Chateau Caroline 2018, Moulis en Medoc Cru Bourgeois

Description

Chateau Caroline is a red wine from the Bordeaux region. It is bottled as a Moulis-en-Medoc and is the sister Chateau of Chateau Lestage and Chateau Fonreaud. It is a blend of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon.

The estate’s origins stretch back to the 17th century and the grand chateau, designed by Minvielle,  was built in 1870 by Charles de Saint Guirons. The estate is named Chateau Caroline after the granddaughter of Marcel Chanfreau who took over the property in 1963. Marcel and his son Leo were winemakers in North Africa who fell in love with the beautiful properties of Château Caroline and Château Lestage. The estate was run by the eponymous Caroline Chanfreau, her brother Jean and his wife Marie-Hélène for many years. In 2024 Caroline’s nephews Guillaume and Loic Chanfreau, Jean’s sons, bought Caroline out of the business and united all five of the family’s vineyards under one umbrella. These are Lestage, Fonréaud, Châteaux Chemin Royal and Caroline in Moulis-en-Medoc and Clos des Demoiselles in Listrac-Medoc. The estate practices sustainable methods in the vineyard with the greatest respect for the vines and their environment and is a member of Terra Vitis. Chateau Caroline comprises 9 hectares of vineyards and was previously part of the Chateau Lestage.

Moulis is the smallest of the 6 Medoc communes and is located to the south of Listrac (where Lestage is located) and Chateau Caroline is situated on the plateau of Bellevue, the highest point in the Medoc, which overlooks the town of Moulis itself. The soils here are clayey-limestone which is particularly good for growing Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. The wines of Moulis are generally quite full-bodied.

The vineyards of Chateau Caroline are planted with 62% Merlot and 38% Cabernet Sauvignon with an average age of 17 years old. During the harvest, different parcels of grapes are selected and vinified separately. After a gentle crushing and de-stemming, the wine is vinified in small, temperature-controlled vats which allows maximum control over the vinification process. After malaolactic fermentation the wine is aged for 12 months in oak barrels, racked every three months and fined with egg white. A third of the barrels are new with each vintage.

Approximately 50,000 bottles per vintage are produced.