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More wines available from Chateau Kirwan
Pre-Arrival
Chateau Kirwan Margaux 2000
750ml - 1 Bottle
Bottle:
$114.20
The renaissance of Kirwan, with the consultancy of Michel Rolland, continues with this ripe, forward, concentrated...
3.0Ltr
Bottle:
$579.00
Dense and dark, this is an extracted wine with polished fruit. What stops it going over the edge is the delicious...
Pre-Arrival
Chateau Kirwan Margaux 2006
750ml - 1 Bottle
Bottle:
$87.89
The new wood flavors on this wine are becoming well integrated with the velvet fruit textures. The tannins are now an...
Pre-Arrival
Chateau Kirwan Margaux 2009
750ml - 1 Bottle
Bottle:
$79.43
This is a wine that seduces you, with its crushed blackberries and hints of dark chocolate that follow through to a...
More Details
Winery
Chateau Kirwan
Vintage: 2011
The year 2011 was an interesting year for many northern and central European countries, as the weather was more than unpredictable in the spring and summer. However, in most countries, the climatic conditions thankfully settled down in the late summer and fall. The result of this slightly difficult year of weather in France was a set of surprisingly small yields, but overall, these yields were of a higher quality than those harvested in certain previous years. A fantastic set of wines was also made in Italy and Spain, and the Rioja wines - when released - are set to be very good indeed. Austria also had superb year in 2011, with almost fifty percent more grapes being grown and used for their distinctive Gruner Veltliner wines than in the year before. Possibly the European country which had the finest 2011, though, was Portugal, with wineries in the Douro region claiming this year to be one of the best in decades for the production of Port wine, and the bright, young Vinho Verdes wines.
In the New World, the Pacific Northwest saw some of the best weather of 2011, and Washington State and Oregon reportedly had a highly successful year, especially for the cultivation of high quality red wine grapes. Chile and Argentina had a relatively cool year, which certainly helped retain the character of many of their key grape varietals, and should make for some exciting drinking. South Africa had especially good weather for their white wine grape varietals, particularly Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc, and many South African wineries are reporting 2011 as one of their best years in recent memory.
Varietal: Red Bordeaux
The blended red wines of Bordeaux have gone down in history as the finest wines every produced, with collectors and many of the general public still eagerly anticipating the wineries of this region's new releases to this day. The secret to Bordeaux's monumental success has been their careful blending of high quality grape varietals, controlled and protected by French law. In Bordeaux, wineries can only produce red wines using a blend of two or more of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec or Carménere grape varietals, with the latter two becoming less and less commonly seen on bottles. The vast majority of Bordeaux red wines use Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot grape varietals, boosted by a little Petit Verdot. These three grapes compliment each other beautifully as they age in oak, rounded out their tannins and the high astringency of the Sauvignon, and resulting in wonderfully complex flavors and aromas.
Region: Bordeaux
Although most commonly associated with their superb blended red wines, the world-famous region of Bordeaux in France is responsible for a relatively wide array of wines, ranging from the sweet and viscous white wines of Sauternes, to the dry and acidic single variety white wines found all over the region. However, it is the red wines which regularly make the wine world's headlines, and have historically been regarded as the finest on earth. The secret to the region's success is the fact that the warm and humid climate, coupled with mineral rich clay and gravel based soils produces grapes of excellent quality. Wineries in this region have spent hundreds of years mastering the art of blending and oak aging in order to get the best results from each grape, and remain the envy of the world to this day.
Country: France
It is widely understood and accepted that the finest wines in the world come out of France. Whether you are drinking a vintage bottle from one of the famed Grand Cru wineries of Bordeaux - such as Chateau Margaux or Chateau Lafite-Rothschild - or a more simple and affordable bottle from one of the lesser known appellations in Burgundy, the likelihood is that the wine is packed full of intense and interesting flavors, and has a fine, balanced structure typical of almost all French produce. This reputation for excellence is taken extremely serious by the French, with dozens of regularly updated laws and regulations ensuring the quality and accurate labeling of wines. Such dedication and passion for fine wine, representative of the region in which it is produced, means customers can be assured that when they buy a bottle from France, they are buying something almost certain to please and delight.
Appellation: Margaux
There are few appellations in the world quite as famous or with a high reputation so enduring as that of Margaux. This relatively small sub-region of France's Bordeaux has consistently produced many of the planet's finest red wines for centuries, and the chateaus which run all along the banks of the Gironde river have no intention of letting their reputation drop. Indeed, the red Bordeaux grapes which thrive in the gravelly vineyards of Margaux are generally considered amongst the best in the world for flavor, aroma and overall character, and great care is taken by traditional wine-makers in the region to ensure such features make it to the bottle. Overall, Margaux is a center of excellence in viticulture which has become the envy of the wine making world, and long may it continue.