Château Fleur Cardinale

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru Classé

The Saint-Emilion Grand Cru Classé that marked the start of our adventure in 2001.

Bouteille de Château Fleur Cardinale - © C. Decoster, Château Fleur Cardinale

PROFILE

Château Fleur Cardinale is a Saint-Emilion Grand Cru Classé.

The more impatient among you can start discovering it four years after the harvest, but in this case it should be decanted for several hours beforehand.

For those who are more patient, Château Fleur Cardinale is a wine that ages extremely well. It remains fresh and lively after the first decade and will stay in excellent form for the next ten years, acquiring additional maturity. It will then reach a ripe old age, silently resting, waiting in your cellar.

Capsule de Château Fleur Cardinale - © C. Decoster, Château Fleur Cardinale

TASTING NOTES

A wine with a deep, concentrated colour.

The bouquet is equally delightful, with its intense range of aromas dominated by ripe fruit with floral and spicy overtones.

This wine is charmingly balanced and generous on the palate with perfectly smooth tannins.

The finish is long and aromatic.

In short, a wine with an astonishing personality, embodying both power and elegance.

Specifications

Appellation:

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

Classification:

Grand Cru Classé

First vintage of the Decoster family:

2001

2001

23.5 hectares (58.07 acres)
49 plots

Density of plantation:

6225 / 8000 vines / ha (old / young plants)

Type of soils:

Clay and limestone, 7 types of soils:

Brunisols issus de la Molasse du Fronsadais
Calcisols issus de la Molasse du Fronsadais
Calcisols issus de la Molasse de l’Agenais
Calcosols issus de la Molasse du Fronsadais
Calcosols sur Calcaires à Astéries
Calcosols issus d’argiles vertes à nodules calcaires
Colluviosols calcaires

Planting:

74% Merlot
20% Cabernet Franc
4% Cabernet Sauvignon

Average age of vines:

40 years

Certifications:

Registered in the Environmental Management System (S.M.E.) for the Wines of Bordeaux, certified ISO 14001 since 2013
High Environmental Value (HEV) since 2017
E-engaged Corporate Social Responsibility Label (R.S.E.) since 2020

Harvest:

Manual, in small crates

Vinification:

Tronco-conical stainless steel vats, with temperature-control from top to bottom
Micro-vinification in twenty 500-litre barrels (around 10% of the production)

Ageing:

12 to 14 months - new French oak barrels
Ageing old Merlot and Cabernet Franc in two 750 litre Tava amphoras (around 3% of the production)

Average production:

110 000 bottles

Distribution:

100% Place of Bordeaux