History
A pioneer of sustainable and organic practices in the world of the 1er Grands Crus (the estate has been using them since 1996), Château Guiraud has established itself as one of the sure values of the Sauternes 1er Grands Crus Classés. Indeed, the property, owned by the Peugeot family, Xavier Planty, Stefan von Neipperg (Ch. Canon La Gaffeliere) and Olivier Bernard (Domaine de Chevalier), collects commercial successes and awards from the press. Later on, the Organic Certification was received in 2011, completes this fantastic dynamic. The “G” embodies the gateway to the Château Guiraud brand, as Luc Planty, technical director of the estate, likes to describe it.
The G of Château Guiraud is the Dry White produced from the vines of the Premier Grand Cru, also certified BIO AB. Harvested like a Sauternes, manually by successive sorting, and matured by the Chateau’s team in barrels that have been used for the maturing of the Sweet Grand Vin, this balanced blend of Sauvignon and Semillon offers a singular expression of the Sauternes terroir, in its “dry” version. As Neal Martin said about the 2014 vintage: “This is how to do dry white Sauternes”.
Terroir & Vinification
Sandy gravel makes up 80% of the soil, with the rest consisting of deeper soils mixing gravel, limestone and heavy clay. The plots offer a heterogeneous soil, with many shades shaping the subsoils. Below, the presence of springs allows the perfect drainage of the vineyard, avoiding the stagnation of humidity. The harvest is only manual, by crates of about 6 kg to preserve the aromatic quality of the berries. Then, 80% of the fermentation takes place in barrels that have made our Sauternes, 1er Grand Cru classé and 20% in stainless steel vats, for about 3 weeks. Finally, the wine is aged in barrels for 7 months with stirring on the lees.
