Château Lagrange: Vineyards
The estate of Château Lagrange comprises 157 hectares, although only 118 hectares are planted to vines at the moment. These include original vineyards in the St Julien appellation, as well as those acquired more recently in the Haut-Médoc appellation. These latter parcels include sections planted to white vines as well as red.
Having recognised there was a need to push quality higher, a detailed soil survey was carried out in 2010. This revealed five major soil types on the domaine; these include three types of gravel which tend to lie on the higher parts, but there are areas – particularly on the surrounding slopes – where sandy-gravel colluvial slip dominates. Finally, in a strip which wraps around the southern part of the vineyard, there is clay and a little limestone. Upon understanding this the team at Château Lagrange have remodelled the vineyard, adapting the grape varieties to the soils. The vineyard has been divided up into 103 separate parcels, a much more precise delineation than before, and various sections have been (or will be) replanted according to the new understanding of the soils. Even before any replanting, however, the new map of the vineyard has relevance, as the grand vin is now sourced largely from vines higher up the slopes, on the gravel, while fruit for the second wine tends to comes from the vines planted on the lesser soils of the slopes.
Please log in to continue reading: