Château Valandraud 1998

Characteristics and tasting advice for Château Valandraud 1998

Tasting

Appearance

The wine displays a deep garnet hue, reflecting its maturity.

Nose

The nose unveils a captivating, intense bouquet dominated by ripe black fruits, notably blackberry and blackcurrant. These fruity aromas intertwine with complex notes of truffle, dark chocolate, roasted coffee, and sweet spices. Subtle nuances of tobacco, leather, and cedar complete this remarkable aromatic palette.

Palate

On the palate, this wine stands out for its power and velvety character. Flavors of ripe black fruits take the lead, accompanied by notes of dark chocolate and cedar. The tannins, remarkably well integrated, bring structure and elegance. Overall, it reveals a harmonious balance between concentration and freshness, lingering into a persistent finish with mineral touches of graphite.

Food and wine pairings

This Château Valandraud 1998 is an ideal match for prime red meats such as aged beef tenderloin or a herb-crusted rack of lamb. It also pairs perfectly with game dishes, notably venison or duck, as well as mushroom-based recipes such as a porcini risotto. Aged hard cheeses also make an excellent pairing.

Serving and cellaring

Château Valandraud 1998 benefits from decanting one to two hours before serving to fully reveal its aromatic complexity. The ideal serving temperature is around 16°C. This vintage, now at full maturity, offers optimal drinking pleasure and can be enjoyed through approximately 2031.

An iconic Saint-Émilion garage wine with an opulent, concentrated character

The estate

Created in 1989 by Jean-Luc Thunevin and Murielle Andraud, Château Valandraud has become the emblem of the garage wine movement in Bordeaux. Starting from a modest 0.6-hectare plot in the Fongaban valley in Saint-Émilion, the estate now spans around 10 hectares. Elevated to Premier Grand Cru Classé B in 2012, a status confirmed in 2022, Valandraud is currently managed by Gregory Leymarie since 2024, while Murielle Andraud has overseen winemaking since 2008. This iconic property revolutionized the Bordeaux approach by demonstrating that excellence and innovation could break free from established conventions.

The vineyard

Château Valandraud 1998 comes from vines located on the clay-limestone plateau of Saint-Étienne-de-Lisse, in the heart of the Saint-Émilion appellation. This so-called “cool” terroir promotes slow, gradual ripening, allowing the grapes to reach perfect maturity while preserving fine freshness. The clay-limestone soils give the wine its mineral structure and outstanding aging potential. The vines, tended with meticulous care, benefit from rigorous vineyard practices including leaf thinning, green harvesting, and a high planting density of 6,500 vines per hectare.

The vintage

The 1998 vintage is considered exceptional on the Right Bank of Bordeaux. After a mild, rainy winter, the growing season benefited from favorable conditions, particularly in September and October, which saw low rainfall. These climatic conditions allowed the grapes to reach optimal phenolic ripeness, giving rise to wines that are concentrated, balanced, and endowed with remarkable aging potential.

Winemaking and aging

For Château Valandraud 1998, the grapes were harvested by hand and sorted with extreme rigor. After a light crushing, fermentation took place in vats with regular pump-overs and manual punch-downs. Maceration, lasting around three weeks, enabled optimal extraction of aromatic and tannic compounds. Malolactic fermentation was carried out entirely in new French oak barrels. Aging then continued for 18 to 24 months in new barrels, giving the wine its velvety structure and perfectly integrated oak notes.

Grape varieties

Merlot (dominant), Cabernet Franc