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BORDEAUX<br />
– GRAPES –<br />
Sophie (left) and Carole (right) Dulon<br />
du Vallier, and they also market the Saint-Émilion Grand<br />
Cru Château Haut-Pezat.<br />
The family’s two daughters, who have just turned thirty,<br />
began taking over from their parents in 2012. Sophie is<br />
in charge of sales and Carole of the production side. “All<br />
grape varieties - not just Merlot – are showing higher<br />
alcohol content”, says Carole. The grapes are sweeter,<br />
but they are also more tannic, making the wines more<br />
powerful. “The difference is that we now remove fewer<br />
leaves than in the past, because summers can be very<br />
hot”. There is a fear of ‘sunburn’, a point during the<br />
summer when it is very hot and water resources are<br />
lacking. The consequences can be instant: the grapes<br />
burn and the winegrower loses volume, which is what<br />
occurred in 2020. Yields that used to reach 70 hl/ha<br />
effortlessly have now dropped to around 50 to 55 hl.<br />
Such extreme events can lead vines to completely shut<br />
down, despite the fact that the rootstocks currently used<br />
have been chosen to resist water stress better than those<br />
available to the previous generation.<br />
Harvesting is done by machine so that the grapes can<br />
be brought in quickly and usually in October, after the<br />
summer heat has passed. At the beginning of the harvest,<br />
before yeast has filled the cellar, the grapes undergo<br />
cold skin-contact maceration, followed by fermentation.<br />
The pH levels remain balanced and Carole is not in<br />
favour of rectification – generally speaking, she prefers<br />
to limit inputs to a minimum. Here, no more Merlot is<br />
being planted and a clear interest is being shown in new<br />
varieties. Trials with hybrid grapes by their neighbours<br />
seem to be working. “The percentage of Merlot will<br />
inexorably decline”, says Carole. This is not only due to<br />
climate change, but also in response to a trend towards<br />
reducing the use of plant protection products; some grape<br />
varieties require fewer sprays than Merlot. So it’s a double<br />
whammy for Merlot!<br />
The Dulon vineyards<br />
ALTERVINI: MERLOT, A SENSITIVE ISSUE<br />
Altervini sells 4 million euros worth of wines produced<br />
by winegrowers, 95% of whom are from Bordeaux. “We<br />
are the sales representatives for these properties”, is how<br />
Mickaël Violleau, the company’s associate managing<br />
director, likes to describe the company. Violleau feels the<br />
46 SPRING 2021 GILBERT & GAILLARD - THE FRENCH EXPERTS ON WINE
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