Description
In the middle of the 17th century, Arnaud Ducasse bought a small house, on the banks of the Gironde estuary, to Jacques de Ségur, Seigneur of Lafite. He could hardly had imagined then that it would be the start of a superb estate that would remain in his family for almost three centuries.
Pierre Ducasse, a lawyer passionate about vine-growing, is the real founder of the estate. He bought land within three parishes: Pauillac, Saint-Lambert and Saint-Sauveur; as well as three Lord’s domains: Lafite, Latour and Beychevelle.
Additional purchases and swaps enabled him to extend his estates up to his death in 1797.
His son inherited the 60-hectare estate (148 acres), then called “Ducasse-Grand-Puy-Artigues-Arnaud”, of which two-thirds were planted with vine. Around 1820, he had the existing château built, on the site of his ancestors’ house, facing the Gironde estuary. It was under his son-in-law’s management, Adrien Chauvet, that the estate was classified in 1855, under the name of Artigues Arnaud. The company called Grand-Puy Ducasse was then founded in 1932.
In 1971 a new group of shareholders took on the somewhat dormant estate, and went on to restructure and enlarge the vineyard’s holding. As from 1980, the winery was equipped with a new vatting house, including sorting tables and other facilities for handling the harvest. In 1991, the sorting tables were moved into the vineyards, in order to improve the quality of hand-picking. In 2004, CA Grands Crus, a subsidiary of the Groupe Crédit Agricole, acquired Château Grand Puy Ducasse. An improvement plan was put together for the entire estate. It is supervised today by Anne Le Naour, the Technical Director, and the consultant oenologist, Denis Dubourdieu.
Grand-Puy Ducasse 2009 has intense colour with ruby and purple hues. The aromas on the nose reveal hints of cassis syrup with liquorice and toast. These are confirmed on the palate, which is pure and elegant with considerable depth. The finish is stylish, built around tannins which are noble and silky in their texture
Grand-Puy Ducasse 2009 has intense color with ruby and purple hues. The aromas on the nose reveal hints of cassis syrup with licorice and toast. These are confirmed on the palate, which is pure and elegant with considerable depth. The finish is stylish, built around tannins which are noble and silky in their texture.
Blend: 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot
Critical Acclaim
JS93James SucklingA solid red, with raspberry and currant aromas and flavors. Full body, with solid tannins. Polished texture. Well crafted. Try after 2018.RP92Robert Parker’s Wine AdvocateAromas of blackberries, unsmoked cigar tobacco and cedar/sagebrush jump from the glass of this dense purple-hued Pauillac. Full-bodied with more depth and richness than usual as well as moderate tannins, this potential sleeper of the vintage offers 15-20 years of aging potential. Moreover, it is modestly priced. Purchasers should give it 4-5 years of cellaring and enjoy it over the following two decades.WS91Wine SpectatorA very pure, polished style, with an almost-rounded feel to the beam of cassis, dark plum and black cherry fruit, which gets support from graphite, dark olive and alder wood notes that extend through the finish. Best from 2013 through 2022.WE91Wine EnthusiastRoger Voss covers Bordeaux, Burgundy, Champagne, the Loire and South-West France as well as Portugal. His passion is matching food with wine, bringing the pleasures of the table to wine lovers. He has written six books on wine and food, and was previously national correspondent on wine for the London Daily Telegraph. He is based in the Bordeaux region. Barrel Sample: 89-91
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