Château Cantemerle 1983 (75cl) Haut Medoc, 5ème Cru Classé (Fifth Growth) Condition: Levels at very top shoulder or better with good labels. A cracking price for this Grand Cru claret. History Château Cantemerle has a long pedigree, with the first mention as early as 1147, of the Pons de Cantemerle. In the Middle Ages, the original chateau was part of a line of fortifications defending the banks of the left side of the river Gironde. Later, with Aquitaine ruled by the English, the Lord of Cantemerle fought on the side of the English Henry III against the King of France. In 1241 he fought and lost the Battle of Taillebourg. His domain remained under his rule and his descendant, Ponset de Cantemerle was Lord of the seigneury in 1340. Mention of viticulture dates back to 1354 with the Ponset de Cantemerle recorded as paying debt in wine, a tonneau of clairet. In the fifteenth century, the feudal domain of Cantemerle belonged to the Caupène family, originally from the Landes region. According to a title deed of 1422, the squire Jean de Caupène was described as Lord of Cantemerle. His son, Médard de Caupène, later became Lord until the end of the fifteenth century. In 1579 it was purchased by Jean de Villeneuve, second president of the parliament of Bordeaux, who married into the Durfort Family. The Durforts controlled this and other châteaux for many centuries, increasingly focusing on wine, rather than the polycultural agriculture of old. In the mid-seventeenth century, Louis de Villeneuve incurred excommunication "for having caused a great scandal in the church of Macau and creating a public disturbance during the holy service." He had kidnapped the sister of Pierre de Lacornière, Lord of Gironville, and had beaten her in the church. Modern day In 1981 Château Cantemerle was sold by the Dubos family to la Groupe SMABTP. Following the acquisition, extensive repairs were made to the chai, and a scheme to replant the vineyards was begun. At the time of its purchase, the estate was in near ruins. Of the 115 hectares (284 acres that were planted when the estate was classified in 1855, only 20 ha (49 acres) were in working condition in 1980. After purchasing the estate for 25 million francs, the new owners invested heavily in reviving the estate-spending nearly 60 million francs in the 1980s planting an additional 70 hectares (174 acres) and purchasing new oak barrels to replace the use of stainless steel tanks in production of the estate's first wine. New harvesting and grape sorting equipment was installed which made the estate more efficient in separately less desirable and ideal grapes out from production. In the vineyards, the managing partners of Château Cantemerle brought over teams of Mexican vineyard workers from California to assist in grafting and replanting the vineyards. Believing that the talents of Mexican workers lead to higher success ratio, the estate converted the majority of weaker Cabernet franc plantings into increase acreage of Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot. Production Today the Chateau owns 190 hectares (470 acres) of land and 90 (222 acres) of those are planted with vines. Of these, 87 (215 acres) are under production. The grape varieties cultivated are mainly 50% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Merlot, with additional 5% of Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot. On average, the vines are 30 years old. The Chateau annually produces on average 25,000 cases of its Grand vin, and 12,500 cases of its second wine, Les Allées de Cantemerle. Depending on the vintage, a third wine might also be produced-Baronne Caroline with a production between 5,000 to 10,000 cases. The Wine According to wine writer Tom Stevenson in The Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia, Château Cantemerle wines are characterized by rich, oaky, fruit flavors that balance well. The wines have good coloring for a classified Bordeaux wine and typically reach their peak between 8-20 years. The typical blend is a composition of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot. *** 25th Wedding Anniversary Gifts and 25th Birthday Presents from winestore.co.uk *** Price: £56.94 (Including VAT at 20%)