2000 Château Fombrauge, 12-bottle Lot, Wood Case

Château Fombrauge is a Grand Cru of the St.-Emilion appellation, in Bordeaux. The 128-acre estate traces its history to the 16th century. Since then it has changed hands several times, as one prominent local family after the other bought and sold the estate. In the 1980s it was sold to a Danish firm and most of the wine was exported to the Scandinavian market. In 1999 to was bought by Bernard Magrez, who also owns Pape-Clement, La Tour Carnet and other Bordeaux estates. Magrez brought in the winemaking consultant Michel Rolland and in the last decade the wine has earned praise from reviewers. About 160,000 bottles of the flagship wine are produced and there is a second wine called Le Cadran de Fombrauge. The château also makes a white Bordeaux. Robert M. Parker Jr. notes that since Magrez took over, the estate “is one of the up-and-coming wines of the appellation.”

Saint-Émilion is on the east side of the Dordogne River. At 13,400 acres it is one of Bordeaux’s largest appellations, and perhaps its most picturesque. It is also home to what has been called “the garagiste” movement of upstart, tradition-defying winemakers who produce artisanal wines in styles that are unconventional for the appellation. The village of Saint-Émilion dates from the middle ages and it sits on low hills, surrounded by ancient walls. Like its neighbor Pomerol, Saint-Émilion was not included in the famous Bordeaux classification system of 1855. But a century later a ranking system was put in place, and unlike the classification system for the Medoc, the Saint-Émilion system is reviewed every ten years, meaning that estates can be upgraded or downgraded. There are three rankings: Grand Cru Classé, Premier Grand Cru Classé B and Premier Grand Cru Classé A, with the final ranking being the best. Such legendary Saint-Émilion estates as Châteaux Ausone and Cheval-Blanc are Premier Grand Cru Classé A, along with Châteaux Pavie and Angélus, both added to the classification in 2012. Wines in this appellation are primarily Merlot, mixed with Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon.