What’s new in Bordeaux? The largest appellation in France, Bordeaux is six times the size of Napa at 266,760 acres, with 650 million bottles produced in 2020: 18 bottles of Bordeaux are sold every second around the world, and averaging only $20 a bottle. Some 5300 winegrowers work with estates averaging only 50 acres with 75% of them using a certified environmental approach, a number that’s increasing annually. Of those, 74 estates are biodynamic, which is difficult in Bordeaux’s climate due to humidity coming from the nearby Atlantic causing pressure from diseases. While 85% of the production in Bordeaux is red with 66% of plantings being merlot, rose, dry whites and sparkling wines are increasing in popularity and production with 9% dry white wines and 1% cremant with semillon 45% and Sauvignon Blanc 47%.

New also to Bordeaux are red and white grapes resistant to drought and that can handle humidity that have been approved to be included in small amounts to traditional blends. In the past, it was harder for grapes to ripen, and Bordeaux vintages had more variations but not so much these days due to better farming, vinification, and climate change; the challenge today is less to achieve ripeness but to maintain freshness and acidity. Climate change also threatens the crop with late spring frosts, poor weather at flowering, hail, heat, like in 2017, when Bordeaux had the smallest crop in 20 years due to frost and hail.

I learned all this recently at a Master Class about Bordeaux wines with Monica Marin and the Bordeaux Wine School where we tasted dry white wines, red wines, and sweet Bordeaux wines. A fun evening event included a blind tasting event where six tables of six somms (and a few writers!) determined favorites from six blind wines, all priced at or under $35 (except a few of the sweet Bordeaux), then forwarded the two favorites on to a blind tasting where we all voted for our top three wines.

Sue was in GROUP E – Right Bank, and her favorite from their six wasn’t chosen to go forward:

Château Lassègue, Les Cadrans de Lassègue, Saint-Émilion Grand Cru 2018 – E1 $29.99
70% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Franc and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon

Since we were searching for a French connection between a French winery and one in another part of the world to write about for this month’s Winophiles prompt, we were excited to learn that this winery is owned by Jackson Family Wines.

So while the theme this month is “French Wine Producers and Their New World Endeavors” we thought we’d turn the prompt on its head a bit with the opposite direction!

Jackson Family actually owns quite a few wineries in the US and elsewhere but only one in France. Recently a number of French wineries have made the news by purchasing US wineries or partnering with them as is is the case with Tablas Creek in Paso Robles and Chateau Beaucasteel in the Rhone, a partnership we’d considered exploring; we’ve written about Tablas Creek recently. We’ve also written about a French and Oregon partnership with Drouhin as well as Roederer in France and in California. So we’e kind of written about this topic, and we felt this direction would be fun.

These other paired French and other world wines are all similar in character while the two at hand were rather different so our next challenge was a meal that would work both with a Monterey Pinot Noir and a Right Bank Bordeaux, but the pork roast with gravy and roasted vegetables did the trick. Keep reading for all the details!

Menu

• Cheese Board:
  sautéed olives with citrus rind, prosciutto, salami, brie, La Sur, truffled pecorino, goat gouda, organic blue cheese
• Organic green salad
• Roasted Brussels Sprouts
• Baked Russet and Sweet Potatoes
• Pork Butt Roast: seasoned, seared, cooked in the instant pot, then finished for about one hour on the grill

Wines

• 2017 La Crema Pinot Noir, Monterey, CA
• 2018 Chateau Lassegue “Les Cadrans de Lassegue” Saint-Emilion Grand Cru, Bordeaux

2017 La Crema Pinot Noir, Monterey, CA

ABV: 13.5%
SRP: Under $30
Grapes: Pinot Noir

Appearance:  Brackish, orange copper rim, translucent, crayola red,

Aroma: Smells like a pinot, raspberry, rose petals, sandalwood, very inviting,

Palate: Smooth and assessable, well balanced, raspberry, nice with a slight chill on it, pipe tobacco, leather, very distinctly new world

Pairing: The LaTur brings out sweetness in both the wine and the cheese, the wine responds perfectly to the truffles in the pecorino, Great with the Brussels sprouts loving the char and caramelization in the dish. Very nice with the roast pork and gravy. The wine responds so nicely to the salt and spices in the meal.

2018 Les Cadrans de Lassegue, Saint-Emilion Grand Cru, Bordeaux

ABV: 14%
SRP: under $30
Grapes: see above

Appearance:  Garnet, rusty rim

Aroma: Cherries, mint, menthol, stems and pips and green parts of the grape, cherry tobacco,

Palate: Cherries, menthol, Herbs de Provence, dried rose petals, cherry tobacco, smooth tannins, very distinctly old world,

Pairing: Nice with grilled olives, fantastic with our LaTur the wine and the cheese linger in the mouth so nicely, great with the blue cheese, great with our Old Amsterdam goat gouda and would also work with cow milk gouda, works well with the triple cream brie. Pork and Pinot is a thing so it was no surprise as to how well the pinot went with the procuitto. Very nice with the spices in the pork and the salty gravy, this classic pork and gravy meal works so well with this versatile wine.

Check out these old and new world combinations:

• For the Love of Pinot Noir: An American-French Partnership in Oregon by Always Ravenous
• French Roots in Dundee Hills: Drouhin Reds with Lacquered Baby Back Ribs by Culinary Cam
• La Crema Monterey Pinot Noir and Les Cadrans de Lassegue Saint-Emilion Grand Cru: Two Jackson Family Wines from Two Countries Paired with Pork Roast by Wine Predator…Gwendolyn Alley
• Maison Joseph Drouhin: From Beaune to the Dundee Hills by Food Wine Click!
• Southeast Asian Flavors  Sizzle at Domaine Carneros by Wineivore
• Tablas Creek Patelin De Tablas Blanc + a Recipe by Tablas Creek Vineyard by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• The Sun Never Sets on Chandon by Side Hustle Wino