Château Fourcas-Borie Listrac-Médoc 2009

As progeny of an outstanding vintage in Bordeaux, the 2009 Château Fourcas-Borie resonates with the finest attributes of the much heralded 2009 vintage. For starters, the wine weds subtle fruit to ripe flexible tannins. Add a nice touch of new oak and an elegant, smooth, eminently drinkable Médoc emerges from the hillside vineyards of Fourcas-Borie. Enticing scents of black currant, cedar, and freshly cured tobacco (deftly infused with subtle oak tones) spring immediately from the glass. Round and generous in the mouth, the wine slowly deepens and expands on the palate. However, what’s most rewarding about the 2009 Château Fourcas-Borie is how gracious it appears at such a tender age. Too few red Bordeaux at this level offer as much charm in their youth as this wine. Yet, this balanced, medium-bodied Listrac has all the right ingredients to evolve gracefully for several more years. For optimal enjoyment, we suggest decanting the 2009 Château Fourcas-Borie an hour ahead of consumption.

The 2009 Château Fourcas-Borie Listrac-Médoc comes across as classic claret, an exemplary red Bordeaux wine ideally suited for the recipes of a well run kitchen. To our taste, the 2009 Château Fourcas-Borie provides the ultimate companion to the gastronomic delights of an elegant dinner party, as it possesses charm, elegance, fruit, and plenty of flavors, with nary an edge. Duck, grouse, pheasant, quail, and other small game birds provide excellent pairings with this elegant Listrac. Chicken, veal, and fine cuts of beef offer equally fine accompaniments. Pot roast, beef stew, veal or pork-pot-pie, and even tender cuts of lamb will reward the gourmand. Fine red Bordeaux the likes of the 2009 Château Fourcas-Borie Listrac-Médoc will complement nearly any meat or cheese dish, providing one is moderate on the heat and spice in accompanying sauces. Simple elegance born of good ingredients is really all that is needed for this wine to shine. Bon Appétit!

Château Fourcas-Borie straddles the Fourcas and Tris hilltops in Listrac at the very heart of the Médoc, which continues to be Bordeaux’s most heralded wine producing region. The Borie family purchased this renowned property, known formally as Château Fourcas-Dumont, in 2009. The Borie family is well-known and respected in Bordeaux for their exemplary châteaux wines, including nearby Château Deucluzeau, another “Grand Cru” of Listrac.

Since the vineyards of Château Fourcas-Borie remain equally divided among the distinct soils of Listrac, a combination of chalk, clay, gravel, and sand, the estate’s vineyards contain nearly equal parts Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot as well as a higher than normal percentage of Petit Verdot, Bordeaux’s illustrious but often forgotten varietal. The result is an eminently stylish Médoc of elegance and breed that drinks well young, yet can improve in bottle for up to a decade or more. Château Fourcas-Borie maintains high standards and consistently ages all of its wine in Bordeaux barrels, of up to which 20% are new each vintage. It should come then as no surprise that Château Fourcas-Borie made Decanter magazine’s list of top five left bank châteaux of 2010. And under the Borie family’s leadership, Château Fourcas-Borie’s star will almost surely continue to rise.