Croix de Beauregard Pomerol 2021

From a selection of plots at Château Beauregard, this cuvée is born in the heart of the Bordeaux region, on the Pomerol plateau. The vines thrive on clay-gravel soils, sometimes with sand, which combine depth, finesse and freshness in this prestigious Right Bank appellation.

The grapes are hand-harvested and then carefully sorted to preserve the quality of the berries. Made from young vines and a rigorous plot selection, the wine is aged for a short period in barrels that have already held one wine, to favour bright fruit and a supple texture.

This wine reveals notes of blackberry, blackcurrant, black cherry, plum, violet, mint, cocoa, vanilla, sweet spices, liquorice and fine oak. The palate is enveloping and velvety, supported by welcome freshness and silky tannins. The harmonious, approachable body extends into a flavourful finish with notes of dark fruit and spice.

The cradle of wine culture in Western Europe, France owes its first vines to the Greeks of Phocaea, who settled around Marseille some twenty-six centuries ago, before the Romans spread viticulture along the Rhône and the Garonne and as far as Champagne. In the Middle Ages, Cistercian and Benedictine monks cleared the slopes of Burgundy and patiently mapped out the climats, laying the foundations of the notion of terroir. The 19th century brought the glory of the classifications, then the disaster of phylloxera, which wiped out the vineyards before they were rebuilt on American rootstocks; the creation of the appellations d'origine contrôlée in the 1930s then set the rules that would inspire the whole world. Today, France vies every year with Italy and Spain for first place in world production by volume and remains the ultimate benchmark of the Old World, as much for its age-worthy wines as for its winemaking models. Vineyards cover almost the entire country, from the cool north of Champagne and Alsace to the Mediterranean shores of Languedoc and Provence, by way of the oceanic climates of Bordeaux, the Loire and the South-West, continental Burgundy, the steep slopes of the northern Rhône and the high-altitude valleys of Savoie and the Jura. This mosaic of soils – limestone, schist, gravel or rounded pebbles – explains the extraordinary diversity of styles. As for grape varieties, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot dominate Bordeaux and produce structured reds, Pinot Noir is the signature of Burgundian finesse, Syrah of the depth of the Rhône, while Grenache, Gamay, Cabernet Franc and Mourvèdre cover every register, from easy-drinking wines to wines for long ageing. Among the whites, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin, Riesling and Viognier offer expressions ranging from lively and mineral to unctuous, all the way to great sweet wines. A land of benchmarks and constant discoveries, France remains the compass for wine lovers the world over.