Abaluche in Bordeaux: Pilgrimage to Haut-Brion

Souvenirs

As a wine lover and pupil, there are certain places that are mythical, and only exist in the fairy-tale stories of the beginnings of this industry.  Many of these locations are within France, and more still within the protected appellations of Bordeaux.  There are more than 10,000 châteaux in Bordeaux producing AOC/AOP quality wines, and at over 300,000 vineyard acres, it also qualifies as France's largest wine-growing region.  With a history dating back to the 6th century (and possibly even the 4th century in the right bank appellation of St. Emilion), to taste the wines of Bordeaux is certainly like tasting history.  And quite a daunting thought as to where on earth to begin.

So it was appropriate that my first visit in Bordeaux was to the region of Pessac-Léognan in Graves, directly west of the town of Bordeaux (where I was lucky enough to have a base camp), and to the highly celebrated and historic châteaux of Haut-Brion and La Mission Haut-Brion.  In fact, Haut-Brion, or 'Ho-Bryan', was the first mention of a brand-name château, as recorded in 1663 by Samuel Pepys at the Royal Oak Tavern in London (also proving that the wines of the Graves region were celebrated much earlier than the wines of their disease-laden swampy neighbor to the north, the Médoc, which were not fit for production or exportation until the 18th century).  Perhaps this is why Château Haut-Brion is the only château in Graves that was included in the 1855 Classification of Bordeaux.

The vines of Château Haut-Brion

Although founded as two separate properties, Haut-Brion in 1525 and La Mission Haut-Brion in the 18th century, today they are owned and operated by the same family, and employ the same team and techniques in both cellars.  It was the famous American financier, Clarence Dillon, who purchased Château Haut-Brion in 1935, and in 1983 his grand-daughter, Madame la Duchesse de Mouchy (Joan Dillon) purchased La Mission Haut-Brion from the Woltner heirs.   Only the soil, separated by Avenue Jean Juarès in the commune of Pessac, makes the difference in the wines.

View of Haut-Brion from La Mission H-B

Upon my visit, Château Haut-Brion was undergoing a lengthy two-year renovation, and so I had the pleasure of conducting my tasting at La Mission, which had just completed it's two-year renovation the summer prior.  "We'll start the tour in the chapel" the guide had advised me.  What a perfect place to begin the historic and sacred education of this revered beverage in France.  While sitting politely in the wooden pew, gazing with deference at the many stained-glass windows lining the tiny chapel and listening to the story of how the Mission was started in the 17th century by the followers of Saint-Vincent de Paul, and later was bequeathed to the Pères Lazaristes, I at once saw clearly the connection of wine and religion that are such cornerstones of French culture.

The consecrated chapel of Ch. La Mission Haut-Brion

Out in the vineyards, the soil is a mixture of large-caliber gravel, sand and light clay, together referred to as boulbenes.  There are 25 hectares of vines for La Mission Haut-Brion, and 50 hectares for Haut-Brion.  Majority is planted to Cabernet Sauvignon (as dictated by the terroir and the AOC/AOP system), followed by Merlot and Cabernet Franc.  On this day, 19th December, they were assembling the final 2011 blend of both La Mission and Haut-Brion in the large inox cuves in the cellar room, and then putting the final blend into barrel for aging.  Racking in barrique occurs every 3 months, in primarily Seguin Moreau oak.  And then, there was the tasting.

07 Ch. La Mission Haut-Brion and 07 Ch. Haut-Brion

Alone with the guide from the domaine, she led me to an oak-paneled room rich with velvet draperies and tapestries, and a delicately inlaid parquet floor.  The early-afternoon white winter light spilled in to highlight additional carved oak chairs and a grand fireplace and mantle.  A polished carved wooden table stood waiting with two glasses and two half bottles:  Château La Mission Haut-Brion 2007 and Château Haut-Brion 2007.  It was seriously like going to the Communion Altar.  My kind of church!

The Altar

The La Mission started young with tightly wound tannins, but with a soft fruity feminine nose that opened into an exciting winter spice and chocolate palate.  Rose petals and cherry wood developed in time and the finish long, silky elegant.  48% Cabernet Sauvignon, 43% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc.  The Haut-Brion was, of course, a stunner.  I wrote "chilling".  That is just how it should be for a Premier Cru Classé.  Chilling.  More masculine and much tighter than the La Mission (given that 2007 was an excellent, 'classic' year in Bordeaux), the blend was of 44% Cabernet Sauvignon, 43% Merlot, 13% Cabernet Franc.  But oh, the complexity.  It went though about 5 different lives in my glass over 15 minutes; starting big and manly with leather, spice and tobacco.  Then softening into some deep red and purple fruits, with hints of dusky rose petals.  Then the minerality, with the white quartz and bits of clay-like chewiness showing through.  And the silky tannins seamlessly integrating with the timeless elegance of a finish.  It was like drinking in a bespoke men's clothier shop, with rich leather armchairs in the corner and a wall of mysteriously dark silk ties mingling with hand-tailored pinstripe suits.  I imagined it to be a shop somewhere on Jermyn Street in London.

2011 La Mission Haut-Brion

After just this one experience, it's easy to see that wine is a religion here, from a reverence to the soil and the respect of the terroir, to the instillation of wine at celebrations, dinner tables, ceremonies and religious rites.  It is as much a part of the soul of a Frenchman as the bread and hard work that he toils at each day.  And the history!  I immediately wanted to return to my European History text book and re-read all the stories of wars, kings and conquests that shaped the France of today, stories that I had surely forgotten most likely one month after reading them in 1992.

Ch. La Mission Haut-Brion, newly renovated

Nonethelesss, the history does exist today at La Mission Haut-Brion, and just walking upon the sacred grounds, taking in the 15th century limestone buildings, feeling the smooth stones from the vineyard in the palm of my hand, and breathing in the newly filled oak barrels the renovated chai (where I expected the sound of chanting monks to escape from behind the impressive stone pillars) was a clear indication of this.  And if that won't convert you, the wine most certainly will.

The chai at Ch. La Mission Haut-Brion

Wintery cabernet vines at La Mission Haut-Brion

A la prochaine.....

A bientôt!

The City of Holiday Light

Joyeux Noël à Paris!

Parisian Tree Farm

Daily temperatures below 10°C, gray skies with bits of cold raindrops spluttering down, blasts of icy winds attacking you down every avenue you turn; yup, it's wintertime in the northern continental region of France.  But luckily, being in Paris, that also means the arrival of buckets of Holiday Cheer, and thousands of sparkling lights, marchés de Noël  and holiday window displays to warm your soul.

In fact, there are over 130 quartiers  draped with holiday lights; 12 marchés de Noël set up around the city, 5 patinoires or ice skating rinks set up from la Tour Eiffel to the l'hôtel de Ville (hoping to check those out tout suite!), 3 grands magasins with elaborately themed windows, and one grand boulevard, considered by some to be 'The Most Beautiful Boulevard in the World', festively decked out, leading to the most spectacular display of lights this time of year in Paris.

Wouldn't you like do do some holiday shopping with me here?

Rue Saint Honoré

And the other week, Audrey Tautou made it official.  The actress and 'ambassadrice de l'élégance' of Paris presided over the annual lighting of the Champs Elysées and with a flip of her finger, the entire boulevard was illuminated with thousands of twinkling lights from Arc de Triomphe to Place de la Concorde: neon blue and pink Jetson-esque rings adorning every Plane tree on the Grand Boulevard, snowscapes draped over every fountain, and the grand finale at the end of the boulevard at Concorde, La Grande Roue of Paris.  It's truly a beautiful time to be in the city, gray and raining or not. 

It never gets old.

The last time I was in the city for the holidays, it was for the grand New Years 2000 celebration with my sister.  It was that night that le Tour Eiffel was illuminated for the first time with thousands of LED lights.  Some Parisians detest the sight, but I adore it.  Watching the tower sparkle like a thousand Swarovski crystals filled me with a sense of magic that only Paris can posses.  Even now,  when I see it glittering across the Seine it reminds me of that truly spectacular New Years Eve where we drank Champagne at the foot of the sparkling tower with a group of crazy Italians then partied on the fantastically dream-like stage of the Champs Elysées until dawn.  The Parisians certainly know how to celebrate the holidays, and so this time of year is fantastically magical.

Montmartre

The marchés du Noël are especially charming, like little county fairs that pop up along the narrow streets of the quartiers and in the taxi drop-off zones of train stations.  At Gare de l'Est, the theme of the market is Alsatian gastronomy, as this is the station that serves the Alsatian region of France and cities such as Strasbourg and Vienna.  Alsatian wine, foie gras, pain d'épice, Stöllen and the cured meats and sausages of the border towns are available for tasting and purchase.  Up on Montmartre, it's a more traditional Christmas market, serving vin chaud and chocolat l'ancienne (with Chantilly) at the foot of Sacre Coeur, face painting, handmade crafts, carnival rides for the kiddies and an appearance of Père Noël himself.  

So an organ grinder and a face painter
walk into a bar...

Alsatian delicacies at the Gare du l'Est

I spy Pére Noël!

Vin chaud et chocolat a l'ancienne (from gorgeous copper pots) for everyone!  Outside Sacre Coeur, Montmartre

Down on the Champs Elysées, the largest with 170 decorated chalets and welcoming over 12 million visitors throughout the season, they have even brought in a zoo to add to the other staples of petit trains, toboggans, barbe à papa (cotton candy) and beignet stands, roasted chestnut vendors, knitted goods and French gastronomic delicacies.  And of course, there's the Grande Roue.  10€ for the trip, but I can imagine the views of the whole of Paris are astounding and quite worth the price of admission. I hope to experience it at least once this season....

Decked Out

Place du Tertre, Montmartre  

And from that height, there's no doubt you will be able to see the glittering lights of the Galleries Layfayette, Printemps and Au Bon Marche, beacons of light calling all the little shopping moths to their holiday windows and into their stores.  But make no mistake: the most enjoyable, completely free evening I spent in Paris recently was to walk south from the 18éme through the various decorated quartiers of Montmartre to the 9émé, where the Grands Boulevards of Haussmann, LaFayette and Capucines all meet at the Opéra Garnier, and where you can find the grands magasins of Galleries Layfayette and Printemps, both with outstanding window displays.

Rollin to the gig

Galleries LaFayette's theme of "Un Noël Rock-N-Roll!" features the amazing Andrew Yang couture rag dolls, 'The Kouklitas' going on tour in Europe as the rock band, 'The K-Stars'.  Mobilized by marionette strings, the dolls - and these amazing little pieces of fashion design - come to life.  These dolls, quite limited and rare, are available inside for a mere 150€, a steal when you consider one of his dolls can sell for $8,000 or even $12,000. The life-size puppet dolls sporting LaFayette ready-to-wear (ou, prêt-à-porter) and shiny Gretsch guitars had me pressing my nose and mittened fingers against the glass, just like Randy in The Christmas Story.

Gettin dolled up

Rockin the house

Fashion Shoot

Karl L. does Paris

Hold on though - just next door is Printemps, whose theme, "Noël Rêves d'Évasion" designed by Karl Lagerfield, is an ode to Chanel across the globe and throughout the decades.  Utilizing puppetry again (which bore striking resemblance to Yang's couture dolls), as well as elaborately visualized windows with traditional mannequins showcasing the historic couture, the Maison du Chanel story came alive as each window pulled you in and transported you to exotic locales such as Barritz, Cap d'Antibes, Venice, Shanghai, Moscow, the Byzantine Empire, and of course, Paris.  Paris might have been the most adorable with a window full of little Karl Lagerfield puppets in silver ponytails and black sunglasses snapping photos around the city's famous landmarks.  I was transfixed again with the detail and elegance that is hallmark of the Chanel designs.  Sigh.

Shanghai

Venise

  

Moscow

Printemps, Grand Boulevard Haussman

But on my way across the street to ponder more lasting and historical art and design at the steps of the Opéra Garnier, I turned to take in the spectacular glittering façades that adorned both of the grand shopping arcades in Paris.  That sight, and a 2€ cone of roasted chestnuts from a little Indian fellow on the corner to munch on while sitting at the foot of the Opéra, taking in all the lights and sounds and smells of Paris on this cold, clear December night, was much more than could ever be purchased on the other side of those windows.

Le Opéra Garnier, beautiful year-round

Happy holidays, and joyeux Noël!