Bordeaux wine: The classified growths come to town

The classified growths of Bordeaux are keen to mark their presence felt in India, the sooner the better. That’s the message the team from the Conseil des Grands Crus Classes 1855 brought to India during its recent visit, which was marked by some superb tastings

Kiran Mazumdar Shaw of India’s Biocon releases a book on Bordeaux at the Classified Growths tastings, here seen with French Consul Francois Gautier and leader of the delegation, Denis Lurton of Chateau Desmirail

Tuesday, 5th February 2018 was not a regular weekday. Within the sprawling green environs of Bengaluru’s Taj West End hotel was some special wines all lined up for an exclusive wine tasting event. This was a tasting organized by the French Consulate of top classified growths of Bordeaux wine – brought down by a delegation from the Conseil des Grands Crus Classes 1855. Put together in conjunction with Bordeaux’s noted negociant, Borie-Manoux, the chateaux showcasing their wines included Château Batailley (2011, 5ème cru, AOC Paulliac), Château Desmirail (3ème cru, AOC Margaux), Château Lascombes (2ème cru, AOC Margaux), Château Langoa-Barton (3ème cru, AOC Saint-Julien), Château Doisy Daëne ( 2ème cru, AOC Barsac) and Château de Rayne Vigneau (premier cru, AOC Sauternes).

Quite the line up to gladden a Bordeaux wine lover’s heart.

From left: Damien Barton Sartorius (Chateau Langoa-Barton), Karine Barbier (Chateau Lascombes), myself, Berenger Les Bouriscot (Borie Manoux representing Chateau Batailley), and Denis Lurton (Chateau Desmirail) hold their bottles aloft.

Before the tasting, I had a quick chat with Denis Lurton, owner of Château Desmirail, who explained how the classification was really much older than 1855 (a little-known fact), and Damien Barton Sartorius owner of Château Langoa-Barton who threw some interesting light on how to pick early drinkable Bordeaux vintages among the big names and big vintages in Bordeaux wine. (See video interviews, below). Just before the swirling, sniffing and sipping began, I also had a brief conversation with Berenger Le Bouriscot, export manager for Asia and Africa for Borie-Manoux to understand what the delegation was really looking for, bringing into India as they were, some of the best wine brands available in the world.

After notching up five years in the Asian market, Le Bouriscot has an in-depth understanding of what has worked, where and how. The enormous Bordeaux wine-dominated portfolio of Borie-Manoux is everywhere today, from Asian airlines’ in-flight menus to the swishest hotels and the Dubai Duty-Free. Having been well-established in China (which really does love its Bordeaux), Borie-Manoux is now looking for new countries to conquer. India, that giant, perplexing, enigmatic and ever-exasperating (for reasons of taxes and such) destination was next. “We want to be present in the country,” he points out. “Yes, there are difficulties – taxes, licenses and so on, but as a wine merchant I really want to understand the market.”

Borie-Manoux is actively looking for partners to collaborate with in India, and they have their giant portfolio and all manners of price points on wines to offer as incentives. Borie-Manoux is owned by the Casteja family of Bordeaux (Philippe Casteja is president of the Conseil), which owns eight châteaux themselves. “I see new dynamics, opportunities and now we need to find good operators, to handle the right products for the markets,” says Les Bouriscot, And this is not just as a one-off: Borie Manoux is ready to back up that collaboration with regular training, education and wine tasting events to spread the good Bordeaux word, so to speak. “We aren’t just going to sell the wines to them (the importers) and say: now handle it all yourself. We will be there right through to support and help grow the base,” emphasizes Le Bouriscot. Prices of wine to the importers will be made very affordable, he tells me, addressing my qustion about Bordeaux wine being expensive wine. Besides, they have plans beyond the classified growths: they have an extensive offering of top-rated Cru Bourgeois from Bordeaux, as well as Bordeaux Superieur. “There’s a story to tell here,” he says on the (price) gap between the grand cru classés and the generic Bordeaux wines.

If this vision works out, wine lovers in India can only rejoice. There will be some of the best wine brands from France, most especially Bordeaux wine, to drink, bumping up the profile of  the available imported wines in India.

Meanwhile, listen to members of the Conseil team as they explain their stories, below. For more photos of the event, see the Wine Society page on this website.