Château La Croizille
Grand Cru Classé, where every vine is pruned to measure. Jean-Michel Garcion lifts his wines to the highest level.
Chateau La Croizille is an old chateau. In 1966 the De Schepper family bought this chateau, located in Saint-Laurent-des-Combes. The vineyards cover 5.05 hectares and the soil consists of clay and limestone. Thanks to skilled and intensive pruning, the vines are in excellent condition. The vines have an average age of 35 years.
The owner of the chateau is Jacques de Schepper. The winemaker is none other than Jean-Michel Garcion. The cellar master is Thierry De Lague.
The chateau has been thoroughly renovated and was named the best chateau for wine tasting.
The terroir
The small vineyard faces south. As a result the vines enjoy long hours of sunlight, allowing the grapes to ripen in the best possible conditions. It is worth mentioning that the vineyard has been planted with an excellent selection of grapes of outstanding quality.
La Croizille lies between the famous estates of Chateau Tertre Roteboeuf, Chateau Troplong Mondot and Chateau La Mondotte. Thanks in part to their soil and microclimate, these chateaux have achieved worldwide renown. Chateau La Croizille has the ideal conditions to reach the very highest level and establish a top reputation. The quality of the wines produced over the past 15 years is truly astonishing.
Pruning
Winemaker Jean-Michel Garcion leaves nothing to chance. The same goes for pruning. The vines are tended with the utmost care throughout the growing season. They are pruned regularly. For each individual vine (and not per grape variety!) it is decided which shoots should be cut away.
In addition, bunches are removed so that only 4 or 5 bunches per vine are harvested. Removing the leaves that hang over the grapes is necessary so that sun and wind can dry the grapes in September, preventing mildew and other diseases. Everything is aimed at bringing only healthy, perfectly ripened grapes into the cellars for optimal vinification in very costly stainless steel vats.
Vinification
Although 60% of the quality is made in the vineyard, with French wine too it is only the winemaker and his team who can get the very best out of the grapes. During fermentation the wine is closely monitored and the skins are brought into optimal contact with the juice. Chateau La Croizille matures for 18 months in new oak barrels. The cooperage and the degree of toasting of the barrel are chosen according to the structure of the wine.
The wine is tasted very regularly to monitor its quality and to determine the ideal moment for bottling. Here too, La Croizille goes much further than other chateaux. La Croizille is the result of a beautiful interplay between microclimate and human expertise, combined with perfection.
