{"id":2565,"date":"2017-07-07T13:31:14","date_gmt":"2017-07-07T12:31:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.medoc-bordeaux.com\/?p=2565\/"},"modified":"2017-08-04T09:17:08","modified_gmt":"2017-08-04T08:17:08","slug":"the-human-factor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.medoc-bordeaux.com\/en\/the-human-factor\/","title":{"rendered":"The human factor"},"content":{"rendered":"

Control<\/h2>\n

The grower has to learn how to control the outside elements to provide ideal conditions for the vines to grow and enable the grapes to reach the required richness and flavour. The first element to control is the sunshine, or at least its beneficial contribution. During the day, the soil in the M\u00e9doc absorbs the heat that it subsequently returns to the vines during the night, thus constantly maintaining just the right temperature for untroubled ripening. To optimise this phenomenon, it is best to have low vines. Far from being an aesthetic choice, the purpose of this practice of low-trimmed vines is to enable the stones, like miniature mirrors, to reflect the sun\u2019s rays up to the bunches during the day and to restore to the vines all their accumulated heat during the night.<\/p>\n

The closer they are to the vines, the more effectively can the stones distribute heat and light.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The colour of the soil is equally important. A light-coloured soil of white stones, pink quartzite, pale quartz or green sandstone will be a better reflector. Finally, when properly oriented, the vineyard will benefit from total sunshine. Generally speaking, vines planted on slopes facing south-east get the most sunshine, both in the morning and then the full brunt of the sun in the afternoon. If a chosen grape variety requires a maximum amount of sunshine, it is therefore best to plant it in a light, well-oriented soil.<\/p>\n

The second element to control is water. In the M\u00e9doc, successive generations of growers have built local drainage systems designed to complete what Mother Nature provided, namely a unique predisposition of the land towards natural drainage. The soils of the gently sloping gravely outcrops benefit from this exceptional drainage. These permeable soils allow the rain to pass between the shoots of the vines without stagnation. The vineyard, sufficiently watered, remains dry and can develop harmoniously.<\/p>\n

For the 100 generally warm days between the colour change and the harvest, the vines must not get too much water. They must suffer and draw upon their reserves which means that they instinctively drive their roots deep down into the soil to find their nourishment. The roots reach a wide variety of sedimentary layers from which they draw up all the micro ingredients to boost their development.<\/p>\n

This suffering, which is necessary for all the grape varieties, is particularly important for the development of Cabernet Sauvignon.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Merlot is less sensitive to excess water found in the clayey or gravely soils on the slopes of the terraces and grows quite happily without needing to push its roots deep down. Control of the drainage system is therefore fundamental in vine growing.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Expression<\/h2>\n

It is important, vital even, to know how to obtain the expression of a terroir, to get it to reveal its very best. In the M\u00e9doc, the growers already understood that a long time ago. The qualities of a wine are, after all, related to the qualities of the terroir from which it comes. Behind all the great M\u00e9doc wines, there is a soil, a sub-soil and a climate which are all characteristic. These undeniable fundamentals go to prove that it is impossible, for example, to produce a Margaux or a Listrac elsewhere than in Margaux or Listrac. The soils forming the M\u00e9doc appellations are unique and untransportable. Each soil has its own personality forged by its geological and cropping history that is enhanced and perfectly expressed by the vines.<\/p>\n

The work of the growers consists of adapting the grape varieties to the terroir and determining which variety will get the best from the qualities of the soil.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In the thin, warm soils of the middle terraces, Cabernet Sauvignon will thrive and brings all its divine complexity. Merlot will be happy in the cooler clay and limestone soils. Cabernet Franc prefers having its roots in drier soils with deep gravel or clay. Petit Verdot, which prefers warmer soils, will grow well in a terroir with plenty of humus. A perfect match between the grape variety and the soil enables the vines to produce grapes which will produce tomorrow\u2019s great vintage.<\/p>\n

Reason<\/h2>\n

For years, the M\u00e9doc growers have known that to get good grapes you have to restrict the vigour of the vine. A good harvest of top quality grapes, rich in flavour and intense aromas, is necessarily a limited harvest obtained by restricting the supply of water and minerals to the vines. The development of each individual vine must therefore be reasoned. When it comes to pruning, a precise and severely regulated stage in the M\u00e9doc, the grower will give the vine its ideal shape, leaving only a limited number of buds according to the fertility of each grape variety. The vine will then have only a few bunches. Leaf removal will leave only the foliage that is absolutely necessary for nourishing the grapes. The extremely high planting density in the M\u00e9doc also helps this restricted development.<\/p>\n

With a maximum of 10,000 plants per hectare, the M\u00e9doc has the greatest density of all Bordeaux\u2019s vineyards.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

That method, aimed at reducing the yield per vine, results in better ripening of the grapes and the production of more concentrated wines. The vine is in fact a liana which needs to stretch. When it is planted close to its neighbours, it is placed in a situation of stress and it suffers. Its instinct for survival will force it to drive deeper and deeper into the soil to find a place where it can survive and find nourishment. It struggles and fights and it is only in such circumstances that it will give its best fruit. Then the best bunches must be selected, which will leave the ripest and most concentrated grapes to ripen at harvest time. The limited use of manure* and the choice of rootstock of poor vigour also aim at slowing down the development of the plant. In the M\u00e9doc, the notion of yield is clearly linked to quality rather than quantity.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Patience<\/h2>\n

To obtain grapes which produce great wines, you have to learn to wait. The ripening of the grapes is a crucial factor that must be taken into account as it determines the quality of the wine. Growers in the M\u00e9doc have chosen to be patient and to leave the grapes to reach their optimal ripeness. In theory, that occurs 110 to 115 days after flowering* and 45 to 50 days after the colour change. That can of course vary depending on the diversity of the soils. In the warmer soils, for example, the sunshine-rich grapes ripen sooner and can therefore be picked earlier than those in the cooler soils. The essential point is that all the great vintages always come from perfectly ripe grapes. Perfect ripeness means that the grapes have received exactly the right amount of heat they needed to produce an optimal quantity of sugar and tannins*. Proper ripening also enables the grapes to reach the right colour and lose all their acidity. The M\u00e9doc grapes combine all the necessary conditions to enable them to be transformed into a great wine.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Control The grower has to learn how to control the outside elements to provide ideal conditions for the vines to grow and enable the grapes to reach the required richness and flavour. The first element to control is the sunshine, or at least its beneficial contribution. During the day, the soil in the M\u00e9doc absorbs […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2591,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe human factor | Conseil des Vins du M\u00e9doc<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.medoc-bordeaux.com\/en\/the-human-factor\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The human factor | Conseil des Vins du M\u00e9doc\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Control The grower has to learn how to control the outside elements to provide ideal conditions for the vines to grow and enable the grapes to reach the required richness and flavour. 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