Château Trotte Vieille 2021

Why is this Wine so Yummy?

About Trotte Vielle

The name Trotte Vieille comes from a legend having to do with an old lady who lived there centuries ago. A coach stop was located at the intersection of two roads just outside her house. Whenever a carriage stopped there, the old lady (la vieille) “trotted out” to hear all the latest news.

The second wine, La Dame de Trotte Vieille, was created in 2002. A 15th century parchment written in Gascon proves that the name was already in use then.

The vineyard also has a very rare plot of pre-phylloxera vines. The grapes are handpicked into small crates and winemaking is always meticulous. Château TrotteVieille is known for its elegance, roundness, and very long aftertaste.

TrotteVieille has been a Premier Grand Cru Classé since the first classification of Saint-Emilion wines.

This small estate, owned by the Castéja family, amounts to a mere 12 hectares, eight of which are located in a walled clos. Planted with a large percentage of Cabernet Franc, including a parcel of ancient, pre-phylloxera vines from which a massale selection has been taken, soils are shallow clay over limestone—entirely different from the deep clays of neighbor Troplong Mondot (the vineyard’s exposition is different too). Vinification is quite gentle (with pump-overs during the most active phase of the fermentation and then little in the way of intervention), though temperature is maintained at around 30 degrees Celsius at the end of maceration; and since 2010 or so, winemaking is more reductive, the object being to preserve greater vibrancy of fruit. In the cellar, 100% new oak is the order of the day, but the toasts chosen are not especially impactful, and this naturally concentrated, lively wine seems to have no trouble digesting it.

In the Vineyard

In the Winery

Where in the World is Trotte Vielle?

Trotte Vielle is in the Right Bank of Bordeaux in Saint-Emillion.