The Sud 
Ouest paper is reporting that Chateau Le Puy in Saint Cibard, Bordeaux has made the unusual request to the INAO to have its own appellation and owner Jean-Pierre Amoreau is confident that they will get it. Chateau Le Puy currently lies in the appellation Bordeaux Côtes de Francs but Jean-Pierre Amoreau believes that his application meets the legal criteria necessary and does not see how the INAO can reject it. The INAO, understandably, are taking their time to consider his request – this is a first for Bordeaux.
Chateau Le Puy found global fame w
hen the Japanese Manga comic The Drops of God featured their 2003 vintage. The vintage was removed from the market to avoid speculation.
Le Puy has 25 hectares of vines and has been owned by the Amoreau family since 1610. The chateau sits near an old Gallo Roman villa on a rocky plateau nicknamed the ‘Miracle Hills’ on account of the high quality of the wines made there. Le Puy lies on the second highest point in 
the Gironde and the grapes grown are 85% Merlot, 14% Cabernet Sauvignon and 1% Carmenere. They also make a white Bordeaux from Semillon grapes and a Clairet. The chateau uses organic and biodynamic principles on the estate.
The proposed new AOC would cover 5 hectares over 3 communes: Francs, Saint Cibard and Tayac, spanning 41 properties. The estates sit round a core of land that is said to produce homogenous wines unlike those of their neighbouring appellations.
This is a fascinating development as it could set up all sorts of precedents and I will be watching closely to see the result!
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