate and preference.
But let’s start at the beginning, with our Cuvée Héritage 2010. We recommend tasting this wine within the next 5 years. Delicate but showing quite some character, it belongs to those we won’t hesitate to open, whenever we feel for a good glass of red: Barbeque, Pizza, Coq au Vin, during the week or in the weekend, with family or friends… A very flexible and social wine, that suits to many occasions.
Coming to the Château du Cèdre 2009, the nose gains complexity, luscious tannins arrive on the palate, and it all becomes a little more serious. Even more if you consider that this cuvee made from Tannat, Merlot and quite an amount of Malbec will easily age up to ten years in your cellar. In its youth, one will particularly appreciate its powerful scent full of fruit and freshness, while spices, woody smells and smooth tannins will reward our patience. Young and slightly chilled, it perfectly matches to a grilled steak, after a certain time of ageing, it enhances our appetite for an autumn dish with fresh mushrooms and game.
The cuvee Le Cèdre probably is our most glamorous wine. Pure Malbec, aged for many months in wood, it shows great elegance on every level and an affectation for special occasions: Birthdays, weddings, New Years Eve, but also on the occasion of a sophisticated dinner with very old friends. Every one of us as his own definition of an opportunity that demands a particular bottle of wine.
The GC loves slowness. Its an effigy of its terroir and fully presents the flavourful power of the Malbec grape. It opens up after three to four years of ripening in barrels and bottles, revealing its complexity of taste and odour over the years. A wine you should listen to, as even we don’t know the fragrances it will reveal to seduce you within the next 15 to 20 years.
You see, there are many reasons and occasions to open a bottle of Cahors wine. So do not hesitate, you will certainly enjoy the experience.
Delicate Malbec from Cahors - The wines of Château du Cèdre tasted by Falstaff (Austria)
“Falstaff has blind-tasted some hundred wines in Cahors” (Comments from Peter Moser)
Vintage 2007 Château du Cèdre - Le Cèdre (92 Points)
« […] Intense smell of spicy wood, vanilla, black fruit, balsamico and a little tobacco. Juicy, mellow, fine tannins, a backbone of fresh acidity, as well as honey and chocolate for the (long) final. Well-balanced and already accessible, with good ageing potential. »
Vintage 2008 Château du Cèdre GC (92 Points)
« […] Toasty aromas in the nose, nougat, black fruit. Attractive. Soft, mellow and fine, elegant and chocolate-flavoured, fresh cherries. Suits to accompany a high number of recipes, good ageing potential. »
Vintage 2008 Château du Cèdre Le Cèdre (90 Points)
« […] The nose is discreet, with black fruit, blueberries and smoke, spices and finesse. Medium complexity, very ripe black fruit, well-integrated tannins, but still a little coarse. Sour cherry on the final, needs some time, good ageing potential.»
Originally a common grape in Bordeaux, Malbec has lost popularity as one of the five varieties in the Bordeaux blends. Meanwhile, Malbec increased its status in the French region of Cahors, an area southeast of Bordeaux, where it creates distinctive wines that now require 70% of the variety.
You can’t but taste this pure Malbec in silence. Its bouquet opens up little by little, as if the wine fears to overcharge our nose. Scents of smoke on the horizon, slowly covered by sour cherry and increasing flavours of blueberries, cassis and black olives. Oak wood integrates well, adding hints of hazelnut and cocoa, before the vegetable kingdom takes over with mint and violet…
Youthfully it dodges around the tongue, overseen by serious and fine tannins, which dominate the long and elegant final. A noble wine, to be appreciated now, or in 8 years, or 16 years…
Now that fermentations are finished, the wines show intense fruit, fine texture and crispy acidity.
Pascal Verhaeghe, Château du Cèdre Cahors
Château du Cèdre 2011
Lots of black and red fruit, elderberry and spices. Sweet and delicate fruit on the palate, fantastic roundness. The tannins will be appreciated for their velvety texture.
Château du Cèdre, Le Cèdre 2011
Pure fruit in the nose, flashing aromas of blackberry and violet. On the palate you will especially notice its minerality, surrounded by mellowness. Juicy wine with great potential.
Château du Cèdre GC 2011
Nose of stunning complexity, dominated by floral aromas (honeysuckle and hints of violet) and spices (juniper). Both fleshy and refined, GC has the character of a great “terroir-wine”.
If the Gault & Millau described the GC 2008 as being a “magic” wine, 2009 should be considered as being “cosmic”. Let’s only spend few words on its colour, that’s as black as a Malbec from Cahors should be and go on to have a look at the bouquet…
Already rich and complex, full of red and black fruits, with violet and mint again, but also cedar wood, white pepper and cocoa beans. Both fresh and mellow, with silky tannins that overlay the entire palate, you will find the characteristic minerality of the GC, pairing with endless length. It will be the guest of honour at your table for many years to come.
Wine details
Area of production : AOP Cahors Soil and climate : The vines of Château du Cèdre root in two different types of soil: The terroirs, composed of stony clay and limestone, give straight wines with fine tannins, while more powerful and dense wines come from soils composed of clay, sand and a large quantity of pebbles. Grape varieties : 100% Malbec Type of winemaking : Grapes are hand picked and sorted. Harvest is fully destemmed. 40 days of fermentation and maceration in 500-litre oak vats, with regular punching down of the skin cap at the beginning of fermentation for extraction of colour and tannins. Type of ageing: Malolactic fermentation is followed by 24 months of ripening in the same oak vats. Bottled without filtering.
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