The near and far of being Bordelaises

Being French and coming from Bordeaux, it has been six years now that she resides in New Delhi, after living 25 years abroad, especially in Indonesia, China, and Thailand. Isabelle Beau de Lomenie also happens to be wife of Tristan, who is the General Manager Delegate, Pullman Hotels and Resorts.In this riveting first person account she talks about managing the vineyard back home in Barsac. Read on.

I recall that when the two of us were in Beijing, in 2000, I was in charge of promoting all the promising wines of Grace Vineyard located in Shanxi near Pinyao. At that point in time, my father decided to entrust me with the management of the family vineyard, which is divided between Graves in Cerons and Sauternes in Barsac. The vineyard is rented or as we say in French in ‘Fermage’ to three prestigious estates, ‘Chateau Doisy Daene’ owned by Denis Dubourdieu’s family, ‘Chateau Liot’ owned by Jerry David and ‘Chateau du Cros’ of Michel and Catherine Boyer. Managing the vineyard back home meant managing problems of grubbing up, replanting, disposing of plots and maintenance and all these to be done remotely!

Winters In the Wine Country

We recently spent a week in Barsac that was at the end of January. In winter, the vine shows a bare landscape. Then the vine loses all its leaves and its branches look like dead wood then the nature was resting. This was the time for cropping and cutting those branches, in order to choose and limit the quantity of fruits to come. With this we do fagots that will be used later in summer for grilling the famous ‘entrecote bordelaise’(a French classic steak). The excess fagots are burned in the rows of vines while walking in Sauternes vineyard on the path of the Château Yquem, we were able to see the workers doing that. My recent winter visit to Barsac was quite memorable. It included strolling in the Sauternes slopes in the middle of the surrounding castles; lunch at the Auberge des Vignes in Sauternes in front of a nice open fire; dinner at a friend’s house at Chateau Coutet in Barsac with a great win. Soon in March,we would be tasting its ‘primeurs’. It was also the time for great cooking at home. Duck breasts in the fireplace, with a good choice of wines. The garden does not ask for work, it is resting and we would wait until winter frosts were past, to prune the roses and trim the hydrangeas.

As the Year Progresses

Every year, I return on the occasion of Vinexpo, usually around June. Ten years ago, we acquired one of my family’s house and after extensive renovation it became our base for vacation and reunion. It is located in Barsac at the end of a path in the middle of a pretty plot of Sauvignons. Our close neighbours are Château Coutet, premier Grand Cru Classe 1855 whose reputation is well established and Château Myrat second Grand Cru Classe 1855 and probably also the most beautiful manor in the country. During summer, the activity is intense in front of the house, the vine growers watch the vine like a young child, providing all the necessary care and attention and then comes the lifting which is raising and tying the branches in the rows so they do not fall back to the ground. The vine is a liana (climber) that needs to be controlled with the topping, the tip of the vine will be trimmed and then its side will be stripped of unnecessary leaves so that the Sun can ripen the grapes more easily.

Being Hospitable

During summers, we like to welcome many visitors and sometime on demand we do bed and breakfast. I organise lunches, wine tours, tastings and dinners in different Chateaux of Bordeaux that I recommend, in Sauternes Chateau de Fargue, Chateau Coutet, Chateau Myrat, Château Guiraud, Château Sigalas Rabaud, Château Doisy Daene but also in Medoc- Chateau Leoville Poyferre, or Mouton Rothschild or on the right bank of the Garonne, Chateau du Cros in Loupiac or Chateau Biac in Langoiran and finally in Saint Emilion among others, Chateau l’Angelus.” I love to welcome many friends and family who also come to share a good dinner and afternoon at poolside.. The house is always full. I had the opportunity to share all these with some of our Indian friends two years ago and I am sure they had a memorable experience. Strolling in the several open markets available around us is great fun and meeting all the local suppliers offering their local seasonal products is also very enjoyable.

This is where I always buy my fresh fruits to make jams, the beautiful duck to make my confit and salmi or the porcini mushrooms which I preserved in cane; the plums that I keep in jars and cover with Armagnac and even the blackcurrant or wild strawberries or black cherries that I will use to make my homemade liqueurs. The city of Bordeaux with its XVIII century architecture is wonderful to discover with many pedestrian streets to access the beautiful and secluded square, dotted with beautiful houses and many good restaurants.

Harvest Time!

Then came September and the mist of the Ciron (a tributary of Garrone river) started to linger in the early morning on the vineyards of Sauterne and Barsac, it was thanks to it that the botrytis would settle on the berries. The sunsets were becoming more and more golden on the vines. The dry whites were quickly harvested while the Sauvignons and Semillons meant for the sweet wines were patiently waiting to be covered by the botrytis. It is undoubtedly my  favourite season when it is time to harvest. When some are busy and others are watching; in some rows we harvested up to 5 times; hand picking only the berries in which the botrytis converted the juice in a golden liqueur that would produce the king of the wines. Then it was time to close the house and return to Delhi where my husband was waiting for me to return and start over again. It is a life no less exciting and hectic, around the gastronomy and the wines at the Pullman Aerocity Hotel or with my Asian cooking workshops.