Château Romer: Vineyards
Despite the construction of the autoroute and the destruction of the original château in the early 1970s, the vineyards of Château Romer remained largely intact. They are situated in the commune of Fargues. Together with the vines of Château Romer du Hayot they are flanked by the autoroute on one side, to the north, beyond which lies Château de Malle and some rough scrubland. To the west, south and east the vineyard is encircled by similarly rough scrubland, as well as some land committed to forestry, the trees forming protective regiments around the estate. Apart from the aforementioned Château de Malle, the nearest neighbours are Château Bastor-Lamontagne, west and north a little, and Chateau Suduiraut, west and south a little.
Near an underpass beneath the autoroute a rather battered sign, half-hidden by overgrown vegetation, marks the entrance to the domaine. The single-track lane leads down to rather understated residence – it might be stretching it a little to refer to it as a château – complete with winemaking facilities. There are 6.5 hectares of land eligible for the appellation and the deuxième cru classification here, of which 3.5 hectares are currently planted. Some have claimed this makes Château Romer the smallest of all the classified growths of Barsac and Sauternes still in production, although in truth this title goes to Château Doisy-Dubroca, the vineyard there being a fraction of a hectare smaller. The soils underfoot are gravel and clay, with deeper limestone bedrock. The varietal mix, meanwhile, is Semillon 90%, Sauvignon Blanc 5% and Muscadelle 5%. Work in the vineyard is, to the best of my knowledge, conventional.
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