Château BEL AIR MARQUIS D'ALIGRE 1986
Château Bel Air-Marquis d'Aligre is located in Soussans, in the town of Margaux in the Bordeaux wine region. In all classifications of the 17th and 18th centuries, the wine of Château Bel Air-Marquis d'Aligre was considered one of the best Second Crus. It was not classified in 1855 because the Marquis d'Aligre, who owned it, reserved it for his friends and therefore did not go through the brokers who developed this classification. However, in 1932 during the first classification of Crus Bourgeois, it was one of the few to be classified as an " Exceptional Grand Cru " (which brought together the notorious failures of the 1855 Classification) and this mention still appears on its label. The Boyer family has managed the winery with rigor for around 50 years. Today, Jean-Pierre Boyer is in charge of the 13 hectares.
BAMA , as it is nicknamed, is an atypical and original wine for the appellation, very different from Bordeaux standards since it is aged only in concrete vats , as was the case in the 19th century. The wine results from a blend of the four classic grape varieties, almost in equal parts: 35% Merlot, 35% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Cabernet Franc, 15% Petit Verdot . The aging varies from 3 to 7 years depending on the vintage, and those that are not up to par are simply not bottled, with the juices resold to the trade. The result is a moderately colored wine, not very powerful but intensely perfumed and of rare finesse. With its great aging potential, the wine is enriched with very refined evolving tertiary notes. For the most recent vintages, decanting for several hours is recommended to allow the wine to reveal its purest expression.
The 1986 vintage for Bordeaux was relatively difficult, but excellent wines were nevertheless produced. The growing season began with a particularly cold winter. Spring started with cool, wet conditions until milder weather guaranteed both bud break and flowering, although they were slightly delayed. The good weather sets in and the summer is long, hot and extremely dry. September brought much needed rain to revitalize the soil and the vines. Conditions dried up towards the end of the month, giving way to hot, dry weather which brought welcome winds favorable to maintaining the vines.
Grapes: 35% Merlot, 35% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Cabernet Franc, 15% Petit Verdot
