Packaging by 6 or more (Only if Geodis for France):
Original Wooden Case of 6 bottles
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Experts Reviews
The 2016 Sociando-Mallet has a refulgent purple/black color. It has a very intense and rich, you might say "ambitious" bouquet with layers of small black cherries, blueberry and a touch of sloes, less tertiary than previous vintages and certainly more opulent. The palate is medium-bodied with juicy ripe tannin that almost disguise the firm structure underneath. I admire the completeness of this Sociando-Mallet, the neatly embroidered new oak and the freshness on the finish. The 2015 Sociando-Mallet did not fire on all cylinders last year, but this 2016 is totally convincing. It comes highly recommended as one of the best wines produced at this estate in the northern Médoc. This is an outstanding wine from Mon. Gartreau.
92-94
points on 100
Le meilleur jamais fait. Couleur sombre, intense, pourpre, aux reflets noirs. Nez intense, fin, fruité, pur. Superbe entrée en bouche ample, puis le vin se développe dense, riche et plein au milieu. Il gagne de la puissance et s’achève frais, sur une grande finale tannique, complexe et enveloppée. Bravo !
94
points on 100
Tight and chewy yet polished and beautiful. Medium to full body, a pretty core of fruit within the center palate and a flavorful finish. Better than 2015 and on the same level as the excellent 2014.
93-94
points on 100
Very dark glowing crimson. Great graphite nose. Some rich meatiness. Very much pushed up the ripeness scale. Seems richer than I remember it but it's clearly very ambitious. Thick and sweet. Not really my style but it will over-deliver to those who are still looking for a wine from the 1990s! Drying end.
16.5
points on 20
Depuis quelques millésimes, conséquence de la replantation de plusieurs parcelles de cabernets, Sociando s’appuie sur une proportion de merlots plus importante. Ce 2016 offre une sève superbe, avec une finesse et une suavité de tanins qui le rendent déjà irrésistible. Le fruit explose en bouche !
94
points on 100
Description
Jean Gautreau was born in April 1927 in Lesparre into a family who had nothing whatsoever to do with the wine industry. His father was an insurance agent. Jean was an accomplished athlete. He played football and tennis, even making it to the semi-finals of the Roland Garros Juniors competition at the age of 18.
He returned to Lesparre after his military service in Morocco and worked for the brokerage firm of Miailhe in 1948 at a time when business was very tough for the Bordeaux wine trade. Regularly in touch with leading merchants, Jean Gautreau, aged 21, clearly saw the enormous potential – especially in Africa – for sales of an inexpensive blend consisting of wine from the Gers department with deeply-coloured wines from the Northern Médoc. Taking advantage of this commercial opportunity, he decided to leave his job in 1950 to become an independent broker.
Seeing that the price of Bordeaux wine was heading inexorably upward, Jean Gautreau created his own négociant firm on 1st January 1957. He soon found customers in Belgium and the Netherlands and developed a flourishing trade in quality Bordeaux wines. He innovated by introducing the concept of mobile bottling units to provide château-bottled wines to his clients.
An excellent terroir
Sociando-Mallet has throned on the Butte de Baleyron, one of the finest gravelly terroirs in the Médoc, since the 17th century. Situated in the commune of Saint-Seurin-de-Cadourne, north of Pauillac, the vineyard overlooks the Gironde estuary on a bend in the river.
Sociando-Mallet's terroir consists of Günz gravel over a deep layer of clay-limestone soil. This terroir perfectly regulates water supply and enables Cabernet Sauvignon to ripen extremely well and Merlot to acquire depth and complexity. This terroir is Sociando's soul. It provides the wine with complex structure, freshness, and elegance.
An incredible know-how
The entire vineyard is harvested by hand into small crates by a team of 120 pickers. The bunches arrive at the cellar in perfect condition.Once brought to the cellar, the bunches are sorted by hand on a conveyor belt to eliminate matter other than grapes as well as any imperfect fruit. The grapes are then de-stemmed, gently crushed, and sent into the vats, making sure not to mix grape varieties or grapes from different plots.
This plot-by-plot selection means that each vat can be vinified in optimum conditions with a tailor-made process. Grapes from young vines or grown on a shallow layer of gravel produce La Demoiselle de Sociando-Mallet, the estate's second wine. Grapes from the finest terroirs produce the grand vin, and grapes from some other plots must wait until the first tastings to know which cuvée they will go into.
Technical sheet
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The producerChâteau Sociando-Mallet
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Type of wineNon Classified
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AppellationHaut-Médoc
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Superficy83 hectares
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Age of the vines35 years
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Harvests100% hand harvested
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Barrels50% of new barrels
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When should you drink it?Drink between 2023 and 2038
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Wine apogee2030
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How is it now?Drink now but can be aged longer
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Service temperature16.5-18°
Haut-Médoc
The clearing and enhancement of the Médoc only dates from the 16th and 17th centuries. The wines of this region are quickly known and their fame crosses borders.The appellation is recognized by the decree of November 14, 1936, updated in December 2011.
The soils are mainly composed of gravels, that is to say a mixture of gravels and sands, with nuances given the extent of the appellation area and the presence of a clay-limestone subsoil outcropping very marginally.
The soils are mainly composed of gravels, that is to say a mixture of gravels and sands, with nuances given the extent of the appellation area and the presence of a clay-limestone subsoil outcropping very marginally.