“Did you know that a bottle of Chateau Bonnet is sold every 20 seconds?” says energetic Laurent Belisaire, smiling at the people around the table.
Actually, before this afternoon, I did not realize how popular Chateau Bonnet is, or that Les Vignobles André Lurton, who produces it, is currently one of the largest wineries in the Bordeaux region. Laurent is Export Director for Les Vignobles André Lurton, studied business and marketing in the US and Japan, and has worked for Mr. Lurton since 2005.
The reason for the lunch, held at Restaurant Daniel, was to celebrate the collaboration of famed consultant Michel Rolland with Les Vignobles André Lurton, and discuss the strategy for the U.S. market. Bill Deutsch, Chairman of Deutsch Family Wines, was seated next to Michel Rolland and spoke extensively of their first meeting that seeded the beginning of their relationship.
Laurent, speaking on behalf of Mr. Lurton, explained that Mr. Lurton is first and foremost a wine maker. For almost 70 years, Mr. Lurton dedicated his life to the vineyard.
From Mr. Rolland’s talk, the tacit move now – especially for the American market – is for the company to create wines for the American market that are ready to drink now, upon release, and not wait for them to “develop.”
This very much went in line with the wines we tasted from Les Vignobles André Lurton today, including the Chateau Bonnet Blanc 2015 and Rouge (2012) as well as two excellent wine from Chateau de Rochemorin (2012, 2001) and three outstanding wines from Chateau La Louviere (Roughe 2012, 2010, and 1986).
Les Vignobles André Lurton has 640 hectares of vines, planted in the best soils over 6 prestigious Bordeaux appellations in Bordeaux.
From Fanny Van de Velde, the Area Sales Manager for North America, I learned the company’s head-office is at Château Bonnet in Grézillac where André Lurton was born. The red and white vineyard covers almost 300 hectares in several appellations: Entre-Deux-Mers, Bordeaux Red and Rosé. Interestingly, Les Vignobles André Lurton also includes 260 hectares of vines in Pessac-Léognan. This appellation was created by André Lurton and selectively groups the best ‘terroirs’ of the Graves region – the historical birth place of the Grands Vins de Bordeaux.
It was a stunning lunch, with the wines very well accompanying the cuisine of Restaurant Daniel.
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