Château Clarke is a wine property of Bordeaux of 54 hectares (130 acres) based in the Listrac-Médoc AOC and classified as Cru Bourgeois.

Contents 1 History 2 Soil 3 Wine 4 External links 5 References

[edit] History

In the XII Century, the Cistercian monks of the Vertgeuil abbey established the first grapevine. The estate would permanently bear Tobie Clarke’s name in 1818, when the knight Clarke purchased the land. Baron Edmond de Rothschild becomes landowner in 1973^[1]. It was at this time that the neglected vineyard was re-planned, and then completely recreated between 1974 and 1978, to attain a final wine-producing area of 54 hectares. Today, the vines are planted on clay-limestone hilltops that enable the Merlot grape to express itself at its best. Benjamin de Rothschild and Ariane de Rothschild have taken back the property.

[edit] Soil

Vineyard’s vines is made up of Cabernet Sauvignon (48%), Merlot (42%), Cabernet Franc (8%), and Petit Verdot (2%), planted on a limestone ground calcareous Eocene and calcareous clay (spacing: 6060 vines/ha). It is a traditional vine training, and the pruning is in Double Guyot. The entire surface area was drained prior to planting and again when the vines had matured between 1987 and 1989. The plantations begun in 1974 and were completed in 1978.

[edit] Wine

The maturation takes 12 – 18 months. The fining is done with egg white. The production is about of 150,000 to 250,000 bottles per year.

[edit] External links

• Rothschild wine activities
• Compagnie vinicole Edmond de Rothschild

[edit] References

1. ^ Frank J. Prial (1997-10-01). "Wine Talk; Another Rothschild Stands Behind a Bordeaux". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/1997/10/01/dining/wine-talk-another-rothschild-stands-behind-a-bordeaux.html?pagewanted=all.