Le
Baron Marc Brincard, Château de la Bizolière (1880)
It
is difficult to ignore the influence the Brincard family has within the
appellation of Savennières, although they have not been involved directly
since the last vintage of Château de la Bizolière was produced in their
own cellar in 1982. The Château is a grand classical residence, based on
the Hôtel Particulier in Montmartre and sits in a fifty hectare park to
the rear of the plateau de Savennières. The park itself is influenced by
the Jardin des Tuileries in the centre of
Paris
and has at its centre a pond reflecting a span from the old Tuileries
Palace
that was destroyed by arsonists in 1871. The property was originally owned
by the Duboys d’Angers family, but came to the Brincards through
marriage. Baron Georges Brincard arrived here in 1880 and was largely
responsible for designing the aforementioned gardens. He was the
son-in-law of Henri Germain, the founder of Credit Lyonnais, becoming president of the bank himself during the 1920s. At the time of
Georges’s arrival, Bizolière laid claim to several hundred hectares of
land around the commune, including some 40 hectares of vineyards, and
although vines were replanted here after the phylloxera epidemic, they
were never to attain the same heritage again. The location of two parcels,
Clos de Roussel and Clos de Malabris which were known to exist through
specific cuvées in the late 1920s, appear to have fallen into disuse, or
at least are today known by different names.
Georges
was succeeded by his son, Baron Charley Brincard, who continued to produce
wine at their unpretentious earth-floored cellar situated in the very centre of the village
of Savennières
until 1982. The wines were aged in small barrels, under the guidance of
the cellar master, the quietly spoken Albert Giraud.
Today, the Chateau de la Bizolière is under the ownership of
Charley’s son, the Cambridge educated banker, Baron Marc Brincard who, along with his sister Madame
Vaulchier, is landlord to more than a dozen growers within the
appellation. Sadly the current Baron shows little interest in his tenants
or perpetuating the great legacy of the wines of Savennières.
The
Wines:
I have limited experience of these wines, but below is a recent note on
one wine that would have been made in the old cellar in the town. In
addition to table wine, the domaine also produced sparkling wine from
juice from its own vineyards and vinified by the sparkling wine firm of
Langlois-Château near Saumur during the late 1970s.
1999
Château de la Bizolière
This wine was produced and marketed by Château de Chamboureau. Polished.
Deep appearance with good Chenin expression. Authentic. Mature, showing
some white flower aromas. Mineral behind. Dry on entry. Good texture and
weight with richness and density. Linear acidity with good freshness with
a citrus zip. Approachable, but not yet fully mature. This is a very good
effort for the vintage and should hold. Elegant and refined. (04/09)
1976
Château de la Bizolière
Bright,
mid-full appearance. Youthful yellow/green hints. Some evolution to the
palate and shows some evidence of brettanomyces. Quiet and not very
expressive on the nose. Mid weight, tight and mineral palate. Some terpine
flavours. Quite gentle. Harmonious. Good length. Should hold. (06/04)
Back
to the list of Savennières producers
|