Led by Annette Schiller, the Bordeaux Tour by ombiasy WineTours (2015) took place from September 15 to 24, 2015. The group comprised 8 wine lovers from the United States, including Annette and Christian Schiller.
I already provided an overview about the whole tour: Bordeaux Tour by ombiasy WineTours (2015), France
This posting focuses on our visit of Tertre Rôteboeuf, with Owner and Winemaker François Mitjavile in Saint-Emilion.
On that day in Saint-Emilion, we visited three entirely different châteaux and had 3 entirely different experiences.
The first visit, Château Angélus, was to one of the most prestigious châteaux belonging to the top 1% in the rankings of Bordeaux. See here: Tour and Tasting at Château Angélus– Bordeaux Tour by ombiasy WineTours (2015), France
The second visit, Château Beausejour was to one of the 30,000 or so non-classified châteaux in the Bordeaux region that produce 95% of Bordeaux wines; we met a passionate winemaker who makes beautiful every day wines. See here: Tour, Tasting and Wine Lunch at a Petit Château and Organic Producer: Château Beauséjour – Bordeaux Tour by ombiasy WineTours (2015), France
During the third visit, at Tertre Rôteboeuf, we met an outstanding winemaker who is a maverick and whose wines have become very expensive; unusually in this price category, he does not sell his wines through the “Place de Bordeaux” system.
Owner and Winemaker François Mitjavile was our host at Tertre Rôteboeuf.
Tour and Tasting
We started the tour in the garden of Tertre Rôteboeuf, with a magnificient view of the vineyards of Tertre Rôteboeuf. Because of the unpleasant weather, we continued in the living room of the Mitjavile family, before going into the cellar for a cellar tour and tasting, including Tertre Rôteboeuf 2014 from barrel.
The estate walk and barrel tasting with François Mitjavile was clearly one of the highlights of the 2015 Bordeaux Tour by ombiasy. We met a very articulate and eloquent wine maker, a very cultivated person and a passionate communicator, who likes to illustrate what he wants to say about his wine with parallels from music, art and philosophy.
Tertre Rôteboeuf
Tertre Rôteboeuf is one of the finest châteaux in Saint-Emilion. Yet, relatively unknown. Why? First, it is not in the prestigious group of classified châteaux, although its wines are clearly in the same league as those wines that are made by châteauxx that are classified. And, François Mitjavile does not sell his wines through the Place de Bordeaux, but has his own distribution channels. Nor is he a member of the Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux (UGCB). This is as far as I know unique for a Bordeaux producer who is able to sell his wines at a price level at which François Mitjavile does. Obviously, François Mitjavile is far away from St. Emilion mainstream. He does not bother to be included in the prestigious Saint-Emilion classification, he does not sell his wines through the Place de Bordeaux nor does he care about a UGCB membership.
20 years ago, Tertre Rôteboeuf was unknown. But since then, Tertre Rôteboeuf has become a cult wine producer in St. Emilion and the price of Tertre Rôteboeuf has gone up significantly.
Tertre Rôteboeuf looks a bit garagiste - a small estate with a vigneron house build in the 18th century lovingly tended by Miloute and François Mitjavile, two kilometers south-east of the village of Saint-Emilion, not far from Château Troplong Mondot and Château Larcis Ducasse.
History
The origins of Tertre Rôteboeuf lie with a vineyard named Le Tertre that was owned by François Mitjavile's late father-in-law. After he passed away in 1961, the property was inherited by his daughter Miloute. She leased it to her cousins, who owned Château Bellefond-Belcier.
Meanwhile, François Mitjavile was working at his family's successful haulage business. He decided to change course in life and try his hand at winemaking.
Between 1975 and 1977, he went through the school of Château Figeac. When he returned to Le Tertre after the 2 year apprenticeship, he suffixed Rôteboeuf (its literal translation is the unsavory "hill of the belching beef").
1978 was the first vintage that François Mitjavile made entirely by himself. His breakthrough on the wine scene was with the 1985 vintage. Since the 1994 vintage, he removed the word “Châteaux” from the label of his wines.
The Wines
The limestone based vineyards of Tertre Rôteboeuf (5.7 ha) are planted with 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc. The Merlot vines are on average 45 years old, while the Cabernet Franc ones are 5 years older.
François Mitjavile's winemaking approach: He picks the grapes as late as possible and maintains low yields. The wine stays on the skins for a long time and is aged in 100% new oak barrels for 18 to 24 months. The very late harvest combined with long alcoholic fermentation and extraction at 35°C results in a voluptuous, full-bodied, and very complex wine. Super-ripe Merlot is the key.
The estate does not produce a second wine.
Wine Searcher Average Prices: Tertre Rôteboeuf
2014 US$148
2013 US$146
2012 US$177
2008 US$174
2005 US$336
2000 US$363
Roc des Cambes in Cotes de Bourg
Roc de Cambes is a Côtes de Bourg estate and one of the finest producer in the appellation today. François Mitjavile bought it in 1988.
There are 12 hectares of vines, planted with 75% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Malbec. The soil is a blend of chalk and clay. Vines are on average 50 years old. The grapes are harvested as late as possible, and are then vinified in temperature controlled cement vats.
When François Mitjavile bought Roc de Cambes, it was in quite bad shape. But in just a few years, François Mitjavile made Roc de Cambes one of the top producers of the Côtes de Bourg. The second wine labeled - Domaine de Combes - comes under the basic Bordeaux appellation.
Wine Searcher Average Prices: Roc des Cambes
2014 US$ 51
2013 US$ 54
2012 US$ 60
2005 US$ 77
2000 US$ 74
Domaine de l’Aurage
Domaine de l’Aurage is the most recent addition of the Mitjavile family. Francois’s son Louis Mitjavile is completely in charge (with his wife Caroline Mitjavile) of the estate. The vineyard area totals 18 hectares, with 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc. Annual production is around 7,500 cases.
What we Tasted in the Wine Cellar
2014 Tertre Rôteboeuf (from barrel)
2014 Roc des Cambes (from barrel)
2008 Terte Rôteboeuf (from bottle)
1997 Terte Rôteboeuf (from bottle)
Bye-bye
Thank you very much François Mitjavile for a phantastic event.
Postings on the Bordeaux Tour by ombiasy WineTours (2015), France (Posted and Forthcoming)
4 Wine Tours by ombiasy coming up in 2015: Germany-East, Germany-South. Germany-Nord and Bordeaux
Germany-East Wine and Art Tour by ombiasy WineTours (2015)
Bourgogne Tour by ombiasy WineTours (2015), France
Bordeaux Wine Tour 2013 by ombiasy
Bordeaux Tour by ombiasy WineTours (2015), France
Bordeaux Wines and their Classifications: The Basics
Bordeaux - En Primeur, Negociants, Courtiers, the Quai de Chartons and the Place de Bordeaux– A Short Introduction
How Does the Negociant System in Bordeaux Work? Tour and Tasting at Millésima - Bordeaux Tour by ombiasy WineTours (2015), France
Tour and Wine Dinner at Domaine de Chevalier with Director Adjoint Rémi Edange and Owner/Director Olivier Bernard – Bordeaux Tour by ombiasy WineTours (2015), France
Schiller's Favorite Wine Bars in Bordeaux City, France
Schiller's Favorite Seafood Places in Bordeaux City, France
Saint Emilion Wines and their Classification, Bordeaux, France
Schiller’s Favorite Wine Bars in St. Emilion, France
Tour and Tasting at Château Angélus– Bordeaux Tour by ombiasy WineTours (2015), France
Tour, Tasting and Wine Lunch at a Petit Château and Organic Producer: Château Beauséjour – Bordeaux Tour by ombiasy WineTours (2015), France
Tour and Tasting at Château Tertre-Rôteboeuf, Saint-Emilion, with Owner and Winemaker François Mitjavile
Tour and tasting at Château de Figeac, Saint-Emilion, Premier Grand Cru Classé.
Tour and Wine Lunch at Château Le Bon Pasteur, Pomerol, with Dany Rolland
The Wine Empire of the von Neipperg Family in France, Bulgaria and Germany
Tour and Wine Dinner at Château Canon La Gaffelière, Saint-Emilion, Premier Grand Cru Classé
Tour and Tasting at Château de Fargues, Sauternes, with Prince Eudes d’Orléans
Wine Lunch at Restaurant Château de la Tour in Cadillac and Tour at Château Du Cros, Loupiac, with Catherine Boyer, Proprietor of Château Du Cros
Tour and Tasting at Château Smith-Haut-Lafitte, Pessac-Léognan, Grand Cru Classé.
Lunch at the 2 Michelin Starred Restaurant La Grande Vigne
Tour of the Earl Ostrea Chanca Oyster Farm and Oyster Tasting in Grand-Piquey, with Oyster Farmer Ralph Doerfler
What is a Bordeaux Cru Bourgeois? France
Tour and Wine Dinner at Château Le Reysse, Vignobles Paeffgen, Médoc, in Bégadan, with Stefan Paeffgen
Château Léoville-Poyferré, Chateau Le Crock, Didier Cuvelier in Bordeaux and the Cuvelier Los Andes Wines in Argentina
Tour and Tasting at Château Léoville Poyferré, Saint-Julien, 2ième Grand Cru Classé, with Didier Cuvelier
Tour and Wine Lunch at Château Pichon-Longueville-Baron, Pauillac, 2ième Grand Cru Classé
The 5 Premiers Grands Crus Chateaux en 1855 of Bordeaux, France
Tour and Tasting at Château Mouton-Rothschild, Pauillac, 1ière Grand Cru Classé.
How a Barrel is Made: Visit of the Cooperage Berger & Fils in Vertheuil
Lunch at Restaurant Le Peyrat in Saint-Estèphe with the Grape Pickers of Château Sociando Mallet
Tour and Tasting at Château Lafon-Rochet, Saint-Estèphe, 4ième Grand Cru Classé, with Owner Basile Tesseron
Tour and Tasting at Château Rauzan-Ségla, Margaux, 2ième Grand Cru Classé
Tourt and tasting at Château Palmer, Margaux, 3ième Grand Cru Classé
Tour and Wine Dinner at Château Haut-Bailly, Graves, Appellation Pessac-Léognan, Grand Cru Classé, with Diana Paulin
schiller-wine: Related Posting (Tertre Rôteboeuf)
Visit of an Ultra-premium Non-mainstream Bordeaux Producer: Tertre Rôteboeuf, with Owner and Winemaker François Mitjavile, France – Bordeaux Tour by ombiasy WineTours (2015)
Visit of an Ultra-premium Non-mainstream Bordeaux Producer: Tertre Rôteboeuf, with Owner and Winemaker François Mitjavile
François Mitjavile, Winemaker of the Year 2013 (“Der Feinschmecker”), St. Emilion, France
Bordeaux Trip September 2012, France
Bordeaux Wine Tour 2013 by ombiasy
An Afternoon with François Mitjavile at his Tertre Rôtebeouf - A Saint Emilion Cult Wine Producer
Lunch at Place de L’Eglise Monolithe in Saint Emilion and Visits of 3 Châteaux: Tertre Roteboeuf, Figeac and Beausejour