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Chateau Labat

The most famous route north through the vineyards of the Médoc is along the D2, the road which takes you to Margaux and St Julien in turn, before it skirts around the periphery of Pauillac and then turns westward to head inland. But it is not the only route north, and indeed the traveller short of time may prefer to take the D1 and then D1215, which once past Castelnau, Listrac and Fourcas transforms into a speedy dual carriageway. This does not mean there are not vines here though, after all we are only just inland of the gravel croupes that characterise the grand cru vineyards of the Médoc. Take a right-turn off the thoroughfare, about midway between Fourcas and Saint-Laurent, and you will immediately find yourself amongst vineyards again. Not a huge concentration of vineyards admittedly, the land also marked by copses of trees and pasture, but the vine's presence is undeniable.

Continue on a few kilometres and, after passing though a small wood, you will emerge upon a small collection of houses; this is the commune of Labat. Once a grand estate with a large vineyard, only the upper part remains, the lower section which was once planted with vines now sparsely dotted with residential dwellings instead, complete with swimming pools and gardens, whilst other parts are slowly giving way to the encroaching trees. The upper section remains well-tended though, sitting alongside the road, contiguous with the vineyards of Caronne-Ste-Gemme which continue to the east, and directly opposite the Caronne-Ste-Gemme chateau and cellars. It is this section of vineyard, 10 hectares squeezed between the houses of Labat and the vines of neighbouring Caronne, that today give rise to the wines of Chateau Labat.

The Labat Vineyard

For me the story of the 17th-century Chateau Labat begins with the Nony family of Chateau Caronne-Ste-Gemme, because the first time I encountered the label it was as a second wine. The neighbouring estate of Caronne-Ste-Gemme and Labat have been under the same ownership since 1920, which was when the Nony family acquired Labat, and in such situations it is not unheard of for the two estates to become melded together over time. And there are, of course, many examples in Bordeaux where the name of one estate has been used for the second label of another (such as Le Crock and Léoville-Poyferré, for instance). For some time I maintained the erroneous belief that Labat remained a deuxième vin, but this is no longer the case, as proprietor François Nony recently explained to me. Nony explained that not only is the Labat terroir distinctive to that of Caronne-Ste-Gemme, but the fruit is handled separately and the wines are composed differently. His message is probably best expressed in his own words (above right).

The Vines and Wines

Labat's 10 hectares are planted up with Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot in equal proportions; the planting density is 10000 vines/ha, and the average age of the vines is 25 years. As you should expect the harvest is manual, the fruit is entirely destemmed and then pressed before a natural fermentation using thermo-regulated stainless steel, set to 28-30°C. To submerge the cap of solids there is a light pumping over, and a maceration period of about three weeks to ensure a good extraction. Thereafter it sees one year in French oak barriques before an egg-white fining and bottling, with a production totalling around 3000 cases.

The wines themselves demonstrate a classic style, structured and largely very fresh with good acidity. In a line up of recent vintages it might come as no surprise that I found the 2005 to be the most convincing, but both the 2004 and 2006 also showed strong suggestions of promise for the future. None, however, are approaching readiness to drink, and so I would look to cellar these wines for at least 5-6 years from the vintage, and longer specifically for the 2005. (3/3/10)

Contact details:
Address: Chateau Labat, 33112 St-Laurent Médoc
Telephone: +33 (0) 5 57 87 56 81
Fax: +33 (0) 5 56 51 71 51
Internet: www.chateau-labat.com

Chateau Labat - Tasting Notes

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Chateau Labat (Haut-Médoc) 2007: A good red hue in the glass, fresh, with a good intensity of colour. The nose is dominated by sweet oak aromas at present, a slightly dusty marshmallow-tinged character and burnt strawberry, with lashings of freshly toasted oak, with not a lot of fruit aromas alongside. A lean start on the palate, a character which persists through the middle to the finish although it does build a little substance with air. Structured, firm, quite a bit of bite to it, and a rather solid, dusty fruit character. A good effort in view of the vintage. 13.5/20 (March 2010)

Chateau Labat (Haut-Médoc) 2006: Plenty of depth to this wine, with a dusty, claretty hue. The nose shows an attractive and flattering perfume, with a little violet, although it is largely showing unintegrated toffee and charcoal-tinged oak at present. This also comes through on the palate, which has a firm shell of oak within which I sense there is some attractive if rather solid fruit. Rather well composed overall; it has some substance, and some nice grip also, but unlike the 2004 no particular element really comes to dominate. There is not such a sense of freshness to it as the other vintages, but that is 2006 I think. Nice wine with a lightly chewy finish. 15+/20 (March 2010)

Chateau Labat (Haut-Médoc) 2005: A darker and denser hue here, a matt and more concentrated wine. The nose has appeal. a dark and deeper fruit character, sweet but also with an appealing minerally, earthy and rather meaty-animally edge. And even a little creamy milk chocolate. Great texture on entry, sweet and with some substance but also an elegant freshness. Then a touch lighter through the middle, showing a lot of bare structure here. Nice freshness, but crisply acidic and a little grippy too, these elements dominating towards the finish, the tannins especially. This would do well in the cellar, for a couple of years at least, I am sure. In fact it demands it. 16+/20 (March 2010)

Chateau Labat (Haut-Médoc) 2004: Early maturity on inspection here, a very true hue, although a rather pale rim. The nose certainly has elegance, with elements of rust-tinged fruit, very dark but also very fresh and crunchy in style, lightly perfumed, crisp damson and cranberry and a little just-ripe plum. This elegant style carries through onto the palate which starts off very fine, soft and harmonious, a little lean, revealing more structure through the midpalate which culminates in a rather brutal wall of grip right at the end. A press wine effect? Perhaps another year or two will flatten this out towards the finish, which coats the mouth with coarse tannin. Gentle substance. A really good effort with a fresh style. 15+/20 (March 2010)