David Lebovitz on Cahors and Malbec
Since about 25 winemakers and producers of Cahors went to Miami, Washington DC and San Francisco, the Internet was buzzing of their wines. A few days before our producers stepped in the plane “en route” to the US, an American came down to Cahors.
The famous writer and blogger David Leibovitz, former pastry chef of the renowned Chez Panisse, had the opportunity to visit Cahors in February. His funny and lively account of his trip is worth reading but don’t forget to have a glass of Cahors Malbec and a few goodies to nibble next to your computer: the story is mouth watering!.
The “real” Malbec was born in Cahors
The US Malbec Tour is coming to its end today. A lot of bloggers attended the various tastings. One of them, Dwight Casimere, from Chicago, attended the Florida tasting and didn’t hesitate to title his article : “Stand aside Argentina! The “real” Malbec is in town.” Great news for Cahors Malbec!
According to Dwight, “at $10-$15 dollars a bottle, they represent a real value when tabulating the taste to price quotient.” Dwight was very impressed by Chateau de Cayx, owned by Henrik, prince of Denmark and talked to its manager about the new cuvee, Cuvee Majesty, launched for the 70th birthday of the Prince: According to Chateau de Cayx’ manager, “The wine is very special because it best represents the terroir of the estate. The terroir is very special because it is primarily on the slopes of the property. The wines all grow on terraces. All of the vineyards face the meandering river. It’s a very beautiful and the soil is very different if you up high on the hill as opposed to down the hill. The concentration and consistency of the soil is constantly changing as you approach the higher elevations. That’s what gives the wine its intensity and elegance.”
US Malbec Tour - Day 1: Miami, FL.
Our 25 winemakers from Cahors were in sunny Miami, in Florida. They presented their wines to buyers and bloggers who were impressed by the quality of the wines and their QPR.
Florida is one of the States where the financial crisis hit the residents really hard. Floridans are now buying very inexpensive wines - usually under $10. They were happily surprised by the quality of the middle range of Cahors Malbec. For $9 to $14, consumers can get a very high quality wine and very original.
The French Consul was also impressed by the Malbecs of Cahors and is now willing to help promote their wines in Florida.
Our winemakers are now flying to Washington DC and we’ll follow them in their next stop.
An American in Paris Drinking Cahors
Here is an interesting twist of a story. The American blogger Burke Morton was in Paris with a few friends. They had dinner at the famous brasserie Chartier and ordered some wine.
But then surprise! As Burke Morton puts it, “We initially ordered some Rosé and a Côtes-du-Rhône, but when I saw their wine special, a Cahors, I dumped the Rhône in favor of some French Malbec.” Thank you, Burke! May we know why you changed your mind? “The Cahors was particularly satisfying, because it was really delicious and complex, and it cost the equivalent of $20! Find me a wine this good in a U.S. restaurant for this price and I’ll show you someone who’s losing money! It was a hearty, robust, slightly rustic wine that was a fabulous partner for the lamb and rumsteck that we ordered.” And the selected wine was “Noir de Casteyrac”. We are so glad, here in Cahors, you had a great time thanks to one of our wines.
Cahors Malbecs Win Medals
The “Concours Général Agricole” just awarded a lot of medals to the Cahors Malbec wines:
- Vintage 2008
Gold - Château de Mercues
GFA Georges Vigouroux
Gold - Château la Coustarelle
SCEA CASSOT ET FILLE
Gold - Mas del Périé, cuvée Les Escures
ORTALO Marie-Rose
Silver - Château les Rigalets
EARL LES RIGALETS
Silver - Domaine les Roques de Cana, Cuvée Le Vin des Noces
SARL LES ROQUES DE CANA
Bronze - Château Bovila
SCEA Pieron P.O
Bronze - Château de Haute Serre
GFA Georges Vigouroux
- Vintage : 2007
Gold - Château Nozières, cuvée Elégance
EARL de Nozières-Maradenne/Guitard
Gold - Château Les Roques de Cana, cuvée Le Graal
SARL LES ROQUES DE CANA
Silver - Domaine de la Bérangeraie, cuvée La Gorgée de Mathis Bacchus
GAEC La Bérangeraie
Silver - Château La Reyne, cuvée Le Prestige
SCEA du Château la Reyne
Bronze - Château de Gaudou
SCEA Durou et Fils
Bronze - Domaine du Prince, cuvée Lou Prince
GAEC de Pauliac
Bronze - Clos d’Un Jour, cuvée Un Jour
Azemar Stéphane et Véronique
The Malbec of Cahors, star of New York
On February 21, 2010, the Malbec of Caors was the star of the reception held by the French Consul in New York City. More than 500 people enjoyed dozens of bottles from the 24 following estates:
- CHATEAU BLADINIERES, L’EXCELLENCE, ELEVE EN FUT DE CHENE, 2005
- CHATEAU COMBEL LA SERRE, COEUR DE CUVEE, 2005
- CHATEAU CROZE DE PYS, PRESTIGE, 2006
- CHATEAU DE CENAC, EULALIE, 2005
- CHATEAU DE HAUTE SERRE, MALBEC, 2005
- CHATEAU DE HAUTERIVE, PRESTIGE, 2005
- CHATEAU DE MERCUES, MALBEC, 2005
- CHATEAU DU PORT, PRESTIGE, 2005
- CHATEAU EUGENIE, CUVEE PIERRE LE GRAND, 2005
- CHATEAU FAMAEY, FUT DE CHENE, 2005
- CHATEAU LA REYNE, LE PRESTIGE, 2006
- CHATEAU LA TOUR SAINT-SERNIN, 2002
- CHATEAU LERET, MONPEZAT, 2006
- CHATEAU PAILLAS, 2002
- CHATEAU PAILLAS, 2005
- CHATEAU SAINT SERNIN, PRESTIGE, 2005
- CHATEAU VINCENS, PRESTIGE, 2005
- CLOS TROTELIGOTTE, K LYS, 2005
- DOMAINE DE CAUSE, NOTRE DAME DES CHAMPS, 2004
- DOMAINE DE VINSSOU, 2004
- DOMAINE DE VINSSOU, 2002
- DOMAINE LA BERANGERAIE, CUVEE MAURIN, 2006
- DOMAINE LA BORIE, CUVEE PRESTIGE, 2004
- LA VIERGE, PRIEURE DE CENAC, 2005
- LE THERON, 2004
- LE PETIT CLOS, TRIGUEDINA, 2007
- MAS DEL PERIE, 2006
- PRIEURE DE CENAC, 2005
- SECRETS DE LA GINESTE, 2006
The French Consul is now ready to help promote the Cahors wines as the French expression of Malbec. Long live to Cahors!
The Cahors Malbec Lounge in New York
On February 18th, 2010, more than 150 wine professionals gathered at the top of the famous NYC Gansevoort Hotel on 9th Avenue. For the occasion the room became a Cahors Malbec Lounge trendy and fashionable. Dozens of powerful and intense Cahors Malbec wines were served. Positioned between $15 to $25, a very good value for their quality, they enthused the tasters who had only one word: “Waaooo!”.
Not very explicit but sounding like a great song to the ears of the Cahors winemakers!
Clos de Gamot 1929
Who had the privilege to drink a Cahors Malbec more than 80 years old? François Audouze, President of the Academy for Ancient Wines and founder of the wine dinners, opened a bottle of Clos de Gamot 1929 with some of his friends during a casual dinner. At first, the dust smell put him and his friends off but after a few hours of letting oxygen air out the wine, the Clos de Gamot was a delight. Some of François Audouze’s friends even voted the wine their favorite one of the dinner!
A new video on Cahors Malbec
The UIVC launched a new bottle for its wines. It is embossed with the Cahors Malbec logo and will help the American consumers to recognize their favorite wines on any shelf. Several producers already selected this bottle to sell their wines on the US market.
Discover the Cahors Malbec wine bottle video.
A quizz on Cahors Malbec
Do you know everything about Cahors Malbec? Want to check your knowledge? Chateau Paillas, one of the leading estates of the region, created a quizz to help you make sure you know (almost) everything on Malbec.
