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Pauillac

I have already argued that the wines of St Julien are perhaps the epitome of claret, but I am sure that many would argue in favour of this commune, just to the north of St Julien. With its three Premier Grand Cru Classé estates, each of which has been responsible for 'wine of the vintage' at some time or other, those who support this notion would seem to have a strong case. But when I talk of claret's epitome I don't necessarily speak of the greatest wines, if such a thing could possibly be defined, rather I speak of a certain style. It is the combination of elegance with austerity that marks St Julien, whereas in Pauillac we have something with a little more flesh perhaps, a more concentrated and maybe, with some wines at least, a more voluptuous style. That is not to say the wines do not typify Bordeaux; they most certainly do, and the wines of both communes can age magnificently. But it is undeniable that those from Pauillac have their own character which is distinct from the daughters of the great Léoville estate and their neighbours to the south, a character marked by aromas of fresh pencil shavings, cedar, blackcurrant, cigar-boxes and old wooden cabinets.

I suspect all this talk of distinctive styles rather suggests that all Pauillac resembles nothing else, and that the same can be said for St Julien. This is of course not true, as here, just as it is with any commune or appellation, there are estates with their own philosophies, techniques and styles, providing a gradation across a spectrum of what might generally be regarded as Pauillac. And with Latour we have perhaps the prime example, in this appellation at least, of this. The vines border those of Léoville-Las-Cases, in the St Julien appellation, and there are many that would prefer to draw comparisons between the wines of Latour and this latter estate, number one in the pack of 'super-seconds', the leading pretender to a new first growth crown, than with any other estate in Pauillac.

Nevertheless, the many classed growth estates in this commune do deserve detailed inspection away from any comparison with others, and it is on the three first growths that our gaze should naturally fall first.

The Triumphant Triumvirate

Of course the 1855 classification only truly includes two first growths, Latour and Lafite-Rothschild, Mouton-Rothschild having been ranked as a deuxième cru by the merchants who were responsible for positioning the chateaux of the Medoc on the five rungs of the ladder. As I describe in my profile, the property and the vineyard were in bad condition when acquired by Baron Nathaniel de Rothschild in 1853, and perhaps this had some bearing on Mouton's ranking. Having said that, we should remind ourselves that the merchants drew up the classification based on price, and so really this should not have had any effect; at this time prices for Mouton were strong, matching other first growths in 1854 and again in 1858. Nevertheless, this clearly was not sufficient, and it has been speculated that the lack of a grand chateau may have influenced the decision, or maybe the fact that Mouton was then in foreign hands - Nathaniel was of the English branch of the family - counted against it. It is also quite plausible that the first tier was already long decided; based on price and prestige alone, there were four accepted first growths at the time, these being Lafite, Latour, Haut-Brion and Margaux, and it was not the business of the négociants to place the upstart Mouton alongside these illustrious names.

Within a few decades the quality of the wines suggested to all that an error had been made with Mouton's position, but more than one hundred years had passed before it was rectified. This was the work of Philippe Rothschild, who campaigned for the righting of what he termed the 'monstrous injustice' of Mouton's second growth status. For years the labels stated simply Premier ne puis, second ne daigne, Mouton suis, or 'First I cannot be, second I do not deign to be, I am Mouton'. Of course no review of this classification was ever planned, but Philippe's tireless protest eventually prompted Jacques Chirac, then Minister of Agriculture, to pass a decree conferring the status of Premier Grand Cru Classé upon Mouton-Rothschild in 1973. At last the wrong against the Rothschilds had been righted, and from then on Mouton's labels bore a new inscription, Premier je suis, second je fus. Mouton ne change, or 'First I am, second I was. Mouton does not change'.

Meanwhile, Latour and Lafite-Rothschild have had no such identity crisis over the years. The latter has long been in the ownership of the Rothschilds, although not as long as Mouton in fact, which was at least in their ownership when the 1855 classification was published. Here the estate was acquired by Baron James de Rothschild, at auction, in 1868. It was sold at a knock-down price, and was a veritable bargain considering that this was the first of the firsts. It is often forgotten that the 1855 classification included a rating of the properties within each category, and just as with the four rungs below them the first growths were ranked in order, with Lafite leading the pack. Some today argue that this was an alphabetical listing (Haut-Brion being named Pontac, after the owners of the day) but this was not true of any other category, so I do not see why it should be true of the firsts. Nevertheless, many would argue for placing Latour in this position today, certainly when comparing the three contenders from Pauillac, although I suspect it is true that many would rank it as the greatest estate and the home of the greatest wine in all Bordeaux. It has a far greater propensity for ageing than other wines in the commune, even its first growth companions, and is also often hailed a success in lesser vintages. It is perhaps no wonder, with the commune led by these three properties, that the wines of Pauillac are for many the most desirable in all Bordeaux.

Pauillac - The Appellation

The appellation itself is effectively divided into two by the Chenal du Gaer, which flows past Artigues and then north of Grand-Puy-Ducasse to enter the Gironde just to the north of the town of Pauillac. To the south it is bounded by the Ruisseau de Juillac, which demarcates the transition from Pauillac to St Julien, whereas to the north the Jalle de Breuil provides a convenient boundary, on the other side of which lies St Estèphe. Between there are over 1100 hectares of vines, and as this is the Médoc it is the gravel croupes that provide the best terroir, stony mounds on which the greatest estates can be found. These waterways aid the drainage immeasurably, although along the muddy banks of these rivers and streams themselves, and also by the very side of the Gironde, the land is completely unsuitable for the vine.

For many years Pauillac has provided the wine drinker with both ends of the quality spectrum; the magnificent wines of the first growths, especially Latour, but also disappointment and poor performance from some of the seemingly innumerable (although in truth there are twelve) fifth growth estates. Of all these wines there is one I have so rarely encountered it is difficult for me to judge conclusively, this being Pédesclaux. I once spotted a bottle, in Frankfurt airport if my memory serves me correctly, but otherwise our paths have rarely crossed, and I certainly can provide no recent tasting notes. Of others I have a little more experience, and over the years I have seen much room for improvement with some estates, from Croizet-Bages and Lynch-Moussas, for instance. With the wave of regeneration that has swept Bordeaux in the late 20th and early 21st Century, however, and the renewed worldwide interest in wine, we can hope for even lesser properties to raise their game and give us the wine we desire. If not, we can always look to the Cru Bourgeois properties of the appellation although Pauillac, as is the case with St Julien, is not awash with notable estates at this level.

Pauillac - The Classifications

Surprisingly, for what many would argue is the world's most significant wine region (I accept that many would argue that this is in fact the Loire...) Bordeaux is hardly a hotbed of culinary delights. In and around Pauillac, however, there are at least some points of interest. The region is renowned for saltmarsh lamb, the young animals having grazed on the aforementioned land alongside the Gironde which is unsuitable for the vine. There are some notable restaurants in Pauillac, but nearby Bages is also of interest thanks to investment by Jean-Michel Cazes. Having grown up in the town, Cazes was looking to expand his wine storage facilities and was presented with the option of demolishing some of the vacant properties in the village and extending his already capacious warehouse. But he took a different path, and he began to invest in the tiny village, restoring houses and shops. Today the village is a tourist attraction in itself. This was not quite a road he had never trodden before, however, as the Cazes family own Bordeaux Saveurs, a company which specialises in Bordeaux hospitality, and he had already established a very successful hotel-restaurant at Chateau Cordeillan-Bages.

Naturally diners at these establishments are presented with a list of local wines to drink with their lamb, and in Pauillac we could start with one of the two Pichon estates, Lalande and Baron, both of which are currently turning out superlative wines. There are no estates, ranked as troisième cru, but there are some decent wines made at Duhart-Milon. As I have already mentioned, the bulk of Pauillac hides at the bottom of the 1855 classification, although here there are some truly excellent wines to be found which indicate just how foolish it can be to use this ancient listing as a true guide to quality today. I have found wines from d'Armailhac, Clerc-Milon, Grand-Puy-Lacoste, Lynch-Bages and Pontet-Canet to be excellent at one time or another, and many of the others can be superb value even if the absolute quality is not quite up with these first few. Both Haut-Bages-Libéral and Haut-Batailley certainly fit into this category. Of this brief listing, it is probably Pontet-Canet that is worth knowing best; with a massive turn-around in the last decade of the 20th Century, the wines now sit comfortably with those ranked as Deuxième Grand Cru Classé, and show an amazing concentration in some vintages.

Beyond the 1855 listing there are of course the Cru Bourgeois properties, although there are not many; here Pibran probably ranks among the best. I have also tasted a few wines from La Fleur Peyrabon, which are sourced from a small 5 hectare plot within the Pauillac appellation, although they are vinified at Chateau Peyrabon, a Haut-Médoc estate. These wines have not been so impressive.

• Next instalment: St Estèphe

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