It Takes a Village SAINT-ÉMILION TIMES TWO
THE TASTING PANEL's East and West Coast editors traveled to Saint-Émilion in search of the Left Bank's most interesting winemakers. Trekking from village to vineyard and from cellar to château, they found wide- ranging philosophies behind the bottle. Lana Bortolot (New York) and Deborah Parker Wong (San Francisco) report from the fi eld.
Jean-François Quenin, owner of
Château de Pressac and head of the Saint-Émilion Wine Council.
When prices for Left Bank Bordeaux and other high-priced regions softened in 2009, it presented an opportunity for Saint-Émilion and its satellite villages to attract new consumers who wanted the prestige of a Bordeaux wine, but not the hefty price tag. And even though high-end red wine sales appear to have returned to pre-recession levels (global auc- tion sales were up $175 million in 2010), consumers haven't forgotten what Saint-Émilion delivers—what you might call the new French Paradox: high-quality Bordeaux at affordable prices. "We show the world that for 20 euros, they can get a fantastic wine," says Jean-François Quenin, President of Saint-Émilion's Wine Council and owner of Château de Pressac.
88 / the tasting panel / january/february 2012
Fall color in Montagne. PHOTO: DEBORAH PARKER WONG
PHOTOS: LANA BORTOLOT
PHOTO: LANA BORTOLOT
