To all of you who had experienced our 2018 harvest “in live” on social networks, and who looked forward to news of this vintage, we are very happy to announce that it is possible from today to buy Château Fleur Cardinale 2018 and Château Croix Cardinale 2018 “en Primeurs” !

What does “en Primeurs” mean?

Both wines are still in barrel, and will be bottled next spring, before being delivered at the end of 2020.

The 2018 vintage promises some good surprises: we detail below what makes it special.

Back to the 2018 vintage

New vine-growing methods

Carried out by the new technical team, new vine-growing methods implemented in 2018 have enabled us to enhance the soil-structuring work that had already been introduced many years ago at Fleur Cardinale. A generalised sowing of grass and legume-based winter seeds has resulted in the stimulation of the biomass and produced even more life in the soils.

“The new vine-growing methods have enabled the vines
to achieve a perfect physiological balance.”

Spraying liquid seaweed on the vines during the flowering process, as well as bringing comfort to the plants has enabled them to better regulate their physiology and favour homogeneous fecundation, which is also the prelude to a homogeneous ripening of the crop.

The 2018 growing season was marked by excess rainfall up till the end of June, followed by hot weather at the end. Thanks to the implementation of these new vine-growing methods, the vines have succeeded in finding a perfect physiological balance.

“Haute-couture” harvest

Our 2018 harvest began on September 27, making it one of the earliest on record at the estate.

Favoured by ideal weather conditions at the end of the season, we were able to perform “haute-couture” harvesting work which stretched out till October 24. In certain parts of the vineyard where the soils differed within the same plot, the harvesting was done in two goes, with the top of the slopes being picked first and then a few days later the bottom. This made it possible to fully optimise the quality potential of the crop.

“The decisions implemented during the harvest, which was begun at an early date,
allowed us to bring in grapes with unparalleled fresh fruit flavour.”

A racy style

The tasting of the first samples confirmed what the lab analyses had already indicated: well-controlled ripeness underpinned by unparalleled acidity levels.
Château Fleur Cardinale 2018 is particularly notable for its magnificent Cabernets Francs, well adapted to the climatology of the vintage. They give a very beautiful structure to the wine, in a racy style, while perpetuating the signature of Château Fleur Cardinale thanks to velvety tannins

Full details

You will find all the information of the vintage (technical data, but also updated press review) on the pages: Château Croix Cardinale 2018 and Château Fleur Cardinale 2018.

Resellers

Château Fleur Cardinale 2018 and Château Croix Cardinale 2018 are being offered to our wine merchants in Bordeaux, who will offer them in turn to their national and international customers. Depending on where you live, we recommend that you contact our resellers (listed here).