La Sirène de Giscours 2011 - Second Vin du Château Giscours

Bettane & Desseauve

About the estate:

This vast 300-hectare estate (80 hectares of which are under cultivation), located in Labarde, has had a turbulent history due to complicated family successions. The vineyards have remained in the Tari family since 1952, but the wine is produced by a talented team led by Alexander van Beek, inspired by the courage of the late Éric Albada Jelgersma. As the estate’s manager, he had restored it to its rightful level. Due to its terroir, this wine produces a particularly colorful and full-bodied Margaux with exceptional aging potential, possessing a character quite distinct from the wines of the appellation’s northern section. When at its best, it can rival Château Palmer, yet its prices remain more reasonable than those of its rival.

Guide Hachette des vins

About the wine:

Round, full-bodied, well-balanced, and aromatic.

About the estate:

Giscours is one of the largest estates in the Médoc (100 hectares), dominated by a monumental château built by the Counts of Pescatore, a family of bankers, to host Empress Eugénie when she visited her summer residence in Biarritz. Highly representative of a Médoc grand cru through its architecture, Giscours is equally so through its beautiful terroir of deep gravel, characterized by great homogeneity. This third-growth Margaux estate also owns plots within the Haut-Médoc appellation for two labels: Ch. Duthil and the Haut-Médoc de Giscours.

Robert Parker - Wine Advocate

About the estate:

RVF - La Revue du Vin de France / Guide des Meilleurs Vins de France

About the estate:

The estate, leased by the Dutch Albada Jelgersma family, is managed by the talented Alexander Van Beek. Let’s set aside the legal disputes between the Tari family, who own the land, and the leaseholders, and focus on the wines. Giscours benefits from a first-rate terroir, as evidenced by many older vintages. Like many others, it went through a brief slump in the 1990s and 2000s. A major restructuring of the vineyard has allowed the estate to bounce back, and recent vintages have returned to its full-bodied, intense style.