2000 L'Etoile De Bergey

l'Etoile de Bergery is the second wine of Chateau Haut-Bergery, which is a 57-acre estate in Leognan. Though it dates to the 16th century, it has been owned since the 1990s by the Garcin-Cathiard family, who own several other Bordeaux estates, including Clos L’Eglise and Barde-Haut. They are also the entrepreneurs behind the garagiste wine Branson, which is made from Haut-Bergery vineyards. The Garcin-Cathiard family uses the consulting services of celebrity winemakers Michel Rolland and Jean-Luc Thunevin. The estate is planted to 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Merlot. It produces about 55,000 bottles of its flagship wine annually. It also produces two white wines. Robert M. Parker Jr. has written that the owners deserve credits for “one of the most amazing quality turnarounds I have ever seen. Haut-Bergery…(is) one of the stars of the Pessac-Leognan.”

Pessac-Léognan was created in 1987 from the northern part of the left bank Graves appellation. Before then it was simply part of Graves, or sometimes it was called Haut-Graves. Unlike many other Bordeaux appellations, Pessac-Léognan is known for both red and dry white wines, although its reds are more famous. The appellation includes ten communes and the area’s most important châteaux, including Château Haut-Brion, the only non-Médoc estate included in the 1855 Bordeaux classification. There are 2,964 acres of vineyards in Pessac-Léognan and 16 classified growth estates. The main red grapes grown are Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, along with a small amount of Cabernet Franc. White grapes grown are Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon, with a little Muscadelle. Pessac-Léognan is considered to have the best terroir of the greater Graves region.