Moulin de Duhart

Presentation

Château Duhart-Milon’s second wine is selected from vats of the "Grand Vin". In general, the grapes are from the youngest part of the vineyard. Moulin de Duhart has several characteristics similar to the fine wine, but with a lesser potential for ageing as its ageing in barrels is much shorter. It must be consumed younger than its more robust counterpart. The origin of the name comes from the former presence of a windmill on the Carruades, next to the Duhart-Milon vineyard.

The vintage

The weather conditions were somewhat unusual this year and required all of our technical teams' vigilance and expertise.
Spring and summer changed places: spring was exceptionally hot and dry, resulting in an acceleration of the growth cycle, and then the summer saw less sunshine than usual in July, and a wetter than average August.
Finally, just as we were getting ready to harvest, a huge hail storm in the north of Pauillac and Saint Estèphe on 1 September obliged us to reorganize the schedules. The plots that had been affected had to be picked first; fortunately, as a result of the conditions, the grapes had ripened early, and quality was not compromised.

Location

Pauillac is located on the left bank of the Gironde estuary, approximately 40km North of Bordeaux. With the tempering influence of the estuary and a great diversity of soils originated from both the Massif Central and the Pyrenees, Pauillac boasts exceptionnal climatic and geological conditions to make outstanding wines.

Terroir

Château Duhart-Milon’s vineyard consists of a single block of vines adjacent to Château Lafite Rothschild, on the hillside to the west of the Carruades plateau. The property has 76 hectares of vines. The soil consists of fine gravel mixed with aeolian sand on a tertiary limestone subsoil.

Vinification

Moulin de Duhart is made in the traditional Bordeaux methods : grapes are destemmed and crushed before being placed in concrete or stainless steel tanks for fermentation. Fermentation is conducted at 30°c and followed by three weeks of maceration with regular pump over to ensure a gentle extraction of the tannins.
After malolactic fermentation, the wine is transfered into French oak barrels for 10 months in two-year-old barrels.

Tasting

Floral nose, typically Cabernet Sauvignon.
Notes of ripe black fruit. The palate is well-defined with good density.
Fresh, full-bodied finish.

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