Contents
The story
A family story
When Pierre Dufourg and Augustine Jeanne Teuilly acquired vineyards near Targon in 1880, in theBordeaux region between the two seas, they laid the foundation stone for the family winegrowing business that continues to this day, four generations later. When they passed the torch to their heir, France was at war, but that didn’t stop Gabriel Dufourg from thinking about mechanizing his vineyard in the trenches. On his return from the war, he joined the Grangeneuve cooperative and filed a patent for his plough model. Between political mandates and an active economic life, he managed to keep the family business going.
With the third generation came a desire to expand, resulting in the purchase of the Haut-Baraillot, Vermont and Marchand estates. The Dufourg family also decided to leave the cooperative winery to vinify their own grapes, and from the outset they enjoyed a certain success, winning medals at agricultural competitions. Over the years, investments have been made to remain at the cutting edge and stay ahead of the rest of the Entre-deux-Mers region: purchase of stainless steel vats, investment in a thermovinification system. As for Château Vermont, the land has been completely drained and the vines have been planted.
Qualitative expansion
The fourth generation arrived at Château Vermont at the turn of the 20th century, and even celebrated their wedding in the château chapel. Thanks to their family heritage and their studies in viticulture, she took over the running of the estate and carried out major changes in order to produce ever higher quality wines: the construction of the winery, the planting of new vines and the development of new cuvées are all part of this drive to modernize Château Vermont and move upmarket. In the same way, we’re seeing a revival in the marketing strategy for our wines, with a particular focus on wine tourism.
Château Vermont wines
Although short, the Château Vermont range is more complete. With two reds, two whites and a rosé, there’s a wine for every occasion. Made from a blend of Cabernets, rosé is a summer wine par excellence. Its freshness is accompanied by notes of white-fleshed fruit and white flowers. It’s the perfect complement to any summer table: aperitifs or grilled meats, it’s perfect for both.
On the white side, we start with Cuvée Prestige, a typically Bordeaux blend that gives pride of place to Sauvignon grapes while adding a dose of complexity with Semillon. It’s hard not to think about opening a bottle of this wine to accompany a plate of oysters from the nearby Arcachon Basin. Its citrus notes make it the perfect companion for seafood, almost replacing the traditional lemon drizzle used to drizzle over shellfish. We then move upmarket to arrive at the Grande Cuvée Blanc, a wine that gains enormously in complexity and richness thanks to longer barrel ageing.
Château Vermont makes the same distinction between cuvée Prestige and Grande Cuvée for its reds. Cuvée Prestige is a 100% Merlot wine, defined by its delicious, fruity aromas and fine tannins. The perfect companion to rosé on summer evenings, as it goes so well with grilled meats. Finally, the Grande Cuvée is another example of the best of Entre-deux-Mers: powerful and complex, a great wine that can easily be kept for ten years or so.
