Tales from the heart of Saint-Émilion

Château Plaisance Saint-Émilion Grand Cru wine and vineyard news updates

Terroir Wine

Château Plaisance : Terroir Wine (Terroir is a French term pertaining to the special characteristics such as the microclimate, the geography, the soil

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Monday, July 11, 2011

For You to Discover!

For You to Discover! Many people know of our Château Plaisance and La Fleur Plaisance Grand Crus, but often don’t realize that we produce another Gran

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Tuesday, May 03, 2011

The Marriage of Wine and Wood

During this past March the wine critics were in town to review barrel samples of the 2010 Bordeaux wines.

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Sunday, April 10, 2011

Wine Names and Characteristics

In Europe the wine producers use regional wine names as opposed to grape varietal names. You may know that most of the wines in California, like other

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Sunday, January 16, 2011

Meilleurs vœux !

Wishing everyone happy holidays. We hope the weather does not prevent anyone from the warmth of being with family and friends.

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Friday, December 24, 2010

Bottling the 2008 Vintage

In August we bottled the wine that was harvested in 2008. For days we moved to the rhythm of clinking bottles.

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Saturday, October 02, 2010

Special Thanks to our Oenologist, Jean-Philippe Fort

This month our oenologist, Jean-Philippe Fort met with us. Placed before him were the samples of our 2008 vintage.

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Saturday, July 24, 2010

“Puppet On A String” Sandie Shaw

I admire when one pursues their dreams. Ours is to produce fine wine. We value each of our wine customers.

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Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Saint Jacques de Compostelle

The Saint Jacques de Compostelle is a popular route for travelers in France. It passes by us on one of the four main pilgrim trails through France.

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Friday, April 23, 2010

Our great team of workers

This past Thursday we were informed that the wood chipper would be ready for us to use on Friday April 16th.

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Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Château Plaisance wishes you Season’s Greetings

Happy Holidays! Winter is upon us. It is 20 ºF (-6 ºC) this morning, and should get to 45 ºF (7 ºC) by midday, with possibilities of snow.

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Friday, December 18, 2009

Pumping over and Pressing

Making the wine is one of the best aspects of Chateau Plaisance. Between the work in the fields and the work in the cellar, our sights are always set

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Sunday, November 08, 2009

“The Hachette Guide to French Wines” 2010 Edition

“The Hachette Guide to French Wines” 2010 Edition has just been released. We are excited to be included once again!

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Friday, September 11, 2009

Growth

Amazing growth! The floral bud clusters are getting ready to bloom. Each shoot is filling out with lush vegetation.

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Monday, June 01, 2009

May 1st Open Doors

This past weekend we participated in the open doors of St Emilion. Our intern, Marianne, from the North of France had worked to send out flyers.

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Wednesday, May 06, 2009

Primeurs 2008

This is the time for the Primeurs 2008. The press, the buyers, and associated wine professionals come out in force to taste.

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Friday, April 03, 2009

The Festive Day of Patrimony

Since September 13th of 1948, the town of Saint Emilion has celebrated the day of patrimony or heritage day (“La Jour du Patr

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Wednesday, September 24, 2008

“The Hachette Guide to French Wines”

“ The Hachette Guide to French Wines ” (“ Guide Hachette des Vins de France “) is very much like a Michelin Red Guide to French

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Thursday, September 11, 2008

Explaining the Logo

The new Plaisance logo has been the subject of several inquires, so I thought I would break it down for you.

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Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Logo

Our logo that we designed came into reality this week. The wooden cases for our 2005 wines were delivered.

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Thursday, May 01, 2008

Gold Medal

Last week the excavation for the new building made for a dramatic change in the landscape and gave us a positive mind set.

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Monday, April 21, 2008

2007 Samples

Friday 21 Mar. This past week our oenologist, Jean-Philippe Fort came. Placed before him were the samples of our 2007 vintage.

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Friday, March 21, 2008

New Ticket Design for Grand Cru 05

This week our tickets for the Saint Emilion Grand Cru 2005 were delivered and the capsules ordered.

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Thursday, February 07, 2008

Blooming in May

May has brought us through many changes in the vines. Due to the unusually early hot dry weather, the development is more advanced than in previous ye

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Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Autumn Beauty

I am late sharing the beauty of our fall colours. To walk each day within the vines can overwhelm the senses.

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Sunday, December 05, 2010

December Snow

The day began clear and below freezing. The best job in the fields was to be burning the pruned vine clippings.

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Sunday, December 05, 2010

Harvest 2010

The harvest is over. All the 2010 grapes are in. The final day for us was Tuesday October the 26th. We have 20 hectares which is equal to 50 acres of

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Sunday, October 31, 2010

August Ripening and Green Harvest

In August ripening (véraison in French) was evident. To those of us that live and breathe in the vineyard, véraison starts the count down to harvest.

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Thursday, September 30, 2010

July De-leafing

July was the period when we remove the lower leaves from the East side of the vines. This way the grapes can bask in the morning sun, but stay protected

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Thursday, September 30, 2010

June Crew, the Men

We have full time and temporary workers. There is no friction within the crews despite our different nationalities and languages, we all work together

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Sunday, June 20, 2010

June Crew the Women

We represent 3 countries; Here are our names along with the number of years each has worked at Plaisance: Danièle : 21 years Badia and Sanna : from Mo

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Sunday, June 20, 2010

June 10th 2010

In the last ten days the vines have flowered and have set tiny pearl size grapes. As the growth advances, the work needed to keep up can seem daunting

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Thursday, June 10, 2010

Vine Development

April and May have been a time emergence and growth in the vines. We have seen the hard winter buds change to the cottony soft “Wool Stage”, followed

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Friday, May 21, 2010

Exceptional People

Here at Plaisance we have had the joy of meeting some truly special people. One of our neighbors came by to show us his collection of wine labels from

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Thursday, April 22, 2010

Spring is upon us!

These past few weeks have been the time for the Primeurs. The press, the buyers, and associated wine professionals come out in force to taste and crit

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Monday, April 05, 2010

Hidden Jewels

Saint-Emilion's history goes back to prehistoric times and is now a UNESCO World Heritage site. The Romans planted vineyards in what was to become Saint-Emilion

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Monday, March 08, 2010

January Snow!

Yesterday it snowed, January 6th 2010. When the men arrived to work, it was -6 Celsius which is equal to 21 Fahrenheit.

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Thursday, January 07, 2010

All the grapes are in!

Looking back over the harvest gives us a sense of completion. The roses that greet us as we enter the vines continue to bring forth a few flowers but

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Sunday, October 25, 2009

Hand Harvest 2009

We began the harvest Tuesday Sept. 28th, a cool crisp morning, with much enthusiasm.

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Thursday, October 08, 2009

Vieilles Vignes !

On French wine labels you may see the words ”vieilles vignes”. This means “old vines”. Winemakers are proud of the fact that their wine is made from t

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Sunday, September 20, 2009

Life in our Lavender

Our lavender is full of life and bursting with color. The lavender flower bed at the base of the office stone stairs smells lovely.

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Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Temporary Work Crew for the Green Harvest

Our temporary work crews, along with our staff, are truly international. Many countries take part in making our wine this year: France, Ireland, Ameri

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Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Ripping Leaves

This is the crew of temporary workers brought in for selective leaf removal. By removing the leaves from the lower east side of the vines, the grapes

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Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Hoopoe Family

Take a look at this wonderful looking bird called the Hoopoe. I couldn’t resist taking pictures of it the other day.

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Tuesday, July 21, 2009

The July Work Crew

These pictures were taken in the first week of July. We had just finished the final adjustment of the wires, which will support the vines.

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Friday, July 03, 2009

New Beginnings

Easter celebrates the resurrection, as spring celebrates new growth. Year after year the vines burst with life. The first leaves are showing.

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Friday, April 17, 2009

Spring is in the Air

The vines are being prepared for the growing season. All of the old wood has been removed and pulled off. It seems like the job is never-ending.

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Saturday, March 14, 2009

Pruning & Migration

Cutting back the vines (la taille) is our priority in the fields during this time of year. It takes less than a minute and a dozen strokes for an expe

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Friday, February 13, 2009