La Belle Connivence 2022

A Pomerol Second Wine that delights with its finesse and precision

The estate

The story of Château La Connivence is above all a story of friendship with three oenophile friends who decided to create a very good wine. The superb Pomerol appellation became the location for this "connivence" (league) uniting the three owners: the former international football player Johan Micoud, Matthieu Chalmé, former player of the Girondins de Bordeaux football team and Alexandre de Malet Roquefort, owner of Château La Gaffelière in Saint-Émilion.

The vineyard

A garden vineyard, Château La Connivence is a real little gem: 1.40 hectares located on a very large Pomerol terroir, the emblematic land of Merlot, the flagship grape variety that covers 65% of the estate's land. The château has also chosen to plant Cabernet Franc, which represents 35% of the vineyard. On this gravelly terroir, combining thick gravel, fine gravel and clayey sand soils, the three friends immediately sensed that the perfect conditions were present to make a great Pomerol wine. In order to preserve this precious terroir, the vines are worked exclusively by hand and managed using sustainable agriculture.

The vintage

The mild temperatures at the end of the winter led to an early budding. The extreme heat of the summer of 2022 had an impact on the vines, which were then under water stress. The harvest was therefore very early, from the second week of September.

Winemaking and ageing

After manual harvesting, the grapes are sorted by density before vinification by plot in temperature-controlled stainless steel vats. Alcoholic fermentation in vats, accompanied by pumping over and punching down, then malolactic fermentation in barrels. The wine is aged for 13 to 15 months in new French oak barrels (70% new).

Blend

Merlot (70%)
Cabernet Franc (30%).