Let us try to describe a whole vintage with a few words, to make you participate in a wine grower’s year of work: 2008 was what we call a “normal” year in the south-western part of France, a pleasant year without any climatic extremes.

2008 – a real wine grower’s year

Bud burst took place by the end of March, at the beginning of a wonderful spring, with warming sunshine and refreshing rainfall in turns. Every year, the effusive, young vegetation has to be guided and protected by the winegrower’s hands during these first weeks of almost ungovernable growth, until the vines start flowering in early June: Little white flowers you can hardly see, but offering a first delight to your nose.

Although the summer of 2008 was rather dry - with only a couple of rainfalls in July and late August – but without exceptional heat and the rather fresh nights conserved the acidity of the grapes. Leaf removal in the fruit zone and a long, beautiful “Indian Summer” allowed a long and complete ripening of the grapes.

Harvest began on October 13^th under a perfect blue sky, followed by a couple of weeks of work in the cellar and some 22 months of oak ripening for the wines.

Despite all the words, the best way to appreciate a vintages character remains the tasting of the wines. So you should appreciate the effusiveness of spring in the “Château du Cèdre”, the minerality of cool summer nights in our cuvee “Le Cèdre”, and the accuracy of autumnal tannins in our “GC”.